Less than four years after being hired away from Notre Dame, Brian Kelly has been fired by LSU, the school’s athletic director, Scott Woodward, announced on Sunday night.
“When Coach Kelly arrived at LSU four years ago, we had high hopes that he would lead us to multiple SEC and national championships during his time in Baton Rouge,” Woodward said. “Ultimately, the success at the level that LSU demands simply did not materialize.”
Associate head coach Frank Wilson, who also serves as a running backs coach, has been tapped as the interim head coach for the remainder of the 2025 season.
Kelly, who compiled a 34-14 record with the Tigers, was shown the door one day after his 20th-ranked Tigers turned an 18-14 half-time lead into a 49-25 loss to Texas A&M at home. The result was so dispiriting that fans in Tiger Stadium chanted “Fire Kelly”. Louisiana’s governor, Jeff Landry, also weighed in on social media on Saturday night, writing: “I think @LSUSports and the LSU Board of Supervisors needs to rethink their actions to raise ticket prices for next year after tonight’s showing!”
According to CBS Sports, Landry also was involved in Sunday’s discussions that led to Kelly’s ousting. Because LSU is part of the Louisiana State University System, Kelly is a public employee, and a part of his salary comes from public funds. However, most of his compensation comes from bonuses and incentives, which is derived from private sources such as donors and corporate sponsors.
Kelly will be owed about $54m in a contract buyout, according to reports. He was in the fourth year of a 10-year contract worth around $100m.
“We will continue to negotiate his separation and will work toward a path that is better for both parties,” Woodward said.
LSU (5-3, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) opened their season 4-0 to climb as high as No 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, but the Tigers dropped three of their last four to fall out of the poll released on Sunday. It’s the second year in a row LSU have tumbled out of the Top 25 during the latter half of the season.
Those nosedives are in sharp contrast to the successes of Kelly’s predecessors at LSU.
Nick Saban went 13-1 and won the 2003 national championship in his fourth season, Les Miles went 12-2 and won the 2007 BCS Championship in his third season and Ed Orgeron went 15-0 before winning the College Football Playoff National Championship. Kelly, on the other hand, led the Tigers to the 2022 Citrus Bowl, the 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl and the 2024 Texas Bowl.
“I will not compromise in our pursuit of excellence and we will not lower our standards,” said Woodward, an LSU graduate who was hired to his current post in 2019, the same year the Tigers won the national title under Orgeron.
While Kelly did not coach LSU to a playoff berth, he oversaw quarterback Jayden Daniels’ development into a Heisman Trophy winner in 2023.
The 64-year-old Kelly, who became Notre Dame’s winningest coach before jumping to Baton Rouge, becomes the third high-profile coach to be fired in as many Sundays after Penn State dismissed James Franklin on 12 October and Florida fired Billy Napier a week later.
UCLA, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Arkansas, UAB and Colorado State also have ousted their head coaches since this season began.
