Sadly, Exaclty What We Predicted

[IrishInOntario]

- 9-3

-Top 35 scoring defense

- Offense with an up and down season.

- ND players picking opponents up off the field and tapping them on the helmet like gentlemen.

- No emotion or killer instinct in the group.

- Doubt and lack of execution in big games.

- A team that is all smiles, taking pictures and yucking it up after another big loss to a rival that the series is way more important too.

- recruiting momentum completely annihilated in November. A class that was trending towards a top 5 group with a massive talent infusion will likely lose some pieces and ND will probably again finish in the 15'ish range which is fine by Brian Kelly by his own admittance.

- The coach has gone soft. The kids don't care. Doubt has infected the core of this program like HIV. They're great kids. Winners in life, but losers in the game of football. The entirety of Notre Dame, from the administration down through the athletic department and the coaches ensure that is the case.

Rinse and repeat. 9-3 or 10-2 next year with at least 1-2 loses because our kids pucker at the first sign of adversity. Defense will improve a little bit. The offense will still struggle for an identity and the same old, tired issues will rear their ugly heads.

Fun season boys. Until Groundhog Day it's time to watch the recruiting class falter, and Mike Brey and his boys over achieve with marginal talent!

Thanks for a good one guys!

 

[HillRock86]

- 9-3

-Top 35 scoring defense

- Offense with an up and down season.

- ND players picking opponents up off the field and tapping them on the helmet like gentlemen.

- No emotion or killer instinct in the group.

- Doubt and lack of execution in big games.

- A team that is all smiles, taking pictures and yucking it up after another big loss to a rival that the series is way more important too.

- recruiting momentum completely annihilated in November. A class that was trending towards a top 5 group with a massive talent infusion will likely lose some pieces and ND will probably again finish in the 15'ish range which is fine by Brian Kelly by his own admittance.

- The coach has gone soft. The kids don't care. Doubt has infected the core of this program like HIV. They're great kids. Winners in life, but losers in the game of football. The entirety of Notre Dame, from the administration down through the athletic department and the coaches ensure that is the case.

Rinse and repeat. 9-3 or 10-2 next year with at least 1-2 loses because our kids pucker at the first sign of adversity. Defense will improve a little bit. The offense will still struggle for an identity and the same old, tired issues will rear their ugly heads.

Fun season boys. Until Groundhog Day it's time to watch the recruiting class falter, and Mike Brey and his boys over achieve with marginal talent!

Thanks for a good one guys!

Agree with everything except your prediction of ND's record next year. I think the schedule is just as tough if not tougher, and if you are correct in your other post about the number and names of players you expect will not be here, I think that record is too generous. I think a six or 7 win season is more likely. ND was largely injury free this year too. That could end up being a factor as well. Thanks for all of your informative posts by the way.

 

[Telx1]

- 9-3

-Top 35 scoring defense

- Offense with an up and down season.

- ND players picking opponents up off the field and tapping them on the helmet like gentlemen.

- No emotion or killer instinct in the group.

- Doubt and lack of execution in big games.

- A team that is all smiles, taking pictures and yucking it up after another big loss to a rival that the series is way more important too.

- recruiting momentum completely annihilated in November. A class that was trending towards a top 5 group with a massive talent infusion will likely lose some pieces and ND will probably again finish in the 15'ish range which is fine by Brian Kelly by his own admittance.

- The coach has gone soft. The kids don't care. Doubt has infected the core of this program like HIV. They're great kids. Winners in life, but losers in the game of football. The entirely of Notre Dame, from the administration down through the athletic department and the coaches ensure that is the case.

Rinse and repeat. 9-3 or 10-2 next year with at least 1-2 loses because our kids pucker at the first sign of adversity. Defense will improve a little bit. The offense will still struggle for an identity and the same old, tired issues will rear their ugly heads.

Fun season boys. Until Groundhog Day it's time to watch the recruiting class falter, and Mike Brey and his boys over achieve with marginal talent!

