I beg! I implore! I insist! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, Everyone, please stop glorifying Brian Kelly as the 'winningest' coach in Notre Dame history. Using that term for Kelly can cause the less sophisticated reader to believe that Kelly was the greatest Notre Dame football coach ever. Of course nothing could be further from the truth. There is no need to refer to the two seasons that the corrupt NCAA would like to take back from Notre Dame. Actually, I think the NCAA's ludicrous decision was in reaction to something that occurred while Lou was coach. So it is unfair to claim that Kelly didn't deserve those victories.
But Winningest? I could possibly be the winningest coach in Notre Dame history if the university would let me coach 300 or 400 games. Sure Kelly had eight more wins than Rockne, but he also 31 more games (153) than Rockne (122) and he lost 28 more times than Rockne!
What is winningest? Is it your total wins regardless of how many games you lost? Or is it how many games you win out of all the games you have played ?
Perhaps it would be better if we simply gave Kelly credit for being at Notre Dame as long as, or perhaps slightly longer, that four other highly notable ND coaches.
But winningest? Not even close. 5th in fact!
Games Wins Losses Ties Winning %
Rockne 122 105 12 5 .881
Leahy 107 87 11 9 .855
Parseghian 116 95 17 4 .836
Holtz 132 100 30 2 .765
Kelly 153 113 40 - .738
So there you have it. Kelly was merely coach for the most games in ND history. In reality he was only the fifth most "winningest" coach among those who coached for 10 years or more.
But Winningest? I could possibly be the winningest coach in Notre Dame history if the university would let me coach 300 or 400 games. Sure Kelly had eight more wins than Rockne, but he also 31 more games (153) than Rockne (122) and he lost 28 more times than Rockne!
What is winningest? Is it your total wins regardless of how many games you lost? Or is it how many games you win out of all the games you have played ?
Perhaps it would be better if we simply gave Kelly credit for being at Notre Dame as long as, or perhaps slightly longer, that four other highly notable ND coaches.
But winningest? Not even close. 5th in fact!
Games Wins Losses Ties Winning %
Rockne 122 105 12 5 .881
Leahy 107 87 11 9 .855
Parseghian 116 95 17 4 .836
Holtz 132 100 30 2 .765
Kelly 153 113 40 - .738
So there you have it. Kelly was merely coach for the most games in ND history. In reality he was only the fifth most "winningest" coach among those who coached for 10 years or more.
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