Orgeron, Strong should start fast
LSU coach has best situation among 21 new hires
Not every first-year coach will have a start quite like Southern California’s Clay Helton, who in the span of his debut campaign went from maligned — see the Trojans’ sour September — to beloved, thanks to a torrid close to the regular season and a joyous romp through national signing day.
For every Helton, there’s a Lovie Smith, who lost nine games in his first go-round at Illinois. Not every coach walks into a great situation, in other words.
There will be 21 new head coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2017, including LSU’s Ed Orgeron, the Tigers’ post-Les Miles interim coach last fall before being promoted to the top spot. In this week’s top 10 list, let’s attempt to identify the answer to a question: Which first-year coach is walking into
the best situation?
To define “best situation,” consider which new coaches take over a quick-flip program — one in which the pieces are in place to immediately hit the ground running. Here are the top five:
1. ED ORGERON, LSU
There’s always Alabama, Auburn and the rest of the Southeastern Conference’s West Division, and nothing will come easy. But will a new and energetic voice, another year with defensive coordinator Dave Aranda and the arrival of a top-flight offensive coordinator in Matt Canada spell a return to the top of the division for LSU? It’s Alabama’s division and conference to lose, but you have to like where the Tigers stand.
2. CHARLIE STRONG, SOUTH FLORIDA
After an ineffective three-year run at Texas, Strong finds himself back in familiar territory — recruiting the fertile grounds of Florida — and in an enviable spot, as the new director of a team fresh off a 10-win season. While matching last year’s win total might be a slight stretch, the Bulls’ returning personnel will mesh well with Strong ’s schemes on offense and defense.
3. GEOFF COLLINS, TEMPLE
Temple is built to win today. Better yet, the Owls’ potential weak link — another changing cast on defense — fits Collins’ back- ground as a defensive technician, potentially helping the team maintain its recent ways and contend for another divisional title.
4. MIKE SANFORD, WESTERN KENTUCKY
Sanford seems destined to follow in the footsteps of his three predecessors — Willie Taggart, Bobby Petrino and Jeff Brohm — and parlay a fruitful run at Western Kentucky into a more high-profile position. Whether he can make waves in 2017 might hinge on the answers to two questions: whether he can find new fits at running back and wide receiver and whether the new staff can maintain the Hilltoppers’ underrated effectiveness on defense.
5. WILLIE TAGGART, OREGON
It’s been an ugly start for Taggart, as a number of off-field controversies have exhausted some of the goodwill he carried into his first days as Mark Helfrich’s successor. The clouds might linger through the offseason, but there’s good news on the horizon: Taggart’s a great fit at Oregon in the long term and a solid hire in the near future, meaning the Ducks should take a nice leap from last year’s four-win finish and challenge for the top spot in the Pac-12 North Division.