Thanks for a good one guys!

IIO, I can’t disagree with one thing you’ve said here. No one in our house wants to be around me right now because I’m in a really foul mood. I’m sure the same applies to most here. The idea of smiles and selfies after a game like that makes me sick. Hope the recruiting class defies your expectation and stays together and gets a few more critical additions, and hope you are here posting these details.

 

[HRC08]

Shameful just how easily they take losing. To his credit, the angry Brian Kelly returned tonight. Imo he wants to win but just isn’t the motivator a place like ND needs. Our kids are surrrounded by demur geniuses all day long so it’s going to eventually rub off the toughness they might have once had. I’m shocked at just how easily a bunch of average athletic defensive and offensive lineman pushed out kids around. And not once did ND get mad about it. Not once.

 

[IrishInOntario]

IIO, I can’t disagree with one thing you’ve said here. No one in our house wants to be around me right now because I’m in a really foul mood. I’m sure the same applies to most here. The idea of smiles and selfies after a game like that makes me sick. Hope the recruiting class defies your expectation and stays together and gets a few more critical additions, and hope you are here posting these details.

Truthfully, I don't know of I want Derrik Allen, Houston Griffith, Phil Jurkovec, Nicholas Petit-Frere or Jayson Ademilola to.come.to Notre Dame.... I want them to go to a place where the school is committed to their excellence as football players.

I want to turn on the tv and watch Derrik Allen starring at Georgia under Kirby Smart, making plays, talking trash and being himself. I don't want to turn on the tv watching him mope around all smiles at ND giving great interviews, playing soft, picking players up off the field and chit chatting with them because football is just for fun... Derrik Allen is too good of a football player to come to Notre Dame. I'm afraid He'll regress in South Bend.

 

[theskibro]

Truthfully, I don't know of I want Derrik Allen, Houston Griffith, Phil Jurkovec, Nicholas Petit-Frere or Jayson Ademilola to.come.to Notre Dame.... I want them to go to a place where the school is committed to their excellence as football players.

I want to turn on the tv and watch Derrik Allen starring at Georgia under Kirby Smart, making plays, talking trash and being himself. I don't want to turn on the tv watching him mope around all smiles at ND giving great interviews, playing soft, picking players up off the field and chit chatting with them because football is just for fun... Derrik Allen is too good of a football player to come to Notre Dame. I'm afraid He'll regress in South Bend.

He n other recruits will flip. No worries.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Shameful just how easily they take losing. To his credit, the angry Brian Kelly returned tonight. Imo he wants to win but just isn’t the motivator a place like ND needs. Our kids are surrrounded by demur geniuses all day long so it’s going to eventually rub off the toughness they might have once had. I’m shocked at just how easily a bunch of average athletic defensive and offensive lineman pushed out kids around. And not once did ND get mad about it. Not once.

Kelly has gone soft, but He's also hamstrung by an administration that has no desire to win if it means ND looks like or does things everyone or anyone else. They have to do everything differently.

The Brian Kelly that was allowed to run his own show at Central Michigan and Cinci, is not the Brian Kelly coaching at Notre Dame right now. They did the same thing to Lou. Cut his legs out from under him. Saban, Meyer, Swinney, etc have the autonomy to run their program as they see fit. The people who don't know anything about football stay out of it... That's why Notre Dame Is not a highly coveted job anymore. Elite coaches don't want to deal with the politics that come with coaching there.

 

[theskibro]

Kelly has gone soft, but He's also hamstrung by an administration that has no desire to win if it means ND looks like or does things everyone or anyone else. They have to do everything differently.

The Brian Kelly that was allowed to run his own show at Central Michigan and Cinci, is not the Brian Kelly coaching at Notre Dame right now. They did the same thing to Lou. Cut thanks out from under him. Saban, Meyer, Swinney, etc have the autonomy to run their program as they see fit. The people who don't know anything about football stay out of it... That's why Notre Dame Is not a highly coveted job anymore. Elite coaches don't want to deal with the politics that come with coaching there.

