Why are People Shocked by Brian Kelly Leaving Notre Dame

This week, keyboard warriors have been arguing over the morality of college football coaches leaving their teams before the season ends. I think most can agree that leaving your team, especially one in the playoff hunt, is a shoddy thing to do, but why is this where we draw the line?

Everyone knows that Brian Kelly is an awful human being, but I want to fully paint a Mona Lisa-esque picture of how terrible he is. While coaching at Central Michigan, Kelly had grad assistants,Matt LaFleur and Robert Salah come to his house for a Christmas party. What seemed like a nice gesture was actually just unpaid labor. LaFleur and Salah had to shovel snow off of his driveway and park guests’ cars throughout the night for zero pay.

Another more severe instance of Kelly’s lack of moral judgment took place in South Bend back in 2010. He was not fully responsible for this, but Kelly’s decision to send a student up on a crane during 50 mph winds resulted in the death of 20-year-old student Declan Sullivan.

Lastly, this isn’t the first time Kelly has up-and-left a school. He did it at Central Michigan, Cincinnati during an undefeated season, and now Notre Dame during a perfect season. 

If that isn’t enough information to show that Kelly’s a slime ball, then nothing I could say would ever convince you. So with that rant out of the way, why are we shocked that Kelly went to LSU?

Notre Dame isn’t a tier-one college football program anymore. They’re still the very top of tier two, but they can’t compete with high-level SEC or Big 10 colleges. I know they always have a good record and make playoff appearances, but what have they done in those big games besides getting their brains beat in? 

Not only is Kelly getting a pay raise, but he’s also going to a much better situation to win. LSU doesn’t feel like a top-tier program since they’re more susceptible to down years and usually play little brother to Alabama, but the last three coaches in Baton Rouge have all won National Titles.

Brain Kelly is a crummy guy. It’s been well documented over the course of his career. However, hating the guy for going to a much better situation doesn’t make much sense to me. Easier recruiting, more money, more wins. It’s as simple as that.