LSU Football: Is there a scenario where Ed Orgeron isn’t fired?

The weekend started with the possibility that LSU football could fire Ed Orgeron if the Tigers lost to the Florida Gators.

Instead, LSU outscored Florida while securing a 49-42 win in Baton Rouge.

The win brings the Tigers’ record on the season to 4-3 — the same record as Florida.

While Orgeron is still firmly on the hot seat at LSU, the win over Florida does bring up an interesting question.

Is there a scenario where Orgeron isn’t fired at the end of the season?

Could LSU football keep Ed Orgeron?

LSU still has a shot at finishing the season with a 9-3 record. Maybe 10-3 if they win a bowl game.

While that’s unlikely (games against Ole Miss, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas A&M loom large), it’s still possible.

Orgeron has a history of getting his teams to rally together when faced with adversity. He’s done it twice as an interim head coach (at USC and LSU) and he did it last season when a lot of folks thought the Tigers were about to finish 3-7 (LSU finished 5-5 after finishing the season with back-to-back wins against Florida and Ole Miss).

If LSU somehow finishes 10-3, it would be a huge improvement over the 2020 season.

10-3 was considered by many folks — including myself — to be the best-case scenario for the Tigers this season.

We just all thought it would come in a very different way (losses to Florida, Ole Miss, and Alabama instead of losses to UCLA, Kentucky, and Auburn).

I don’t think you can fire Orgeron if the Tigers run the table.

And really, even if they finish 8-4 with a loss to Alabama, I think it could be tough — especially with all the injuries LSU has dealt with this season.

Tigers athletic director Scott Woodward is in a tough spot. Orgeron has a lot of flaws. His assistant coaching hires the past couple of years have been suspect at best. He’s had some off-field distractions (the ongoing Title IX lawsuit in which Orgeron is a defendant), and his teams seem to fade for weeks at a time. But somehow, Orgeron manages to rally the troops and finish strong.

Of course, it’s unlikely that this scenario even plays out. The Tigers don’t have much depth right now. Ole Miss, Alabama, and Texas A&M will present a greater challenge than Florida.

But if somehow a miracle happens and LSU wins out, Woodward will have to make a decision that will likely result in a split of the fan base.