Ed Orgeron shares incredible story about recruiting Adrian Peterson while at USC
By Adam Spencer
Published:
Ed Orgeron was an assistant on Pete Carroll’s staff at USC back when star RB Adrian Peterson was a top recruit.
Coach O really wanted to get Peterson to Los Angeles, but of course, the future NFL star wound up at Oklahoma instead.
Coach O appeared on the “Dan Patrick Show” this week and shared an incredible story about how far he was willing to go to try to get Peterson to USC:
This Adrian Peterson recruiting story from Coach O is some of the wildest stuff I’ve ever heard pic.twitter.com/HEHvTIfYDl
— Chase Snyder (@ChasingSnyder) February 11, 2022
“This is a true story,” Orgeron says. “We go down to see Adrian, me and Pete. His mother ran track … wonderful lady. Adrian and I had a great relationship. He loved Pete Carroll. I felt like he and I were very tight. One time, he says, ‘Coach, I want you to follow me.’ I couldn’t drive him. We went 30 miles, I didn’t know where we were going, to stop at this little country store. He bought this gingerbread cookie, I couldn’t buy it for him, for supper. Then we went to a basketball game and sat in the gym and I said, ‘What are we doing?’ He said, ‘See that guard out there? I have to play him next week. Coach wanted me to scout him.’
“Then I said, ‘Adrian, what is the key to getting you here at USC?’ He says, ‘Coach, well, my dad’s incarcerated, Bob Stoops went to see him.’ Well, me and Pete Carroll tried to go see him. They wouldn’t let us in. But Adrian said, ‘Coach, my dad will be able to watch my games, where he’s at, if I go to Oklahoma.’ I tried to get the guy transferred to Los Angeles.”
Trying to get a recruit’s dad transferred to a closer prison? College football recruiting is crazy, y’all!
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
