Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry Seeks Donald Trump Role in LSU Coaching Decision Amid Brian Kelly Firing Fallout

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has publicly stated that LSU's athletic director Scott Woodward will not be responsible for selecting the university's next football coach following the firing of Brian Kelly. Landry criticized Woodward's previous contract decisions, including the costly buyouts for Kelly and Jimbo Fisher, and suggested that President Donald Trump might be a better choice to pick the new coach, citing Trump's support for winners. Despite Landry's comments about the LSU Board of Supervisors leading the coaching search, Board Chair Scott Ballard expressed surprise, clarifying that he was unaware of such a directive but promised to hire a top-level coach. The firing of Kelly, which involved a significant $53 million buyout, was due in part to the team's disappointing performance despite its talented roster. LSU has appointed running backs coach Frank Wilson as interim head coach, and opponents like Alabama are preparing for a different LSU offense under the interim regime. Landry emphasized the financial burden on taxpayers due to expensive coaching contracts and vowed to avoid repeating such costly mistakes in the future.