The SEC Forum at College Football Fan Site, CFB51!!!

Kiffin hasn't won a damn thing, really.  His average record in-conference is 5-3.  He's a name and he has fun offenses, but he has lived under the line programs like Florida and LSU expect to be above.  

Arguably, the best part about Kiffin and the mythos that surrounds him is his time as OC for other really good head coaches.  He's been part of some great teams, but you're right, all he's actually shown is that he's a great coordinator.  

One thing to note about Kelly.  His dismissal had as much to do with the aesthetics as the record.  We could've lost to Texas A&M--maybe even gotten blown out in the second half again--but if the offense weren't so inept, he'd probably still be here.  And in fact, his firing resulted from an argument he got in the next day with then-AD Woodward, not exactly the A&M loss itself.  Woodward told him to move on from the OC, Kelly told him F-you, I'm the coach and I don't think the offense or the coordinator is the most important thing that needs addressing, and Woodward didn't like that.  All that to say, it's possible to be as lackluster as we are, and not be fired.  But overall, yeah, 7-4 headed into the final weekend is not where LSU expects to be, especially with the NIL that went into this roster.  I think with a willingness to placate some powers, Kelly could still be here, but it's definitely correct to say that another year or two of this and he'd have been gone one way or the other.  

Some fans want Kelvin Sheppard, a former LSU linebacker who is a pretty new DC for the Detroit Lions.  Insiders say they know for sure he would take the HC job if offered, but I don't think LSU would ever seriously entertain a move like that.  

I'd look at how many expensive HC hires have worked out over the past 20 years vs how many inexpensive hires of DCs/OCs have worked out for a third the price.

I generally agree, BUT this is akin to the "more All-Americans were 3* and 4* compared to blue chip guys."
Yeah.......but there are way more of those guys.  The list of huge-contract HCs is far smaller than the alternative.  

FWIW, many sites are reporting that Alex Golesh of USF is going to be the next HFC at Arkansas.