"It's not easy": When Brian Kelly revealed how his family dealt with sudden Notre Dame exit

When Brian Kelly decided to leave Notre Dame for LSU in 2021, after a decade of leading the Fighting Irish, many were surprised. During his tenure, he earned two College Football Playoff berths with them (2018, 2020).

Speaking with Paul Finebaum shortly after he joined the Tigers, the coach was asked about how the decision came together and how hard it was for his family to process it:

"Paul, it's not easy. I mean ... obviously, the opportunity to be with Scott Woodward on the phone was very important. It was a Zoom call, it was just under an hour. The alignment that I felt from LSU, from the president down to the board, the resources, the ability to play for championships in the SEC playing against the best each and every week.

"And then getting a chance to talk to my wife and family and having their consensus that, 'Hey, this is a great opportunity, let's go for it,' and when you have that kind of alignment on both sides and with your family excited to take this step, it made it so much easier of a decision," Said Kelly at the time. (1:00)

Since then, Kelly has failed to make the CFP or the SEC championship game with the LSU Tigers even once. While he had double-digit wins in his first two seasons (10-4 and 10-3), last year, he dropped to a 9-4 overall record.

He has, nonetheless, won his three bowl games at LSU. His successful season in 2023 also produced the Heisman Trophy winner: quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Why did Brian Kelly leave Notre Dame for LSU?

Despite making the CFP twice with the Fighting Irish in his time at South Bend, Brian Kelly could never advance to the national championship game with them. At the time of changing schools, Kelly said to the press that his reasoning for joining LSU was:

“I want to be in an environment where I have the resources to win a national championship.”

Which probably made sense at the time, with the Tigers having won a national title in 2019. However, since making the switch, he hasn't even made the CFP while Notre Dame entered the CFP in 2024 and advanced to the national championship game under Marcus Freeman.