MISSISSIPPI NAMES ORGERON NEW COACH.

Byline: - Scott Wolf

USC defensive line coach Ed Orgeron, the last holdover from the Paul Hackett era, was hired by Mississippi to be its head coach on Wednesday.

Orgeron, 43, received the job offer Wednesday morning after San Francisco 49ers coach Dennis Erickson withdrew from consideration. He had been at USC since 1998 and also served as the Trojans' recruiting coordinator and associate head coach. He will remain with USC through the Orange Bowl, then depart for Mississippi.

``I think it's a fantastic accomplishment for Ed,'' USC coach Pete Carroll said. ``He won them over with his passion. He's been instrumental here from the beginning. He's been a big part of this program.

``I gave him a tremendous amount of responsibility. We'll miss him.''

Orgeron will continue to handle some recruiting responsibilities for USC, although the NCAA dead period for recruiting is Dec. 20-Jan. 1, which makes his departure less of an immediate issue.

Carroll went through a similar situation last year, when linebackers coach Nick Holt became the coach at Idaho but remained at USC through the Rose Bowl.

``I've got a good handle on how it works,'' Carroll said.

Orgeron flew to Mississippi on Wednesday and his booming voice and Cajun drawl were already missed by some players.

``How quiet was it?'' defensive tackle Shaun Cody said. ``I talked about it with Mike Patterson. It's a little different. Some of the younger guys are disappointed. There's no motivation like Coach O.''

Carroll said he had no candidates in mind to replace Orgeron and would not hire anyone before the Orange Bowl. Linebackers coach Rocky Seto coached the defensive line Wednesday and will also handle them today.

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