Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has met with the Philadelphia Eagles about their open head coaching position, according to sources who spoke to ESPN.com.
Kelly has spent three seasons with the Irish and has brought them back to national prominence after a long stretch of disappointing seasons. Notre Dame went 12-0 during the regular season before losing 42-14 to Alabama in the BCS National Championship game. Prior to the game, Kelly said that leaving the school "is not an option. I don't even think about it."
Some Notre Dame fans and writers in the media have criticized Kelly for thinking about leaving the school, but it would not be anything out of the ordinary for college football or Kelly himself. The head coach has spent time at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan and Cincinnati before heading to Notre Dame, winning at every stop and moving to a higher level program each time. The next logical step would be the NFL.
On top of that, following the conclusion of the college football season this year there were a huge amount of coaching moves and changes all around the country, including at schools like Auburn, Tennessee, Cincinnati and Texas Tech, among many more.
College coaches have taken heat over the years for leaving behind recruits they brought to the school, but there are no rules or restrictions for coaches leaving one job and taking another. Kelly is within his rights to interview for the position and has the chance to move up to the highest levels of college football.
For an example of how much movement has happened among college coaches this year, here is a look at some of the moves made by schools around the country.
Butch Jones left Cincinnati after three seasons to take the job at Tennessee in the SEC, while Tommy Tuberville left Texas Tech to take over for Jones as coach of the Bearcats. Texas A&M offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury left the Aggies to take the Red Raiders head coaching vacancy left by Tuberville, while Willie Taggart left Western Kentucky to become the next head coach at South Florida, replacing the fired Skip Holtz.
Bobby Petrino, the controversial former head coach at Arkansas, took over for Taggart at Western Kentucky, while former Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema ditched the Badgers to take over the Razorbacks. Bielema's absence gave Wisconsin the chance to hire Gary Andersen, while Gus Malzahn moved from Arkansas State to Auburn, where he helped lead the team to a national championship in 2010 with Cam Newton.
Those aren't even all the coaching moves, but they illustrate a point: college football is an ever-changing sport when it comes to head coaches. Kelly would just be the latest person to do it after being successful at a high-profile college program. The NFL dealt with a range of coaching changes following the 2012 season, with seven coaches fired on "Black Monday" and another one, Jacksonville's Mike Mularkey, fired on Thursday.
The move to the NFL does not always breed success when coming from college though. Steve Spurrier was head coach of the Washington Redskins and Nick Saban led the Miami Dolphins for a couple years, but neither coach could win consistently, leaving them to head back to college. Since returning, both men have had success, especially Saban, who just won his second straight and third championship in four years over Kelly and Notre Dame.
Kelly has an excellent pedigree and has been successful at every school he has coached, winning two Division II championships at Grand Valley State before turning around a Cincinnati Bearcats program that went 34-6 from 2006 to 2009 while playing in two BCS bowl games. While coaching at Notre Dame for three seasons, Kelly has gone 28-11 and helped the team turn the corner from a decade of mediocrity.
The Philadelphia job would likely offer Kelly some control over the players he brings in, much like how owner Jeffery Lurie allowed Andy Reid to take part in personnel decisions. Reid was with the franchise for 14 seasons and went 130-93-1, winning 10 postseason games while going to the playoffs nine times. He led the team to five NFC championship games, including four consecutive appearances from 2001-2004, and to Super Bowl XXXIX in 2004.
General manager Howie Roseman, owner Jeffrey Lurie and president Don Smolenski also plan to meet with former Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith and other candidates. The Eagles are taking a pragmatic approach and aren't rushing to hire a coach.
"Jeffrey has been very adamant with us that the key is getting the right guy," Roseman said in an interview on the team's website. "The key isn't getting the right guy as quickly as possible, so that's what we're going to do."
Philadelphia had a rough year in 2012 due to poor play and injuries. The Eagles lost 11 of the last 12 games of the season, winning 23-21 against Tampa Bay on Dec. 9 for the lone victory during that span. The Eagles dealt with injuries to quarterback Michael Vick, who threw for 2,362 yards and 12 touchdowns with 10 interceptions in 10 games played.
Kelly would have a roster full of talented players if he took over the job, with DeSean Jackson, McCoy, Jeremy Maclin, Bryce Brown and Brent Celek. The Irish defense was one of the best in the nation this year and Kelly would need to overhaul an Eagles unit that ranked 23rd in the league in rushing defense while allowing 27 points per game.
Some critics say it is unfair for coaches to be able to move to and from new jobs and new schools with ease while players have to sit out a year if they want to transfer, but coaches deal with harsher consequences than their players. A coach can be fired at any time with no guarantees, so many go into jobs thinking about the next move before they are even established.
Take Bobby Petrino for an example. He coached his way out of Arkansas by getting into a motorcycle accident with the girl he was having an affair with, lied about it, had a scandal uncovered that showed he gave her a job, then went away from the public eye before coming to Western Kentucky. The school and Petrino both know that it's a placeholder until he repairs his image enough to get another high-profile job, but the hiring is mutually beneficial to both parties since the school now will receive more exposure.
Kelly leaving Notre Dame for the Eagles after all the success he has had in 2012 is a tough choice to make, but the only person that can make the choice is Kelly himself.
