Brian Kelly Fired as LSU HC Amid $54M Contract Buyout Buzz, Tigers Have 5-3 Record

Brian Kelly's time in Death Valley has come to an end.

LSU fired its head coach on Sunday after a 5-3 start to the season. In a statement, LSU athletic director Scott Woodward said the success the Tigers expected under Kelly "simply did not materialize."

ESPN's Pete Thamel noted that the school informed Kelly "of the intention to dismiss him earlier today," and the two sides are expected to continue "talks about the terms of his departure."

Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports reported Sunday afternoon that "LSU administrators and university executives have held and are holding high-level discussions" about Kelly's future, and those discussions involved the state's governor.

Thamel added that the conversations included "outreach to Kelly about his potential departure."

Dellenger noted that the two sides had "no immediate resolution" going into the meetings, but it appears things escalated quickly.

According to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, the meeting between Kelly and Woodward was "very tense." Woodward wanted Kelly to fire offensive coordinator Joe Sloan, but Kelly wasn't on board with the decision, per Feldman.

"It went bad fast," a source told Feldman.

While it appears LSU and Kelly are still working out the terms of his dismissal, an outright buyout would pay him $53.3 million, according to USA Today.

Kelly, who was in his fourth season at LSU, had a 34-14 record with the Tigers, putting together consistently competitive teams but never reaching the heights of being a championship contender.

LSU hired Kelly in 2021 after he posted a 92–39 over 12 seasons at Notre Dame.

Expectations were high after a strong first campaign saw the Tigers go 10-4 with an appearance in the SEC championship game, and he followed the 2022 season with a 10-3 record in 2023.

But after back-to-back 10-win seasons to start his tenure in Baton Rouge, things stalled in his third campaign as LSU went 9-4, failing to reach the new 12-team College Football Playoff.

Heading into this season, it was clear Kelly would need to impress to avoid losing his job. He started off strong with a win over then-ranked No. 4 Clemson before cruising to 4-0, but the Tigers have now lost three of their last four and barely escaped with a win against South Carolina earlier this month.

With two more ranked opponents ahead, Kelly's chances of salvaging the season and reaching the CFP seemed very slim.

LSU has won three national titles this century, setting a standard of excellence in Baton Rouge. The administration clearly felt Kelly wasn't the coach to get the Tigers back to the top of the college football world, and they'll now begin the search for their next head coach.

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