HOOVER, Ala. – Going from an undefeated national championship season in 2019 to a 5-5 record a year ago that included a self-imposed postseason ban would reflect that LSU football is in free-fall mode under coach Ed Orgeron.
Orgeron sees it as more of a temporary roller-coaster ride, with his Tigers primed to make a rapid run back to the top.
“Obviously, you come off the 2019 season and you’re feeling good because you had a great season, and all of a sudden, stuff hits,” Orgeron said Monday as SEC Media Days opened at the Wynfrey Hotel. “But, you know, that’s life. You’ve got to be prepared. I think that some of the stuff we were prepared for and some of the stuff we weren’t, but we stuck together. As an administrative staff and as a staff, we fought through it.
“I think that shows when you go to Florida and you’re a 27-point underdog and your back is against the wall and you have a freshman quarterback, but you beat them in The Swamp. You also beat a great Ole Miss team. I think that was an outstanding team that Lane (Kiffin) had, and then you have the No. 3 recruiting class, and 19 of your 22 starters decide to come back.”
LSU is indeed poised for an impressive rebound, especially having lost to Alabama and Auburn by a combined 75 points, but will a turbulent offseason bleed into a new year that begins Sept. 4 with a showdown at UCLA? Late last month, Orgeron was added as a defendant to a Title IX lawsuit claiming he failed to report a rape allegation against former running back Derrius Guice.