Brian Kelly talks LSU firing, reveals future plans in new interview

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As is always the case in college football, things move quickly. There was a period of time when college football fans couldn’t turn on ESPN without hearing fresh news regarding the firing of former LSU football head coach Brian Kelly, but after Lane Kiffin was hired just a few months later, Kelly was left in the dust — until now.

Kelly appeared on SiriusXM’s “Dusty and Danny in the Morning” on Friday, discussing a wide range of topics related to his personal coaching future, the future of LSU and the Tigers’ brand-new roster.

Kelly hasn’t decided whether he wants to coach in college football again, but he plans to visit several programs in the coming months to evaluate their operations and see what he can learn to improve his own process. Kelly says he’s treating these visits as learning opportunities, though he hasn't ruled out returning to coaching soon.

“If the right situation comes about and I’m ready,” Kelly said, “I’m certainly going to entertain that.”

The conversation quickly shifted to Kelly’s thoughts and emotions regarding his firing, his first time being dismissed as a team’s head coach in his 30+ year career.

“So when you get fired, you get told you’re not the guy for the job,” Kelly explained. “You start thinking about the things that you’ve done for three decades. I don’t know that you question it, but you look carefully at why that happened. The easy answer is: I didn’t win enough games.”

Kelly’s 70.8% win rate during his time at LSU would earn a coach a statue in a lot of places, but not Baton Rouge. In all fairness, however, Kelly understood that going in.

“When I took the LSU job, it was win or go home,” he said. “It was win the national championship or go home.”

Kelly clearly still seems to feel some spite over his tenuous exit from Baton Rouge, which emerged especially quickly when the hosts mentioned LSU’s reportedly $40 million roster.

“Over $40 [million], I’ll tell you that,” Kelly interjected.

Heading into the 2025 season, Kelly told The Athletic’s Brian Hamilton that his roster was the best he had during his time in Baton Rouge and that it was “capable of competing with anyone.” A few months later, the Tigers were 1-3 against ranked opponents under Kelly (their only ranked win was over preseason No. 4 Clemson, which finished the year unranked), and Kelly was dismissed following a 24-point loss to Texas A&M.

So, sure, Kiffin managed to persuade LSU to spend more than they did while Kelly was at the helm in Baton Rouge. But Kelly himself said that his 2025 roster could compete with the best in the country, and he clearly failed to maximize the talent he assembled.

Maybe Kelly’s upcoming trip will offer insights into what he needs to change about his coaching style and give him the opportunity to help another program. If that’s the case, good for him and whatever school that may be. However, if everything goes according to plan, the most valuable lesson he can learn will be in Baton Rouge, featuring an LSU football team making a run at the College Football Playoff.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: Brian Kelly talks LSU firing, reveals future plans in new interview

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