Where does Brian Kelly’s hire rank among the 28 new hires

Where would you rank Brian Kelly’s hire among the 28 coaches that took on new roles for 2022?

This coaching carousel was a wild one with 28 new hires being made for the 2022 season. The biggest jobs available were the USC Trojans, LSU Tigers, and the Florida Gators. Due to the hire at USC, Oklahoma then opened up.

Following the announcement of Lincoln Riley to USC, Brian Kelly left Notre Dame for LSU. Five of the top jobs of college football became open, which was a big reason why it was so wild at the tail end of the regular season.

Paul Myerberg put together his initial new hire rankings and where does he see Kelly? The new head coach for LSU comes in at No. 5.

What Myerberg Says…

Kelly’s next challenge is to bring LSU back to the top of the SEC and the FBS. After turning Notre Dame into an annual College Football Playoff contender, Kelly takes over a program that doesn’t lack for talent but needs direction. The only question is how he fits from a cultural perspective, but even that concern is overblown. (Kelly’s magically appearing southern drawl notwithstanding.)

Much like Myerberg said about the culture fit, that seems to be the narrative running around national media. Nick Saban left Michigan State for LSU in 2000. He wasn’t a culture fit and he won a national championship with the Tigers. Les Miles was the head coach at Oklahoma State and an alum of Michigan. Miles was from the north as well.

He led LSU to a national championship and another championship game berth in the BCS era. The only true “culture” fit would be Ed Orgeron, who was from the state. He won a national championship and was run out of town just two years later. The only culture fit is can you win a national championship? Kelly’s history in big games isn’t great but the talent gap will be closed if he can recruit top-level classes for LSU as he did at Notre Dame with less strict admission standards.

Kelly’s replacement at Notre Dame was ranked No. 11 overall.

What he said about Freeman

Freeman was destined to get a major job at some point in the near future. Is this too soon to take over one of the biggest jobs in coaching? Maybe. Freeman’s lack of experience as a head coach and overall lack of experience in the Power Five are clear drawbacks. But he’s drawn the overwhelming support of the players, is surrounded by a strong staff and will be able to learn on the job with a roster that’s good enough to compete for the national championship. If given time to grow on the job, Freeman may end up the best hire of the cycle.

[vertical-gallery id=33567]

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Patrick on Twitter: @PatrickConnCFB