LSU predicted to name polarizing $63 million college football coach as new HC

LSU may find itself in a three-way battle to land its next head coach after firing Brian Kelly. The college football rumors have linked LSU to plenty of top candidates, but one name has emerged as an early favorite.

On3 offered some predictions for how the coaching carousel could play out. College Football HQ on SI is going to analyze this LSU pick and offer our own prediction, giving Tigers fans two potential candidates to consider.

Let's dive into who is predicted to be LSU's next coach.

On3 Prediction: LSU names Ole Miss HC Lane Kiffin the team's new head coach

On3's Justin Hopkins offered his early predictions for how the coaching carousel will spin and has LSU hiring Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin. The challenge is LSU will be in a fight with Ole Miss and potentially Florida to hire Kiffin.

NEW: Nick Saban suggests to @clowfb that Lane Kiffin may already have a better job at Ole Miss than he would at LSU or Florida🤔

“Jobs that weren’t great jobs before are now. Lane is the first name up for Florida and the first name up for LSU, but I think you can have a long… pic.twitter.com/T9LQNrxLAT
— On3 (@On3sports) October 29, 2025

"The winner in all of this is Lane and Jimmy Sexton," Hopkins wrote on Monday. "He’s going to end up at the highest bidder. My bet is that means Lane is the next leader in Baton Rouge.

"The only problem is, he’s in the midst of a playoff season which makes the timeline less than ideal. The most Lane thing ever would be hiring Ed Orgeron to coach DL after he takes this job."

Kiffin has an estimated $63 million remaining on his current contract at Ole Miss. The coach earned an extra year on his deal after securing the team's seventh win of the season with a victory over Oklahoma. Kiffin is slated to make $9 million annually through 2031 at Ole Miss, per USA Today's Steve Berkowitz.

Who will LSU hire if Lane Kiffin stays at Ole Miss?

If Kiffin is indeed LSU's top choice, there are still two key ways that the Tigers could miss out on landing the coach. The most obvious path if for Kiffin to sign a lucrative contract extension to remain at Ole Miss.

Another potential option is for Kiffin to opt to take the Florida job over LSU. Kiffin grew up idolizing Steve Spurrier and could prefer a move to Gainesville.

It would be hard for most college football coaches to turn down LSU or Florida. Kiffin has a chance to pass on both at the same time.

The Ole Miss coach also comes with his own complications thanks to social media, and Kiffin not being afraid to speak his mind at all times. So far, there is no indication that this will stop LSU or Florida from making a push to land Kiffin.

College Football HQ on SI Prediction: LSU poaches Tulane HC Jon Sumrall after Lane Kiffin stays at Ole Miss

For our purposes, let's say Kiffin ends up remaining at Ole Miss. This means LSU would have to make a major pivot.

The candidate who could make the most sense is already coaching in Louisiana. Given the Louisiana governor's involvement in the coaching search, LSU may be reluctant to poach a coach from another program within the state.

Among the top names to fill the LSU head coach vacancy, Tulane's Jon Sumrall, the Waves' head coach, addresses the speculation. pic.twitter.com/IV1d9N9Rjl
— wdsu (@wdsu) October 28, 2025

Yet, Tulane's Jon Sumrall is too good to pass up. Unlike Kelly, Sumrall already understands the culture of Louisiana.

Sumrall knows how to recruit the state of Louisiana and has already built a College Football Playoff contender at Tulane. This potential LSU candidate also has SEC ties as a former Kentucky linebacker before being an assistant at his alma mater and Ole Miss.

College Football HQ on SI's prediction has Kiffin remaining at Ole Miss which prompts LSU to name Sumrall the Tigers next coach.