True. ND is a sad excuse

 

[IrishInOntario]

He n other recruits will flip. No worries.

Not worried. I trust he'll make a good decision and go play for a football program that will build him into an NFL'er and get him a degree to fall back on should football not work out. I don't want his talent wasted in ND getting a degree that will hamper his development into a millionaire and star NFL'er.

 

[HRC08]

Kelly has gone soft, but He's also hamstrung by an administration that has no desire to win if it means ND looks like or does things everyone or anyone else. They have to do everything differently.

The Brian Kelly that was allowed to run his own show at Central Michigan and Cinci, is not the Brian Kelly coaching at Notre Dame right now. They did the same thing to Lou. Cut thanks out from under him. Saban, Meyer, Swinney, etc have the autonomy to run their program as they see fit. The people who don't know anything about football stay out of it... That's why Notre Dame Is not a highly coveted job anymore. Elite coaches don't want to deal with the politics that come with coaching there.

Exactly. Changing football coaches isn’t going to help if the two men above him aren’t also held to account. Brian Kelly isn’t the only problem here.

 

[michigaNDer#1]

Truthfully, I don't know of I want Derrik Allen, Houston Griffith, Phil Jurkovec, Nicholas Petit-Frere or Jayson Ademilola to.come.to Notre Dame.... I want them to go to a place where the school is committed to their excellence as football players.

I want to turn on the tv and watch Derrik Allen starring at Georgia under Kirby Smart, making plays, talking trash and being himself. I don't want to turn on the tv watching him mope around all smiles at ND giving great interviews, playing soft, picking players up off the field and chit chatting with them because football is just for fun... Derrik Allen is too good of a football player to come to Notre Dame. I'm afraid He'll regress in South Bend.

And i thought Patrick Roy was whiny Canadian. You're just talking mad! Sure, I want a change, but I don't wish what you do....And I sure as hell don't think the administration made Kelly go for 2 against Clemson, throw instead of run and kick against Tulsa, throw 40 times against NCState in a hurricane, run outside the tackles against Miami and inside against Stanford. Those are all on Kelly.

 

[Toby Smart]

Kelly has gone soft, but He's also hamstrung by an administration that has no desire to win if it means ND looks like or does things everyone or anyone else. They have to do everything differently.

The Brian Kelly that was allowed to run his own show at Central Michigan and Cinci, is not the Brian Kelly coaching at Notre Dame right now. They did the same thing to Lou. Cut thanks out from under him. Saban, Meyer, Swinney, etc have the autonomy to run their program as they see fit. The people who don't know anything about football stay out of it... That's why Notre Dame Is not a highly coveted job anymore. Elite coaches don't want to deal with the politics that come with coaching there.

This just didn't happen in the BK era. The administration cut the rug under the feet of Leahy with Father Ted doing the dirty work by official decree from the university president. They felt Leahy and the program were getting too big. The one who suffered the consequences was Terry Brennan when he took over with the new rules in place.

 

[NDWXGUY]

Ontario; are you saying that a guy like Lou wouldn’t make it in today’s game....especially at ND? To be honest, the softness in the program is like a cancer. I noticed it two years ago when HBO did the season special on us. So what’s the answer for all of this?

 

[michigaNDer#1]

Stop the nonsense. Every lose in the last 8 years can be laid upon Kelly's shoulders....maybe Bama is the exception, but I don't blame anything on the admin. You just got beat by Stanford with standards beyond that of ND.

 

[IrishInOntario]

And i thought Patrick Roy was whiny Canadian. You're just talking mad! Sure, I want a change, but I don't wish what you do....And I sure as hell don't think the administration made Kelly go for 2 against Clemson, throw instead of run and kick against Tulsa, throw 40 times against NCState in a hurricane, run outside the tackles against Miami and inside against Stanford. Those are all on Kelly.

