Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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62 APRIL 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED T he record books say this will be head coach Brian Kelly's ninth season at Notre Dame, but he has a dif- ferent perspective. "This is like year two for me in making sure that we're positioned in the right place right now and for the fu- ture," Kelly said shortly be- fore the Irish partook in two spring practices before go- ing on semester break from March 9-18. "We're reminded by the past, but we're living in the present and I really like where we are right now." Where the Fighting Irish are now is they have re- corded a 10-3 record and No. 11 finish in the Associated Press poll for the second time in the past three years. It is the first time since 1991-93 Notre Dame has posted a pair of double-digit win totals — and a top-12 finish — over a three- year span. That's not the ultimate destination Kelly or anyone else at Notre Dame had in mind when he was hired in December 2009, yet it is an achieve- ment that hints at some tangible progress, snail's pace as it may seem. However, two recent ghosts re- main. One includes the 4-8 in-be- tween debacle in 2016 that is the reli- able stand-by for critics should there be any future derailment under Kelly. The other was the NCAA's deci- sion this February to maintain its stance for Notre Dame to vacate its 21 total victories from 2012 (12) and 2013 (9) because of the then unwit- ting use of four future ineligible play- ers. Therefore, Kelly's officially recog- nized "record" at Notre Dame is 48- 34 instead of 69-34. Who could have ever envisioned a head coach enter- ing his ninth football season here with a now "official" .585 winning percentage? What makes this decision so heart- breaking, if not enraging, is few schools in the country take greater pains in doing it the right way than Notre Dame. I say that not merely as an alumnus but having seen the day- to-day operations and ethos of the school for at least 40 years. Just like mere mortals, no in- stitution — be it corporations, the military, the church, the educa- tion system... — is devoid of error or oversight. What helps set Notre Dame apart is the attempt to at least maintain a moral compass and trans- parency rather than hide inevitable transgressions. During the 2013-14 school year — right before the 2014 aforementioned ineligibility status came to light — the school in short order suspended from action its starting quarterback (Everett Golson), who helped the Irish reach the BCS National Cham- pionship Game the previous year, its leading scorer in men's bas- ketball (Jerian Grant), who would be a central figure to an Elite Eight run a year later, and the school's top de- fenseman in hockey (Robbie Russo) before he earned All- America honors the follow- ing year. How many schools do that in one fell swoop without blinking? Likewise, Notre Dame self-reported in 2014 when it could have been done "internally," and the school acted to lessen the chances of recurrence. Nevertheless, it is a past that Kelly and the school will be reminded of on occasion, and the only way to counter is to build upon the relative success achieved in 2015 and 2017. "We were going to get the culture back to where we needed it to be," Kelly said of the 2017 turnaround. It will mean little if it doesn't con- tinue to grow. What that means on the field in 2018 is three-fold. "As we build our habits on a day-to-day basis, we're building it towards beating Michigan in our opener, protecting our home field and playing better in November," Kelly summarized. "If we hit those three mileposts, we'll be in pretty good shape this next season." Coming off a disappointing 8-5 campaign, expect Michigan to have a similar determination and focus in 2018 as the Irish had in 2017. In 2012 and 2015 under Kelly, Notre Dame finished unbeaten at home for only the second and third times since 1990, and the result was champion- ship contention entering the final weekend of the season. Achieving it again in a third-year cycle would make such an aspiration plausible. The 9-12 record the past five No- vembers speaks for itself. The past can't be escaped, but the present will need to have greater presence. ✦ 'Year Two' Still Has Reminders Of The Past THE FIFTH QUARTER LOU SOMOGYI Senior Editor Lou Somogyi has been at Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 1985. He can be reached at lsomogyi@blueandgold.com CORRECTIONS • The March edition on page 21 mistakenly listed Shayne Simon as one three early enrollees at line- backer this spring. It is Ovie Oghoufo instead, with Bo Bauer and Jack Lamb. • The final 2017 snap count for quarterback Brandon Wimbush was 730, not 638, and 241 instead of 250 for safety Devin Studstill. For the offensive line it was Mike McGlinchey and Sam Mustipher 815, Quenton Nelson 809, Alex Bars 757, Robert Hainsey 455 and Tommy Kraemer 443. We regret the production error. Brian Kelly spearheaded significant changes in 2017, but now the tougher part of building upon them is his next challenge in 2018 and beyond. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND