Ed Orgeron looking to spend season with family in Louisiana
You're not going to see former Ole Miss and USC coach Ed Orgeron coaching anywhere this year and it's just fine with him.
Orgeron is spending the year with his family in Louisiana. He finished 2013 as USC's interim coach, but wasn't chosen for the job and the Trojans hired former USC assistant Steve Sarkisian.
“When (Orgeron's family) weren’t at the games, it was a very empty feeling,” Orgeron told NOLA.com. “Going into the stadium, I always wanted them to be at the games. So, when they weren’t there, it was lonely.”
He spent the past five years away from his family. When he was fired as Ole Miss coach in 2007, he coached for a season with the New Orleans Saints. His family moved to Louisiana and when Orgeron took a job with Lane Kiffin at Tennessee, they stayed behind while he went to coach in Knoxville.
The arrangement continued while Orgeron went with Kiffin to USC. After serving as Kiffin's assistant, he was promoted to interim coach after the Trojans lost to Arizona State. During his tenure in charge at USC, Orgeron lightened the mood, allowing dessert for the players and even bringing in In-N-Out during a meeting.
And after disappointing early in the season, USC upset Stanford at home and Orgeron led them to the Las Vegas Bowl. It wasn't enough for Orgeron, who had expressed desire to keep his job at USC, to stay permanently in the same capacity, however. After Sarkisian was hired before the bowl game, Orgeron resigned.
USC said it was open to Orgeron returning as an assistant, but that never materialized. Now, he's fully preparing to take the year off and enjoy the time with his three teenage sons and go to their fall sporting events; things he hasn't been able to do while coaching.
And he doesn't think the year off will hurt him when he wants to jump back in, either. It's a refreshing attitude for a man who could have easily gone somewhere and coached this season. But instead, similar to Iowa's former recruiting coordinator, he's putting family first.
“I think we’re in a good position because we’re about to see what jobs come open,” Orgeron said. “If there is interest in me becoming a head coach, that’s obviously an advantage. I’m not opposed to going back to college and being a defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator, and I’m not opposed to going to the NFL. I’m young (53) and I think things will work out for a reason.”
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
