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re: Better story: Cignetti or Orgeron?
Posted on 1/26/26 at 9:03 am to magildachunks
Posted on 1/26/26 at 9:03 am to magildachunks
Cignetti is a better coach and better perseverance story, but something has to be said for Ed O getting to live out every coonass's dream and leading LSU to the national championship with a top 3 all time team.
1
Posted on 1/26/26 at 9:33 am to magildachunks
Well one coach benefited from the NIL era. If all things were equal and Coach O can walk into a recruit household and offer him the type of money that's being thrown around today, it would be interesting for sure. Now with that being said, LSU with Kiffin is in a far better situation than previously.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 9:34 am to magildachunks
Op, I get what you are saying. Looks like I am the only one, lol. Two interesting stories for sure.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 9:55 am to JackDempsey
Both are incredible in all honesty. CEO recruited well, trusted his coaches and it led him to a title.
Cig built something out of nothing on pure skill and discipline at a place that does not win.
Cig built something out of nothing on pure skill and discipline at a place that does not win.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:16 am to magildachunks
quote:Eh, I think people give him credit for some things, but to your question, Cignetti is a better story mostly because in retrospect, Orgeron's seems more like luck than anything else. Cignetti has built several programs and I think most expect Indiana to be competitive as long as he is there. Orgeron is basically unemployable.
It's time you Rantards started giving the man his dues
Cignetti's story: guy grinds for years with little recognition and no one willing to give him a chance. He finally gets a chance late in life, at the worst football program in history, and wins a national championship a few years later.
Orgeron: bounces around as a position coach, flames out as a head coach, gets job as position coach/recruiter at LSU, undermines the frick out of head coach and gets the head job, has a couple of solid years, wins NC with GOAT team, can't replicate success, gets fired, is unemployable.
I think Cignetti wins.
This post was edited on 1/26/26 at 10:22 am
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:21 am to magildachunks
I despise orgeron, but his is the more compelling story.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:21 am to magildachunks
Cignetti, easily.
He's a football "lifer" who took the road less traveled, dropping down from major conference assistant to D-2 at 50 years old just so he could maybe get a major conf. HC job one day. He finally gets that job, at 62. But it's with one of, if not the worst, major conference programs (historically) in the nation. In just two seasons he wins the NC. I know that almost assuredly would not have been possible without the "legality" of NIL and freedom of player movement. But it's not like those options were only available to Indiana. He was just remarkably better at that game than everyone else.
Orgeron simply got lucky to be at the right program with the laziest AD in America. NO ONE but LSU would have hired O as their HC. He wasn't even Alleva's first or second choice. But for Alleva getting mad he was spurned by Herman, O doesn't become LSU's HC. And unlike Indiana, LSU was a national powerhouse at the time O got the job. One that was underachieving. O basically maintained the status quo in his first two seasons. For which he deserves credit. But 2019 was him catching lightening in a bottle by finding the exact right OC at the exact right time (with multiple future all pros on the roster). 2019 being a fluke for O was made perfectly clear the following season when the program fell to a decades low record once the OC (and DC) left.
He's a football "lifer" who took the road less traveled, dropping down from major conference assistant to D-2 at 50 years old just so he could maybe get a major conf. HC job one day. He finally gets that job, at 62. But it's with one of, if not the worst, major conference programs (historically) in the nation. In just two seasons he wins the NC. I know that almost assuredly would not have been possible without the "legality" of NIL and freedom of player movement. But it's not like those options were only available to Indiana. He was just remarkably better at that game than everyone else.
Orgeron simply got lucky to be at the right program with the laziest AD in America. NO ONE but LSU would have hired O as their HC. He wasn't even Alleva's first or second choice. But for Alleva getting mad he was spurned by Herman, O doesn't become LSU's HC. And unlike Indiana, LSU was a national powerhouse at the time O got the job. One that was underachieving. O basically maintained the status quo in his first two seasons. For which he deserves credit. But 2019 was him catching lightening in a bottle by finding the exact right OC at the exact right time (with multiple future all pros on the roster). 2019 being a fluke for O was made perfectly clear the following season when the program fell to a decades low record once the OC (and DC) left.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:22 am to lionward2014
quote:
something has to be said for Ed O getting to live out every coonass's dream and leading LSU to the national championship with a top 3 all time team.
Complete with fights at the fish camp and flaming out and taking your fortune down the road to Destin on the way out.
Like if I watched the movie I’d have a few laughs but say that it was bad writing and a pure caricature of a guy from south LA. The only thing that would have topped it off would have been if he had been working offshore when we decided to hire him.
But no. It’s real and actually happened.
