notre dame
charlie weis
jimmah
brian kelly

It Appears That They Can't Screw It Up Comment Count

Brian

Well, yeah, obviously this was going to happen. Joe Schad:

Notre Dame plans to interview Brian Kelly tomorrow, probably in NYC
40 minutes ago from txt

Kelly, for his part, went on the Dan Patrick Show and didn't exactly douse the rumors:

Patrick: Have you been offered a contract extension by Cincinnati?
Kelly: We are working on one right now.
Patrick: So there's a chance you could sign the contract extension and put an end to the Notre Dame rumors.
Kelly: Absolutely. There's absolutely a chance of that. And I think there's a chance that I could look at another job. I haven't made that decision yet and I'll do that after today. Today is our team meeting with our players and then I've got a couple of days until our banquet and I want to be able to sit down and figure out what the best course of action is.

Bob Stoops this is not. More:

Patrick: By next Saturday, will I know what your future is?
Kelly: Yes you will.

Yeah… so I guess our best spin on this is that it is possible for really good college head coaches to implode spectacularly when they move jobs. I mean, just look at… aw, hamburgers. That's our head coach.

Is there anything good to take out of this?

"I laugh when I hear it," Gilyard said earlier this month. "Fans ask me all the time, 'Is Coach Kelly going to Notre Dame or Michigan or some bigger place?' Ain't UC big enough? We're in a BCS conference, and we're winning. I think it's a perfect fit for Brian Kelly.

"We had another coach [Dantonio] who looked us straight in the face and said he wasn't leaving. We remember that."

Anyone feel better? Not really? Dangit.

Update: Clausen and Golden Tate are going to the NFL thanks to advice from Weis, so at least there's that.

Comments

Wolverine96

December 7th, 2009 at 1:56 PM ^

Yes, Kelly is a very good offensive coach at places where there is a lot less pressure. Plus he has never had a great defense at either CMU or Cincinnati. We have seen first hand what a season or two can look like with a below average defense and a young offense.

Joined: 08/28/2008

MGoPoints: 1627

The Original Seth

December 7th, 2009 at 2:07 PM ^

Uh, this guy just went undefeated in a BCS conference, with OOC conference wins against the Pac-10 runner-up and Fresno State, after replacing NINE starters on his Big East champion defense and starting multiple quarterbacks including his third-stringer (who was a sleeper Heisman candidate until he got hurt mid-season and missed a couple games). Kelly could probably opt not to field a defense next year and still roll up his schedule and smoke it.

Joined: 02/06/2009

MGoPoints: 161

The Original Seth

December 7th, 2009 at 2:54 PM ^

Scoring Offense Cincinnati (#6) 39.8 ppg Notre Dame (#38) 30.1 ppg Total Offense Cincinnati (#6) 464.3 ypg Notre Dame (#9) 451.8 ypg Scoring Defense Cincinnati (#25) 20.8 ppg Notre Dame (#64) 25.9 ppg Total Defense Cincinnati (#48) 350.3 ypg Notre Dame (#87) 397.8 ypg It's obviously an exaggeration to say that Kelly could forget about the defense and win 10 games. But the statistics bear something out: Kelly has fielded a better defense with younger and less-experienced players, and beaten four ranked teams. He's also fielded a better and more efficient offense than Charlie Weis did.

Joined: 02/06/2009

MGoPoints: 161

The Original Seth

December 7th, 2009 at 4:42 PM ^

And, as if that weren't enough, the calculated strength of schedule is Cincinnati with the #42 hardest schedule in the country, and Notre Dame with the #48 hardest schedule in the country. One guy goes 6-6 against a weaker schedule. The other goes 12-0 against the stronger. It will definitely be an upgrade for you guys. SOS link: http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/polls/119

Joined: 02/06/2009

MGoPoints: 161

michgoblue

December 7th, 2009 at 2:15 PM ^

ND may have a young offense, but it's not exactly the same situation as what RR had here in 2008/9. ND is full of 4-5 star recruits and still has a number of returning starters. Also, they aren't exactly starting Nich Sheridan as their new QB. That said, I have watched a few Cincy games, and I am not impressed with their defense. But, what role does Kelly have on that side of the ball?

