LSU’s Brian Kelly calls out tardy media, reporter fires back

Brian Kelly’s head coaching debut at LSU did not go as planned on the field after losing on a last-second blocked extra point attempt against the Florida State Seminoles in Week 1. 

And his relationship with the local media also appears to be off to an interesting start. 

In his weekly press conference on Tuesday, Kelly poked at the “late arriving” media, saying that they would be fined for not being on time.

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“With that, we’ll open it up to this late arriving media crowd that must have enjoyed the weekend,” Kelly said. “That’s usually $10 that we put in the kitty. We’ll have a big bash at the end of the year at my place.” 

A reporter responded to the jab, taking a shot following Kelly’s first loss as head coach of the Tigers. 

“Maybe if you win, I’ll be on time,” the reporter said to Kelly. 

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To his credit, Kelly kept his cool in responding to the reporter. 

“I don’t think it has anything to do with winning,” Kelly told the reporter. “I think it has to do with being on time.” 

Leah Vann, LSU baseball and football beat writer for The Advocate, later took credit for the retort and defended her comment, saying that it was all in good fun. 

“Press conference was at noon, I was running from a doctor’s appointment,” Vann wrote on Twitter. “Got there at 11:57. Brian Kelly called me out, said jokingly I owed him $10, I said if he won maybe I’d be on time. Not my finest hour. I apologized afterward, he was super chill and said I still owe him $10.”

“I know Brian Kelly likes to joke,” Vann continued. “He clearly took it as one from our conversation afterward. All in good fun, fam.”

Kelly, who left Notre Dame after 12 seasons to take over as head man at LSU in November, will face mounting pressure in Baton Rouge, especially after back-to-back disappointing seasons under former head coach Ed Orgeron. 

LSU faces Southern in Week 2 before their first conference game against Mississippi State on Sept. 17.