I respect swagger, I really do. But this is some grade-a spin right here (I expect nothing less from the son of a politician). He give no credit to his players, no credit to his support staff, its all “me, me, me” Going a step further, Kelly has no problem glossing over the fact that he abandoned his team after they went 12-0, refusing to coach in their bowl game thus leaving them high and dry. All this was after he held a team meeting to tell his players he would not be taking the job at the Notre Dame
You may be able to fool the hordes of blind-Notre-Dame-faithful but I have a feeling that the fans on Cincinnati football (including me) have a different view on the Kelly era: He raised a program up, only to abandon them in the national spotlight.
His departure fiasco from UC aside, Kelly has built back-to-back-to-back winning football programs. And, as for giving the credit where credit is due, it’s not as “me, me, me” as you suggest…
“I think WE did OK.”
“But WE needed to make it relevant.”
“WE did that.”
Kelly may be a lightning rod for attention, but
he’s obviously a successful head coach that
inspires administrations, assistant coaches and players to a common goal–winning football games.
Mack Brown bolted for UT after indicating he was staying at UNC. The feelings of UNC fans mirrored those at UC, but Mack and the Longhorns have done just fine in his tenure there. It’s a reality that coaches will move on to higher salaries and bigger programs when the opportunities arise.
Mack periodically reflects on his years and ties with the UNC program, and Brian would be wise to do the same for UC. Time, and Kelly’s continued success, will heal some of the disappointments for the UC program and fans.
Brian’s biggest challenge certainly awaits him, and if he is successful in turning the ND program around, UC fans and the media should accept that success and stop questionning his motivations.
/shakes leg to dislodge broken soapbox