New favorite emerges to be named next LSU head football coach

All hands are on deck at LSU in the wake of the firing of Brian Kelly amid the dash to find the right man for the job to take the football program into the next decade.

In the very early running to take over at Death Valley, one upcoming head coach already working in the state of Louisiana appears to be the betting favorite for the job.

Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall is out in front of college football’s most consequential head coach opening with +150 odds to take the job, according to DraftKings.

Sumrall is followed by Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, a key assistant during LSU’s title run in 2019, and who leads the third-ranked total offense and fourth-ranked scoring unit in the NFL.

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin and former Penn State coach James Franklin, who had a $50 million buyout after being fired from that school, are among the other favorites.

Jon Sumrall responds to LSU rumors

For his part, Sumrall has denied any interest in the LSU position.

“I get those questions because we’re having success. The coaching carousel isn’t even a thought,” Sumrall said publicly this week.

He added: “We’re in the midseason phase. Whatever people want to speculate, they can do that. UTSA has 100 percent of my focus.”

Midseason phase has proven to be consequential for Tulane so far, sitting undefeated in conference play and with just one loss against playoff contender, one-loss Ole Miss.

Going forward, the Green Wave heads into a matchup against UTSA this weekend and then another big test against ranked Memphis right after in a two-game stretch that could make this team a College Football Playoff hopeful or an also-ran.

As it stands this week, Tulane sits in second place in the American standings, behind undefeated Navy, which it doesn’t play in the regular season, and just ahead of Memphis.

What Sumrall has done at Tulane

Sumrall has been on coaching staffs in the SEC before at Kentucky, his alma mater, and Ole Miss, before taking the top job first at Troy and then Tulane.

He has also been connected in recent reporting to the Kentucky position, should it come open, as analysts are of the opinion the school is preparing to move on from Mark Stoops eventually.

Sumrall went 23-4 in two seasons at Troy, which was ranked in the AP poll in his first season, and is currently 15-6 with Tulane entering this weekend.

Overall, he’s 38-10 in his career as a head coach.

Odds to replace Brian Kelly at LSU

Jon Sumrall, +150
Joe Brady, +200
Lane Kiffin, +400
James Franklin, +600
Curt Cignetti, +700
Eli Drinkwitz, +900
Brent Key, +1400
Jeff Brohm, +1600
Jimbo Fisher, +1800

Bringing up the near on the big board are some of the more outlandish candidates, like Dabo Swinney (+5000), Matt Campbell (+7500), and of course Nick Saban (+7500).

Urban Meyer is at +2800 odds to take over at LSU and former NFL head coach Jon Gruden is listed at +4000 to succeed Kelly.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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