It seems like Brian Kelly, the head coach of the LSU Fighting Tigers is in a bit of trouble. Kelly, who joined the team in the 2022 season, has always been very aggressive in restructuring the backroom staff. And bringing in coordinators to suit his philosophy. For instance, in his first year, he replaced almost 50 personnel from the coaching and support staff. Kelly led the Tigers to the SEC West title in the first season, and in his second year, one of his players brought home a Heisman Trophy. However, after a disappointing 2024 season, his peril seems to have accumulated by an interesting development. So, let’s dive into its details.

The matter is concerned with LSU Tigers’ coaching staff’s potential departures with both Slade Nagle and Bob Diaco deciding to exit the team. Slade Nagle, who served as a Tight Ends coach, decided to join Houston Cougars as an offensive coordinator in Dec 2024. While Bob Diaco, the defensive analyst, also worked as a special teams coach. He is rumoured to be in talks with North Carolina Tar Heels coach Bill Belichick (per Inside Carolina).

Both the coaches decided to exit at a relatively similar period of time. This means that Brian Kelly will have to hire a new tight-end coach and a special team coach simultaneously. He is in a very tight spot, considering there is only one full-time coaching staff vacancy on the staff roster. This comes at a time when, on one hand, Kelly’s team has been ranked very low (82nd) in punt returns and is 102nd in kickoff returns. On the other hand, leaving a crucial position like TE unsupervised can have serious consequences.

This leaves Kelly in a bit of a pickle as selecting one amongst the two positions would be very tough. But are there any prospects being discussed, and how could Brian Kelly come out of this pickle?

One of the obvious solutions can be if Bob Diaco doesn’t end up actually joining Bill Belichick’s camp. But as tempting as it sounds, he isn’t likely to turn down the coaching job in North Carolina. Which is a prestigious programme in itself. However, Kelly has a Coaches Convention coming up and could look to recruit a guy like Bob who could multitask like he did. But, if that were to be the case then who can Kelly hire? And who can be the genuine prospects for the job? Let’s find out.

LSU’s potential prospects for the vacancy

One thing that looks clear as crystal here is that, it is very unlikely that Brian Kelly will actually hire a special team’s coach. This is because using Tight Ends in his setup is a crucial part of his tactical strategy. And it’s unlikely he would abandon that. So, towards whom could he turn his eyes to ultimately?

For starters, Tommy Rees is a good prospect for the job, as he is currently coaching TEs for the Cleveland Browns. Furthermore, he was also a discussed OC candidate when Brian arrived, which could make things favourable for him. Apart from him, he could look towards Greg McMahon, who is a special teams coach and has also worked for LSU from 2018-2021. Or he could turn towards Evan McKissack, who is Tulane’s OC and has coached TE’s in his past.

All these coaches look like good options for Kelly, but the real decision is ultimately in his hands. So, speculation aside, we need to wait and watch how things turn out for Kelly and how he wades through these troublesome waters.