Ed Orgeron Won’t Return to LSU in 2022, Will Finish Season With Tigers

Ed Orgeron’s time at LSU will come to an end after the 2021 season.

LSU head coach Ed Orgeron will not return to the program in 2022, athletic director Scott Woodward announced Sunday. 

Orgeron will complete the 2021 season with the Tigers. He will receive his entire contract buyout, which is "roughly $16.9 million," per Sports Illustrated's Ross Dellenger. Orgeron led LSU to the national championship in 2019, but the Tigers have struggled of late, posting a 9–8 record since 2020.

"We have very high standards for all our sports programs at LSU, and we will stand proudly behind our expectations of competing for SEC and national championships," Woodward said in a statement Sunday. "Our last two seasons have simply not met those standards."

A Letter from Scott Woodward, LSU's Director of Athletics pic.twitter.com/eVGmqqIRbK

— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) October 17, 2021

#LSU is holding a team meeting at 6 pm CT to announce the news about Ed Orgeron, sources tell @SINow.

As part of the separation agreement "without cause," Orgeron is due his entire contracted buyout of roughly $16.9 million, sources say.

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) October 17, 2021

Orgeron, 60, is 49–17 in his time at LSU, including the national championship victory led by quarterback Joe Burrow. LSU went just 5–5 in last year's pandemic-shortened season, and the Tigers advanced to 4–3 in 2021 on Saturday with a 49–42 win over Florida. 

Orgeron drew criticism during his tenure at LSU for failing to properly report allegations of sexual misconduct against players within the Tigers program. He was added as a defendant in a Title IX lawsuit against LSU in June, which alleged that Orgeron knew about and failed to report the alleged rape of a student by former running back Derrius Guice.

Orgeron did not testify after being added as a defendant. He did release a statement, noting Guice's instances of sexual assault and misconduct were "utterly unacceptable."