LSU Fires footballโข Coach Brian Kelly After Disappointing Season
BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisianaโข State university has fired head football coach Brian kelly, the school announced Wednesday,โค ending his tenure after less than three full seasons. The move comes โamid โa disappointing 2023 campaign marked by unexpected losses โคand a failureโ to meet โpreseason expectations.
Kelly was hired in December 2021 to โa 10-year, $100 million contract, tasked with restoring LSU to national prominence following the departure โคof Ed Orgeron. He arrived with a โฃcareer record of โค103-35, including a 34-6 record at Cincinnati and a 113-40 record at Notre Dame, โคand wasโ seen as a coach โขcapable of winning a nationalโ championship given LSU’s resources. Though, his time inโ baton Rougeโ was plagued โby inconsistency and a team that underperformed despite significant investment in player โคacquisition through the โtransfer portal andโ Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals.
LSU finished the 2023 regular season with a 8-4 record, including losses to Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, and Texas A&M. The Tigers’ victories came โคagainst teams โฃwith losing โขrecords: Clemson,Florida,and South Carolina. The program โaggressively pursued talent through the transfer portal and increased funding for player compensation,โ even โฃconvincing quarterback Garrett Nussmeierโข to return for his senior season instead of entering โคtheโค NFL draft, all inโค an effortโข to contend for a College Football Playoff berth.
The โขfiring marks a significant โshift for the LSU football program and raises questions about the futureโ direction of the team. The โuniversity willโข now begin a search for a new โhead coach to lead โthe Tigers. The landscape of college football has changed dramatically as Kelly’s arrival with โthe advent โฃof the transfer portal and NIL, presenting new challenges โฃfor coaches and programsโข across the country.