Brian "Body Kount" Kelly (HC Louisiana State)

[NFBuck]

Anyone think this will give him more pull in the state of Ohio with recruiting? It's one thing to get a few good ones Ohio State doesn't recruit but do you think he'll start competing for top prospects?

No more than Weis. If anything, he has to show that he can keep up the recruiting standard Fat Charlie established while also showing the ability to get the most out of those kids.

 

[Honor&Glory]

WOW. Please tell me Coombs coaching the bowl game doesn't turn into Coombs being any more than an interim coach..

put your GCL bias aside for a moment and try think rationally. I know that is hard for you guys sometimes, but please try...

Coombs official job title is 'Associate Head Coach'...

He may retain that title under a new head coach...or he can apply for the head job after the bowl game...

BUT, in the interim, he will assume the duties vacated by Brian Kelly. Until UC announces how the coaches will work in the game (is Quinn staying to call the offense?) I'd settle down, ok?

 

[NFBuck]

put your GCL bias aside for a moment and try think rationally. I know that is hard for you guys sometimes, but please try...

Coombs official job title is 'Associate Head Coach'...

He may retain that title under a new head coach...or he can apply for the head job after the bowl game...

BUT, in the interim, he will assume the duties vacated by Brian Kelly. Until UC announces how the coaches will work in the game (is Quinn staying to call the offense?) I'd settle down, ok?

Agreed. Cinci is carving out a nice little niche as a very good stepping stone job. That's not meant as a jab at all, just my honest viewpoint. They should attract a pretty decent coach that has ambitions towards a bigger job down the road.

Sumlin from Houston might be someone to watch...

 

[billmac91]

Anyone think this will give him more pull in the state of Ohio with recruiting? It's one thing to get a few good ones Ohio State doesn't recruit but do you think he'll start competing for top prospects?

I'd say emphatically, yes. Kelly has more midwestern roots than Charlie did, and will target more local recruits. Weis recruited on a more national scale. I don't expect Kelly to nationally recruit as much as Weis. Combine Kelly's offensive system in contrast to Ohio State, and I think we'll see Ohio State lose a lot more battles to Notre Dame than recent history.

I think we'll be fine in RB's and Offensive lineman, but I expect to lose some skill players we otherwise would have gotten if Charlie were still there. Doubt we lose anything on the defensive side of the ball short-term...

 

[X Buckeyes07 X]

put your GCL bias aside for a moment and try think rationally. I know that is hard for you guys sometimes, but please try...

Coombs official job title is 'Associate Head Coach'...

He may retain that title under a new head coach...or he can apply for the head job after the bowl game...

BUT, in the interim, he will assume the duties vacated by Brian Kelly. Until UC announces how the coaches will work in the game (is Quinn staying to call the offense?) I'd settle down, ok?

REALLY? That's how it works? Whoda thunk it. I know full well how it works. I know he would have to apply for the head job. I'm just saying (in light of some of the blowhards on the radio and others wanting him) that I sincerely hope KC does not coach them beyond this bowl game. He is not a viable option for a D1 head coach at this point. You really need to get over your GCL fascination, that has nothing to do with this whatsoever and reading you bring up a 'GCL bias' in threads where it's completely irrelevant is pathetic.

 

[JCOSU86]

So, Stoops saying "Bring on USC" at his signing was BS?

 

[Pimpinnati]

Kelly will obviously recruit the Cincinnati area well. Thing is Notre Dame has always recruited Cincinnati well. So I don't know how much juice this gives ND in Ohio other in a place where they've always had a massive presence.

 

[bigdog3300]

Would be wise for Kelly to bring Coombs with him in order to help keep that Cinci pipeline open.

 

[Poe McKnoe]

We salute you Mr Kelly for coaching your way through the Big Least with a high octane offensive and 11 guys on what I guess you could call a defense, taking a fat paycheck in the millions of dollars, and not have to face a disgruntled Florida team coached by Urban Meyer.

Tiger's life may be #1 in many guys' eyes, but you sir are fighting for #2.

Congrats. This should be interesting.

 

[Oh8ch]

Brian Kelly is so fat the last time he saw "90210" he was standing on the scale.


Sorry.

