Can't stand Brian Kelly now? Wait until LSU coach wins big in SEC after transfer portal adds

John and Susie Q. Football Fan can’t stomach Brian Kelly.

I asked Kelly about this once, a couple of years ago. Why does the average college football fan dislike LSU's coach so strongly?

Kelly offered a theory: He coached 12 years at Notre Dame, and few folks harbor neutral feelings about the Irish. You either love them or hate them. By extension, that applies to the coach.

“Notre Dame is a polarizing place, in many ways,” Kelly told me in 2023. “So, for those that are on the other side of that, that can build some (animosity).”

Decent theory, but that doesn't fully explain this phenomenon. Marcus Freeman, Kelly’s dashing successor at Notre Dame who could audition to be the next James Bond if he wasn’t busy winning College Football Playoff games, would score notably higher than Kelly in the Q-score metric that measures a celebrity's likability.

Kelly tends to get hot under the collar while coaching. His sideline demeanor makes him an easy target for red-faced memes that cast him a bad light. More, he didn’t just coach Notre Dame. He spurned the Irish in an exit for LSU that caused some to see him as a turncoat. Also, he’s a native of a Boston suburb working in a sport that caters to Southerners and Midwesterners. He lacks Bobby Bowden’s charm or Mack Brown’s folksiness.

And so, from South Bend to the Deep South, folks just love seeing Kelly get served his just desserts, as Notre Dame stands tall in the College Football Playoff, while LSU muddled through its worst season in three years under Kelly.

Well, get your wisecracks in now, John and Susie Q., and fill your belly with schadenfreude. When the laughs stop, you might notice Kelly is winning the offseason.

Kelly stands atop the “Portal King” standings. LSU signs one marquee transfer after another, and although no prizes are awarded for ruling the offseason, this roster overhaul positions LSU to compete for trophies next season.

If you can’t stomach Kelly now, how will you feel about him when he ignites LSU? Gird your loins, because Kelly’s Tigers are stirring, and that’s no joke.

ORANGE BOWL: Penn State mimics Michigan, but James Franklin is no Jim Harbaugh

UNCLE NICK: How the ex-Alabama coach went from Darth Vader to beloved at ESPN

Brian Kelly puts money where his mouth is

Within the SEC, the moment ripens for an LSU revolution.

Alabama sits at an inflection point after a clunking debut season from Kalen DeBoer. He’ll need a new quarterback as Jalen Milroe heads to the NFL.

Georgia’s dynasty receded after a second consecutive season in which the Bulldogs failed to reach the CFP semifinals. Kirby Smart’s roster enters a state of regression. So, too, does Tennessee’s.

Texas, armed with a rich war chest, offers staying power after its second straight trip to the CFP semifinals, but the SEC provides space for a twin power to emerge.

Why not LSU? It’s tough to argue against Kelly’s offseason strategy of stockpiling quality transfers to fortify a roster that sorely needed better personnel.

Kelly, without detailing LSU’s 2024 roster payroll, said the Tigers operated “well under the cap." Having watched LSU muddle through a nine-win season with insufficient talent, I have no trouble believing that.

Kelly vowed six weeks ago that LSU would reverse its past course and become “very aggressive” in the transfer portal. He backed up that talk with a pledge to contribute as much as $1 million of his own money to an LSU booster operation if Tigers fans would also donate that much to LSU’s NIL collective.

Money makes the world go ‘round, and it makes talent flow in.

Yeah, Michigan outbid LSU for five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood in the high school recruiting period. So what? LSU could redirect funds to address other needs. To galvanize fundraising, Kelly announced his up-to $1 million personal financial pledge on the heels of Underwood’s commitment flip to Michigan.

In Kelly’s telling, fans answered his call.

“Whether it's been $5, $50 or $500, we're seeing those kinds of contributions that we hadn't seen in the past,” Kelly said. “It's put us in a position where we can be aggressive on anybody that comes into the portal, and that simply wasn't the case before."

Garrett Nussmeier plus transfers makes LSU a team to watch

The loss of Underwood was mitigated because the Tigers have a proven quarterback for next season. Garrett Nussmeier will delay the NFL for a year in favor of his senior season at LSU. He’s the SEC’s top returning quarterback.

LSU needed to solidify its offensive line. Inbound are a pair of Power Four transfers, Josh Thompson (Northwestern) and Braelin Moore (Virginia Tech), with multiple years of starting experience. On the defensive line, Patrick Payton joined LSU after a standout run at Florida State, where he amassed 31½ tackles for loss in three seasons. LSU completed its Sunshine State raid by plundering Jack Pyburn, Florida’s top-tackling defensive lineman. The Tigers secured multiple additions at wide receiver and cornerback, too. They search for more help in the defensive backfield.

Oh, and Kelly signed the nation’s No. 8-ranked high school recruiting class, too. Add it up, and this marks LSU’s best blend of prep prospects and transfer additions during Kelly’s tenure.

“We think that the program in terms of the culture and the standards are such that we can do that now,” Kelly said, “where we can bring in (this many) freshmen and maybe one of, if not the largest transfer portal classes, as well.”

Kelly viewed the portal warily as recently as last summer. He described transfers as a way to “top off the tank,” rather than fill up on them. Look to this year’s College Football Playoff field, though, for evidence of transfers accelerating success. Kelly sounded tone deaf before this season, when he said LSU wasn’t in the player-buying market. With a mindset like that, go ahead and pack your sunscreen and towel for Buyout Beach.

Kelly, at age 63, apparently opened his mind to a strategy adjustment. That's good for LSU, because being in the player-buying market unlocks the avenue to success.

“You're going to evaluate everything within your program,” Kelly said after a 9-4 season that gave him 29 victories in three LSU seasons, a robust figure that still falls short of the expectations he was hired to meet. “This is a championship program.”

LSU didn’t look the part this season, but this winter's heater pushes the Tigers closer to taking that form in 2025.

Enjoy one last laugh, John and Susie Q. Football Fan, because if LSU’s offseason transformation pays off, you’re really going to detest Kelly.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer. Subscribe to read all of his columns.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LSU, Brian Kelly unlikeable? What if Tigers win after transfer portal?