LSU head coach Brian Kelly sent a very strong message to the rest of college football about his program’s approach to recruiting and NIL money. However, it was the completely wrong message.
He admitted out loud that he refuses to adapt to the modern era of the sport and/or made the Tigers sound broke.
The NCAA changed the entire landscape of collegiate athletics when it allowed athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness. An incompetent governing body opened the floodgates with very little (to no) regulation and zero ability to police the minimal rules. The system, (not so) indirectly, became pay-for-play through collectives. Some individual states have since made it legal for their schools to pay players directly rather than going through a third party.
Money has always and will always have a direct tie to success. Programs with greater NIL funds from which to pull are able to offer greater compensation to talented athletes. Some recruitments, if not a majority of recruitments, include an element of a bidding war. Athletes that want to get paid will choose the school that can pay the most. It’s a pretty simple concept that is a lot like free agency — especially when the transfer portal enters the equation.
It’s not a secret and it’s all completely legal!
Kelly either refuses to accept the new reality, genuinely believes that his program is morally superior and is prioritizing his code of ethics over efficiency, or does not have any NIL money from which to leverage. Regardless of the answer, the third-year head coach in Baton Rouge made an outlandish statement.
LSU is currently in need of help on the defensive line, along with every other team in the country. However, the Tigers are struggling to recruit the depth that they need.
Kelly proudly claimed in an interview with Jacques Doucet that the failures stem from an unwillingness to “buy players,” as if that is a positive thing in a period of time where “buying players” is the most efficient way to win…
.@JacquesDoucet : Where are you right now w/the defensive line recruiting?
— Carter Bryant (@PowerHourLSU) May 7, 2024
Brian Kelly: "It's hasn't fared very well quite frankly because we are selling something a little bit differently…
We are not in the market of buying players."
LSU HC sends a STRONG message via @WAFB pic.twitter.com/HO8zfwdRsZ
Even though his overall sentiment is admirable, for him to say what he said how he said it is truly mind-numbing. Even if the sentiment behind his comments stem from some kind of pride in trying to recruit the “old fashioned way,” and pride in his program, the comments completely backfired.
To hear a head coach claim that his program recruits without focusing on NIL while actively struggling to recruit a position of need without NIL does not reflect well on how the program is being managed or how LSU has adapted to the new reality. It also isn’t true…
Perhaps Kelly should try getting with the times. LSU should be spending even more money to buy defensive linemen if it needs defensive linemen.