Mississippi's Orgeron gets contract extension through 2010

OXFORD, Miss. -- Mississippi football coach Ed Orgeron and Athletic Director Pete Boone have agreed on a two-year contract extension through the 2010 season.

Orgeron is in the second year of a four-year contract, which is the longest allowed by law in Mississippi. He was hired to replace David Cutcliffe in December 2004.

The Rebels have gone 7-16 under Orgeron, but Boone said he feels progress in being made.

"We anticipated the resurrection of this program would take four to five years," he said. "(Orgeron) has assembled an extremely talented coaching staff and their superb recruiting efforts give Ole Miss fans reason for optimism in the immediate future."

Ole Miss faced eight teams who went to bowl games in 2006 and lost four narrow decisions to Southeastern Conference opponents, including overtime losses at LSU and Alabama.

Orgeron's talent as a recruiter drew national attention when Ole Miss' 2006 signing class ranked as high as ninth in the final national rankings.

"Everything to build a successful program is in place at Ole Miss," Orgeron said. "We're headed in the right direction and we will continue to build toward our goal of winning the Sugar Bowl."

Boone said he will now forward his recommendation for the contract extension to Ole Miss Chancellor Robert Khayat and the University of Mississippi Alumni Association Foundation board of directors for their approval.