Just having a hard time letting go.

 

[X Buckeyes07 X]

Would be wise for Kelly to bring Coombs with him in order to help keep that Cinci pipeline open.

I think Coombs' effect on recruiting has been vastly overestimated. He doesn't have nearly the pull people think outside of Colerain, where he'll obviously be god for years to come.

As a Cincinnati native, I love what Kelly did for the program, and don't really have much vitriol to direct his way unlike most people. I really wish he would have just stuck to his "No comment, big game this week" routine instead of telling some players and ESPN radio that he was staying. Once he started with the 'no comment' routine, it was pretty transparent what was going to happen. Once you've started down that road, stick to it instead of cracking and telling someone you're staying.

Some people expected him to come out and declare that he was staying ala Urban Meyer, but he's a smart enough guy to know that's not required and I would never expect that. Just be honest, even if it means being silent, or just flat out saying 'yeah, I'm looking into it' as he finally did. With that said, while I think a little less of him as a person for being dishonest, the bottom line is he did wonders for a program of UC's caliber and boosted them (if only temporarily) to a team worthy of national recognition. Whether they can stay there will depend on the next guy, but ripping this guy apart (as much of Cincinnati seems to be doing) without thanking him for his contributions is childish and unrealistic.

 

[Oh8ch]

ripping this guy apart (as much of Cincinnati seems to be doing) without thanking him for his contributions is childish and unrealistic.

This kind of reaction had to be expected. By leaving he is telling Bearcat fans that UC is what it is - not what they are pretending it is. And what it is NOT is a destination school for a top tier coach (if that is what Kelly turns out to be).

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

My advice to you, Coach Kelly...man....sir. Is to start eating heavily. A standard has been set, and it must be met or, dare I say it, exceeded. You're on the right track, but more training is necessary.

Fortunately for you, Coach Kelly...man...sir, you are an hour away from the street food capital of the universe: hot dog stands on every corner, Deep dish pizza, italian/polish/bratwurst sausage sandwiches, Harold's Fried Chicken....MR FRICKIN' BEEF!

Come to Chicago. Stay. Grab a bite to eat. Your new university expects no less.

 

[IronBuckI]

Since Kelly is a hot name for some soon-to-be-vacant coaching jobs, I thought that I'd bump this thread.

Here are the before and after records of the last four hot shot Big East coaches to take the step up to big boy conferences:

John L. Smith
41 - 21 (.661) in 5 years at Louisville
22 - 26 (.458) in 4 years at Michigan State

Bobby Petrino
41 - 9 (.820) in 4 years at Louisville
11 - 11 (.500) in 1+ years at Arkansas

Rich Rodriguez
60 - 26 (.698) in 7 years at West Virginia
8 - 15 (.348) in 1+ years at Michigan

Mark Dantonio
18 - 17 (.514) in 3 years at Cincinnati
22 - 15 (.595) in 2+ years at Michigan State

So, of the four coaches who went from Big East to Big Ten or SEC schools, only Dantonio has had more success after the move, and the other three had significantly less success.

One word about Dantonio's performance ... in the years between the retirement of CFB Hall of Famer Sid Gillman in 1954 and the hiring of Mark Dantonio in 2004, the eleven head coaches for the University of Cincinnati football team had a combined record of 225-291-12 (.438), so Dantonio's was far better (nearly 20% better) than the Bearcats' average over the previous five decades. In addition, Brian Kelly has put together three straight 10-win seasons largely with Dantonio's players. Those two facts support the argument that Dantonio's level of success at Cincinnati was not adequately reflected in his overall record, and they should be kept in mind when comparing Dantonio's apparently greater success at Michigan State (.595 winning percentage) than at Cincinnati (.514 winning percentage). In other words, I feel that Dantonio is currently doing about the same at Michigan State than he did at Cincinnati, even though his records at both schools suggest that he has been even more successful since taking a step up in conference difficulty.

I'm only three weeks late to this conversation, but John L. Smith never coached in the Big East. Louisville joined in 2005. John L. Smith was already in his third year at Michigan State by 2005.

 

[Taosman]

Wonder if Cinci bothers to show up at the Sugar? I think they get wiped.