Sizzling hot tip from the BBQ.
If you haven't heard it by now, Brian Kelly from the University of Cincinnati, will be the new head football coach at Notre Dame.
Here's what you can talk up:
> What can and does Brian Kelly have to do differently than Charlie Weis, Tyrone Willingham and Bob Davie, who are the most recent previous coaches? (And don't just settle for the pat answer of, "He has to win.")
> Push people to go deeper than that. Kelly has coached at different places (including Division II football as well as Division I). But being the head football coach at Notre Dame is no cakewalk. This is a university that expects to compete for the National Championship every year.
> Kelly runs a high-octane spread offense and he's defensive-minded as well.
> Chat about whether he'll stick around with Cincinnati through the Sugar Bowl in January. His team is undefeated and competed for the national championship. Why should he? Why shouldn't he?
> Can he successfully recruit top-tier players to ND?
Enjoy and chat it up!
4 comments:
Was Kelly at the end of a contract? or are college coaching deals structured with ample room for coaches to move around? Is there no allegiance to a school he's taking to a possible national championship?
Thank-you Steve; and there we have it folks, the hypocrisy of College Football.
No, the coach was under contract, he spoke repeatedly to his players about commitment to the team, to others and to the program. But at the height of success for the program and the players he said, "Look over there, a pile of money, and a better opportunity for ME. Sorry that I can't take all of you with me, as you've essentially signed a servitude contract with the University of Cincinnati, and while I too have a contract, I can afford a better lawyer than you can." With that he left for the bigger stage.
In this scenario since ND is a "top program" Brian Kelly probably won't pull this particular stunt again, but it happens all over the country at a surprising number of Universities.
I should not allow Notre Dame to go unscathed here. This is the University that holds itself above all others. The moral high-ground is available for the taking, but ND passed upon the road less traveled.
All the ND Athletic Director had to do was distribute a press release that stated, "The University of Notre Dame is currently reviewing our options for our vacant Head Football Coach Position. While we will be using Recruiting Firms to search for candidates that could fulfill our unique requirements, we will not be hiring a coach of any program that has games left to be played. We hold our student-athletes to a high standard, and we would be remiss if we did not hold ourselves to an equivalent standard."
The most common refrain to this will be, "Grow-up, everyone does it!" Isn't that exactly the point of being Notre Dame? Aren't you making the case for doing things differently?
Unfortunately, as much as ND claims they are different, they are the same as the other football factories. The moment they hired a bank executive as AD they lost all credibility.
Excellent questions and, not surprisingly, excellent responses!
Glad to know the post generated some fire and that some lighter fluid was also tossed on.
Really appreciate you all stopping by and keeping the BBQ active and lively!
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