A year ago in Atlanta, it was as though you could see the end of the Ed Orgeron era at LSU from Southeastern Conference media days.

Orgeron went a respectable 15-6 in his first season-plus as LSU’s coach, including a 6-2 stint as interim coach in 2016.

But the memory of his woeful three-year tenure at Ole Miss, plus the permanent stain of that 2017 loss to Troy, were anchors dragging his reputation down.