Making the Case: Looking at Matt Campbell for LSU coaching job
LSU athletic director Scott Woodward was brought to Baton Rouge for one reason -- make the right hires needed to lead the LSU program through the next decade.
Woodward's ability to make transformative hires has been his calling card for years. It has only grown during his brief return to the Pelican State with the hires of Hall of Fame coach Kim Mulkey to lead the women's basketball team and poached Pac-12 Coach of the Year Jay Johnson from the Arizona baseball program.
But it is this hire that he be most remembered for, at least around these parts, so the pressure is building in Baton Rouge.
In this series, TigerDetails will explore the options for LSU under a traditional Rivals headline "Making the Case." In the fifth part of the series, TigerDetails takes a dive into Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell's career.
-- LSU coaching search: 13 potential replacements for Ed Orgeron --
PREVIOUS INSTALLMENTS OF MAKING THE CASE
-- Making the Case for Lane Kiffin to LSU
-- Making the Case for Mel Tucker to LSU
THE RESUME
Bowling Green: Campbell's coaching career began in 2003 with a two-year stint as a graduate assistant (working with the tight ends) at Bowling Green. Those Falcon teams won the 2003 Motor City Bowl and the 2004 GMAC Bowl. He returned for two years (2007-08) as Bowling Green’s offensive line coach. Then, at the age of 29, he was named run game coordinator (2009).
Mount Union: Between his two stints with Bowling Green, Campbell returned to his alma mater as offensive coordinator and line coach (2005-06) and Mount Union won two more national titles and registered a 29-1 record. Six players earned All-American accolades under his tutelage, including future NFL receiver Pierre Garcon.
Toledo: Campbell was hired on by Toledo to serve as the offensive coordinator and run game coordinator from 2010-11 and was promoted to head coach at the end of 2011. The 2009 Toledo offense was 16th in the NCAA in total offense (437.9), 18th in passing yards (278.1) and first in fourth-down conversions (80%) despite losing its starting QB at mid-season. The 2010 Toledo team featured a 1,000-yard rusher and a receiver with 99 catches. The 2011 Rockets were eighth nationally in scoring (42.2), 10th in total offense (481.3), eighth in pass efficiency (160.4), 18th in rushing (213.6) and became the first team in school history to score at least 60 points in consecutive games. Eric Page caught 125 passes that season, second-most in the nation. Campbell went 35-15 at Toledo.
Iowa State: Campbell was hired on as the head coach of the Iowa State Cyclones in 2016, since then he's a three-time Big 12 Coach of the Year (2017, 2018, 2020) that has led the Cyclones to four-straight bowl games, a school record, yearly appearances in the national rankings and the most wins in school history (32) over the last four seasons. Records have been shattered in the Campbell era on offense and defense, including total offense (444.3 in 2019) and sacks (33 in 2018). His teams play with precision on both sides of the ball, boasting a defense ranked in the top-three in the Big 12 in scoring defense in each of the last four seasons and two of the top-three scoring offenses in school history in 2019 (32.2) and 2020 (32.9).
In his five years at Iowa State, Campbell has mentored eight players who have earned All-America honors, including four first-teamers in Joel Lanning, Breece Hall, Mike Rose and JaQuan Bailey. Hall is the only unanimous All-American in school history and Kolar and Montgomery were two-time All-America selections.
Currently, Iowa State is 6-5 with its final regular season game Friday afternoon against TCU. Campbell is 41-33 at Iowa State.
THE FIT
Campbell has turned things around at Iowa State for the last six years with a 41-33 overall record and had the Cyclones at 9-3 during the COVID season of 2020.
They even finished the year with a Fiesta Bowl win over the Oregon Ducks.
He's built up the program, developed players and is quite often referred to as a players' coach.
“To be in the class where Campbell was telling us what the vision was and what the hope for the program was, at a place where, historically, it hasn’t been the best, and then to come in here and see change and be a part of change — that’s been the most memorable thing,” Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy recently said. “Playing in big games, winning big games, or losing games and having to come back and get the team back on the right track.
“All of these guys in this senior class have done that and it hasn’t been a one-man show at all.”
He's seemingly a stable, program-building coach which would be a perfect fit for LSU coming off the controversies of Ed Orgeron and Les Miles.
If given the proper amount of time, it seems as if Campbell could fit into many coaching situations as he lays his foundation, belief and culture. Question is, will LSU fans and brass be patient enough for that to happen?
THE CONCERNS
Campbell has never coached outside of the midwest nor has he ever recruited the big-name players that LSU goes after year in and year out, so it's safe to say that's the biggest concern for Woodward & Co.
Can Campbell go toe-to-toe with Nick Saban, Jimbo Fisher, Kirby Smart and others for the nation's elite players? That's the biggest concern and it's something that could only be answered over time.
It's worth noting that Campbell has signed a handful of four-star prospects over the last few years but Iowa State's classes are mostly made up of three- and two-star recruits. Currently in the Rivals Team Rankings, the Cyclones sit at No. 22 with 19 commitments.
MAKING THE CASE
Campbell is a three-time Big 12 Coach of the Year (2017, 2018, 2020) and two-time AP Big 12 Coach of the Year (2017, 2020) that has changed the culture in Ames, so in theory he could do the same in Baton Rouge, right?
There's a case that could be made for Campbell, but also against Campbell when doing research.
He's structured, disciplined and handles the media and public relations well, which like previously said is opposite of Orgeron, and something Woodward and the LSU brass would certainly be looking for.
However, he has zero ties to Louisiana or the south, meaning he would be starting from scratch with recruits and high school coaches and those relationships. Considering just down the road is Louisiana-Lafayette's Billy Napier, who already has those in-state relationships, experience in the SEC under Saban and Dabo Swinney at Clemson and his overall record is better than Campbell's at 38-12, this one isn't the easiest case to make.
Many LSU fans would likely agree and be uncertain if this was the hire Woodward makes. It also seems as if Campbell was the hire, then that means Woodward struck out on the big fish he really wanted, such as Lincoln Riley, Fisher or others.