Did LSU Really Fire Coach Kelly?

Brian Kelly’s departure from LSU made headlines last month.

The former football head coach joined a recent trend we’ve seen with college football coaches — an early termination resulting in a massive, multimillion-dollar buyout.

Less than a month before Kelly was fired by LSU, Penn State fired its head coach, James Franklin.

As it stands today, Kelly and Franklin have the second and third-highest buyouts in CFB history, respectively.

With Franklin’s contract, the public learned that it included a duty to mitigate clause: Franklin must make a good-faith effort to find applicable employment (i.e. coaching, scouting, or broadcasting job), and the team’s obligation to pay him will be offset by his new gig.

With Kelly, there’s also been a recent legal twist. (And it’s not as amicable as a duty to mitigate).

According to a petition filed Monday, Kelly is seeking confirmation that the former LSU head coach was fired without cause and thus, is entitled to the full amount of his buyout.

Here’s the full breakdown:

Kelly Timeline at LSU

A brief timeline to get up to speed:

November 31, 2021: LSU hires Brian Kelly, the winningest coach in Notre Dame history, on a 10-year, $95M deal that includes incentives.

In LSU’s perfect world, Coach Kelly would lead them back to competing as a national championship contender.

2022 CFB season: In Kelly’s first full season as head coach, the Tigers go 10-4 (6-2 in SEC play).

2023 CFB season: LSU finishes the season with a 10-3 (6-2 in SEC play).

2024 CFB season: The Tigers go 9-4 (5-3 in SEC play).

October 26, 2025: The day after a 49-25 home loss against Texas A&M, LSU (5-4 overall, 2-4 in SEC play), LSU fires Kelly.