Ed Orgeron told The Times’ Bill Plaschke that in his mind “the door is always open to come back” to USC, where he served as a longtime assistant and then interim head coach before abruptly leaving last December when Athletic Director Pat Haden hired Steve Sarkisian.

On Sunday, Haden deferred questions about Orgeron to Sarkisian.

Could Sarkisian see Orgeron returning to USC?

“Ed’s a terrific football coach,” Sarkisian said after practice. “He’s a friend of mine. I have a great deal of respect for Ed, but quite honestly, we play Cal Thursday night at 6 o’clock.”


Asked if it was unsettling for current assistants to read a former assistant wanted to return, Sarkisian said, “I’m sure there’s a lot of guys that want to come back to USC as an assistant coach. This is a great place. This is an unbelievable place to be at.”

Could Sarkisian see Orgeron working on his staff at some point?

“Honestly, we play Cal Thursday night at 6 o’clock,” Sarkisian repeated. “I don’t speak about hypothetical scenarios.”