Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly has had direct contact with Notre Dame representatives regarding the open coaching position, according to an ESPN.com report. A source close to the negotiations told ESPN’s Joe Schad on Tuesday that “things are heating up” between Kelly and Notre Dame, which fired coach Charlie Weis on Dec. 1.
Cheers & Jeers has been calling for Notre Dame to hire Kelly since mid-November, when it became clear that Weis — after losing back-to-back games to Navy and Pitt — was going to lose his job. Kelly, a hard-working program builder, is the perfect fit for Notre Dame, which is in dire need of an overhaul.
But now comes a moment of hesitation. The announcements of quarterback Jimmy Clausen and wide receiver Golden Tate to turn pro have dramatically changed the Notre Dame landscape. To be fair, the writing was on the wall that after losing their coach, team MVPs Clausen and Tate would skip town. But now that the Irish have lost their stud quarterback and dynamic receiver, the 2010 season becomes a clear rebuilding project, instead of just a possible one.
Does this cause Kelly to reconsider the job if he gets an offer? Probably not, considering Clausen was gone regardless of what happened to Weis. But maybe it gives Kelly a moment of pause. And maybe Notre Dame, never one to happily wait for a decision, gets itchy and moves on to Plan B — whatever it is.
Stranger things have happened.
