Rece Davis names major college football head coach who was always 'a strange fit'

First, Penn State fired James Franklin, followed by Florida's decision to part ways with Billy Napier. The coaching carousel continued its chaotic ways this past weekend, with LSU moving on from head coach Brian Kelly.

It was just another disappointing loss for the Tigers under Kelly, who fell to 5-3 overall and 2-3 in the SEC. LSU has lost three of its past four games, which includes blowing a four-point halftime lead against Texas A&M on Saturday. The Aggies outscored the Tigers 35-7 in the second half.

The season started with national championship expectations, and the Tigers turned heads with a Week 1 win over No. 4 Clemson. The win over Clemson has aged poorly, and the Tigers have failed to find ways to beat other top teams in the SEC. They have one-score losses to Vanderbilt and Ole Miss, both games the Tigers had a chance to win on the road.

During a recent episode of the College GameDay podcast, ESPN's Rece Davis highlighted some of the issues that plagued Kelly's tenure in Baton Rouge. He also noted that the fit between Kelly and the program always seemed off from the beginning.

LSU head coach Brian Kelly looks on during the Texas A&M game in Tiger Stadium | SCOTT CLAUSE / USATODAY Network / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"Everybody knew every time somebody loses, especially at LSU, the fans go to try to turn over the bus," Davis said. "If they're behind at halftime, they get mad and leave. I mean, they've got awesome fans, but Pete made the emotional point.

"I've always thought it was... It was a strange fit," Davis continued. "Starting with the whole family thing at the beginning, but he's a proven winning coach, but ultimately, he lost a bunch of big games at LSU. He got embarrassed at home a couple of times. This was the most recent one, and it seems like everybody is behaving as if you are going to win all of these big games if you don't get out."

There were plenty of analysts and experts who questioned Kelly's fit at LSU when he was hired. The 64-year-old is from Massachusetts, spending most of his coaching career in the Midwest. He had stints at Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, and Assumption.

In an awkward moment during his introductory speech at an LSU basketball game, Kelly received backlash for using a fake Southern accent when talking about family. Even after multiple seasons, it still seemed Kelly was never really comfortable at LSU, which ultimately led to the fan base never rallying behind him, which contributed to his dismissal on Sunday.

Regardless of fit, Kelly has found success everywhere he's been, which led many people to set championship expectations and overlook the odd optics of Kelly in Baton Rouge. He won two Division II national championships at Grand Valley State, while leading Notre Dame to the BCS national championship in 2012 (Later vacated) and the CFP national championship game in 2020.

Over his four seasons at LSU, Kelly compiled a 34-14 overall record and went 19-10 in the SEC. He led the Tigers to an SEC Championship appearance in his first season, but the Tigers were blown out by Georgia in Atlanta. Even with three consecutive bowl victories, the Tigers never met the championship expectations that were set when Kelly arrived in Baton Rouge.

The Tigers will look to move forward under interim head coach Frank Wilson, who was the running backs coach before Kelly's firing.

LSU will travel to Tuscaloosa after a bye week for a huge SEC matchup against No. 4 Alabama. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 pm CT on ABC.