After LSU lost at home against Texas A&M, the Tigers fired their head coach, Brian Kelly, after a 5-3 start to the 2025 campaign. Kelly could not make the playoffs or come close to contender status during his time in Baton Rouge, and the search for one of college football’s best jobs is now underway. Here are 5 candidates who could take over for Brian Kelly at LSU.
Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss HC)
Kiffin has been the talk of the week, as many pegged him to take the Florida job after it became available this week. Kiffin’s resume in the SEC is unmatched, and he can succeed based on his time in Oxford. Kiffin would be at a more prestigious program that has more resources if he desired a change. Although Kiffin has been steady in his faith with the Rebels, the LSU spot could entice him a lot more than the Gainesville job.
James Franklin (former Penn State HC)
Franklin will also be looking for work this summer after his split with the Nittany Lions earlier this year. While it is a lot less likely that LSU will give him the reins, he has been successful throughout his time at Penn State. He also has experience in the SEC, as he coached at Vanderbilt with some success as well. Although the passionate LSU fans would probably disagree with this hire, as Franklin just got fired from a similar program this year.
Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri)
Drinkwitz should probably be getting more attention for both the Florida and this job after what he has done at Missouri. Taking the team to a regular top 25 team from where they were when he got there is something that is not easy in the SEC. There wouldn’t be too much holding him in Missouri, and he certainly knows how to recruit, making him an ideal candidate for LSU.
Alex Golesh (USF HC)
Golesh has turned USF into an early playoff contender as the Bulls are looking like a much stronger team this year. Golesh also has experience in the SEC, where he was the offensive coordinator at Tennessee, something that should hold plenty of weight. If Golesh can get a group of 5 teams over the hump to beat an SEC team, there should be plenty of intrigue on what he could do with some resources.
Jimbo Fisher (former Texas A&M coach)
This one is a little bit of a stretch, but it is not super out of the ordinary. Fisher has won a national championship, and the athletic director for the Tigers, Scott Woodward, hired him when he was at Texas A&M. Jimbo also had publicly stated that he wanted to coach again in a recent interview.
Final Thoughts
Baton Rouge will be the talk of the college football offseason as LSU searches for its next head coach. Brian Kelly is the first of the last 4 LSU coaches that was unable to win a national championship. While there are plenty of options for LSU, this one will probably marinate in the bayou as the Tigers will want this one to bring them back to their winning ways.
Read More:
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