Jan. 06--The fit is perfect. Or "totally logical," as one of his friends put it.
Brian Kelly to the New York Giants makes more sense than earmuffs on a cold day, Kobe saying goodbye and Marlon Brando in "The Godfather."
He's an East Coast guy with the requisite ego, the right temperament and an ease in front of the media.
He has pretty much killed it at each of his four coaching stops, going 39-13 in his last four seasons at Notre Dame (55-23 over the entire six). His director of player personnel for two seasons was Tim McDonnell, now a pro scout for the Giants and grandson of the late Wellington Mara, the team's "Papa Bear" Halas. McDonnell is a nephew of current Giants CEO John Mara.
Kelly has thrived in South Bend, but his tenure has not been angst-free.
Academic misconduct resulted in the suspensions of starters Everett Golson, KeiVarae Russell, DaVaris Daniels and Ishaq Williams. The school should never apologize for having high standards, but coaches don't always agree with them. Kelly and athletic director Jack Swarbrick have learned to coexist.
Most college coaches refer to their players as "we," as in, "We needed to complete that pass." Kelly is more of a "they" guy, just as many NFL coaches put it.
The bright lights would not faze Kelly. He voluntarily put a spotlight on his program for Showtime's "A Season with Notre Dame Football," the college version of HBO's "Hard Knocks."
One thing that struck me was how Kelly handled the season-ending injury of quarterback Malik Zaire.
"You don't know when your time is going to come," he told his players. "You have to be ready."
I'm not saying Kelly was callous; he was not. He handled it, well, professionally, in the same way Bill Parcells would have.
Kelly has spoken of a Notre Dame shelf life, telling radio host Colin Cowherd in September: "There's never an offseason. I enjoy doing it, though. There's a difference. I don't mind going out and playing golf (with boosters). I don't mind doing these things, but there's no question, you can't do this job for 15 years."
He is six years in. Lou Holtz and Ara Parseghian each lasted 11.
