Geaux Tigahs, again: Ed Orgeron returns to LSU, joining Lane Kiffin’s chaos crew on the Bayou

He led the Tigers to a national championship in 2019 after six years as head coach. Ed Orgeron Lane is returning to LSU to join Kiffin’s staff.

Sometimes college football creates some of the craziest marriages you can imagine. This latest move by the Tigers is sure to create excitement in the Bayou.

After spending the past few years out of the game and giving us many hilarious moments, the stars have aligned as before. head coach will return to LSU After being released by former athletic director Scott Woodward in 2021.

ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. GET THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!

But with his firing came a massive $17.1 million buyout, which Orgeron happily walked out the door with a national title in his back pocket.

Now, he’s returning to the building as Kiffin’s “special assistant overall and defensively,” which will also put him on the recruiting trail thanks to a rule the NCAA has adopted in recent years.

“I am excited to welcome Coach Orgeron back to LSU,” Kiffin said. “He brings tremendous value to us with his ability to recruit elite players from across the country and especially the impact he can have on us recruiting the great state of Louisiana. Coach O understands my expectations and my commitment to being a championship program. I look forward to seeing him hard working with new players and our linebackers.”

How will the former LSU coach adapt to the new era in college athletics while players are legally paid?

“It’s a small change. Back then we used to go in the back door with money, now we only have to go through the front door with cash. It’s a joke for sure,” Orgeron said with a laugh. Bussin’ with the boys.

Reuniting the band in Baton Rouge

Coach O and Lane are clearly no strangers, as Kiffin lured him away from the NFL when he accepted the job at Tennessee in 2009. After Kiffin accepted the USC job just a year after his arrival in Knoxville, Orgeron followed him to Los Angeles, where he once again coached on the defensive side of the ball.

OLE MISS COACH LANE KIFFIN JOKES THANKS ESPN HOST FOR PLAYING A ROLE IN USC FIRINGS: ‘WE ARE GRATEFUL TO YOU, PAUL’

“I was like the No. 2 head coach on the roster. The reason I came back with him was because he and I were tight at USC,” Ed Orgeron said.Bussin’ with the boys last year. “He was a young coach, but he was a great recruiter, a great evaluator. He had a bright future ahead of him. I went to work with his dad, Monte Kiffin. That’s the reason I went to Tennessee.”

“Then the USC job opens up. Look, there’s nothing wrong with Tennessee, but look, USC, we were there and Tennessee is a little different. I believe if we had stayed in Tennessee, we would have won the SEC East and played in the championship for years to come. We were doing a tremendous job there, recruiting tremendously.”

Assistant head coach Ed Orgeron and Tennessee Volunteers defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin watch the game against the UCLA Bruins at Neyland Stadium on September 12, 2009 in Knoxville, Tennessee. UCLA defeated Tennessee 19-15. (Joe Murphy/Getty Images)

Now, years later and after coaching against each other in 2020 when they were both head coaches at Ole Miss and LSU, the two will reunite in what should be an interesting time on the Tigers campus.

In addition to Orgeron, it was former colleague Tee Martin who accepted a position on Lane Kiffin’s staff at LSU; this now looks like a big reunion from the USC days.

Obviously, this will create a stir and a series of callbacks to their days coaching together at Tennessee and USC, where drama followed the duo.

Lane Kiffin speaks during his introductory press conference as head coach of the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La., on Dec. 1, 2025. (Gus Stark/LSU/University Images)

But it’s hard to underestimate what Orgeron can do with his years of experience in the recruiting process and on the defensive side of the ball.

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION

Just when you thought the Kiffin experience at the Bayou couldn’t get any crazier, along comes he and he hires one of the most polarizing names in college football history.

No matter how this chapter ends, it’s going to be a fun tenure in Baton Rouge for Lane Kiffin.