Two months ago when USC athletic director Pat Haden fired his football coach Lane Kiffin not too many people paid that much attention to defensive line coach Ed Orgeron being named as the team’s interim head coach. As soon as Kiffin was fired by USC there has been a ton of speculation that the school is looking to peg either Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio or Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin to be the next head coach in Los Angeles. But Orgeron is making a case for himself to be USC’s head football coach in 2014.
At previous stops during his college coaching career which included time as an assistant with
Miami, Tennessee, and previously USC, Orgeron has always been known as a
tremendous recruiter. In three seasons as the head coach at Ole Miss,
Oregeron only compiled a record of 10-25, but he is making the most of his
current opportunity in Los Angeles. The players have really rallied around the man that they refer to as “Coach O”.
In four of Orgeron’s five games as interim head coach the Trojans have won the time of possession battle in four of those games and they have also been the first team to score in four of those contests. Prior to this season USC hadn’t won in Corvallis, Oregon against Oregon State since 2004, but two weeks ago Orgeron and the Trojans were able to go there and defeat the Beavers 31-14. In the process USC’s defense was able to force Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion into throwing three interceptions as he has been one of the best quarterbacks in the nation this season. Last week against California it was the big play that propelled USC to a victory. Wide receiver Nelson Agholor returned two punts for touchdowns while USC had six touchdowns of 20 yards or more as they demolished Cal 62-28.
With last Saturday’s victory the Trojans are now bowl eligible for the second consecutive season, but they not hoping to return to the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas. The moniker every season at Heritage Hall in Los Angeles has been making the Rose Bowl as USC has been there 32 times which is more than any other team in college football.
The Trojans still have a legitimate shot to be in Pasadena on New Year’s Day, but the journey starts tonight as they host Stanford. USC hasn’t defeated Stanford since 2008. The Cardinal are currently ranked 4th in the BCS standings as they have their sights set on playing for the national championship. After being blown out by Arizona State there were people that didn’t expect the Trojans to have an opportunity to still win the Pac-12 South this late in the season, but Orgeron has righted the ship. In order to win the Pac-12 South, USC still needs Arizona State to lose two out of their final three games. If Orgeron is at able to win the Pac-12 South it will also mean that USC would have defeated UCLA which will make the decision that much harder for Haden to pick a head coach for this team in 2014.
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