Ed Orgeron Dropped from LSU Sex Discrimination Lawsuit; Cited for Alleged Misconduct

Former LSU head coach Ed Orgeron was one of 14 people dropped from a lawsuit alleging LSU officials violated Title IX policies and failed to properly investigate sexual assault complaints.

"The judge asked to narrow our complaint down and we analyzed who the relevant parties were," said Karen Truszkowski, the attorney for the plaintiffs, to Koki Riley of the Lafayette Daily Advertiser. "From a legal perspective, there are certain people, entities that cannot necessarily be held responsible."

Five people are still listed as defendants in the suit.

Riley reported the lawsuit still cites Orgeron for alleged misconduct, with plaintiffs saying he failed to report an alleged rape he was notified of by LSU's Title IX office.

In November 2020, Kenny Jacoby, Nancy Armour and Jessica Luther first reported for USA Today that LSU personnel "repeatedly have ignored complaints against abusers, denied victims’ requests for protections and subjected them to further harm by known perpetrators."

LSU commissioned the law firm of Husch Blackwell to conduct an investigation. Husch Blackwell's report, which was released in March, laid out systemic failings by the school when it came to addressing sexual assault allegations.

Former Tigers running back Derrius Guice was mentioned in the USA Today investigation. The LSU athletic department received two separate allegations of Guice committing rape in 2016 and 2017. The USA Today report said university officials "either doubted the women’s stories, didn’t investigate, or didn’t call the police, allowing Guice to continue his football career."

Orgeron gave a statement to USA Today, saying the football program "takes any allegation very seriously" and reaches out to the Title IX office when necessary.

The allegations against Guice were also referenced in an August 2020 report by Jacoby and Armour.

The woman who first accused Guice of rape was dating an LSU football recruit who subsequently joined the team. The former player said Orgeron referenced the alleged assault about a year after it happened and told the player he shouldn't be too upset because, "Everybody’s girlfriend sleeps with other people."

Orgeron denied making the comment:

In October, LSU and Orgeron agreed to part ways following the conclusion of the 2021 season. Brian Kelly has succeeded him as the Tigers' head coach.