The college football coaching carousel is constantly spinning, and the biggest job currently open appears to be at LSU. The school parted ways with Brian Kelly last month.
The position is considered among the best in college football, thanks to its SEC membership, proximity to rich recruiting grounds in the Southeast, and a strong NIL and facilities budget.
So who will end up getting the head coaching job in Baton Rouge? Las Vegas has some ideas, as several sportsbooks have released odds on LSU’s next head coach. Let’s take a look at those odds — and see which ones seem realistic and which don’t.
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LSU next coach odds
As shown, several candidates are listed. Let’s review some of them and examine who appears most likely to land the position. Odds via Bet Online:
| Coach | Current Job | Odds for LSU job |
| Joe Brady | Buffalo Bills OC | +300 |
| Lane Kiffin | Ole Miss HC | +375 |
| Nick Saban | ESPN Analyst | +400 |
| Clark Lea | Vanderbilt HC | +500 |
| Jon Sumrall | Tulane HC | +700 |
| James Franklin | Fired from PSU | +700 |
| Dan Lanning | Oregon HC | +700 |
| Brent Key | Georgia Tech HC | +1400 |
| Eli Drinkwitz | Missouri HC | +1800 |
| Jimbo Fisher | ACC Network Analyst | +1800 |
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Joe Brady (+300)
Joe Brady is the current favorite for the LSU job. The South Florida native is currently the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills. He began as the Bills’ quarterbacks coach that year and has served as the team’s OC since 2023.
Although Brady, just 36 years old, has spent the majority of his coaching career in the NFL, he maintains strong ties to LSU and Louisiana. He spent two seasons with the New Orleans Saints as an offensive assistant from 2017–18.
In 2019, Ed Orgeron hired him as LSU’s passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. That season, the Tigers’ offense averaged 48.4 points per game under Heisman-winning quarterback Joe Burrow. LSU finished a perfect 15–0 and captured its most recent national championship. Brady coached Burrow, as well as future NFL stars Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson, that season.
It is easy to understand why he has been linked to the LSU position, given his familiarity with the program and his status as a young coach with established ties to the state. However, two major questions remain: Will Brady want to leave the NFL, and will LSU hire a coach with no previous head coaching experience?
Brady has spent nine of his 14 coaching years in the NFL and helped lead Josh Allen and the Bills to an AFC Championship last season. NFL coaching also generally offers a more manageable work-life balance than college football, particularly given the year-round recruiting demands in 2025.
The second question is more significant. LSU parted ways with Brian Kelly, one of college football’s winningest coaches, due in part to unmet expectations. It is difficult to envision LSU’s leadership entrusting the program to a coach with no prior head coaching experience, despite Brady’s youth and rising star status.
Lane Kiffin (+375)
Kiffin has the second-best odds to be LSU's head coach. Although Kiffin has stated recently that he's never been motivated to take a job because of money, LSU might be a hard job to pass up.
Ole Miss was historically one of the SEC’s weakest programs. But over five seasons, Kiffin has won 52 games in Oxford and has a chance to lead the Rebels to an SEC title game and CFP berth for the first time in school history. He has done so with far fewer resources than LSU has, although the school has heavily invested in its NIL commitment.
If Kiffin can win this big at a place like Ole Miss, what could he do with the resources at a place like LSU? The Rebels head coach passed on the Auburn opening in 2022, and most of his family is in Oxford now. Still. Kiffin could see the LSU job as one too good to pass up.
Clark Lea (+500)
Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea has turned the Commodores around in a major way over the last two seasons. Following three straight losing seasons, Vanderbilt finished 7–6 with a Birmingham Bowl victory over Georgia Tech. He has the Commodores at 7–2 this season and ranked 16th in the college football playoff rankings.
What Lea has accomplished at Vanderbilt over the last two seasons is impressive and makes him a legitimate candidate for the LSU job. However, what might prevent Lea from going to Baton Rouge is that he played for Vanderbilt and is an alumnus of the school he now coaches. A Nashville native, Lea leaving his hometown while already achieving success at a program with much lower expectations is hard to imagine, but it's certainly possible.