Joined: 11/16/2009

MGoPoints: 32205

Crime Reporter

December 7th, 2009 at 2:04 PM ^

Like I said earlier, he has the track record for switching jobs. He pulled the same stuff at CMU, telling the players he was not going to leave and then he bolted. Yeah, it's Central, but that is not the point.

Joined: 12/19/2008

MGoPoints: 21807

STW P. Brabbs

December 7th, 2009 at 2:10 PM ^

Notre Dame. I got a scoop for ya. I read [note: I seriously read this] that Kelly is pro choice. How the hell does someone substantiate that a football coach is pro choice? Who knows! But I'm sure he is. So don't hire him, or the Pope will be very cross with you. Also, I heard Ron Zook goes to Mass six times a week. I'm just sayin.

Joined: 08/27/2008

MGoPoints: 3867

megalomanick

December 7th, 2009 at 2:09 PM ^

Yeah… so I guess our best spin on this is that it is possible for really good college head coaches to implode spectacularly when they move jobs. I mean, just look at… aw, hamburgers. That's our head coach.
I stay for the South Park references.

Joined: 07/06/2008

MGoPoints: 2423

TorontoBlue

December 7th, 2009 at 2:10 PM ^

Far-fetched, but is it beyond the realm of possibility that ND might re-hire either Bob Davie or Ty Willingham? Both are sitting on their hands at the moment and both have been there before so they would not have to be indoctrinated into the culture and could hit the ground running. "Right the wrong" kind of spin on it from ND's perspective, and "second chance" scenario for the individuals. Am I crazy? Anyway, I do think Kelly is a perfect fit for them so prolly a moot point anyway. Whatevah. GO BLUE!

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 956

helloheisman.com

December 7th, 2009 at 2:11 PM ^

Reading through some enemy message boards, it seems Notre Dame fans are vehemently opposed to Brian Kelly, citing issues as far-ranging as it being a part of Notre Dame's tradition to run a pro-style offense, to his support of John Kerry in the presidential elections. These people are nuts.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: -200

BornInAA

December 7th, 2009 at 2:14 PM ^

The evil BCS system is actually picking coaches. If Les Miles had not been playing for the title game, he would have gone to Michigan perhaps. If Texas had lost then Cincinnati would be in the title game and Kelly would be unavailable. Kelly has to be thinking: OK - I am undefeated and still cannot be national champion? Why? Because Cincinnati is not Notre Dame. Why stay? I've accomplished all I can - here.

Joined: 11/21/2009

MGoPoints: 14510

michgoblue

December 7th, 2009 at 2:18 PM ^

I, for one, hope that Kelly turns ND around quickly. We play them every year and it is a hell of a lot more exciting when we are both good than when it is the Cripple Fight it was in 2008. I am sick of hearing the announcers for the UM-ND game always talking about the "two formerly proud programs" and "two of college football's most storied programs that have fallen on hard times." Yes, I am still assuming that we will turn around, as well.

Joined: 11/16/2009

MGoPoints: 32205

bronxblue

December 7th, 2009 at 2:43 PM ^

I wouldn't be surprised to see Kelly coach a couple of years at ND and then try to parley some success into a pro gig. He has been on a pretty consistent trajectory (outside of the 13 years he coached at GVSU, but that might have been more due to schools not seeking him out). He basically coached 3 years at CMU, then three years at Cincy before (presumably) moving on. Just long enough to win a bunch of games and then upgrade to the next program. He doesn't really have any ties to ND, and if he can succeed there some pro team will probably take a chance on him (especially in the midwest). He will be a terror at ND for a couple of years, but the silver lining is that he is unlikely to stick around that long.

