Brian Kelly backs Lane Kiffin for LSU championship and explores AI for coaching comeback

Former LSU head coach Brian Kelly, who was fired in October 2025 after a 49‑25 loss to Texas A&M, said he believes his successor Lane Kiffin can win a national championship. Kelly highlighted LSU’s investment in name‑image‑likeness (NIL), strong recruiting classes and a top‑ranked transfer portal intake, noting, “I think they have invested in NIL… they have given him the opportunity… Lane’s a really smart football coach.”

Kelly also revealed he is using the AI tool Claude to prepare for a possible return to coaching, telling USA Today, “Every day, I’m trying to do my due diligence using Claude and AI, asking questions to build some of those answers that I think can be helpful for me as I get in front of an athletic director.” While he is unlikely to coach this season, he may be back on the sidelines next year.