Jon Sumrall (+700)
Current Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall is another hot name in this year’s coaching carousel, and not just for LSU. That’s because wherever Sumrall has been a head coach, he’s won -- and won big. He led Troy to back-to-back double-digit win seasons in 2022 and 2023, captured a Sun Belt Conference title in 2023, and went 9–5 in his first season at Tulane. The Green Wave also reached the AAC title game last season.
Tulane is 6–2 so far this season. LSU wouldn’t have to go far to get in touch with Sumrall, as Tulane’s campus sits just about 80 miles southeast of Baton Rouge. That said, LSU won’t be the only school pursuing him. Born in Texas and having played football at Kentucky, Sumrall could be a fit for any of the other SEC openings, including Florida, Arkansas, and Auburn.
James Franklin (+700)
James Franklin was fired from Penn State after losing three straight games to Oregon, UCLA, and Northwestern. He was also 4–21 against AP Top-10 opponents. However, Franklin has spoken publicly about wanting to coach again, including his continued goal of winning a national title.
Franklin also recruited well in Pennsylvania and the Northeast and has SEC coaching experience from his time at Vanderbilt from 2011–2013. His record against top-10 opponents may be enough to give LSU pause, but for a head coach with a 128–60 overall record, he is likely to at least be considered for the Baton Rouge job.
Dan Lanning (+700)
Dan Lanning is a candidate for virtually every opening across the country. That's because he has a 42-7 record as a head coach over four seasons in Eugene. That record includes three straight double-digit win seasons from 2022-2024, and a 7-1 start to 2025. But the big question is whether or not the head coach will leave Eugene. He previously turned down the open Alabama job in 2024, despite him being a former Alabama assistant.
Not to mention Lanning is already one of the highest-paid coaches in the country, making $10.4 million a year. The grass isn't always greener on the other side, so don't be surprised if Lanning stays put at Oregon.
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Is Nick Saban going to LSU?
It's no secret that Nick Saban is enjoying retirement. He's a regular on ESPN's 'College GameDay' and seems to have made a natural transition to television.
But the Saban-back-to-LSU rumors got started by none other than former LSU star Shaquille O'Neal. He told US Weekly earlier this week that he heard his alma mater was talking to Saban about the open job.
LSU interim AD Verge Ausberry quickly shut those rumors down.
“Nick Saban and I have a standing conversation probably every two to three weeks,” Ausberry said on ESPN 104.5 radio. “We’re good friends, first of all. A person that I admire a lot. Coach Saban was joking. No way he’s coming back to football, okay? Miss Terry’s not gonna let him.
“That’s not gonna happen. Let’s get that out of the way soon, because if he was and he was interested, I will go drive and pick him up right now and bring him back. … I think that has run its course, okay?”
Not to mention Saban retired means he can spend his Sunday's like this—curled up under blanket watching Chiefs-Bills, just like the rest of us:
Nick Saban’s daughter Kristen shared video of his family singing happy birthday Sunday night. Pic.twitter.com/Cf0TeLR54B
— Michael Casagrande (@ByCasagrande) November 4, 2025
Saban is unlikely to come out of retirement.
MORE: How much it cost LSU to fire Brian Kelly
Is Deion Sanders going to LSU?
Speaking of rumors, this is another one that's caught fire in recent days. From viral Facebook posts, to the likes of Stephen A. Smith suggesting how well Sanders would do at LSU, buzz is building. Still, there are no true signs of Sanders ending up in purple and gold.
Yes, Sanders won big at HBCU Jackson State and has a reputation as a strong recruiter, but Colorado’s 3–6 record so far this season makes it far more likely he will remain in Boulder. Sanders is a capable head coach, but he probably hasn’t achieved enough to be seriously considered for the LSU job.
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Is Lane Kiffin going to LSU?
For now, it appears Kiffin remains committed to Ole Miss. Still, the LSU job might be a tough one to ignore. The Rebels have three remaining games against The Citadel, Florida and Mississippi State. They should be favored in all three.
Ole Miss has a shot at getting a berth in the SEC title game for the first time in school history and has an inside track to a CFP bid. The timing of a Rebels playoff run might make things tricky for LSU if it wants to hire Kiffin.
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