ATLANTA — Before anybody assumes Brian Kelly is a fish out of water on the Louisiana bayou, consider this: The first-year LSU coach takes over a platform from which each of his three predecessors — Nick Saban, Les Miles and Ed Orgeron — won a national championship. The first two are fellow midwesterners, with the Kent Stat graduate Saban having his first big successes at Toledo and Michigan State, and Miles being a Michigan man.
Kelly might’ve made a mis-step with his mangling of “fa-muh-lee” early on, but the 32-year coaching veteran has proven he can build teams that challenge for the title.