Brian Kelly not only showed his most sincere sympathies for the family of Kyren Lacy, he spoke at his funeral. The late LSU wide receiver’s mother wants to set the record straight.
She presented a very different account of what happened from his father.
This latest update about the recently fired college football coach directly contradicts a harsh statement made by the latter after his ouster. It does not seem fair to acknowledge one but not the other.
Brian Kelly coached Kyren Lacy for three seasons.
Lacy, a former three-star recruit, played two years of college football at Louisiana-Lafayette, or whatever it is the Ragin’ Cajuns want to be called these days. He later transferred to LSU as a rising junior with three years of eligibility remaining.
Although Lacy sat behind stars like Brian Thomas and Malik Nabers upon arrival to Baton Rouge, he eventually burst onto the scene as a fifth-year senior in 2024 and was projected to be a first- or second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, the 24-year-old never got to live out his dream.
He was charged with negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run, and reckless operation of a vehicle in January after a multi-vehicle crash killed a 78-year-old former Marine in December. Lacy tragically took his own life in April just a few hours before the trial was set to begin.
Kenny Lacy, Kyren’s father, posted a heartbreaking message about mental health after his son’s death. He also made a bold claim about Brian Kelly on Monday, less than 24 hours following his ouster at LSU.
The Lacy family patriarch put his son’s former head coach on blast for a severe lack of sympathy.
“This dude [Frank Wilson] actually came sit down [sic] with our family and showed us some real genuine love when my son died along with a couple other coaches. I didn’t even get a call or text from [Kelly]. Must be nice to get paid millions to get your walking papers. Let’s get it coach Frank.”
As bad as that sounds, it seems like he might not have the full story of what happened.
There are two sides to every story.
Not too long after Kenny Lacy’s post on Facebook made its rounds on social media, Kandace Faye Washington shared a very different perspective. She, the mother of Kyren Lacy, offered her gratitude to Brian Kelly for how he acted in wake of her son’s death.
Her post on Instagram exonerates the former LSU head coach in contradiction to her ex-husband.
“I can only speak for myself, my sons, and my family — but Coach Brian Kelly absolutely called me after Kyren passed, and we spoke more than once. Coach Sloan met with me as well, along with much of the LSU staff.
“Coach Kelly even spoke beautifully at Kyren’s funeral, honoring his life and the impact he made on and off the field. The LSU coaches, staff, players, and community have shown our family nothing but love and support.
“We are forever grateful for the opportunity, the memories, and the kindness shown to us. Wishing Coach Kelly, Coach Sloan, and the entire LSU family continued blessings and success. 💜💛”
Not only did he check on the family, he actually spoke at Kyren’s funeral.
Perhaps there is more to this situation than we realize. I do not know the dynamics of Lacy’s family.
However, Kandace Faye Washington wants to be very clear that Brian Kelly offered his sympathies to her side of the family and cared deeply for her son. She cannot speak for how he acted toward Kenny Lacy.
Kyren’s mother also shared information on an upcoming event in her son’s honor.
“P.S. The @kyrenk2foundation will be hosting its 2nd annual Turkey drive in Thibodaux Louisiana on Saturday November 22, 2025 from 11am-1pm if you would like to donate to this amazing event, click the link in our bio to donate! We are excited to be able to feed the community we love and honor!!”
You can find the aforementioned link in her bio HERE.