Love is in air at UT for Orgeron, recruiting

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ORLANDO, Fla. - Think Ed Orgeron is important to Tennessee's future success?

Just ask Monte Kiffin.

"It was huge," Kiffin said Friday shortly after being announced as UT's defensive coordinator. "(UT coach) Lane (Kiffin) kept saying 'The key, the key, the key is Ed Orgeron.' "

Securing one of the very best recruiters in the nation was worth repeating.

In many ways, Orgeron is UT's ultimate insurance policy in the great Lane Kiffin experiment. Let's theorize for a moment that Lane Kiffin doesn't work out as head coach, that he's more Raider than Trojan, and that his father just can't relate to college athletes after many years in the NFL.

Albeit unlikely, in that worst-case scenario UT would have to make a change in the near future. As long as the Vols recruit clean, expect UT to be loaded with talent for the next guy - thanks to Orgeron.

Now, look on the other end of the spectrum. Assume Kid Kiffin is more Mike Shanahan than Art Shell and that his father is all that he appears to be. Then, both Kiffins will need talent to go with all that coaching prowess. They'll have it - thanks to Orgeron.

Yet it wasn't just Orgeron who should have UT fans excited about the Vols' recruiting future. There's the vast experience that Monte Kiffin has and the young up-and-coming coach that is in charge of it all, Lane Kiffin.

That's what Orgeron is selling.

"Look at Lane Kiffin on offense, who has been an NFL head coach. Look at Monte Kiffin, who is the best defensive coordinator in the history of football," Orgeron said. "I think any good player would like to listen to that."

Indeed. But can Orgeron, with all of his recruiting prowess, make an impact in the month remaining in the construction of the 2009 class, or should UT fans be thinking about 2010?

"There's no question that we're going after the best players today," Orgeron said. "We also will set the standard in which we're going to recruit, which is going to be from early in the morning to late at night. We're going to be very concrete and very organized and go after the best players in America."

Darren Myles is one of those players UT will focus on. The safety from Carver High School in Atlanta was thinking Vols even before Orgeron was hired. An early phone call from Monte Kiffin had Myles listening.

"He told me I was the first recruit he called," said Myles, who is considering UT, Alabama, LSU, West Virginia and Ohio State.

Myles has his mind set to be the next Eric Berry.

"When I look at him, I kind of see myself," Myles said of Berry. "We're kind of the same. We like to hit, we're physical and we can cover."

Sounds like a Monte Kiffin type of player and an Orgeron type of recruit. Kiffin stepped out of a recruiting meeting Friday afternoon to share some more thoughts about Orgeron, who has starred as a recruiter during a championship run at Miami and Southern California and a rebuilding effort at Ole Miss.

"That's what we're meeting about right now," Kiffin said of the 2009 class. "This guy's awesome. He's unbelievable."

Even though he's been in the NFL, expect Orgeron to have a plan in place for UT. Much of that plan will center on Memphis, far too often the land of lost recruits for UT.

Star Memphis prospect Marlon Brown called the acquisition of Monte Kiffin and Orgeron "huge". Brown is impressed. UT fans should be as well.

Orgeron would have been big enough for UT's recruiting. So would a semi-retired Monte Kiffin. But as readily apparent in Friday's energetic press conference, Kiffin is far from ready to hang it up.

"You have to get players in, then coach them," Kiffin said. "Some get the players in then don't know how to coach them and then some don't know how to recruit."

That shouldn't be a problem for UT, at least based on the initial hires, which have its staff more than half complete.

Kiffin will have to adjust. When he last recruited, the recruiting calendar started in December, shortly after the season concluded. Now it's year round. But at least recruiters nowadays don't have to deal with the days of almost constant contact.

"With all the rules and regulations, it's easier now," Kiffin said. "Nothing compares to the old days. That's what I tell my son."

Recruiting-wise, nothing seems too hard for this staff. There's an affinity, if not a love, for recruiting that must be present to be great on National Signing Day on Feb. 4.

"I love everything from A to Z," Orgeron said of recruiting. "I like the people. I like the grind. I like the evaluation, the challenge to see something in a young man that maybe someone else doesn't see."

Dave Hooker covers recruiting. He can be reached at hookerd@knoxnews.com.

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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