Louisiana governor Jeff Landry has said he will not allow LSU athletics director Scott Woodward to choose the university’s next football coach, saying he would “let President Trump pick it before I let him do it” after what he called a series of reckless contracts that have cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.
The governor’s remarks came days after LSU fired head coach Brian Kelly, who was lured from Notre Dame less than four years ago on a 10-year, $95m deal that has now imploded. Kelly’s dismissal followed a 49-25 home loss to Texas A&M that dropped the Tigers to 5-3 and capped a collapse from early-season title hopes to frustration.
“I can tell you right now, Scott Woodward is not selecting our next coach,” Landry told reporters at the state capitol in Baton Rouge on Wednesday. “Maybe we’ll let President Trump pick it. He loves winners.”
Landry accused Woodward of a “pattern” of failure, pointing to a similar deal the athletic director made while running Texas A&M’s program, where coach Jimbo Fisher was fired in 2023 with a $77m buyout – then the largest in college sports history. “The guy that’s here now wrote that contract that cost Texas A&M more than $70m,” Landry said. “Right now, we have a $53m liability. We are not doing that again.”
Kelly, 64, compiled a 34-14 record in Baton Rouge and won nearly 71% of his games, but his teams faltered when it mattered most. LSU’s promising 4-0 start this season disintegrated into three losses in four games, and fans chanted “Fire Kelly” during Saturday’s defeat. By Sunday night, he was gone.
“When Coach Kelly arrived at LSU four years ago, we had high hopes that he would lead us to multiple SEC and national championships,” Woodward said in announcing the firing. “Ultimately, the success at the level that LSU demands simply did not materialize.”
Landry said he met with university leaders at the governor’s mansion that same night to discuss the legal and financial fallout. Because LSU is part of the state’s higher-education system, part of Kelly’s salary was publicly funded, though most came from donors and sponsorships. The governor said his concern was “the fiscal effect of firing a coach under a terrible contract” and the perception that the public would be left footing the bill. “I was not happy that we were raising ticket prices while having a losing season and paying a coach $100m without the results,” he said.
Woodward, an LSU graduate who has led the athletics department since 2019, defended the move in a short statement, saying the school would “continue to negotiate [Kelly’s] separation and work toward a path that is better for both parties”. Kelly’s buyout is believed to be around $54m. Landry, however, argued that accountability must be written into any future deal. “We’re going to pick a coach and we’re going to make sure that coach is successful, compensated properly, and held to metrics,” he said. “I’m tired of rewarding failure in this country and leaving the taxpayers to foot the bill.”
Kelly’s exit continues a tumultous season for major college programs. Penn State fired James Franklin earlier this month, followed by Florida’s dismissal of Billy Napier a week later. Across the country, at least half a dozen universities have already parted ways with their head coaches before November. LSU named associate head coach Frank Wilson as interim head coach for the remainder of the season while a selection committee, appointed by the LSU Board of Supervisors, begins its search for a permanent replacement.
Kelly’s four-year record stands in stark contrast to his predecessors. Nick Saban, Les Miles and Ed Orgeron all won national championships within their first four seasons in Baton Rouge. Kelly’s tenure produced three minor bowl appearances but no College Football Playoff berths, even as he oversaw quarterback Jayden Daniels’s rise to a Heisman Trophy.
The governor insisted he has nothing personal against Kelly, describing him as “a good man” but one who “just wasn’t the right fit anymore”. What most frustrates him, he said, is the broader trend of athletic departments handing out vast, guaranteed contracts to coaches regardless of performance. “I think the spirit of the team needed a change,” he said. “But we’re going to make sure the next contract makes sense. We’re done writing blank checks.”
