LSU Football: Former Brian Kelly assistant could be a future option for Tigers

LSU football head coach Brian Kelly finalized his inaugural Tigers coaching staff on Sunday by hiring Cortez Hankton away from the Georgia Bulldogs.

Hankton will serve as LSU’s wide receivers coach.

Here’s a quick look at the Tigers’ 2022 coaching staff:

Offensive coordinator/tight ends: Mike Debrock

Running backs: Frank Wilson

Wide receivers: Cortez Hankton

Offensive line: Brad Davis

Quarterbacks: Joe Sloan

Defensive coordinator/linebackers: Matt House

Defensive line: Jamar Cain

Defensive backs: Kerry Cooks (expected to coach safeties)

Defensive backs: Robert Steeples (expected to coach cornerbacks)

Special teams: Brian Polian

A future LSU football assistant?

Every good college football coach keeps a list of potential assistants in his back pocket.

And I’m sure Kelly is no different.

You never know when an assistant coach will leave for another job — whether it’s a promotion or a new start. Coaches have to be prepared for that.

There’s a former Notre Dame assistant under Kelly that should be on a shortlist of potential assistants.

Lance Taylor was Kelly’s running backs coach/run game coordinator at Notre Dame. On Sunday, Taylor became the new offensive coordinator at Louisville.

Taylor is a former Alabama running back who has spent time in the NFL with the New York Jets and the Carolina Panthers (he coached wide receivers in Carolina from 2017-2018). He’s also served as an assistant at Stanford under David Shaw.

I think it’s obvious that Taylor is a rising star in college football. Eventually, the Irish will need a new offensive coordinator (Kelly has been vocal about Denbrock being deserving of a head coaching job).

When that time comes, I think Taylor could be an option.

I’m sure Kelly has plenty of names on a list of potential assistants. Taylor has to be one of those names.