Yep. Kelly deserves his fare share of blame too. Nobody Is arguing that he doesn't. But watching college football all day today (something I rarely have time to.do anymore) reminded me of one thing. The game is one on a combination of talent, passion, confidence and execution. ND kids have some talent. The rest if it they lack.

I sincerely love watching elite players develop into the best players they can be. The coach in me wants to see them be great. That's why I would rather those kids go to programs that will foster that greatness rather than to Notre Dame where they'll regress.

 

[HuddleBurger]

Kelly has gone soft, but He's also hamstrung by an administration that has no desire to win if it means ND looks like or does things everyone or anyone else. They have to do everything differently.

The Brian Kelly that was allowed to run his own show at Central Michigan and Cinci, is not the Brian Kelly coaching at Notre Dame right now. They did the same thing to Lou. Cut his legs out from under him. Saban, Meyer, Swinney, etc have the autonomy to run their program as they see fit. The people who don't know anything about football stay out of it... That's why Notre Dame Is not a highly coveted job anymore. Elite coaches don't want to deal with the politics that come with coaching there.

Ding ding ding!! Nailed it!

Honestly, they just need to stop saying "we play for championships" already. It comes off as disingenuous or delusional, but either way embarrassing.

 

[BGI User 1596]

Ding ding ding!! Nailed it!

Honestly, they just need to stop saying "we play for championships" already. It comes off as disingenuous or delusional, but either way embarrassing.

It’s an outright lie to recruits to say that!

 

[bizzybecknd]

Truthfully, I don't know of I want Derrik Allen, Houston Griffith, Phil Jurkovec, Nicholas Petit-Frere or Jayson Ademilola to.come.to Notre Dame.... I want them to go to a place where the school is committed to their excellence as football players.

I want to turn on the tv and watch Derrik Allen starring at Georgia under Kirby Smart, making plays, talking trash and being himself. I don't want to turn on the tv watching him mope around all smiles at ND giving great interviews, playing soft, picking players up off the field and chit chatting with them because football is just for fun... Derrik Allen is too good of a football player to come to Notre Dame. I'm afraid He'll regress in South Bend.

Quit acting like picking a player off the field denounces desire- garbage. Quit acting like every 9-3 team in the country are losers on the football field- garbage. Ask Golden Tate, Stanley, Smith, Teo, Rudolph, Tuitt, Ridick, TJ Jones, Martin Brothers, Russel, Fuller, Procise, Jaylon if ND wasn't committed to their craft and didn't do them justice.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Stop the nonsense. Every lose in the last 8 years can be laid upon Kelly's shoulders....maybe Bama is the exception, but I don't blame anything on the admin. You just got beat by Stanford with standards beyond that of ND.

It goes deeper than Kelly... Stanford may be tougher academically, but I don't care about Stanford. What have they ever won? ND's goal is not to be Stanford It's to compete for titles with the likes of Alabama, Ohio State, USC, Clemson, Florida State, etc, etc.

It's time for a coaching change. But good luck getting an elite one to come to Notre Dame. They'll make the same smart decision Urban Meyer did. They'll go to a place where It's easier to recruit and where you are not hamstrung by your own administration every time a kid screws up in the slightest. ND was lucky to get Brian Kelly when they did. Point out to me the coach you are confident would compete for a national title at ND and chose Notre Dame over the current openings across college football?...

 

[impossibilityofreason1]

I know one thing I never want to see Kelly on an ND sideline again. What's the point?

 

[Toby Smart]

Quit acting like picking a player off the field denounces desire- garbage. Quit acting like every 9-3 team in the country are losers on the football field- garbage. Ask Golden Tate, Stanley, Smith, Teo, Rudolph, Tuitt, Ridick, TJ Jones, Martin Brothers, Russel, Fuller, Procise, Jaylon if ND wasn't committed to their craft and didn't do them justice.

Thank you. Well thought out and reasonable response.

