Notre Dame has had an impressive season and a College Football Playoff could be on the cards, as well as a New Year’s Day bowl game. Everyone has been happy with an 11-1 season and this all down to the hard work of the players and help from Brian Kelly, the former team coach. Could Notre Dame continue their success?
Coach Abandons Team
There has been a recent big blow for Notre Dame and this could be something that turns their year upside down. We are talking about the football coach, Brian Kelly, leaving the team and joining Louisiana State. This is a deal thought to be worth around $95 million and it has come as a shock to many.
There is no doubt that a coach has a huge influence over a team. This is in both tactics and how they play to their morale and attitude on the field. Players may suffer a blow from this abandonment and this could affect how they play moving forward. Everyone will be watching very closely and will be curious as to whether Notre Dame can bounce back. Even those that are neutral and like to bet on the NCAA will be looking at this situation very carefully. If you are someone that likes to bet, do you think that Notre Dame can continue their success or are they going to start to fall at the last hurdle this year? Only time will tell, but NCAA college football betting is sure to be interesting.
Related: 2021 FCS College Football Odds
Should Fans Be Surprised?
A lot of people are annoyed with Brian Kelly, with it happening suddenly. But, there are others that say you should not be surprised. This is the second time he has done this before a season has ended. If you go back to 2009, Brian Kelly became the Notre Dame coach after telling his players at the University of Cincinnati that he was going to stay. Thus, he has now done the same to Notre Dame and the team. Fans online have been trying to make light of what has happened, saying that he was giving them an ‘Irish goodbye’. But there is no doubt that this move is going to have a real impact on Notre Dame.
In particular, one person who predicted this coming was Jack Swarbrick, the athletic director at Notre Dame. He said that he saw Brian Kelly becoming restless and since he had been working with him for 12 years, he started to recognize the signs that he might want to move on. There were even some times where Kelly let it slip that he may be moving on.
One thing’s for sure, fans are not happy on social media about what has happened with Notre Dame. They see this move as an abandonment and just before the playoff. Everyone knows that money can tempt you. But, fans think that he should have known better and had loyalty to his team.
Is there a successor ready to step in at Notre Dame? Well, there are rumors that Luke Fickell might be on his way to the team. He is currently the coach at Cincinnati and having an impressive season. Of course, Cincinnati would not be happy to lose another coach to Notre Dame. So, they might try to hold onto him since they are unbeaten. But, there are also some other names being mentioned online. This includes Urban Meyer and Bill O-Brien. Indeed, Notre Dame will have to act quickly if they want to steady the ship and help their players.
