EVANSTON, Ill. — Shortly after Northwestern made the decision to fire longtime head coach Pat Fitzgerald, stemming from an investigation into hazing allegations, a report surfaced that Ed Orgeron, former national championship winning head coach at LSU, would be interested in the vacated role.
The report, which comes from InsideNU, clarifies the school has not reached out to the 61-year-old about their opening, and a follow up from The Athletic's Bruce Feldman refuted the initial report that Orgeron is interested in the job.
But, should Orgeron want to get back into coaching, it would make sense for the Wildcats to take a gamble on the longtime coach, who was the head man at LSU for six seasons during which he compiled a 51-20 record and four Bowl victories.
"He does look good in purple," Locked on Big 10 host Craig Shemon cracked. "On paper, Ed Orgeron looks really good. I think Orgeron is great for college football."
Orgeron has not been linked to many jobs since LSU fired him after the 2021 season, and his interest here is the source of conflicting reports at the moment.
Regardless, expectation is that Northwestern will name defensive coordinator David Braun the interim head coach.
Braun was the mastermind behind excellent North Dakota State teams at the FCS level, and he is considered a safer bet thanks to his relatively short time with the program so far, which means he isn't as connected to the hazing issue plaguing the program.
If Orgeron truly is interested in stepping back onto the field, the Wildcats will have to strongly consider bringing him on board. Otherwise, expect the team to wait until the end of the season to make their next permanent hire.