TMG Newsmaker of The Week: Brian Kelly
The elephant has always been in the room when Brian Kelly talks about his coaching career, which has included successful stops no matter where he showed up.
Kelly, of course, came to his present job from Notre Dame, where he left as the career win all time leader, which includes a guy named Rockne.
Few coaches leave Notre Dame voluntarily and they never go directly from the shadow of the Golden Dome to another college.
But at the age of 61 and with four consecutive 10 or more win seasons on his resume, Kelly was ready for a change and a chance to do something he had never done--beat Alabama.
Kelly had seen the Tide roll over his team in a national championship game a decade ago, and he watched again two years ago as the Tide pounded the Irish in a semifinal in the Rose Bowl.
Admittedly, Kelly took the money--100 million dollar, 10 year contract--and he ran to Baton Rouge, basically stating that his move was dictated by the premise that at LSU he had a much better chance to win the national championship.
By coming to LSU, Kelly was taking on the Tide not once every few years. but EVERY season as a member of the SEC West.
That meeting took place this season in Baton Rouge on Saturday night and is now part of SEC and certainly LSU history as the Tigers won 32-31.
The winning points were scored on a successful two point conversion which everyone labeled as "gutsy'' .
"Before the game started, had you asked me, "I"m going to give you one play to beat Alabama, I would have taken that 100 out of 100, said Kelly who called for a rollout pass from QB Jayden Daniels to tight end Mason Taylor as the game winner.
The gamble paid off, Brian Kelly is 1-0 vs. Alabama in the SEC and the elephant has left the room, which is why Kelly is TMG's Newsmaker of The Week.