Brian Kelly says he fell short at LSU as Maryland and other openings call his name

Brian Kelly has stopped arguing about how his time at LSU ended. A year after the Tigers fired him partway through the 2025 season, the former coach said plainly that he did not meet the bar Baton Rouge sets. "I didn't live up to the standards that are set there at LSU," Kelly said, according to EssentiallySports. He added that he was hired to win a national championship and never got the program there.

That admission comes as Kelly's name circulates for jobs again. Maryland, NC State and Baylor all have openings. Maryland moved on from Mike Locksley after a poor start, and NC State dismissed Dave Doeren. During an October 27 appearance on SiriusXM, Kelly talked through what each job offers. He pointed to Maryland's Big Ten membership, its recruiting base in the DMV and its upgraded facilities, Yahoo Sports reported, and noted that Maryland is the opening his name has been tied to most often so far. He did not say he is pursuing any of the three, and neither Maryland nor NC State has confirmed contacting him. He now works for CBS Sports and SiriusXM College Sports Radio, and he said he would not close the door if a job came open that fit both sides.

The numbers behind his exit are still striking. Kelly signed a reported $95 million contract to bring LSU a title. He won the SEC West and beat Alabama in his first season, and Jayden Daniels won the Heisman Trophy during a 10-3 season in 2023, but the Tigers never reached the College Football Playoff. A 9-4 finish in 2024 was followed by a 49-25 home loss to Texas A&M in October 2025 that dropped LSU to 5-3. The school fired him with a 34-14 record and, after a legal dispute, agreed to pay a $54 million buyout. Before LSU, Kelly took Notre Dame to the playoff twice and put together five straight double-digit-win seasons there, which explains why he remains a serious name at programs a level below LSU.

Kelly has also said more than once that his successor gets no break. "Lane will have the same expectations," he said of Lane Kiffin, a point he has been making on his weekly SiriusXM spot since the summer.

What it means for LSU and Alabama

Kiffin's first season is giving Kelly's warning a real test. LSU is 6-2 and has won three straight, beating No. 16 Mississippi State 31-0 and Auburn 38-17 on the road after a 35-34 loss at Kentucky. Its other loss came at No. 8 Ole Miss, 32-24, in Kiffin's return to Oxford. The defense has held five of eight opponents to 17 points or fewer, including a 35-6 win over No. 23 Texas A&M, the same program whose rout of LSU last October ended Kelly's tenure.

No. 10 Alabama comes to Tiger Stadium on Saturday, November 7, on ABC. Kelly's first LSU team beat the Crimson Tide in 2022, and that result is one of the few parts of his tenure people still praise. With two losses already, Kiffin's team has little margin left for a playoff run. A win over Alabama would keep LSU in the hunt for the title standard Kelly says he fell short of. A loss would make the comparison he is now drawing a lot less comfortable for the new staff.