Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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UNDER THE DOME Sept. 16, the administra- tion has remained silent with the exception of Kel- ly's sound bites, though he may not be a sound piece. To date, those snippets come from up- dates Kelly receives from Swarbrick. When receiv- ing those updates, Kelly said he also discusses the process as a general con- cept for future reference, though he certainly hopes to avoid such a situation repeating itself. "These are dialogues that Jack and I are hav- ing, not after the sea- son," Kelly said. "We're having them as they occur, because there are clearly ways that we believe, internally, we need to get better. We don't wait until January to have those conversa- tions. We're having them right now." Those conversations remain behind closed doors. For now, Kelly straightens his tie, but- tons his jacket and sticks to the party's talking points, even when he is asked for his opinion of how the investigation has advanced. "I don't have an opin- ion, and I really wouldn't want to share it publicly." While he began with traditional non-contro- versial speak, that last clause may shed all the light necessary on Kelly's feelings. ✦ Timeline of Investigation • July 29: Evidence turned into compliance office. Investigation launched. • Aug. 15: Notre Dame announces investigation of four student- athletes at press conference. University president John Jenkins and director of athletics Jack Swarbrick speak. Swarbrick identifies the four players. • Aug. 28: Notre Dame releases statement that a fifth player has been implicated enough in the investigation to be withheld from practices and competitions. That player is senior safety Eilar Hardy. • Aug. 30: Notre Dame opens its season with a 48-17 victory over Rice. • Sept. 4: Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said he was told three days earlier, hearings would take place "very quickly," but had not yet taken place three days later. "The process has not actually begun for them," he said. "My understanding is it hasn't happened yet but is about to occur very soon." • Sept. 6: Notre Dame defeats Michigan 31-0. • Sept. 7: When asked if he has received an update on the inves- tigation, Kelly simply replied, "No, no. Nothing." • Sept. 13: Notre Dame beats Purdue 30-14. • Sept. 14: Kelly said as of two days earlier, no players had taken part in any hearings. • Sept. 25: Kelly said he expects the newly-formed committee to hold hearings throughout the middle of next week. — Douglas Farmer NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL TICKETS 25 YEARS IN BUSINESS Call today for Special Discount 1-800-925-2500 www.NotreDameTickets.com