Back in late October, just as the wheels began to turn on LSU's head coaching search not even a week after (what amounted to be the unofficial) dismissal of Brian Kelly in Baton Rouge, Louisiana governor Jeff Landry made waves when he shared his belief that the contract of the next leader of the Tigers could be the template for the future.
A day after publicly griping about the buyout of Kelly, and stating he was "sick of rewarding failures in this country" as Brian Kelly made off with one of the largest buyouts in college football history, Landry shared on the Pat McAfee show:
"Look, I'm hoping we can make a contract with a great coach at LSU that can be the template."
"I have no problem compensating these coaches, even at the rate we are talking about, as long as we are winning."
"I think that everyone is in agreement here, in the state of Louisiana, that the next coach that we hire is going to have a patently different contract. If that agent can't see what is coming down the pipe, hey these big name coaches are big because they win. What, are they afraid of? Right? If you're the best, you shouldn't have to worry. Guess what? I'm putting my reputation on the line, and when I win, this is how much money I want."
After reading that, the logical conclusion was that the buyout language and perhaps even the structure was going to change move going forward, but that doesn't appear to be the case from the early details being shared.
For starters, Kiffin's seven-year $91 million deal at LSU puts him in rare company alongside Georgia's Kirby Smart as the only two leaders in college football making over $13 million per year. Among the escalators in the deal is a deal that would make Kiffin the highest paid coach in college football if he were to win a national title.
Among the details being provided by Wilson Alexander of The Advocate, as it relates to buyouts, Kiffin would be owed 80% of what remains on his contract if he were to be fired without cause.
That part, not unconventional by any stretch, as Kiffin was undoubtedly the hottest name on the market this coaching cycle after taking what many thought would be a rebuild in Oxford that has turned into a season with national title hopes as defensive coordinator Pete Golding was tabbed to take over to provide some much-needed stability during an messy and unprecedented situation.
It does seem there is at least one rather unconventional part of Lane's LSU contract that certainly played a part in his decision to leave an Ole Miss team preparing for the College Football Playoff.
The most fascinating part of the contract that has been shared thus far, is that LSU agreed to pay Lane's postseason bonus he would have been owed by Ole Miss had he stayed with the Rebels. Even though he won't coach Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff, he could still make up to $1 million if the Rebels were to go on to win a national title with Golding leading the team.
That little detail is certainly not what folks had in mind when Landry talked back at the end of October about the next head coach's deal being a template for future college football head coaching contracts.
Michael Cauble adds that the contract also states that if Lane were take another head coaching job, he would pay between $7 million and $1.5 million, depending on when that happened during the course of the contract, and if Verge Ausberry is not the athletic director at the time, the penalty would be reduced by 50%.
It is also worth sharing that Alexander adds, as we enter the month of December 2025, LSU is entering a brief period of time where they are paying three individuals who are, or have led, the football program. In addition to Kiffin, LSU is also paying Brian Kelly his buyout, and is also set to send Ed Orgeron his final buyout payment of $426,000 on December 15th.
There will surely be more to come to light on Lane's contract throughout the day, and in the coming days, so we will update this piece accordingly.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for all the latest.