With the Spring Game looming Saturday and kickoff against the Texas Longhorns mere months away, Notre Dame’s head football coach, Brian Kelly, is heading into waters that have not been tested since Lou Holtz, now late of ESPN, was at the helm under the Dome. Not since the 1996 season have the Irish had a coach make it to his sixth year.
These historical comparisons are almost by their very nature flawed. Today’s coaches are spoiled for post-season options, whereas coaches of yore were limited to nine, or even fewer, games. And playing schools like Carnegie Tech. Or Purdue. Still, I believe it is certainly valid and appropriate to compare Brian Kelly’s record to that of his four predecessors. Prior to Dr. Lou, though any equation feels forced, but, I hope, also fun.
A further complication to this basic analysis is something that is beyond my capacity to account for: the vagaries peculiar to one coach’s situation in time. For example, Ty Willingham’s 21-16 record after three seasons was ammunition for some to argue that his termination was premature. I feel that the current Athletic Director, Jack Swarbrick, and Head Football Coach enjoy a peculiarly close relationship and that Kelly has benefited from that and from the perception that he had the program moving in a different and better direction than either Davie or Willingham or Weis, despite humdrum records and scandals in his first two seasons.
After five seasons, Kelly’s record is 45-20. His predecessor, Charlie Weis, finished 35-54. Bob Davie was 35-25. After just three seasons, Ty Willingham was 21-16. Putting some further distance between himself and his predecessors, Kelly played for a National Championship and finished fourth overall in 2012. That season was Notre Dame’s best record since 1989 (12-1) and its highest finish since 1993 (2nd). For what it’s worth, after his five seasons in South Bend, Gerry Faust was a dull 30-26-1.
Lou Holtz is remarkable in Notre Dame history for both his record, 100-20-2, and his longevity. His eleven seasons put him even with Ara Parseghien and Frank Leahy and just two behind the longest-serving head coach, Knute Rockne, who had thirteen. Holtz managed one championship (1988), while Ara won two (’66 and ’73) and Leahy, four (’49, ’47, ’46, and ’43).
It bears some mention that, heading into season six, Holtz and Kelly had roughly equal records at 46-14 and 45-20, respectively. That they share a sixth season in charge is in itself noteworthy. Holtz, of course, had that championship.
Dan Devine coached six seasons for the Irish, from 1975 to 1980. He finished 53-16-1 with one championship (1977). Elmer Layden, and now I’m just getting nutty, coached seven seasons, from 1934 to 1940, and comparing him to Brian Kelly is about as valid as comparing apples and waffles, but I’m about four hundred and fifty words into this now, so here we go: Layden was 47-13-3 after seven seasons and 33-9-3 after five seasons. The AP poll did not come into existence until 1936, so Layden’s first two seasons are officially “unranked.” Coincidentally, Layden opened his first season-opener against Texas at Notre Dame.
So, looking at his record and tenure only, Brian Kelly definitely belongs in the discussion of Notre Dame’s great coaches. Though he lacks a championship, he played for one. And, unlike most, he’ll get a sixth season to try.
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tom whalen
great post. i find myself tabulating BK’s cumulative winning pct. often during the season to see how he stacks up. he’s currently at .692, but was well above .700 before the losing streak last season.
in all, if he can achieve my baseline goals of 1.) double digit season win totals with regularity 2.) a title run every 3-4 years,and 3.) at least one NC, i think he’ll cement himself as one of the greats in ND history. which says a lot.
Bayou Irish
Tom: thanks for reading and for commenting. One of the things that strikes from my survey of the Notre Dame archival data on coaches and their records is that the great ones are consistent. Championships come along so rarely that the bold-type really leaps out at you. To me, Kelly’s record is evidence that he’s the “right” guy and, frankly, he’d have a stronger case if he hadn’t been done in by some circumstances that are beyond his control, i.e. academic issues.