By: Robert Craft

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

LSU is college football’s latest tier 1 team to fire their coach and enter the most exciting coaching carousel in recent history.

Not only are the Tigers in the mix, but they also move right to the front of the line as the top job available.

Brian Kelly’s 34-14 record wasn’t the type of failure that we typically see associated with major program firings. At a program with expectations like Louisiana State University,  34-14 with no championships isn’t good enough.

In a coaching cycle that’s already breaking buyout records and showcasing major names, LSU is a job that will attract the best and brightest.

In most cases, what this new job was and what it is can be two completely different things.

In LSU’s case, there may be no better time to demand the best of the best. With that in mind, here’s a look at some upside vs. challenges that  the next coach will face at LSU.

If you could design the perfect recruiting base, it might be LSU. Though in-state players leave at times, the best from Louisiana often stay home to play for the Tigers.

There’s a state pride connection to the university like no other, and that’s a great starting point, considering Louisiana produces the most NFL players per capita.

The Tigers also border Texas to the east giving them easy access to pop into the nation’s most talented recruits. Their proximity to Mississippi and the rest of the Greater Southeast means that LSU has a geographical and reputational footprint many programs envy.

At their best, they can be a national recruiter going coast-to-coast and up and down the eastern seaboard. LSU possesses access and natural advantages when it comes to talent. They are among the best in the country.

We’ve already discussed the recruiting base as an advantage, but it can’t be overstated how big of a jump that gives the Tigers in potential roster building.

Additionally, LSU has one of the country’s best game day environments with night games in Death Valley. Their prodigious number of former Tigers in the NFL makes LSU an attractive option for players looking to reach the next level.

Though Kelly was vocal about the need for more NIL money at times, the Tigers showed the ability to be big spenders this past offseason with a roster value estimated to be around $30 million, according to sources.

LSU also has a sizable front office, having put together one of the country’s top personnel groups.

A new coach may want to restructure some, but the support is already in place for a plug-and-play candidate.

It’s still early in the aftermath, but all indications are that LSU recruiting class looks stable and the Tigers’ roster  seems to be in the same shape under interim coach Frank Wilson.

Unlike most jobs where there’s major upheaval following a change, the right staff could retain key pieces and be set up for success in year one.

Louisiana is home to good food, good music and generally messy politics. With LSU playing in the state capital of Baton Rouge, those politics are right on the doorstep.

In fact, Louisiana governor Jeff Landry went to social media and voiced his disapproval of LSU’s rising season ticket prices after Saturday’s 49-24 beat down against Texas A&M and played a big part to remove Kelly.

Landry’s role is more out of necessity at the moment because LSU is without a school president. Still, political influence and pressure to win is at an all-time high within the program.

The Tigers showed the ability to raise the funds necessary to compete with the best in the country this year, but they will need continued contributions to stay at that level.

That can be difficult when LSU’s other athletic programs have mouths to feed. Their baseball program and women’s basketball team are both among the nation’s elite while their men’s basketball hopes to rise again. In the rev-share era, those can be tough waters to navigate for an athletic department.

There’s a reason this opening resonated within the industry when news of Kelly’s departure broke. Many in the industry consider LSU an elite job, if not the best.

No place has more natural advantages, I think it’s the easiest place to win in the country when you consider all of the factors.

Look no further than Les Miles and Ed Orgeron winning national titles during their time there. No school has the access they do to the amount of talent needed to win, and the administration has shown time and again they will back them if needed.

I don’t think people outside of the state understand how powerful the Tiger’s brand is in that region. It’s everywhere in Louisiana, and because of the displacement from Katrina, it’s moved into Texas and Florida and other parts of the Southeast.

I think the fit matters. We saw it with Kelly, and I think you have to understand you’re recruiting and coaching a different type of player there. If they find a guy who understands that the sky is the limit.

Just days removed from the decision, any talk of concrete names is still premature. But it’s safe to say that Lane Kiffin is a top contender.

Kiffin is likely to be the belle of the coaching ball with Florida also in play and Ole Miss working to extend his contract.

My short list includes former Penn State coach James Franklin, Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, who previously called plays for LSU during their 2019 championship season, and Tulane coach Jon Sumrall.

Given the attractiveness of the position, LSU could even take a big swing inside NFL circles. Athletic director Scott Woodward said that he intended on a national coaching search, and the Tigers should use everything at their disposal to attract the best candidates.