 

[NyyorkerND]

Love the post you put out in the past IIO but can't agree with you on this one. We lost because we were a one dimensional team for the most part we had to adjust and Long play calling leaves something to be questioned. We open the second half with a big score in the passing game we needed to throw more and not stupid lateral screen passes that's not Wimbush strength. Big time return by fink yeah we take 2 bad penaltiles and 3rd and long we run a qb draw. Wth. We didn't have an aggressive gameplan and all the yelling in the world Kelly could have or should have done wouldn't have made a difference.

Solid year but next year has to be better record and results wise we beat 4 or 5 top 40 teams no team only 3 or 4 teams in college football can say that. In the playoff race till the last week of the season! From where we were last year.

I expect more next year. It sucks today but hopefully we will see better soon.

 

[michigaNDer#1]

It goes deeper than Kelly... Stanford may be tougher academically, but I don't care about Stanford. What have they ever won? ND's goal is not to be Stanford It's to compete for titles with the likes of Alabama, Ohio State, USC, Clemson, Florida State, etc, etc.

It's time for a coaching change. But good luck getting an elite one to come to Notre Dame. They'll make the same smart decision Urban Meyer did. They'll go to a place where It's easier to recruit and where you are not hamstrung by your own administration every time a kid screws up in the slightest. ND was lucky to get Brian Kelly when they did. Point out to me the coach you are confident would compete for a national title at ND and chose Notre Dame over the current openings across college football?...

Just address my statement. Outside if Bama 12, what loss isn't on Kelly's shoulders?

 

[IrishInOntario]

Quit acting like picking a player off the field denounces desire- garbage. Quit acting like every 9-3 team in the country are losers on the football field- garbage. Ask Golden Tate, Stanley, Smith, Teo, Rudolph, Tuitt, Ridick, TJ Jones, Martin Brothers, Russel, Fuller, Procise, Jaylon if ND wasn't committed to their craft and didn't do them justice.

Those kids overcame the challenges of Notre Dame to be excellent. They weren't made elite because of ND. You're going to tell me Manti Te'o, Jaylon Smith, Stephon Tuitt, etc, etc wouldn't have been as good at other elite schools? You have to be kidding. They would have had twice as much time to dedicate to football at those schools.

 

[CowboyIndian]

but I don't care about Stanford. What have they ever won?

38-20

 

[michigaNDer#1]

Those kids overcame the challenges of Notre Dame to be excellent. They weren't made elite because of ND. You're going to tell me Manti Te'o, Jaylon Smith, Stephon Tuitt, etc, etc would both have been as good at other elite schools? You have to be kidding. They would have had twice as much time to dedicate to football at those schools.

Agree on most, but Jaylon Smith was a wasted talent under BVG.

 

[deadirishpoet]

- 9-3

-Top 35 scoring defense

- Offense with an up and down season.

- ND players picking opponents up off the field and tapping them on the helmet like gentlemen.

- No emotion or killer instinct in the group.

- Doubt and lack of execution in big games.

- A team that is all smiles, taking pictures and yucking it up after another big loss to a rival that the series is way more important too.

- recruiting momentum completely annihilated in November. A class that was trending towards a top 5 group with a massive talent infusion will likely lose some pieces and ND will probably again finish in the 15'ish range which is fine by Brian Kelly by his own admittance.

- The coach has gone soft. The kids don't care. Doubt has infected the core of this program like HIV. They're great kids. Winners in life, but losers in the game of football. The entirety of Notre Dame, from the administration down through the athletic department and the coaches ensure that is the case.

Rinse and repeat. 9-3 or 10-2 next year with at least 1-2 loses because our kids pucker at the first sign of adversity. Defense will improve a little bit. The offense will still struggle for an identity and the same old, tired issues will rear their ugly heads.

Fun season boys. Until Groundhog Day it's time to watch the recruiting class falter, and Mike Brey and his boys over achieve with marginal talent!

Thanks for a good one guys!

