Tiger Town Circus: LSU Fires Brian Kelly, Exiles Scott Woodward, And Lets the Governor Call Plays

Don't worry, "LSU is not broken" for all you Tiger fans out there who have bought a ticket to the circus that is currently in town. 

Sometimes you can only laugh to hide the pain, which is what LSU fans are trying to do at the moment. As the entire college athletics world watched from afar, school officials were hoping to calm the waters on Friday morning, though just about everything they said would fall on deaf ears. 

"LSU is not broken. LSU athletic department is not broken," interim AD Verge Ausberry said with conviction. 

On Thursday, the Board of Supervisors decided it was time to move on from AD Scott Woodward in a move that the school said did not involve Governor Jeff Landry. 

Politics, Power, And The LSU Coaching Search: How Governor Jeff Landry Undermined AD Scott Woodward

This whole ordeal was almost a recreation of Tennessee's debacle in 2017, when AD John Currie went missing for two days while trying to hire Dave Doeren and Mike Leach as the next head coach, blaming his absence on airplane Wi-Fi, while he tried to meet Leach on a park bench in California. 

In that case, the Tennessee administration tagged former football coach Phillip Fulmer as the interim AD, before assuming the permanent role. He later ‘resigned’ following the Jeremy Pruitt debacle, though his $30,000 a month severance was a way for him to be fired with dignity. 

Only Thing Missing In LSU Circus Were Elephants

The debacle started last Sunday when Brian Kelly was fired following the loss to Texas A&M, without Woodward giving the board of supervisors notice. From there, you could've fooled everyone into thinking they were part of a Saturday Night Live skit full of cameo appearances, including a performance by Governor Landry himself. 

"No, I can tell you right now Scott Woodward is not selecting the next coach. Hell, I'll let Donald Trump select it before I let him do it," Gov. Landry said on Wednesday. "I don't know, but the board of supervisors will come up with a committee and there gonna go find us a coach." 

No matter what Landry said during the week, the wheels were already in motion for Woodward to exit stage left. Despite athletic programs winning multiple titles, having the hottest NIL brand in college athletics and putting together a veteran coaching staff, there was no coming back for Woodward. 

According to multiple sources, after the events last Sunday with Brian Kelly, Woodward's days were numbered. 

Even though Governor Landry harped on the buyout this week, proclaiming that his role was due to the buyout being paid out to Brian Kelly through taxpayer dollars, Board of Supervisors member John Carmouche seemingly put an end to that conversation. 

"Let me make it clear. The state has never, and the taxpayers have never paid for a coach, and never will."

Ok, I'm glad we got that part cleared up, since the governor made more rounds on television Thursday than a presidential candidate lobbying for your vote before a primary. 

The ‘Terrible Contract’ Ignited Governor Landry To Step In

Oh, and that talking point that Landry discussed ad nauseam this week about future contracts not having such large buyouts? 

That was also dispelled on Friday morning, which is essentially the board of supervisors trying to extinguish the fire Landry started on Wednesday, and then continued on the Pat McAfee show. 

I guess the governor forgot that Scott Woodward had a $6 million buyout, adding to the $54 million already owed to Brian Kelly. But, don't let that detour you from the state just looking out for their citizens. 

Was the governor, or board of supervisors, complaining when this contract was sitting on a public website for the past two years? 

LSU, AD Scott Woodward Part Ways After Brian Kelly Firing And Governor Jeff Landry Feud

But, speaking with reporters on Friday morning, officials were essentially saying the opposite about contracts for future coaches, which are on-par for how this week has gone in Baton Rouge. 

"Our job, I was told, was to get the best football coach there is, and don't worry about that at all," interim AD Verge Ausberry said. "Whatever it takes to get that person here, we will do."

Congrats, Jimmy Sexton and Trace Armstrong, you can start negotiating again for the biggest payday possible for your clients who are interested in the LSU job. 

No, this was not some type of ‘Naked Gun’ remake. 

It was Louisiana politics at its finest, with a side of athletic department turmoil. Seemingly, everyone played their part in making this one of the most tumultuous weeks in college athletics history, and I've seen some things. 

There will be books written about everything that transpired over the past few months in Baton Rouge. You can call it the ‘Week Of Dysfunction’ and have Mark Nagi write a sequel to his prominent book discussing the ten-year period where Tennessee athletics looked more like a landfill. 

As for where they go next, LSU finds itself in a tough predicament. No permanent president, no athletic director, a governor who is overplaying his hand, and a coaching candidate wondering what the hell is happening in Baton Rouge. 

Or as we like to call it: Just another day in college athletics.