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Tommie Robinson On Leaving USC For LSU: ‘Most Fun I’ve Ever Had Coaching Was With Orgeron’
Tommie Robinson discussed his reasoning for leaving USC to coach running backs at LSU, and by his own admission Ed Orgeron was the main draw in Baton Rouge.
February 10, 2017
Tommie Robinson discussed his reasoning for leaving USC to coach running backs at LSU, and by his own admission Ed Orgeron was the main draw in Baton Rouge.
Earlier this week LSU football hired Tommie Robinson away from USC to become the Tigers’ new running backs coach and recruiting coordinator. And while the prospect of coaching All-SEC First Team running back Derrius Guice undoubtedly played into his decision, during his introductory press conference Robinson admitted that the real draw was Ed Orgeron.
“At the end of the day, it was all about him [Orgeron],” Robinson said. “He is a true friend of mine. I’ve been coaching football almost 32 years now and in 2013 I had the most fun I’ve ever had coaching football. And that was with coach Orgeron.
“At the end of the day, the sell was Ed Orgeron.”
On the recruiting front, Robinson is jumping firmly into the deep end of the pool. When Orgeron fired Dameyune Craig and New Orleans native Jabbar Juluke 24 hours after National Signing Day, the move ruffled feathers in the local recruiting sphere. A group of New Orleans-based high school coaches met to determine whether or not to boycott LSU, ultimately deciding that the sanction would harm their players more than the university. Still, their discontent has been noted, and it’s up to Robinson and his fellow staffers to calm the waters.
Robinson has a 3-year deal in place that will play $575,000 in Year 1 and then escalate to $600,000 over the following two years.