Another season getting acclimated with the new coordinators system they are using the guys will be more comfortable in it.
There was progress.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Just address my statement. Outside if Bama 12, what loss isn't on Kelly's shoulders?

It's a loaded question because every win and loss sits firmly on the shoulders of the head coach. That means all 9 wins this year, along with all 3 losses. Every win Brian Kelly has had in South Bend is to his credit and every loss is his blame to endure. That's the reality of being a head coach.

That doesn't mean that all head coaches have equal administrative supprt to help them win. If You're going to try to try to tell me that David Shaw, Brian Kelly or Pat Fitzgerald are competing in an equal playing field to the likes of Nick Saban, Urban Meyer or Devin Swinney, you are delusional.

Facts are facts. ND makes it harder on itself than any other school that claims to want to compete for national titles. That doesn't absolve Kelly from blame, but it the truth behind the rest of the story some refuse to admit.

 

[impossibilityofreason1]

It goes deeper than Kelly... Stanford may be tougher academically, but I don't care about Stanford. What have they ever won? ND's goal is not to be Stanford It's to compete for titles with the likes of Alabama, Ohio State, USC, Clemson, Florida State, etc, etc.

It's time for a coaching change. But good luck getting an elite one to come to Notre Dame. They'll make the same smart decision Urban Meyer did. They'll go to a place where It's easier to recruit and where you are not hamstrung by your own administration every time a kid screws up in the slightest. ND was lucky to get Brian Kelly when they did. Point out to me the coach you are confident would compete for a national title at ND and chose Notre Dame over the current openings across college football?...

No one and that's why I can't have animosity towards Urban Meyer. He would have won 9 and 10 games a season here but not championships like he did at Florida and Ohio St.

 

[IrishInOntario]

No one and that's why I can't have animosity towards Urban Meyer. He would have won 9 and 10 games a season here but not championships like he did at Florida and Ohio St.

That's true and he knew it. He was an assistant at ND. He knew the limitations. That's why he went to two other places and won 3 national championships.

Brian Kelly has said on numerous occasions that the one thing he didn't account for and was not prepared for when he took the ND job, is all the things that come with being the ND head coach that pull you away from preparing your team. All the distractions and expectations that come with the circus. As big as fooball is at Alabama, nobody tells Nick Saban where he has to be, what he has to do, how he has to act, or what he has to participate in. He's a rockstar in the state of Alabama, but he's all football, all the time.

 

[michigaNDer#1]

Ok, Canuck, tell me what loss sits squarely on the shoulders of the administration? You can't! Kelly is a cancer. I'm not disagreeing that ND is at a disadvantage to Bama, etc, but Kelly is the reason for every loss this year. Last year too.

 

[impossibilityofreason1]

That's true and he knew it. He was an assistant at ND. Be knew the limitations. That's why he went to two other places and won 3 national championships.

This sums it up. He was on the inside and he saw it up close. Nothing has changed since and it wont. Hell Saban couldn't win one here. He might get there but go up against elite talent

 

[michigaNDer#1]

That's true and he knew it. He was an assistant at ND. He knew the limitations. That's why he went to two other places and won 3 national championships.

Brian Kelly has said on numerous occasions that the one thing he didn't account for and was not prepared for when he took the ND job, is all the things that come with being the ND head coach that pull you away from preparing your team. All the distractions and expectations that come with the circus. As big as fooball is at Alabama, nobody tells Nick Saban where he has to be, what he has to do, how he has to act, or what he has to participate in. He's a rockstar in the state of Alabama, but he's all football, all the time.

Once again, please tell me which games the administration loss for us this year?

 

[michigaNDer#1]

This sums it up. He was on the inside and he saw it up close. Nothing has changed since and it wont. Hell Saban couldn't win one here. He might get there but go up against elite talent

Not true. Not one game was lost this year due to restrictions or the administration. Every game is on Kelly

 

[impossibilityofreason1]

Once again, please tell me which games the administration loss for us this year?

They are responsible for the hires and for what they deem acceptable as a football program.

