LSU Football: Who takes over if Ed Orgeron is forced to miss a game in 2020?

LSU football, along with the rest of college football, will face plenty of challenges in 2020.

The 2020 season is going to be a strange one for LSU football and the rest of the country.

Already, the season is starting a few weeks late, due to COVID-19 concerns/protocols.

There will be no non-conference games. It’s a 10 game conference-only schedule for the Tigers and the rest of the SEC.

But that’s only the beginning of the weirdness.

Players, and coaches, will be tested for COVID-19 throughout the season. Any positive tests could lead to multiple players, or coaches, being out (due either to catching the virus or contact tracing).

We know what happens if a player is forced to miss time. It’s simply the next man up.

But what if a coach has to miss time? Specifically, what if LSU head coach Ed Orgeron has to miss a game? Who takes over?

The options to fill in for LSU football head coach Ed Orgeron

If Coach O is forced to miss a game because of COVID-19, the Tigers will obviously need a plan to place to proceed with the game.

LSU is fortunate enough to have several options.

Defensive coordinator Bo Pelini is the obvious choice. Pelini has extensive head coaching experience at Nebraska and Youngstown State.

Another choice is passing game coordinator Scott Linehan, who was the head coach for the St. Louis Rams for three seasons.

There’s wide receivers coach Mickey Joseph, who is the assistant head coach for the Tigers. And there’s also special teams coordinator Greg McMahon. Special team coordinators are popular choices to serve as interim head coaches because it allows the defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator to resume duties as normal.

(By the way, I don’t think offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger would be considered because LSU would probably want him to stick to calling plays.)

I think it’s probably wise to go with the obvious choice here. Pelini has more experience than anyone else on staff. And he could still call defensive plays and be the head coach (which is somewhat common in college football).

Ultimately, the hope is that LSU doesn’t end up in this situation. But it’s always best to have a plan in case it happens. And I think the best plan would be to go with Pelini.