Brian Kelly’s Notre Dame exit still hangs over the program, but five years later he says his view of the Fighting Irish has shifted.
Kelly spoke with Pete Sampson of The Athletic on Tuesday as he looks ahead to life outside coaching after his 2025 firing by LSU, and he made clear he now sees Marcus Freeman’s rise in South Bend as something remarkable.
“It’s extraordinary that a football coach with no head coaching experience has been able to step in the job and do as well as Marcus has,” Kelly said. “I think that that needs to be said. I had 19 years of being a head coach, and I felt like the water is up to my nose at times at Notre Dame.”
The comments land a long way from the moment that helped define his departure in 2021. Kelly’s late-night text to his players, first reported by Sampson, announced he was leaving Notre Dame for LSU and included an apology for not telling them in person.
“Men ... let me first apologize for the late-night text and, more importantly, for not being able to share the news with you in person that I will be leaving Notre Dame,” Kelly wrote. “My love for you is limitless and I am so proud of all that you have accomplished.”
That message quickly became a flashpoint with Notre Dame fans, and Freeman’s promotion only sharpened the contrast. Kelly had brought Freeman to Notre Dame in Jan. `21 from Cincinnati after Freeman coordinated a defense that allowed 16.8 points per game in 2020. Freeman’s stock kept rising, and after Kelly left, he took over and eventually led the Fighting Irish to the national championship game in 2024.
Kelly also pushed back on how his 2022 explanation for leaving was remembered. In April 2022, he told Ralph D.
Russo, then with the AP, that he wanted “to be in an environment where I have the resources to win a national championship.” On The Independent podcast with Sampson and Matt Fortuna, Kelly said those remarks were “mischaracterized.”
“I didn't leave Notre Dame because they couldn't win a national championship,” Kelly said. “Those words never came out of my mouth. What I said is if I'm going to leave, I'm going to go to a place that can win a national championship.”
Even with the baggage that comes with his exit, Kelly said he would be open to showing support for Freeman and the program in South Bend.
“It’s important for me to let them know that I’m supporting and I want to support the program and I want that out there and I want to be visible for a day,” Kelly said. “I’m not in there to look at what they’re running offensively or defensively, but I just want to show that I have 100% faith and confidence in what they’re doing and how they’re doing it, not that they need me to validate in any way.”
Sampson’s reporting also floated a few possible next steps for Kelly: a head-coaching job at a school a step down from LSU and Notre Dame, an assistant role, or a media position. Kelly said, “I don’t think I’ve closed any doors in my own mind,” and the possibilities are notable for different reasons. He has not coached anywhere other than LSU or Notre Dame since 2009, has not been an assistant since 1990 at Grand Valley State, and has never been known as a particularly media-friendly figure during his time as a head coach.
Still, programs would likely line up for a coach with his track record. Kelly owns a 200-76 career record in FBS, a top-50 all-time winning percentage, and his next move remains one of the more interesting questions in the sport.
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