Associated Press
Nov. 6, 2025
BATON ROUGE, La. — Brian Kelly issued a reflection Thursday on social media a little more than a week after LSU dismissed him in the fourth season of his 10-year, $100 million contract.
Kelly said the program began with “great expectations” based on his vision for the team, but acknowledged that the outcome did not match those hopes. He thanked players and supporters and said he will remember the highs — including the roar of Death Valley after an upset of Alabama — even as the losses sting.
Kelly finished 34-14 in just over three seasons at LSU and helped guide the Tigers to the 2022 Southeastern Conference title game. The team did not reach the College Football Playoff during his first three seasons and was all but eliminated from contention after the most recent loss that preceded his firing.
He called it a privilege to coach LSU’s student-athletes, singling out 2023 Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels and noting that 39 players made the SEC Academic Honor Roll in 2024.
LSU named associate head coach Frank Wilson the interim coach for the remainder of the season. The Tigers (5-3, 2-3 SEC) are scheduled to host No. 7 Alabama (7-1, 5-0 SEC) on Saturday — their first game since Kelly’s dismissal — and Kelly said he wished Coach Wilson, the staff and players well.
LSU has won three national championships this century (2003, 2007 and 2019), with the most recent title coming under Kelly’s predecessor, Ed Orgeron.
The university ousted Kelly and athletic director Scott Woodward amid public criticism from Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry. Landry said he convened a meeting at the governor’s mansion on Oct. 26 to review the legal details of Kelly’s contract and voiced concern that the state could be responsible for the coach’s buyout, reported to be about $54 million.
In the days after Kelly’s firing, Landry told reporters that Woodward would not pick the next coach; the following day LSU cut ties with Woodward.
Kelly, 64, has a long body of work in college football. Since being hired by Central Michigan in 2004, he is 200-76 at the Division I level. He went 113-40 at Notre Dame and had a 34-6 record at Cincinnati. Earlier, he was 118-35-2 at Grand Valley State in Michigan, where his teams reached three straight Division II title games and won two championships.
The developments mark a sudden end to a high-profile, lucrative deal that had raised expectations for a return to national prominence at LSU. The program now moves forward under interim leadership while the search for a permanent successor begins.
