College football rocked again, as LSU fires Brian Kelly
LSU has made the decision to fire head coach Brian Kelly following a loss to Texas A&M on Saturday night that left the situation too broken to be repaired, multiple sources told OutKick.
On Sunday morning, Brian Kelly met with athletic director Scott Woodward to discuss which assistant coaches to fire, which turned into a tense situation that was the tipping point for all sides.
Following that meeting, Governor Jeff Landry was called to intervene.
The buyout for Kelly is $54 million, which the contract does have mitigating language, meaning the now former head coach will have to search for a new job while collecting a paycheck from LSU.
LSU Officials Discussing Buyout Options For Brian Kelly, As Situation Worsens On The Bayou
There was a concern that Kelly had lost the fan base heading into Saturday’s game against Texas A&M, with hopes of an upset pulling a majority back in. But, following the 49-25 loss, along with the ‘Fire Brian Kelly’ chants that were heard all over national television, the move to oust Kelly picked up momentum.
When Brian Kelly arrived at the LSU facility on Sunday morning, he was going through a list of assistant coaches that could potentially be fired. That led to the meeting between AD Scott Woodward, where both sides presented a case as to who should be let go.
It was at that moment that the relationship took a turn for the worse. Kelly immediately left the facility after that meeting, which is when Scott Woodward informed assistant coaches that they should go home for the day.
Discussions with the Governor shifted towards the buyout, and whether it were going to be a problem too expensive to overcome.
But, multiple sources told OutKick that LSU boosters made sure to let Governor Landry know that they could help if needed. This was all athletic officials needed to know, as they continued to meet on Sunday afternoon, into the evening.
On Sunday night, Landry met with the Board Of Supervisors one last time to discuss how to navigate in the short term. One source told OutKick that it was something that needed to be done, and trying to sell the future to LSU fans would be an overwhelming problem.
Following one final meeting between Governor Landry and the Board of Supervisors, Brian Kelly was informed through his agent that they would be firing the head coach.
LSU Has Now Joined The College Football Fray.
It’s been less than four years since Kelly was hired away from Notre Dame, in a move that shocked the college football world. Now, the Tigers will once again search for a new head coach, joining the likes of Florida and Penn State who could now go after the same candidates.
One of those intriguing names is Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin. As we currently sit, there are two openings in the SEC that are now going to battle for the same coach, with Florida making it clear they are interested in Kiffin.
But, as I’ve reported over the past few weeks, if LSU were to open, this could potentially be a more attractive job for Kiffin if he were to leave Ole Miss.
The buyout language will be discussed further, but this relationship was never going to be repaired after the Saturday night loss, followed by the Sunday morning meeting.
Brian Kelly will finish his time at LSU with a 34-14 record, with zero college football playoff appearances.
Frank Wilson is expected to be named interim head coach.
We will continue to update this story.
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