The Notre Dame Coaching Circus Rolls On…

We are now on Day 10 of the “Official” Notre Dame coaching search.  All signs are still pointing to Brian Kelly taking the job.  There are rumors that Randy Edsall and Notre Dame are showing some mutual interest but I refuse to believe it.  There were also rumors that Kelly was balking at Notre Dame’s student life rules and disciplinary protocols.  I believe that this is all a big dance in the negotiating game and in the end, Kelly will go to Notre Dame.  We may even start hearing about it as early as this evening with the Cincinnati Football Banquet beginning at 5 pm.  I refuse to believe that Randy Edsall was ever a real candidate for the position.  Notre Dame would have a PR fiasco on its hands if they fired Weis for a guy with a worse career record.  I know I wrote last week that I was warming up to Edsall, but the logic of him taking the job just does not make sense.  I can think of probably 10-12 coaches that ND would have a realistic shot of getting before I would get to Edsall.

I will say this, if everything is silent tonight and through this weekend, Notre Dame could be in for a huge surprise.  There is no reason that Brian Kelly to Notre Dame shouldn’t be wrapped up before Monday.  If it doesn’t happen then, I don’t think Kelly will be coming and the search (and crazy rumors) will continue.

Red Sox Trade Mike Lowell to the Rangers

The Red Sox have almost finalized a deal that will send Mike Lowell to the Texas Rangers for Max Ramirez.  The Red Sox are also kicking in a reported $8-$9 million of Lowell’s $12 million salary to get the deal done.  This is a move that strikes me as a precursor to something coming up down the road.  Max Ramirez is not considered a top prospect by any means so this is clearly not a case of getting an impact prospect by kicking in money to cover a chunk of Lowell’s salary.  To me, this seems like a move to simply offload Lowell so they can fill 1st or 3rd with another player.

There are rumors that the Red Sox are very interested Adrian Beltre.  Beltre is a great defensive 3rd baseman but, besides his last contract year in LA, he has never been an impact bat in a lineup.  If the Sox were to replace Lowell with Beltre, I really hope that they are also planning on making sure that either Bay or Holliday are playing in left field next year.

Kelly May Stay at Cincinnati

Here is the latest from Bill Koch at the Cincinnati Enquirer:

When I texted Brian Kelly yesterday about his talks with Notre Dame, he made a point of saying in his response that he was still talking to UC as well.  I believe that he is and that he’s serious about those negotiations, but from talking to people close to this situation, I still believe that Notre Dame is his first choice. I know for a fact that ND has always been the job he has had his eye on.

Here’s what I believe is going on. Kelly won’t go to Notre Dame and risk being another in a recent string of coaches who can’t win there because of the restrictions those coaches face. He’s telling them what he needs to win a national championship, and if they can’t compromise on some of those issues he won’t take the job. Meanwhile, he’s in talks with UC to strengthen his position there. If the ND job doesn’t work out, he returns to UC in a much stronger position than he was before.

We could know as soon as today if Kelly is going to ND. If it’s not today, we’ll almost surely know tomorrow night at the UC football banquet. I really believe that Kelly will tell his players first before any announcement is made because that’s the decent things to do. If he’s leaving, he will probably tell them before the banquet and be in South Bend on Friday for the press conference. If he’s not, he can make a big splash at the banquet by telling everyone he’s staying.

I will say this:  if the ND administration botches this because they will not do what it takes to put a winning product on the field, I am done.  They can’t keep pretending to want to win if they will not provide the environment in which winning can be achieved.  The arrogance that permeates from Notre Dame has always been something that bothered me as a fan.  The “we are better than you because we win and our players go to class” crap drives me crazy.  Hey ND officials, guess what?  You haven’t won anything in 21 years.  I am not saying that the school should drop all of its academic restrictions and let all of the thugs and hoodlums in – I’m saying offer a few exceptions and give them a chance to prove they can succeed at the school and on the field.  I understand that ND has it’s values, and I think they are very respectable – especially when trying to compete with football factories like Texas, Ohio St, and Florida.

I have a feeling this is going to get ugly…if this gets screwed up, the ND leaders better be prepared for the rioters with torches and pitchforks to be showing up in front of the golden dome.

I hope this all gets ironed out, Kelly and ND compromise and there is an announcement on Friday.

Brian Kelly to Notre Dame Not Done Yet

Although it seems like it is almost official, Brian Kelly becoming the new head coach at Notre Dame is not done yet.  There are some reports saying that an official announcement may come as early as Friday.  The Cincinnati Football Banquet is Thursday night so you would think that nothing would be announced until after that time so Kelly can tell his players in person.

