It's been nearly a year since Brian Kelly was fired as LSU football coach, and as other schools start pondering coaching changes of their own, Kelly's name keeps popping up as a possible replacement.
It's a position the former college football coach finds "uncomfortable."
"Well, you can imagine coming from my perspective as a sitting football coach when I was in that position, you hate hearing the rumors because it means somebody's job is being evaluated. And so it's uncomfortable for me. I don't feel easy about it," Kelly said Wednesday while appearing on SiriusXM College Sports Radio with Danny Kanell.
"I think we all know it's something that gets out in the media and it's talked
about because it's juicy, right? But for me, I just focus on what I'm doing on a day-to-day basis, and those things take care of themselves. Those that are making those decisions, they have a plan. This is really just about getting media hits and something to talk about. And then we'll see what happens when we get into December."
Brian Kelly: “I don’t relish my name being mentioned for other jobs. I’m pulling for the guy that’s got that job and I want to see him do well.”
— Brian Fonseca (@briannnnf) September 23, 2026
Also: “I think they feel I can fake any accent no matter where I go. I can do the Jersey accent. I can do any one you want.” https://t.co/0sTQmSJhGb pic.twitter.com/xAhsrXtGff
Asked about The Athletic's report linking his name to a potential opening at Rutgers last week, Kelly said he hadn't seen it. But he has seen the AI-generated meme of him as Tony Soprano, which led to a lighthearted reference to his early days at LSU, when he famously went viral for saying "family" with a Louisiana accent during an LSU basketball game.
Kelly has notable connections to Rutgers' leadership from his time at LSU. He worked alongside Scarlet Knights' athletic director Keli Zinn, who served as LSU's executive deputy athletic director and chief operating officer, and university president William Tate, who held the same role in Baton Rouge.
"My son sent me that," Kelly said about the viral photo. "It was funny, I'm trying to do the game, right? And my son is in operations at Ole Miss. ... I got my phone, I'm trying to do the game, that's hard enough for me as it is, right? You know you've got the telestrator and you've got the live action, you're getting questions, and he's like sending me pictures and updates and all that stuff. Finally, I have to take my phone and put it in my backpack because I'm like, 'How do you guys not do your job if you're on the phone all the time?' So yeah, I saw that one."
He added: "I think they just feel like I can fake any accent no matter where I go. You know what I mean? So I could do the Jersey accent. I can do anyone you want."
It’s being reported that there is indeed mutual interest between Brian Kelly and Rutgers. Brian Kelly is currently in Jersey hanging out waiting for the call! pic.twitter.com/PUW348HVBZ
— Bruce Straughan (@bruce_straughan) September 19, 2026
Kelly was in the fourth year of a 10-year contract when the Tigers relieved him of his duties on Oct. 26 of last year, one day after the Tigers dropped their third-straight top-25 ranked game of the season, a lopsided 49-25 loss to Texas A&M at home.
In his four seasons with the Tigers, LSU went Kelly went 34-14 overall, a slightly lower win percentage than what he posted at Notre Dame, where he left as the program's all-time winningest coach. It marked the first time that Kelly had been fired in his coaching career, which has included stops at Central Michigan, Cincinnati and Notre Dame.
LSU, after briefly getting sued by Kelly, agreed to fire Kelly without cause last November,initiating a buyout of approximately $54 million. It's the second-largest buyout in FBS history, behind only the $76 million Texas A&M owed Jimbo Fisher when it fired him in 2023.
So, as the hot seat and coaching carousel rumors begin to ramp up across college football in the coming weeks, Kelly said he is focused on what's in front of him, which is his work with CBS and CBS Sports, which includes serving as an analyst on select games and appearing on CBS Sports Network’s "Inside College Football" on Tuesdays.
"I'm focused on doing my work, and I know it happens because it's part of the business," Kelly said. "But yeah, I don't relish my name being mentioned with other jobs. I'm pulling for the guy that's got that job, and I want to see him do well."
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brian Kelly 'uncomfortable' being linked to coaching jobs, but 'can do the Jersey accent'
