Dave Aranda's next stop could take him right back to the place where he made his name.
LSU is working to add the former Baylor head coach to Lane Kiffin's staff, CBS Sports reports. The report adds that he's currently in Baton Rouge serving in an analyst-type role.
Baylor fired Aranda on October 25, one day after a 25-24 loss to Kansas ended a 14-game Baylor winning streak in the series that dated back to 2007. The Bears were 4-3 (2-2 Big 12) at the time, and Aranda finished seven seasons in Waco at 40-40. Defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman, in his first year at Baylor after coming over from Kansas State, is serving as interim head coach.
Baylor's best season under Aranda came in 2021, when the Bears went 12-2, beat Oklahoma State 21-16 for the Big 12 title, handled Ole Miss 21-7 in the Sugar Bowl and finished #5 in the AP poll. The rest of the run was uneven: 2-7 in 2020, 6-7 in 2022, 3-9 in 2023, 8-5 in 2024 and 5-7 in 2025.
Baylor kept Aranda last November, with president Linda Livingstone citing "financial stewardship" and "extreme volatility in college athletics."
This fall though, athletic director Doug McNamee made the change.
"He is a gifted coach and a brilliant football mind whose leadership brought some of our best Baylor football memories," McNamee said. "While this is a difficult moment, we believe a change in leadership is necessary at this time for our program."
Aranda arrived in Baton Rouge in January 2016 as defensive coordinator, and two years later LSU kept him with a record four-year, $10 million deal for an assistant. He was the defensive coordinator on the 2019 national championship team, and Baylor hired him in January 2020 to replace Matt Rhule.
Before LSU, Aranda built his reputation as a defensive coordinator at Wisconsin (2013-15), Utah State (2012) and Hawaii (2010-11). Earlier stops include Delta State, two stints at his alma mater Cal Lutheran, Houston, and Texas Tech, where he was a graduate assistant under Mike Leach.
He joins a stellar defensive staff with the Tigers. LSU's current staff, Blake Baker is in his third season as defensive coordinator after Kiffin held off a hard push from Tulane to keep him. Chris Kiffin is co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Ed Orgeron, Aranda's head coach for most of his LSU run and for that 2019 title, is on staff as a special assistant to recruiting and defense.
For a freshly fired head coach, an analyst job is about as good a landing spot as there is. Aranda gets to sit in on game planning, study the game from the other side of the building and stay visible while the next wave of head coaching and coordinator jobs opens up. LSU gets one of the sharpest defensive minds of the last decade without having to rework its staff structure in the middle of November. It's a clear win for both sides.
LSU is 6-2 (3-2 SEC) and sits #14 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings heading into Saturday's game against Alabama in Tiger Stadium. Texas visits November 14, followed by trips to Tennessee and Arkansas to close the regular season.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.