Brian Kelly opens up on what makes LSU special

LSU coach Brian Kelly shared why he believes that LSU is a special place, as he prepares to coach his second season with the Tigers. Kelly left Notre Dame to fill the vacancy left by Ed Orgeron, and had the Tigers in the College Football Playoff conversation in his first year.

During an interview with J.D. PicKell on the The Hard Count, Kelly opened up on why he chose Baton Rouge to continue his coaching career.

You can see Kelly’s interview with On3 below:

Brian Kelly on why LSU is special

“Well, I think first of all, it is a part of the country where football is just revered,” said Kelly. “And it starts at the high school ranks where, you know, kids grow up and they just want to play for LSU. I mean it’s a flagship — I think there’s only a couple of state universities — maybe Ohio State’s, one of them, LSU, there’s only a few in the country where there is that incredible connection with their state and the flagship university and the game of football.

“I think secondly, the great tradition of LSU football, national championships, but guys in the NFL. I think that connection. And I think finally, the venue where college football is played. Tiger Stadium is unlike many places and I think that was seen. Look, really does the hype ever live up to what it really is. And for me, being in it for three decades, I thought it was the hype. But the Alabama-LSU game lived up to the hype. I mean, the atmosphere, just the feeling in that stadium is quite unique. It is like nothing I’ve ever experienced. So, I think the stadium, the state, football itself, you got to throw the food in there too. I mean, the food’s amazing. I mean, come on. It’s like nothing else. I think you put all those things together make some pretty unique down here in Baton Rouge.”

It’s clear that Kelly believes that football at LSU is the main reason for his desire to jump to the south and SEC action, but as his explanation revealed — LSU is a culture of its own in the college landscape. From the food to the people, it all adds up to an amazing experience for the former Notre Dame coach as he pursues another Tigers national championship.