Report: LSU to hire Brian Kelly as new head coach

The next head coach for the LSU Tigers has reportedly been decided.

Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports is reporting that Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly is expected to be announced as the Tigers’ next coach. Thamel’s report comes a few hours after rumors started to bubble to the surface through a FootballScoop report on Kelly.

Sources: LSU is expecting to hire Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly as the school’s next head coach. An announcement could come as early as tomorrow.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 30, 2021

The LSU search is a fascinating one. Today brought news (per sources) that LSU has engaged with Brian Kelly. We discussed that and more…. Multiple outlets have since shared similar. https://t.co/7rHiI7cNbK

— FootballScoop (@FootballScoop) November 30, 2021

LSU’s made their move after a weekend of action on the coaching carousel. Lincoln Riley went to the USC Trojans, Billy Napier went to the Florida Gators, and Kalen DeBoer went to the Washington Huskies. And now, LSU is reportedly zeroing in on their guy to finish the search at one of the best jobs in the country.

Kelly has achieved strong levels of success at Notre Dame. He’s gone 92-39 since taking the role in 2010. He helped lead Notre Dame to the BCS National Championship Game in 2012 and after a 4-8 season in 2016, has led the Irish to four consecutive 10+ win seasons. This includes two College Football Playoff appearances in 2018 and in 2020. The Irish are currently 11-1 and if some chaotic things happen this coming weekend, they could find themselves in prime position to crash the party again.

Kelly has also put together some very strong recruiting classes, relatively speaking, while in South Bend. He has plenty of history in recruiting just about everywhere, so this feels like a pretty solid fit. But much will be made of this hire with the names that were out there, so we’ll see if it ultimately works out.