As to OP the movie about Ed O would be a lot more fun but Cig is the better story because it’s a story not just of cignetti but also Indiana.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:26 am to magildachunks
Orgeron was a great recruiter, but terrible X’s and O’s guy.
He also was at LSU where the roster was regularly full of 4 and 5 star recruits. Indiana had no such advantage in recruiting. I still say 2019 LSU is the best college team ever assembled and O was the guy who put that roster together. But what Cignetti did at Indiana is nothing short of amazing and will have a movie about it someday.
He also was at LSU where the roster was regularly full of 4 and 5 star recruits. Indiana had no such advantage in recruiting. I still say 2019 LSU is the best college team ever assembled and O was the guy who put that roster together. But what Cignetti did at Indiana is nothing short of amazing and will have a movie about it someday.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:29 am to lsu777
quote:this is why Ed's story — an incredible high, then a supersonic fall from grace — is the better story..........better by just a whisker over Cignetti.
but can crash the frick out easily too
Posted on 1/26/26 at 10:36 am to Lakebound
quote:
this is why Ed's story — an incredible high, then a supersonic fall from grace — is the better story..........better by just a whisker over Cignetti.
Cignetti is a story of chip on the shoulder underdog overlooked pissed off excellence.
Orgeron is a drama, comedy, success and tragedy all rolled in to one. Kinda like Louisiana in general. Kinda one of those things you’re not sure if this is supposed to be a feel good story or a cautionary tale
This post was edited on 1/26/26 at 10:37 am
Posted on 1/26/26 at 11:56 am to magildachunks
I love Coach O. And will always appreciate him for 2019.
But it's not even close. LSU was already one of the top football programs in the nation. Indiana was historically the worst P4 school before Cignetti came along.
But it's not even close. LSU was already one of the top football programs in the nation. Indiana was historically the worst P4 school before Cignetti came along.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 11:58 am to magildachunks
Ogeron is unemployed, still begging for a job. Cignetti will maintain success, and has won everywhere he's been.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 12:25 pm to magildachunks
Had O’s story stopped in 2019 he might be in the conversation. Knowing he got canned a year and a half later for basically losing control of the program brings it down a bit
Posted on 1/26/26 at 1:49 pm to Tiger Prawn
quote:
Orgeron was a great recruiter
He was basically on USC's Dynasty staff to recruit (and Coach D-line)...even with enthusiastic Pete, Sark and Kiffin, Ed O was supposedly the man who got the 5 star horses in the Stable.
There's a reason Kiffin took him to Tennessee and took him back to USC.
There's also a reason he wasn't named permanent HC at USC (players loved him as they usually do their recruiter)... so its a nice story he got over the hump at LSU professionally-wise, but he was climbing a golden pathed hill compared to Cig's death zone Everest.
This post was edited on 1/26/26 at 1:50 pm
Posted on 1/26/26 at 3:04 pm to 0
quote:
Had O’s story stopped in 2019 he might be in the conversation. Knowing he got canned a year and a half later for basically losing control of the program brings it down a bit
The crashing and burning part actually makes it more interesting cinematically from a neutral perspective IMO.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 3:17 pm to magildachunks
No, his story isn't anywhere close to Cigs.
He went 11-11 after that magical year. At powerhouse LSU. So, yeah, he fell backwards into that year cause his record was .500 after. If you're a good to great coach, you don't fall off the cliff that badly.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 3:34 pm to magildachunks
One looks like he might beat you up if he’s drunk: the other looks like he would kill you when he’s sober. I’m sticking with Coach O. Cignetti scares me.
Posted on 1/26/26 at 3:52 pm to magildachunks
Surprised this is a serious question. Going into this season, Indiana had the most losses in FBS history, hadn't won a conference championship in almost 60 years, never had a Heisman trophy winner, and their seven blue-chips ranked behind the likes of BC and Purdue.
Indiana was the worst FBS program of all-time and had nine wins in three years post-COVID. They're now 27-2 in two years of Cignetti, including an undefeated National Championship.
Cignetti being a better story doesn't take away how good LSU was, but this should not be a contentious question.
Indiana was the worst FBS program of all-time and had nine wins in three years post-COVID. They're now 27-2 in two years of Cignetti, including an undefeated National Championship.
Cignetti being a better story doesn't take away how good LSU was, but this should not be a contentious question.
This post was edited on 1/26/26 at 3:53 pm
Posted on 1/26/26 at 6:50 pm to Tiger Prawn
quote:
But what Cignetti did at Indiana is nothing short of amazing and will have a movie about it someday.
I agree, what Cignetti did is nothing short of a miracle at INDIANA at that. But it would be fun to see what Coach O would have done if he could recruit with a shitload of money to hand out to recruits. Both Portal and High School. It would be very interesting for sure.
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