Brian Kelly’s LSU tenure was cut short with his firing last season, but his former program, Notre Dame, keeps shining with Marcus Freeman leading. Kelly no longer has any coaching ties to the Fighting Irish, but he remains interested in making a return visit to South Bend.
Brian Kelly Reveals Why He is Visiting Marcus Freeman’s Notre Dame Program
Kelly is currently out of coaching and has spent the past few months reconnecting with former players and fellow coaches. One of those visits included time with Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, who previously served on Kelly’s staff at Notre Dame.
In an appearance on Pete Sampson and Matt Fortuna’s “The Independent: A Notre Dame Football Podcast” this week, Kelly revealed that he intends to visit Marcus Freeman’s Notre Dame program during preseason camp.
“I want to support the program,” Kelly said. “I want that out there. And I want to be visible for a day. I’m not in there to look at what they’re running offensively or defensively, but I just want to show that I have 100% faith and confidence in what they’re doing and how they’re doing it.
“I want our fans to know, the Notre Dame fans, that I’m 100 percent supporting what they’re doing and how they’re doing it.”
The upcoming season will mark Notre Dame’s fifth year since Kelly departed after the 2021 season. He led the Irish from 2010 to 2021 before leaving for LSU while the Irish were still in the race for the College Football Playoff, which earned him heavy jabs.
BUILD YOUR OWN TOP 100: PFN’s FREE NFL Top 100 Builder
However, Kelly had already accomplished nearly everything possible during his tenure in South Bend. Before moving on, he became the winningest coach in Notre Dame history, surpassing Knute Rockne. He led the program to the BCS title game in 2012 and to College Football Playoff appearances in 2018 and 2020.
Kelly’s LSU move was also surprising, as no previous Notre Dame head coach had ever left to take another college coaching job, but he once again doubled down on the media narrative surrounding the move.
“I didn’t leave Notre Dame because they couldn’t win a national championship,” Kelly said. “Those words never came out of my mouth. “What I said was if I’m going to leave, I’m going to go to a place that can win a national championship. And that was perceived as being, ‘Oh, he doesn’t think he can win one here.'”
PREDICT THE CFB SEASON: PFN’s FREE CFB Playoff Predictor
Kelly helped restore consistency and national relevance to Notre Dame after nearly two decades of instability. However, the Irish have their rightful successor in Freeman, who has a 43-12 overall record with the school, including a 24-4 mark over the past two seasons.
As for Kelly, he will serve as a CBS Sports analyst this fall. While he has yet to return to the sidelines, he has said he remains interested in coaching again.
