Eight months after LSU moved on from Kelly, the veteran coach has found a new role helping the Memphis Tigers football program. Memphis head coach Charles Huff recently revealed that he has spent time speaking with Kelly about recruiting, staffing, and what it takes for a program like Memphis to compete at a higher level. While Kelly is not officially coaching the team, his advice is already helping the program plan for the future.
Kelly remains one of the most successful coaches in college football history. Because of that, many people around the sport still believe he could return to a major head coaching job if the right opportunity opens up in the coming years.
Brian Kelly Helping Memphis Tigers Behind the Scenes
Speaking to The Commercial Appeal, Charles Huff said he recently spent about an hour talking with Brian Kelly. The conversation focused on recruiting and how college football continues to change. Huff explained that recruiting departments have become much more important than before. As NCAA rules continue to evolve, programs are looking for new ways to find and attract players.
“I got on a call with Brian, and we talked for about an hour,” Huff told The Commercial Appeal.
Charles Huff Shares Brian Kelly’s Advice
Charles Huff said one thing that stood out was Brian Kelly’s honesty about lessons he learned during his career. “Talking to him was really good, because there’s a lot of humility in him. He’s like, ‘There were some things that I wish I did different.’ At that level, you don’t have a chance to go backwards. But that’s given me an opportunity to kind of think about some things that we may run into that we haven’t run into yet. So it’s been really good.”
Huff said those conversations have helped him think ahead about challenges Memphis could face as the program grows.
Recruiting and Transfer Portal Discussions
Brian Kelly is not being paid for the advice he is providing, but he has stayed involved with the sport through these discussions. Huff also suggested the two could speak again later in the season. Recruiting and transfer portal planning are expected to be major topics if they reconnect.
The Memphis coach has also reached out to former Texas coach Charlie Strong and former Florida State and Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher for guidance.
Future Head Coaching Opportunities Remain Possible
Even without a coaching job right now, Brian Kelly’s resume remains one of the strongest in college football. Across stops at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, and LSU, he built a 297-109-2 record and won multiple conference and postseason titles. Because of that track record, many around college football believe Kelly could receive another chance to lead a major program if vacancies open in the future.