Joined: 11/22/2008

MGoPoints: 172173

Blue_Bull_Run

December 7th, 2009 at 2:50 PM ^

RichRod was just as hot as Kelly was at the time. It's funny that we got a hot coach, yet none of us have any confidence in our own program anymore. Instead, we're all just worried about what ND does, as if the only way to beat them is if they pick a shitty coach. If RichRod lives up to his billing then Brian Kelly at ND won't be an issue.

Joined: 11/25/2008

MGoPoints: 4415

J. Lichty

December 7th, 2009 at 3:12 PM ^

weis set the pay scale pretty high for a coach with leverage. Not to say ND cant, and should not pay weis rates, but Kelly will, and should not settle for anything less than chuckles had.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 1604

BluesinceNew

December 7th, 2009 at 3:12 PM ^

Whoa, whoa. Can't? When did that word enter your vocabulary? What, is the job too difficult? What, you don't have enough experience? Oh, you're not smart enough? Where's your confidence? Look, Elaine, let me tell you a story. When I first studied karate... Yeah, karate. I had no support. Not from him, not from Newman, no one. The first time I sparred with an opponent, I was terrified. My legs, they were like noodles. But then I looked inside, and I found my katra. Katra? Yeah, your spirit, your, uh, being. The part of you that says, "Yes, I can!" So I listened to my katra and now I'm dominating the dojo. I'm class champion.

Joined: 10/22/2008

MGoPoints: 13

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

December 7th, 2009 at 3:21 PM ^

Yeah… so I guess our best spin on this is that it is possible for really good college head coaches to implode spectacularly when they move jobs.
I have a better spin. If he goes to Notre Dame it means he won't stay two more years at Cincinnati and then make a short drive up I-71 for his next job. That's the nightmare scenario, not Notre Dame.

Joined: 07/02/2008

MGoPoints: 41586

Blue_Bull_Run

December 7th, 2009 at 3:50 PM ^

I don't think Tressel is going anywhere in the next two years. I'd be willing to roll the dice that Kelly won't be available at the time that Tressel does retire. Look, Kelly at ND is a pretty bad scenario for us. But its bad because RichRod isn't working out exactly as planned, not because Kelly is the most amazing coach ever.

Joined: 11/25/2008

MGoPoints: 4415

brianshall

December 7th, 2009 at 3:25 PM ^

Notre Dame, like Michigan, is a storied program. We play them every year for the next 4000 years. If they suck, it's just another team in Indiana. Bring em on.

Joined: 11/08/2009

MGoPoints: 44

Six Zero

December 7th, 2009 at 3:48 PM ^

finds his way back into the NFL as an offensive coordinator... what's the over/under on whether or not he can successfully lobby to bring Jimmah into his folds the fold?

Joined: 09/05/2008

MGoPoints: 10549

michiganprof

December 7th, 2009 at 3:58 PM ^

"We had another coach [Dantonio] who looked us straight in the face and said he wasn't leaving. We remember that." That's unpossible: that would be bearing false witness, and the Bible on his desk very clearly prohibits that.

Joined: 10/19/2009

MGoPoints: 270

michiganprof

December 7th, 2009 at 4:12 PM ^

I'm confident Rodriguez will turn things around and build an excellent program. But I don't know much about these things, so I'm prepared to be wrong. But either way, we're going to need strong opposition: if our team Returns to Glory (TM) then we'll want to display that by beating strong teams. With the Big Ten down, that means our ND game is going to have to be a quality win, if we win it. And if the team remains weak, then playing and beating a weak Notre Dame team will just serve to paper over problems. It's good for a team if the bar is set really high: good teams and coaches will rise to the occasion, and bad teams and coaches will show what they are made of. Kelly seems like an excellent coach. Let Notre Dame hire him and let's get down to business.

Joined: 10/19/2009

MGoPoints: 270