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James Carville blasts LSU board, Jeff Landry: 'Who the f*** coach is going to come here'

ns_headshot_2024-clearby: Nick Schultz9 hours agoNickSchultz_7
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© Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

After LSU dominated the news cycle in the early days of its coaching search, one of its prominent alumni weighed in. Political consultant James Carville spoke out about where things stand during a conversation with Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger and asked, “Who the f*** coach is going to come here?!”

Since LSU fired Brian Kelly on Sunday, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry adamantly said athletics director Scott Woodward would not lead the search for Kelly’s replacement and called out the contracts Woodward gave him and Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M. Thursday, the university announced Woodward’s firing as AD, effective immediately.

Amid the flurry of news, Carville said the damage has been done as the search begins. He also wondered what coach would want to go to Baton Rouge.

“The reputation of our university has been damaged,” Carville told Yahoo! Sports. “This board and governor have damaged LSU way beyond athletics. Who the f*** coach is going to come here?!”

Landry was involved in discussions about Kelly’s future on Sunday as LSU evaluated his future, On3’s Pete Nakos reported. It’s important to note LSU does not have a full-time university president at the moment, and a vote is set for next week.

After Woodward decided to fire Kelly, the university was on the hook for a roughly $53 million buyout. It would be the second-largest buyout ever for a college football head coach behind only Fisher’s $76.8 million buyout at Texas A&M. Woodward hired Fisher before leaving for LSU.

Between the two, it amounts to nearly $130 million in buyout money. That figure is part of the reason Landry called out Woodward during a Wednesday press conference.

“No. I can tell you right now, Scott Woodward is not selecting the next coach,” Landry said. “Hell, I would let Donald Trump select it before I let him do it. … I don’t know. But the Board of Supervisors is going to come up with a committee and they’re going to find us a coach.”

Thursday night, On3 reported the expectation was Woodward would be fired as LSU AD. The university announced the news a short while later and said Verge Ausberry – who will take over as interim athletics director – will lead the search for a new head football coach.

“We thank Scott for the last six years of service as athletic director,” said Scott Ballard, chair of the LSU Board of Supervisors, in a statement. “He had a lot of success at LSU, and we wish him nothing but the best in the future. Our focus now is on moving the athletic department forward and best positioning LSU to achieve its full potential.”