It has been a tough week for LSU.
After the Tigers were embarrassed in a nationally televised Saturday night game by Texas A&M, head coach Brian Kelly was fired, the state’s governor went scorched earth on LSU athletic director Scott Woodward, and the school now seems to be heading for a breakup with Woodward.
All the turmoil has caused some serious reputational damage, according to noted LSU alumni and longtime political consultant James Carville.
“The reputation of our university has been damaged. This board and governor have damaged LSU way beyond athletics,” Carville said in a statement to Yahoo Sports on Thursday night. “Who the f*** coach is going to come here?”
Gov. Landry has certainly not done LSU any favors.
With Kelly’s bloated buyout now a liability for the athletic department, Landry has spent the last few days bemoaning the department’s spending habits and claiming the next contract signed by an LSU football coach will be “patently different.”
Ryan Clark, another notable LSU alum, then took aim at Landry on ESPN’s First Take Thursday morning for his comments.
All the while, LSU is reportedly working on a separation agreement with Woodward.
So, the school, which also doesn’t have a permanent president at the moment, will soon be in the market for an athletic director and a football coach. According to reports, upwards of $60 million could be tied up in buyouts for Kelly and Woodward. And politicians in the state are involving themselves in the hiring process.
Lane Kiffin? Come on down.
Kelly was paid more than $10 million a year to coach the Tigers. According to the USA Today coaching database, 7 other SEC coaches are scheduled to make $9 million or more this season.
If the Tigers are going to lure a big-name coach for the job, they’ll have to pay top dollar. The question now becomes whether a rich contract will be enough to drown out all the extra noise.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
