Brian Kelly lawsuit: LSU claiming it has not 'formally terminated' coach - ESPN

In a legal filing against LSU's board of supervisors, Brian Kelly's attorneys say LSU has taken the position that it has not «formally terminated» Kelly as the Tigers' football coach.

The school, according to the petition for declaratory judgement, is now seeking to fire Kelly «for cause» and potentially avoid paying a full buyout of nearly $54 million. The filing claims that LSU informed Kelly's representatives of this position on Monday.

According to a copy of the suit obtained by ESPN, «LSU's representatives had a call with Coach Kelly's representatives, where LSU took the position that Coach Kelly had not been formally terminated and informed Coach Kelly's representatives, for the very first time, that LSU believed grounds for termination for cause existed.»

The 48-page lawsuit was filed in the 19th Judicial District for the Parish of East Baton Rouge (Louisiana) just hours after this call.

According to the filing, Kelly's lawyers are seeking «a declaratory judgment confirming that LSU's termination of Coach Kelly is without cause and that Coach Kelly is entitled to receive the full liquidated damages provided for in (his contract).»

If LSU did have «cause,» then the school would no longer owe the full amount of the buyout.

Kelly, 64, was initially relieved of his duties on Oct. 26, one day after LSU's 49-25 loss to Texas A&M dropped the Tigers to 5-3. At the time, his dismissal was said to be performance-related, with then-athletic director Scott Woodward saying in a statement, «We had high hopes that he would lead us to multiple SEC and national championships during his time in Baton Rouge. Ultimately, the success at the level that LSU demands simply did not materialize.»

The suit does not specify who from LSU