<a href='http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=1947109' target='_blank'>http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=1947109</a>


ESPN.com news services
Ed Orgeron, Southern California's assistant head coach and defensive line coach, has agreed to become the new coach at Mississippi, USC athletic department sources have told ESPN.com.


Orgeron's father confirmed the hiring to the Associated Press.


"It's a done deal," Edward Orgeron Sr., the coach's father, said Wednesday in a phone interview from his home in Larose, La.


Orgeron will be introduced at a news conference Thursday morning in Oxford, Miss.


Meanwhile, the USC coaching staff was meeting Wednesday afternoon to decide whether Orgeron will continue in his role through the national championship game. The top-ranked Trojans play No. 2 Oklahoma for the BCS title in the FedEx Orange Bowl on Jan. 4.


Mississippi athletic director Pete Boone and Orgeron, a Louisiana native, were meeting in Los Angeles on Wednesday afternoon to finalize the coach's contract, ESPN.com's Ivan Maisel reports.


Ole Miss shifted its coaching search to the West Coast in its third week looking for a replacement for David Cutcliffe, who was fired Dec. 1 after his first losing season in Oxford.


49ers coach Dennis Erickson talked with university officials on Tuesday night, but Erickson informed his players during a Wednesday morning team meeting that he would not leave for the Mississippi job.


Orgeron's high profile and his ties to the Deep South made him an appealing candidate for Ole Miss.


He is considered a key recruiter at USC. He won three national titles as an assistant -- two at Miami (1989 and 1991) and last year at USC.


He was interviewed by Ole Miss shortly after being contacted on Dec. 6.


The 43-year-old openly expressed his desire for the job during the past two weeks.


The Associated Press contributed to this report