The main reason recruiting is so easy for Ed Orgeron and LSU football

LSU football is one of the hottest programs in the nation on the recruiting trail.

LSU football has always been able to recruit well.

But under Ed Orgeron, recruiting is getting even better. The Tigers are appealing to more highly touted recruits on a national level.

One reason is that Coach O has always been a great recruiter. When Orgeron was at USC and Miami he was well-known as an assistant who could close the deal with top recruits. That’s part of the reason that Ole Miss hired him to be their head coach in 2005. And it’s one of the reasons Lane Kiffin was insistent on bringing Orgeron to Tennessee in 2009 (and then back to USC in 2010).

But Orgeron’s individual ability as a recruiter isn’t the only reason the Tigers are elite when it comes to recruiting.

There’s something far more simple that is making a huge difference.

LSU football can sell what not many other programs can

When I say that LSU is recruiting at a high level because they won a national championship last season, it will probably elicit a “duh” response.

And it should. It’s obvious that’s why the Tigers are recruiting well.

But it’s the way Coach O phrased it on Tuesday morning that resonated with me.

During an appearance on 104.5’s Off the Bench on Tuesday, Orgeron discussed quarterback recruiting and why LSU’s had success landing talented quarterbacks.

“The thing that helps us with these quarterbacks is they’ve seen that championship season…..We don’t have to go into these homes and sell something they haven’t seen.”

There are only a handful of programs in the nation that can sell what LSU is selling. Alabama and Clemson are the only other programs that have the same recruiting pitch.

Those are the only three programs in the nation that have a head coach that’s won a championship at their current school.

Now, imagine going up against that on the recruiting trail.

Georgia, Oklahoma, and Notre Dame (and even Ohio State, a program that’s hired a new head coach since their championship in 2014) have all been on the cusp of winning a championship in recent years.

Those programs are selling a vision of winning a championship to recruits.

LSU, however, has done it. Orgeron and his staff don’t have to sell the vision. They can just roll the tape and show recruits what’s possible in Baton Rouge with the current staff.

That’s why LSU pretty much has their pick of recruits at this point. And it’s why the Tigers are going to continue to be a force in college football for the foreseeable future.