One of the biggest dominos to fall this offseason in college football came when the LSU Tigers fired Brian Kelly. LSU made the move that shocked the sport to hire Brian Kelly after firing Ed Orgeron with many thinking it would result in several championships. Instead, midway through his 4th season, LSU fired the head coach bringing a domino effect to college football.
The decision put LSU at the top of the Lane Kiffin Sweepstakes, holding up most of the coaching carousel while making the Tigers a National Championship contender as soon as 2026. Part of the reason that Lane Kiffin could realistically win a title next season is the fact that the Tigers are all in which caught the attention of a former LSU coach.
Brian Kelly continues to refuse accountability for his failures
On Friday, Brian Kelly appeared on SiriusXM with Danny Kanell and Dusty Dvoracek where he talked about his departure from LSU. Brian Kelly broke down LSU's current financial state while breaking down the fact that they're still paying himself, Lane Kiffin, and the current roster which costs over $40 million.
Brian Kelly just told us on @SXMCollege that Lane Kiffin's current roster at LSU is over $40 million 👀
— Danny Kanell (@dannykanell) March 6, 2026
Brian Kelly then pointed to all the change at LSU making it out to be a key reason in the decision to move on from him, claiming there were bigger things going on.
Brian Kelly discussed his firing from LSU on @SXMCollege this morning:
— TigerDroppings (@TigerDroppings) March 6, 2026
"The situation at LSU got very complex, right? You know, there were a lot of people who were involved."
"Leading up to my firing, the president was forced out. And he was a big reason why I took the job."… pic.twitter.com/C1rJNExLsn
Brian Kelly doesn't acknowledge that the biggest reason for his firing is the fact that he failed miserably at LSU. The first two seasons Kelly was in Baton Rouge, his defensive staff was a mess which he'd later have to move on from. When Mike Denbrock jumped to Notre Dame, Brian Kelly hired an inexperienced offensive coordinator which haunted him once he got the defensive staff right.
Regardless of all the changes at the helm of LSU, Brian Kelly would still be the head coach if he lived up to the expectations. More important than anything else is winning, and in an all-in season, the Tigers went just 5-3 with a 2-3 record in SEC play with an embarrassing beatdown loss against Texas A&M at home.
The right move by Brian Kelly would be acknowleding the ways he fell short, and how he plans to change if he gets another gig. The Brian Kelly era in Baton Rouge was filled with mistakes, and until he realizes that fact, it's hard to see why another big school would give him a new job.