Let's be honest, ND football is not what it was. And it won't be. It's a multi-million dollar enterprise. The face of a huge, and important, academic brand. Social brand. Entertainment brand. But, that doesn't necessarily mean that the players have to act that way.
If Coach Kelly has his way, they won't be acting that way much longer.
"Most of the guys here were more interested in whether they were on Mel Kiper's Big Board," Kelly said. "I want guys who are more interested in what they can do for Notre Dame."
"It says, 'God, Country and Notre Dame' outside of my office," Kelly said. "I think my job is to put teeth back into that. Everybody looks at Notre Dame and assumes it's special. Well, define that for me. I'm still defining 'special.' It's about team, team, team. I'm trying to get it to where they understand this is about Notre Dame, your teammates, your family and then yourself. I think they had it flipped the other way. It started with me and Notre Dame was at the other end."
No doubt, this is a pretty big philosophical shift from C-dub, who relied heavily on his NFL pedigree for coaching style, and his promises of grooming players into NFL stars to get recruits. He also seemed to coach in this way - focusing largely on his star offensive players. Not necessarily his fault - if you have his background, how else do you coach? - but not ideal for building a team mentality. In comes Kelly, that all goes away...
"Do you care?
Can I trust you?
Are you committed?
Observe the Golden Rule.
Do the right thing."
In addition to a new offensive and defensive scheme, in addition to a new pace and in addition to new attention to detail, Coach Kelly is breaking down egos. He's starting over. Manti Teo? No good. Dayne Crist? Fighting for his job. No such thing as a starter, no depth chart anywhere. "We stink right now." Calling guys out left and right.
This program is no longer about a player, his stats, his NFL future. Kelly is making it solely about team. About the sum being greater than the parts, and getting rid of any sense of entitlement.
"My biggest surprise was the [sense of] entitlement and selfishness," Kelly said. "I think at the end of the day, there wasn't a true appreciation for what they had. I know those are harsh terms, but they're 18, 19 or 20 years old and they're playing at a school where its existence as a university is because of football. You're a football player at Notre Dame and you need to appreciate what you have."
Overall, I love this approach. That lack of team focus and unity wasn't readily apparent from the outside the last few seasons, but you could see the results - weak 4th quarter performances, crucial errors that cost games, some great individual accolades in a .500 season.
And really, ND players do need to recgonize what they have. (The students need to as well - that's one special place, and when they leave, they'll miss it forever - trust me on this one). Using that identity, that experience, as a unifying tool is smart. And it's legit, so it shouldn't be a tough sell.
The focus on toughness, grit and a workman-like attitude is part and parcel with team. Getting back to the basics of being "Irish": hard work, dedication, trust, even love. To me, this should be what the entire ND brand should be focused on. Getting rid of all the fancy-schmancy-ness, and just getting back to work. That would fix 7-4-1, it would fix our scheduling issues, and it would damn-well ensure that we remain Independent.
I know this isn't the most coherent thought - I'm still trying to work through it myself - but it does feel like Kelly is calling out the entire University a bit. Or, he should be. Because I think it's time to get past the deal-making and the $ signs and just get back to work at being ND.
Funny that Kelly has been at ND for just a few months, and I think he might 'get' ND better than most people that have been there for years.
Thanks Coach, for reminding us.
By Mark G April 7, 2010 - 2:28 pm
Anyone remember a player named Doug Becker?
Of course you don’t. He started at linebacker in ’75, ’76 and ’77. Did not go on to play pro-ball, and was not a 5 star recruit (OK, so they did not have the “star” ranking system back then, but he would have been a 3 to 4 star guy).
Merely a guy who loved ND, loved playing football for ND, played his guts out every game for his teammates and his school, hitting opposing backs like a sledgehammer, and then moved on with his life, remaining a die-hard ND loyalist.
In other words, merely the kind of guy who for generations has made ND and ND football both special and successful.
Yea, I want 5 star recruits as well, but what I will take a 3 star, who is all about the school and the team, and will work his ass off, over a 5 star who is all about himself and expects the school and the team to give him what he wants.
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By Titus April 7, 2010 - 2:45 pm
Hear hear!
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By The Biscuit April 7, 2010 - 2:51 pm
Mark, I get and agree with you, to an extent. I just don’t think this ONLY has to do with Star ratings/recruiting. I think it’s the way that players are coached. There are plenty of 4/5-star guys who will want to work, who will put the team first, who will achieve their and the team’s potential, in the way Kelly wants. Weis couldn’t coach them in that way, Kelly will. So I think this is more of a program identity issue than a recruiting one, though I do think there is merit in finding lower-rated players that will put in the work. I’d just rather find the higher rated guys that will ALSO put in the work, if possible.
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By Mark G April 7, 2010 - 3:51 pm
Agree completely.
Maybe BK can get the 4 and 5 star guys thinking like a 3 star guy with a chip on his shoulder.
Go Irish!
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By Whiskey April 7, 2010 - 4:23 pm
Great post. I totally agree that there is a method to his madness and I’m all for it.
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By tjak April 7, 2010 - 6:31 pm
I’m on board.
Go Irish!
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By BigE April 7, 2010 - 7:23 pm
Kelly has a clear vision of what it takes to build a team and what it takes to sustain success. Something that CW was unable to accomplish with his highly touted individuals.
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By Laura April 7, 2010 - 7:47 pm
I LOVE this post. With extra-bold capital letters. And yes, I know I will miss this place for the rest of my life, thanks for reminding me. I have to say goodbye in May.
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By Pat April 8, 2010 - 8:44 am
Great post. I agree that Kelly is sort of calling out the entire Notre Dame establishment from top to bottom. The self-entitlement has permeated administrators, the fanbase and all the way down to the players. Notre Dame football was built on grit. It was the admiration and hope of down and out Irish Catholics that were treated like second-class citizens. It won with toughness and heart — the Fighting Irish. I think Kelly romanticizes that view a bit, but he’s on the right track. It’s long overdue that Notre Dame football get back to that “let’s give ‘em hell” attitude instead of this sissy “don’t hurt me too hard” stuff we’ve see the last few years.
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By TheIrishLion10 April 8, 2010 - 10:45 am
I’ve said it in posts on my own blog before, and I’ll say it again: Brian Kelly simply needs to make his players realize that they must PROTECT THE NAME. When you play for Notre Dame, every team hears that name and comes with their best game. the players need to realize this and get an attitude. They need to protect Notre Dame stadium, and they need to protect the tradition.
The “Prestige” of the name Notre Dame sadly only exists to the school and its supporters now (in terms of football), and the players must buy into the fact that their identity, as a team, must be to fight for the name Fighting Irish
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By Hurls, '89 April 11, 2010 - 9:02 pm
Kids these days…
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