Did Orgeron really assign Amite to Matt Canada??

An area that's a hotbed for football talent and you assigned it to the guy who does not recruit?


LSU jumped into the mix for Sopsher last October, a move made soon after Ed Orgeron replaced Les Miles as the Tigers’ head coach on an interim basis. Since taking over as the permanent coach, Orgeron has been able to lure Sopsher to campus a handful of times this spring, including a personal unofficial visit the weekend after “Boys From The Boot” and a return stop for the Tigers’ spring game in April.

Orgeron remains a key cog in Sopsher’s recruitment to LSU. The 6-foot-5, 280-pound defensive lineman made that clear earlier in the spring. However, the Tigers sit behind a handful of SEC rivals and other national powers in the race for Sopsher.

“Alabama, Oregon, Florida State, Auburn and Ole Miss,” Sopsher told SEC Country, when asked about his leading schools.
The absence of LSU was a head-scratcher, to say the least. Why didn’t the Tigers crack the top group of schools?

“Better communication,” he explained. “The communication has been good, but it’s been on and off. I think it could be better. We just need to start communicating better.”

While Orgeron is playing a role in Sopsher’s recruitment, offensive coordinator Matt Canada has been handed Tangipahoa Parish as his recruiting territory. Canada visited Amite (La.) High School to check on Sopsher and fellow 2019 5-star Devonta Lee during the NCAA’s Evaluation Period in May.

Canada’s message to Sopsher focused on his grades, which was one of the points emphasized to the 5-star lineman when he unofficially visited LSU earlier in the spring and also met with Orgeron.

“He’s a good dude,” Sopsher said of Canada. “He’s the offensive coordinator, but he seems cool to me. We talk about football and about academics, and he’s been telling me that academics come first. I’m a student-athlete first before football, because life after football, you’ll need your intelligence to move forward.”

While LSU trails a handful of other notable programs for Sopsher now, there are some positives. The fact that the elite in-state prospect has visited Baton Rouge twice this spring is encouraging for the Tigers’ chances. Now, it’s a matter of improving communication between Sopsher and Canada.

Consider Orgeron an integral component in this puzzle. Sopsher’s relationship with Orgeron dates back to the defensive lineman’s eighth-grade year. Orgeron used to recruit Tangipahoa Parish for the Tigers, and that longstanding bond has kept LSU alive in the race for the state’s No. 1 recruit.

“At the spring game, they were doing good. I liked how the defensive linemen get off the ball and how Coach O is working with them to get better,” said Sopsher. “I’ve been knowing Coach O since the eighth grade. I think LSU did a good job by naming him the head coach. He’s a good coach and he has a lot of experience, and I’ll be watching the defense [this season].”