Brian Kelly to Call CBS College Football Games

Brian Kelly will call college football games for CBS this season, sources told Front Office Sports.

CBS Sports has one Big Ten football game a week, as well as Mountain West rights. This season, Charles Davis is replacing Gary Danielson alongside Brad Nessler on Big Ten games at the network. Kelly is expected to be part of a three-man booth on Mountain West games on the broadcast network, one source said.

CBS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This move was partly foreshadowed when Kelly was a part of CBS Sports Network’s studio coverage around the NFL Draft. He will also be an analyst on the CBSSN weekday program, Inside College Football, this season.

Kelly spent the last 22 years as a head coach, starting at Central Michigan before rising to Cincinnati, Notre Dame, and then the last four seasons at LSU. The Fighting Irish’s all-time winningest coach with 113 victories, his Notre Dame teams reached the College Football Playoff twice, and played in the BCS Championship game against Alabama during the 2012 season. 

LSU fired Kelly midway through the 2025 season after he compiled a 34-14 record, including 19-10 in SEC play. After some legal wrangling, LSU agreed to pay out his full $54 million buyout. 

In April, Kelly told USA Today that he ultimately plans to coach again. 

“I still want to make a difference,” he said. “All the young men that have been under my charge over 35 years, I feel like I have a lot still to give. Even with all this money in college football, they still need mentorship, still need development. Money aside, I have a lot to give. And my motivation is to want to get back to building relationships and successful programs in college football.”