All the changes that have come in recent years in college football, from relaxed transfer rules to NIL deals and the ease of opting out and turning pro have made it difficult for college coaches at times.

LSU coach Ed Orgeron felt the bite of those issues and will not return to the team after this season’s conclusion, the school announced Sunday. Local high school coaches who’ve dealt with Orgeron over the years know the pressures he faced.

“I think Coach O did a hell of a job at LSU,” Westgate High coach Ryan Antoine said. “That was probably the best college team ever to play that year they won the national championship (for the 2019 season).

“I’ve always had a good relationship with him when he recruited our kids, even when he was at other schools. He always cared about those guys. I just think it’s unfortunate that there’s a lot of pressure put on guys in the coaching profession in general, but definitely on a guy in Coach O’s situation.”

Highland Baptist coach Rick Hutson said he was surprised by the timing of the announcement, both in the middle of the season and right after a big win over Florida.

“LSU’s one of the best jobs when you’re winning and one of the worst jobs when you’re losing,” Hutson said. “When you just step back and look at it, just two years ago (he’s) at the pinnacle of the coaching profession, and (LSU) had the best season probably you’ll ever see any college football team have, so a year and a half later to be making an announcement like that, it’s just kind of surreal.”

College coaches have to manage players with a lot of different personalities, Antoine said, and their jobs are in the hands of 18- to 21-year-olds for the most part.

“Now with this NIL deal and guys can opt out and go pro, and they’ve got a lot of different things going on,” Antoine said. “That’s a tough thing to do. He played Florida this past week with a lot of guys out (LSU lost several starters to injury in the two weeks before the game)and still managed to win the game. He kept those guys motivated and he kept those guys inspired. He did a great job. Hopefully they can find somebody else who can try to match that energy and lead the program.”

Transfer rules also make it more difficult to maintain a program.

“Kids can just leave whenever they want,” Antoine said. “If they don’t like what you tell them one day or whatever, then all of a sudden that kid’s in the (transfer) portal. College ball has made it to where these kids don’t have to deal with things and stick with things or make true commitments. That’s the tough part about it. But that’s where we are as a college profession or sports in general. Kids don’t have to go through things and learn how to work through things and value the effort of hard work. They’re able to get out and go somewhere else and just transfer. Coaches are always put in a bad situation because their jobs are hinging upon these kids wanting to do certain things, and if you say the wrong things or make a kid mad or lose the wrong game, everybody wants your neck. Things sometimes just don’t fall your way and you lose sometimes.”

COVID was another big factor, Hutson noted. Many players opted out to go to the NFL early, but some opted out because of the COVID situation.

“High school football’s been crazy, but college football has been probably a little bit more crazy, because you have so many kids, and that’s totally out of the coach’s control,” Hutson said. “It just shows you the precarious nature of being at a place like LSU or Notre Dame or wherever, that’s a perennial top 20 power.”

There are so many factors in why a team like LSU would be struggling, including injuries, Hutson said, that it’s impossible for him to know all of the reasons for the decision the school made.

“I guess the only thing that upsets me is when you hear all these people give a real simple explanation, and I just think it’s a really complex last 18 months with a ton of factors, and to say something like ‘It’s just this’ I think is definitely an oversimplification.”

One of LSU’s injured players lost for the season is Westgate alum Kayshon Boutte. Antoine said he knows Boutte will be back playing hard next season.

“Kayshon’s going to be fine,” he said. “The training staff they have at LSU is second to none. Kayshon right now’s in good spirits. He just has to come back from some adversity and just keep working. He’ll be ready for next year if everything else goes right and just be ready to play for whoever’s the coach. Kayshon’s going to compete. Kayshon’s going to play. I don’t think he really gets caught up in who does what, he just wants to play football.”