Brian Kelly to leave Notre Dame: 10 potential replacements
The collective college football world is in shock over developments the last two days as Lincoln Riley left powerhouse Oklahoma for USC and now Brian Kelly is leaving Notre Dame for LSU.
Notre Dame fans and certainly their athletic department and team have to be stunned by this move. Just a year ago it was Brian Kelly recruiting Marcus Freeman away from LSU’s pursuit and now Kelly is on a plane to Baton Rouge.
Related: Gallery — Brian Kelly through the years at Notre Dame
So who replaces Kelly in the coaching search that nobody saw coming?
Here are 10 names to keep an eye on:
Luke Fickell - Cincinnati
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Luke Fickell has midwest roots and has Cincinnati on the brink of a College Football Playoff appearance. Think Bearcats fans got angry at Notre Dame when they hired Kelly away in December of 2009? Just imagine if they were to go get Fickell this time around.
Dave Aranda - Baylor
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Dave Aranda has quickly made a name for himself in the head coaching ranks after taking over the Baylor program in 2020. The defensive master mind has served as a defensive coordinator at both Wisconsin and LSU in the past and took Baylor from 2-7 in his first year to playing in the Big 12 championship game this weekend.
Bonsu: Aranda already has a win head-to-head against Lincoln Riley to his name and a win by his Baylor Bears this weekend would go a long way in getting Kelly’s former team to the College Football Playoff.
Lane Kiffin - Ole Miss
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Before you laugh this one off just consider what Lane Kiffin has done since getting fired from the USC job on the tarmac:
Joined Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama and helped guide the Tide to a national championship
Coached Florida Atlantic for three seasons, twice winning Conference USA at a program that had played in just two bowl games ever before his arrival
Turned Ole Miss into a 10-win program in two seasons. Previously, Ole Miss had never won 10 games in a single regular season before 2021.
Kiffin is a mastermind of offense and would have Notre Dame scoring 40 points a game with ease in no time.
Matt Rhule - Carolina Panthers
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Matt Rhule has only been coaching the Carolina Panthers for two seasons but things haven’t gone particularly well. While he was at Baylor a few short years ago he would have headed my list to be Kelly’s potential replacement. The NFL element adds difficulty to this one but Rhule has had great success in building winners at traditionally poor football schools in Temple and Baylor.
Matt Campbell - Iowa State
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Matt Campbell is not the first name I’d go after on this list by any means but he’s going to get mentioned and deservedly so. I often debate how good of a team Iowa State really is but consider this: Iowa State had never gone to a bowl game in four-straight seasons before Campbell’s arrival and only qualified for three-straight once. This year the Cyclones will be playing in their fifth-straight bowl game as he’s turned that program from a laughing stock to well-respected.
Dave Clawson - Wake Forest
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Want instant offense? Imagine what Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson could do if he could recruit Notre Dame-level talent. He’s taken Wake Forest from the bottom of the ACC to six-straight bowl appearances and has his team playing in the conference championship game this weekend.
PJ Fleck - Minnesota
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Do people row boats in the St. Joseph River? Fleck is a ball of energy that works at the college level. After leading Western Michigan to a College Football Playoff appearance he’s turned Minnesota into a solid, but far from great team in the Big Ten West. His midwest roots and rare enthusiasm would make him an interesting candidate.
Bob Stoops - Oklahoma Interim Coach
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Notre Dame wanted Bob Stoops almost 20 years ago when they were looking to replace Tyrone Willingham.
Then they wanted him when they were looking to replace Charlie Weis.
He’s been out of the game for five years but hardly far from it as he’s worked as a TV analyst. He wouldn’t come with the same flair he would have previously but he’s a national championship winning coach and is only 13 months older than Brian Kelly.
Pat Fitzgerald - Northwestern
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The story goes that Pat Fitzgerald didn’t feel like he was being recruited like others during his trip to Notre Dame as a high school player and had his dad drive him back to the Chicago suburbs early. To this day whenever I hear Fitzgerald interviewed and Notre Dame comes up he refers to it as “the school to the east” and not by it’s name.
Since joining Northwestern’s staff as an assistant in 2001 and being named Randy Walker’s successor in 2006, Fitzgerald hasn’t left Northwestern’s campus. Could a change do him some good after a 2021 season he and the Cats would like to throw into Lake Michigan?
Fitzgerald is a really good football coach that’s brought a consistent level of winning to Northwestern that hadn’t been done in decades and that’s with recruiting limitations matched by few in FBS, if any, besides Stanford.
And the last time Notre Dame hired a Northwestern coach things turned out decently (Ara Parseghian).
Marcus Freeman - Notre Dame DC
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Marcus Freeman has an office down the hall from Brian Kelly’s old one and has been called a future head coach but pretty much everyone he’s ever worked with. Is he ready for that big of a step just yet is the question.
The man clearly sells Notre Dame as well as anyone and his defense didn’t allow a touchdown in all of November until it had a giant second half lead in its fourth game of the month.
Is he ready for that step is the question. I get flashbacks to a young defensive mastermind named Bob Davie being hired without any head coaching experience and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t really concern me.
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