 

[thehellyousay]

Those kids overcame the challenges of Notre Dame to be excellent. They weren't made elite because of ND. You're going to tell me Manti Te'o, Jaylon Smith, Stephon Tuitt, etc, etc wouldn't have been as good at other elite schools? You have to be kidding. They would have had twice as much time to dedicate to football at those schools.

not really - there are rules about how much you can practice... Kelly has put a lot of players in the NFL, and some damned good ones too... I feel your frustration, but I think you're running over the hill, down the valley, across the river, and out into the woods with this one...

maybe Kelly and ND need to part ways - I just said as much in another thread... I like Kelly - I think he turned a program around that was in shambles, but i also think he's hit a wall...

if you really want cutthroat competition, you can go the Alabama route and basically hold tryouts every year, and get rid of 4 year scholarships, start grey-shirting kids and treating them like meat... I personally don't want that - I like to think the good guys get to win once in a while...

 

[michigaNDer#1]

They are responsible for the hires and for what they deem acceptable as a football program.

Once again, please tell me about a game that wasn't on Kelly's shoulders. I'm sick of the excuses. Kelly is responsible.

 

[bizzybecknd]

Agree on most, but Jaylon Smith was a wasted talent under BVG.

Those kids overcame the challenges of Notre Dame to be excellent. They weren't made elite because of ND. You're going to tell me Manti Te'o, Jaylon Smith, Stephon Tuitt, etc, etc wouldn't have been as good at other elite schools? You have to be kidding. They would have had twice as much time to dedicate to football at those schools.

What about the others? Bennett Jackson, Eifert, Niklas, Okwara, how many guys from this squad?

And if Derrick Allen, Amendola, PJ are of the Jaylon/Tuitt quality, then why not come to ND and get a great education get drafted high just like Nelson, Mcglinchey, Morgan, Tillery, St Brown, Stephenson will? Do we need to pull some numbers on draft picks under the BK era to shut your mouth?

 

[michigaNDer#1]

not really - there are rules about how much you can practice... Kelly has put a lot of players in the NFL, and some damned good ones too... I feel your frustration, but I think you're running over the hill, down the valley, across the river, and out into the woods with this one...

maybe Kelly and ND need to part ways - I just said as much in another thread... I like Kelly - I think he turned a program around that was in shambles, but i also think he's hit a wall...

if you really want cutthroat competition, you can go the Alabama route and basically hold tryouts every year, and get rid of 4 year scholarships, start grey-shirting kids and treating them like meat... I personally don't want that - I like to think the good guys get to win once in a while...

Don't give Kelly all of the credit. The NFL teams know what these kids are ranked coming out of high school. They take that into account

 

[IrishInOntario]

Ok, Canuck, tell me what loss sits squarely on the shoulders of the administration? You can't! Kelly is a cancer. I'm not disagreeing that ND is at a disadvantage to Bama, etc, but Kelly is the reason for every loss this year. Last year too.

Again, You're asking a silly question. Brian Kelly has substantially more wins at ND than he does losses. What wins fall on anybody's shoulders but his? They're all his wins and they are all his loses. That said, replacing him with just "anybody" is not how you run a program and we've seen in the past that ND is no longer the first choice job for an elite up and coming coach. As someone who had been around the program first hand, I'm telling you that Urban Meyer knew he was hamstrung at ND and that's why he went to Florida instead.

For the last time, Kelly is responsible for his own wins and loses. So were the coaches at ND before him and so too will be the coaches at ND that come after him... That doesn't mean that Kelly, Weis, Willingham, Davey, or even Holtz had the type of support and autonomy needed to win consistently in the current state of college football.

We live in a world where cheating is rampant man. Guys are getting new cars at programs down south. There are thousands of dollars being exchanged in handshakes. Guys barely go to class in season at elite programs and spend all day watching film, lifting and honing their craft. They're basically semi pro programs.

Meanwhile, ND can't take a JUCO?..