Former Ole Miss coach Ed Orgeron has commented on Oxford's negative reputation among recruits, echoing Lane Kiffin's recent accusations. He highlighted the historical stigma of racism but noted that players have succeeded despite these challenges.
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Another former Ole Miss Rebels football coach is stirring the pot on Oxfordâs reputation with recruits originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Former Ole Miss Rebels football coach Ed Orgeron has added more fuel to the fire about Oxford, Mississippiâs problematic reputation among some recruits this week, not long after Lane Kiffinâs bombshell accusations in a now-infamous Vanity Fair article were published.
Orgeron, who, like Kiffin, was at Ole Miss before landing with the LSU Tigers later in his career, talked about the âstigmaâ surrounding The Grove during a conversation with WWL's Mike Detillier.
"I mean, they had a history there of, you know, racism and Colonel Reb, but you know what, when we got there, the kids that we had were treated good and they had success, but we did face it in recruiting and they still have that stigma, but look, they overcame it. They got some great players. Theyâve had success, graduated, went on to the NFL,â Orgeron said.
Ed Orgeron mentioned the historical stigma of racism in Oxford but acknowledged that players have succeeded despite these challenges.
Lane Kiffin's Vanity Fair article made bombshell accusations about Oxford's reputation, which Orgeron referenced in his recent comments.
Recruits face a stigma related to Oxford's history, particularly concerning racism, which has impacted recruitment efforts.
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While nowhere near as biting as the comments Kiffin made, Orgeronâs statements come off as a pile-on. Kiffinâs comments were quickly followed by an attack on the University of Mississippiâs academics by Texas Longhorns football coach Steve Sarkisian.
Itâs been a bad week for the Rebels. Hell, itâs the kind of week that feels like it could be followed up with momentum towards a removal of the âRebelsâ name altogether. Ole Miss has been moving away from confederate-era symbols like Colonel Reb, in 2003, Rebel the Black Bear, in 2018, and even the teamâs official flag, which was changed in 2015. The momentum from that eventually led to the stateâs flag changing in 2020.
Of course, it has to be said that these coaches seemed to have collectively decided to bring this all up at the same time. Orgeron had an unsuccessful run coaching the Rebels, going 10-25 from 2005 to 2007. He won a title at LSU in 2020.
Thatâs not the full context of why he talked about the teamâs âstigman,â but itâs worth noting that Orgeron has shown an interest in joining Kiffinâs coaching staff.