Identifying LSU Tigers Coaching Candidates to Replace Brian Kelly

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Identifying LSU Tigers Coaching Candidates to Replace Brian Kelly

Identifying LSU Tigers Coaching Candidates to Replace Brian Kelly — Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Matt Johnson · Sportsnaut

Sat, Oct 25, 2025 ·

6 min read

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Louisiana State University made one of the most expensive regime changes in college football history in 2021, firing Ed Orgeron and replacing him with Brian Kelly at a cost exceeding $100 million over multiple seasons. Four years later, the team is no closer to winning a national championship. It's time to start thinking about LSU Tigers coaching candidates.

Kelly is on pace to become the first coach since Gerry DiNardo, who was fired in 1999, to not win a national championship with the Tigers. Meanwhile, his replacement at Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman, has posted a better winning percentage as the Fighting Irish head coach and even reached the National Championship Game last year. While Kelly's buyout is substantial, he's really given LSU no other choice but to make a change.

Let's dive into our list of potential LSU coaching candidates.

Eliah Drinkwitz, Missouri Tigers Coach

LSU Tigers Coaching Candidates — Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

LSU has already tapped into the Missouri Tigers coaching pipeline recently, hiring defensive coordinator Blake Baker for the same job in 2024. Given his previous working relationship with Eli Drinkwitz, there's also a possibility that LSU would be more likely to keep Baker around as defensive coordinator if it named Drinkwitz as head coach next season.

Just look at what Drinkwitz has done for Mizzou's football program since being hired to replace Barry Odom ahead of the 2020 season. He's set to finish the year fourth all-time in Tigers history for wins, boasting a much higher winning percentage than many of his predecessors. Drinkwitz's coaching staff has also shown a sharp eye for talent, as evidenced this season by the emergence of former three-star recruit Ahmad Hardy.

The 2023 SEC Coach of the Year, Drinkwitz is now on the verge of his third consecutive season with double-digit wins and a winning record in the SEC. He wouldn't be as splashy a hire as Lane Kiffin, but LSU would still be landing one of the top 15 coaches in college football.

Brent Key, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Coach

We're not including Lane Kiffin among our LSU coaching candidates because the Florida Gators' job is available. Truthfully, there's even a chance that James Franklin would give the Gators stronger consideration for that head-coaching vacancy than LSU. However, there are still plenty of great college football coaching candidates available, and Brent Key is a perfect example of that.

Key does have a little bit of coaching experience in the SEC, coming during his tenure as the Alabama Crimson Tide offensive line coach. During his three-year stint there coaching lineman and he won a national championship in his first year. He turned that success at developing offensive linemen into a gig at Georgia Tech, where he eventually took over a program that went 10-28 under Geoff Collins.

Recruiting top-end talent certainly isn't what Georgia Tech is known for, but Key immediately matched Collins' three-year win total in his first season as head coach (seven). It's also a testament to Key's coaching ability and team preparation that Georgia Tech has a winning record versus ranked opponents under his leadership, with victories over Clemson, Florida State, and Miami. It's also worth noting that the Yellow Jackets took Georgia to eight overtimes last season. Key is an outstanding football coach and would be an upgrade over Kelly in terms of overall coaching impact throughout the week and on gameday.

Rhett Lashlee, SMU Mustangs

For SMU Mustangs coach Rhett Lashlee, there should be a short list of college football programs he'd be willing to leave for. That's because SMU offers significant financial backing from boosters with deep, billionaire pockets and a strong passion for the school's football program. The only reason to leave that situation would be for a Power Four job in the heart of a recruiting pipeline with the resources to compete for a national championship. Enter LSU.

Lashlee had big shoes to fill as Sonny Dykes' replacement, and he's been even better than his predecessor. SMU's back-to-back 11-win seasons mark the first time since 1983–84 that the Mustangs have posted consecutive double-digit win campaigns. He got the best out of quarterback Preston Stone in 2023 (28–6 TD-INT ratio) and then found an even better option the following year in Kevin Jennings, leading SMU to another 11-win season.

It's also worth noting that Lashlee has prior SEC experience, serving as Auburn's offensive coordinator from 2013–16. In addition, he also served as offensive coordinator at Miami. Lashlee is the type of offensive-minded coach who could convince a five-star quarterback recruit to stay with the program, knowing he'll be maximized in Lashlee's system.

Matt Campbell, Iowa State Cyclones

Matt Campbell has to realize at some point soon that he's reached his ceiling at Iowa State. If his goal is to build a program that can be a perennial College Football Playoff contender and potentially challenge for a national championship, one of the best coaches in college football needs to be at a school with the resources to make that happen. That would be the Tigers.

Look at what Campbell has accomplished in his two head-coaching stops despite limited resources. He turned Toledo into a consistent nine-win program, which earned him the Iowa State job. Inheriting a Cyclones team that went 8-28 in the three seasons before his arrival, Campbell has since delivered multiple winning campaigns and made Iowa State a respected Big 12 program. He's an outstanding head coach, and with the resources LSU can offer, he could assemble a top-flight Tigers coaching staff.

Jon Sumrall, Tulane Green Wave

Jon Sumrall is one of the top college football coaching candidates right now. If Florida and Penn State are focused on the big names, it could create an opportunity for LSU to land one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the country. At just 43 years old, Sumrall is on the verge of his third double-digit win season in four years — success he's achieved at both Troy and Tulane.

It also helps that Sumrall has SEC coaching experience, first as a linebackers coach at Ole Miss in 2018 and later at Kentucky (2019–21), where he served as inside linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator. With roots in Texas and previous coaching stops in San Diego and now Louisiana, Sumrall checks many of the important boxes that will matter in LSU's coaching search.

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