New LSU head coach Lane Kiffin reportedly has interest in recently-demoted Syracuse coach Elijah Robinson for a position on his staff.

Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU over the weekend, and on Thursday, FootballScoop.com reported Kiffin's interest in Robinson. He reportedly wants Robinson to coach the defensive line. 

Syracuse coach Fran Brown announced earlier this week that Robinson will serve as the co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach moving forward.

The Orange allowed 34.9 ppg this season, seventh-worst in the nation.

Could Robinson leave for Baton Rouge?

Of course he could. It's a higher profile job on a potential national championship winning staff, and it likely pays more as well. Furthermore, if Robinson is disappointed at being demoted, that could push him further toward Kiffin's job.

What could keep him at Syracuse?

There's really four possibilities and four only.

1) He could just love the area.

2) He could feel a loyalty to the players he's been working with for two years.

3) Despite the demotion, he may like working with Brown.

4) He's the associate head coach at Syracuse, and if he thinks that experience is more valuable than being a position coach solely for Kiffin, that could cause him to stay. And if he wants to be a head coach in the future, that may be the case.

The Robinson file

Robinson has been with Syracuse for two seasons, helping the defensive unit have immense success in a 10-win 2024 campaign. As noted by the university website, Robinson worked with 10 different players who recorded interceptions in 2024, and 12 who recorded a sack.

Robinson has also worked at Texas A&M, where he served as interim head coach in the wake of Jimbo Fisher's firing. He's also been at Baylor, Temple and Penn State. He played at Penn State.

Was it fair to demote him at 'Cuse?

I've been pretty clear about this for the last few days: I didn't understand some of the coaching moves that Brown made this week. The Orange went 3-9 this year, so naturally, something has to change, I get it, but the coaching turnover felt like too much.

If we attribute most of the season's failures to the injury to quarterback Steve Angeli in September, then why did all the coaches have to fall on the sword? It seems like Robinson's defense was never really given a chance because the offense couldn't get anything going.

For instance, Syracuse was down 21-0 against Notre Dame, and the Irish hadn't even run an offensive play. That's not the defense's fault: That was the offense and special teams.

That high ppg total can't all Robinson's fault.

Also on campus

The Orange women's basketball team moved to 7-1 on Wednesday by beating Auburn in the ACC-SEC Challenge. Dominique Darius led the way with 20 points while Uche Izoje had 16 and Laila Phelia had 14. 

The Orange men's basketball team is now 5-3 after beating No. 13 Tennessee on Tuesday night, and they'll be off until Dec. 11 when they play against St. Joseph's at the JMA Wireless Dome. We'll have on-site coverage of that game.

Related Syracuse Stories

SYRACUSE SECURES FIVE-STAR RECRUIT: After a day of pondering, the Orange have finally landed receiver Calvin Russell out of Florida. CLICK HERE:

WHAT NEEDS TO IMPROVE?: Outside of the free-throwing shooting, here's what needs to improve for the Orange men's hoop team, at least until Donnie Freeman comes back. CLICK HERE: 

SU TOPPLES NO. 13 TENNESSEE: The Orange are now 5-3 after winning their game in the ACC-SEC Challenge. CLICK HERE: 

Join the Conversation

Remember to join our SYRACUSE on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Orange fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!