Kelly to Stay at ND

Move along

I expected this to happen.  Still, his flirtation with the pros gives his opponents some recruiting ammunition: if he's this close to jumping ship right after an appearance in the national title game, what's going to stop him after a year that might not go so perfectly, where the fanbase isn't as strongly behind him?

Fine by me. They might get somebody good if he moved on. (And I like watching the purple explosions on tv every fall weekend.)

1) Say you have interest in another job

2) Use this as leverage, stay at current job

3) ???

4) Profit

In other news Hoke to stay at Michigan!!  

You cannot unring the bell.  Every team competing against ND can point to Kelly's wondering eye.  If the Cowboys or Jets come calling in a years time this will all start again.  Kelly's statement that he is staying because of his love for ND is a lie.  He's staying for the money and when a better offer comes up he'll be gone.

double post

For him, it's just a job. And for a school like Notre Dame, that's hard to swallow. When Hoke said, "We would have walked here," it was authentic and that's exactly what we wanted and needed to hear. Now, the Domers deep down can't trust Kelly because they know this is just a job. 

Dammit. I hate ND. Any good news outta that school always chaps my ass.

Do tese NFL jobs hold the luster they used to? Sure, if you can take over the Pats or someone ready to win people will jump, but is anyone wow'd by the Browns, or Eagles, or Bills? Heck, even the Bears list of candidates is...underwhelming. And they're actually a good team.

Funny that none of them seem to even be mentioning Gruden, even though people are exhibiting the "Gruden effect", where every top name coach will be interested in "this" job.

My whole problem with this was it was announced that a raise and extension was in the works before the NCG.  Lots of people suggested this was the usual leverage ploy for profit.  I totally feel like this was more than that.  Because of that I have to look at him in a more critical light.

The rumour for the long hold out, however, was more money for assistants (Have to pay your assistants, you guys know that), possible admissions loosening and provisions for possible oversignings.

Of course none of this will come to light as ND is a private institution.  Expect the usual drivel of Pay Raise, Assist Pay Raises and "facility improvements".

Bruce Feldman's write-up - (LINK)

Not too much information aside from a quote from Kelly himself:

"Like every kid who has ever put on a pair of football cleats, I have had thoughts about being a part of the NFL. However after much reflection and conversation with those closest to me, I have decided to remain at Notre Dame. This decision was motivated purely by my love for Notre Dame and the entire Fighting Irish community."

It's interesting considering that there were reports a  few  days ago that there was supposed to be a second interview. He did reach out to a lot of people who have worked in the pros, so even though he isn't leaving now, he seems to be giving signals that it hasn't left his mind completely as an option later. The one thing I wondered about, and I couldn't find the article I remember (but here is a mention of it in a very pointed Chicago Tribune blog entry), is this - did Jack Swarbrick not guarantee Kelly another contract extension and a raise before for the peak of the NFL talk? I think he probably did genuinely consider this move. 

I guess I'm not as impressed as most by "luckiest team to ever make it to the big game (and get their ass kicked) rather than being 8-5-ish".

This won't last.  The ND fans are already furious over the fact Kelly would ever consider a lateral move to the NFL (at least that his how the dopes at NDNation see it).  When Kelly failed to act as if Notre Dame was a destination job, it pissed off a major segement of the fan base.  So when he goes 8-5 again or whatever, South Bend Torch and Pitchfork will have its shelves swept clean and the fanbase will come for him.

Also I think he's only back because the Eagles didn't give him what he wanted or else refused to hire him.  I think Kelly seriousily was ready to leave, but couldn't get the job offer.

It's a huge black eye for notre dame. There's no doubt he had genuine interest in the nfl. I live a half hour from south bend and the Irish faithful have been shitting their pants all week.

They'll forgive him in that scenario. If he doesn't, and loses to USC more often than not, then it won't matter whether he had a brief flirtation with the pros.

I'm sure the recruits/players will love the fact that they were kept in the dark about this whole thing.