I certainly hope this gets done.  Here is a great article about Brian Kelly and his recruiting in Ohio.

Report: Brian Kelly to Notre Dame, 6 Year Deal

***UPDATE***David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune is saying Kelly to Notre Dame is “on the brink”

According to Rivals Radio, Brian Kelly and Notre Dame have agreed on a 6 year deal to become the next head football coach.  Nothing official has been announced and probably won’t be until Kelly leaves NYC and can tell his team in person.  Expect a formal announcement to be made in the next couple of days.

I am excited about the news!!!  I think Kelly will be a great fit!  He will need to assemble his staff, hopefully bringing some of his guys on offense from Cincinnati and go out and get a great D-Coordinator.

Edsall, Not Harbaugh Interviewing with ND Today

Yesterday the NYTimes stated that Jim Harbaugh was planning on interviewing with Notre Dame today.  On last night’s MNF pregame on ESPN, Jim Harbaugh was interviewed and he stated that there was no meeting scheduled and that he was planning on staying at Stanford.  Brian Kelly himself confirmed a meeting with Notre Dame on his Twitter account yesterday.

This morning the Greenwich Time reported that Randy Edsall is the one actually interviewing along with Brian Kelly in New York City today.

To me, it sounds like Notre Dame has clearly moved to the more realistic, Tier 2 candidates.  I would not be surprised if they also speak with someone like Skip Holtz as well.  Brian Kelly still seems like the most logical pick and I would be really happy if that is how it turned out.  Some Notre Dame fans are already calling this search a failure because they will not get their “home run” hire.  To them I say – GET REAL.  Here are who I consider to be the top coaches in college football at big time schools:  Urban Meyer, Bob Stoops, Pete Carroll, Mack Brown, Nick Saban, Jim Tressel.  Anyone thinking that one of them would realistically leave their school to come to Notre Dame is crazy.  This is a rant for another day…

Expect more news on the ND coaching search to surface as the day goes along and information about the meetings start getting leaked.

NYTimes: Harbaugh to Interview with Notre Dame

ESPN reported that ND and Brian Kelly are sitting down in NYC tomorrow to discuss the open football coach position.  It looks like Jack Swarbrick will also be sitting down the Jim Harbaugh.

Harbaugh is an interesting name – he has had some big wins at Stanford and certainly seems like a coach that can inspire his team.  Despite his 8-4 season this year for the Cardinal, he is still 2 games under .500 for his career there.  Personally, I seem him wanting the Michigan job (his alma-mater) or jumping to the NFL when he gets the chance.  I would not be as excited about his hiring than I would be if ND brought in Kelly.

Brian Kelly to Interview for ND Job Tomorrow

According to Joe Schad of ESPN, Brian Kelly will be interviewing for the open Notre Dame Football Head Coaching Position tomorrow in NYC.  This is the first report of an actual interview.

He has made the most sense all along, we’ll see what happens after the meeting tomorrow.

Golden Tate to the NFL

Along with Jimmy Clausen, Golden Tate is expected to announce he is headed to the NFL as well.  This is not a surprise at all.  His play-making ability will be missed terribly at Notre Dame.  It is too bad Notre Dame couldn’t put up more wins during his time there because if they did, I have no doubt that he would have been a Heisman finalist.

The Case For (And Against) Brian Kelly to Notre Dame

According to the NYPost, Jack Swarbrick will be making his recommendation to the Notre Dame President by midweek on who the next head coach of Notre Dame Football should be.

I would love to say I feel like it will be Urban Meyer or some other sure thing but I still think it will be Brian Kelly.  It makes too much sense.  I do have some concerns – he talks A LOT – check out his interview with Dan Patrick as an example.  That being said, he seems like a very smart football mind.  Here is a great article about how he developed his current offensive scheme.  This tells me that although this is his scheme now, he is creative enough to make changes as his teams and football evolves.  Here are my pros and cons for Kelly:

Pros: He’s won everywhere he’s been, he’s won with inferior talent, he’s developed talent, he’s got a political background (making me think he will be OK handling the media), he seems hungry

Cons: He has never been at a big program, he has never coached under a great coach, he has never recruited nationally, definitely a pass-first offense, there are questions about his defense

I think he will be a great coach but he is by no means a sure thing.  I hope that he is the next Urban Meyer and not the next Dan Hawkins.