Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry made waves on Wednesday in relation to LSU football’s coaching search.
When speaking to reporters at a press conference on how Louisiana would handle SNAP benefits as the federal government shutdown lengthens, Landry delved into his thoughts on fired LSU coach Brian Kelly, LSU athletic director Scott Woodward, and the general coaching industry.
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“I can tell you right now,” Landry said, “Scott Woodward is not selecting the next coach. Hell, I’ll let Donald Trump select it before I let him do it.”
There were questions about Woodward’s role in the search before Landry’s comments. Woodward ran the show throughout LSU’s 2021 search, but more voices will be involved this go-around.
“The board of supervisors is going to come up with a committee and they’re going to go find us a coach,” Landry said.
Landry didn’t stop there. He went on to blast the agent community.
“Y’all need to start looking at who represents all these people. Like these agents. You know, it’s interesting, if I’m not mistaken, Woodward’s agent, Kelly’s agent, the Texas A&M, they’re all the same agent,” Landry said.
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While it’s true several college football coaches are represented by a select group of agents, Kelly and former Texas A&M head coach don’t share the same agent. Kelly is represented by Trace Armstrong, while Fisher is repped by Jimmy Sexton.
Landry said the NCAA needs to put “guardrails on college sports.”
Landry’s comments put the LSU search in the national spotlight. LSU and the state of Louisiana, for better or worse, were the talk of college football on Wednesday afternoon.
Let’s try to separate the signal from the noise and evaluate the real impact this could have on the LSU coaching search.
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LSU is still without a president
We don’t know the exact influence Landry has had on LSU in recent days, but Landry’s role is strengthened by the fact that LSU is operating under an interim president.
Without a full-time president to call the shots, there’s a power vacuum. LSU’s Board of Supervisors plays a role; several members of that board were appointed by Landry.
Even if Landry isn’t making any formal moves, his public comments matter. If a governor of a state shares strong opinions about the state’s flagship university, it impacts what decisions are made. You probably won’t see many on the board rebuking Landry.
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LSU is set to name a president in the coming weeks. Once that’s set, we’ll see how Landry’s influence continues to take shape.
Landry taking shots at agents could haunt LSU
Agents have power in the college football coaching industry — Landry’s comments won’t do LSU many favors in that department.
While Landry didn’t address Jimmy Sexton directly, it’s not hard to draw a connection between Landry’s words and Sexton’s business practices. A discussion can be had about the power agents hold in the coaching world, but this isn’t a time when LSU wants to be on bad terms with names like Sexton and Armstrong.
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Several names expected to be among LSU’s coaching candidates are represented by Sexton, including Ole Miss’s Lane Kiffin and Georgia Tech’s Brent Key.
If Kiffin is LSU’s guy, the Tigers already needed all the hype they can get. Florida and Ole Miss will both put big contracts on Kiffin’s desk.
LSU’s president hire will be critical
LSU’s next president, whoever it is, will walk into a messy situation.
Alignment is key in the world of college athletics, and power players around LSU are pulling in different directions right now. There will be some coaches who don’t want to hitch their wagon to LSU without more clarity.
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LSU’s Board of Supervisors Chair Scott Ballard seemed surprised when asked about leading the search.
It doesn’t seem like the important people are on the same page and there will be coaches who want that sorted out before accepting the LSU job.
Just to recap:
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We don’t know Scott Woodward’s role in the coaching search and what his future role at LSU looks like.
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Landry may or may not have played a role in Kelly’s firing and is now making brazen comments about the coaching search at press conferences.
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LSU’s Board of Supervisors was unaware of Landry’s announcement regarding the board leading the search.
LSU’s president will be tasked with figuring it out. Achieving alignment is no easy task, especially at LSU.
There’s a chance this blows over and is all just noise
It’s a story right now, but like many stories in the world of politics and college athletics, it could all blow over.
Landry has been present in recent days, but I wouldn’t bet on regular public comments on LSU’s coaching search from the governor. I could be wrong, but I don’t see this becoming a regular occurrence.
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When a new president gets in the door and LSU gets into the meat and potatoes part of this coaching search, the noise may quiet.
Will this actually end up impacting LSU’s coaching search? Who knows.
Regardless, it’s not a story LSU wants to be dealing with right now.
This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: How Jeff Landry’s comments will impact LSU football coaching search
