Two schools swarm as top-ranked prospect admits firing of Brian Kelly jeopardizes his LSU commitment
The LSU Tigers made one of the boldest moves of recent years when they fired head coach Brian Kelly in his fourth season with the program. While the on-field product had its moments of excitement, the school did well to realize his antics toward players and off-field morality just didn’t fit what the Tigers are […]
The LSU Tigers made one of the boldest moves of recent years when they fired head coach Brian Kelly in his fourth season with the program. While the on-field product had its moments of excitement, the school did well to realize his antics toward players and off-field morality just didn’t fit what the Tigers are capable of. Chiding team captains and shifting blame to other staff members wore out a welcome that led to zero College Football Playoff visits.
LSU is now at risk of losing several key stars to transfer decisions, and the recruiting impact is starting. Teams like Ohio State are swarming with the sudden open recruitments of top players. Meanwhile, LSU is out of our top 25 rankings and desperate to find a new coach.
The biggest of them all is Lamar Brown. See why the top in-state recruit is now eyeing other competitors outside of LSU despite committing to the program earlier this year.
Lamar Brown admits Brian Kelly was an asset for LSU recruitment
Miami and Texas A&M have been identified as major threats and flip contenders for the five-star athlete. The 6-foot-4, 285-pound Brown figures to be a dominant defensive or offensive tackle prospect, and those two programs were heavily linked to him until July 10. He sees himself as a tackle, and his length is that of an NFL star already.
It’d be a massive loss to see Brown go elsewhere. LSU rarely needs an elite recruiter and coach to land Louisiana talent, but Brown admitted Kelly’s plan for him fit his goals.
“I committed to LSU because of the plan that was in place for my development,” Brown told Rivals on Monday. “Coach Kelly was the first coach to give me a chance, and that meant a lot. This is definitely a bittersweet moment, but right now I just need to let things settle, take a breath, and continue to focus on helping my high school win a state championship!”
The hometown factor still exists for Brown, but the purse strings and stability of Texas A&M will continue to look attractive. The Aggies are pushing to win the conference and will almost surely make the SEC title game if they can keep momentum through November.
The next LSU head coach needs to quickly adopt a similar plan for Brown and maximize his ability to be a local hero.
“Being a kid from the area, not everyone has the opportunity to stay home and play for the home team,” he continued. “To have the chance to play for the home team, to be able to shine on Saturdays … it’s a dream and it means a lot for any Louisiana kid.”
Ultimately, keeping Kelly was an untenable situation moving forward. A high-powered coach may come in and completely clean house, further risking Brown looking elsewhere. While that would be a tough loss, upgrading on Kelly is the priority for LSU’s athletic brass.
