Notre Dame will have to find a new defensive coordinator for the second straight year. Information from inside the program has been scarce, so the plan for head coach Brian Kelly at this time is still unknown.
There are plenty of qualified candidates, but not a high number of realistic ones that could take over the defense, keep some level of continuity and build upon the foundation Mike Elko laid in his one season in South Bend.
This list will include candidates that I believe Notre Dame should target, reasons why Kelly should target those coaches and some reasons that should cause some concern. It is an attempt to be fair in the analysis of each potential candidate.
I will avoid some of the likely unrealistic candidates like Brent Venables (Clemson), Pete Kwiatkowski (Washington), Alex Grinch (Ohio State) and Bud Foster (Virginia Tech). If Phil Parker was willing to leave Iowa I’d certainly talk to him, but Parker has been with Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz since 1999.
Here is a list of candidates Notre Dame should consider for its defensive coordinator job. It is a compilation of coaches I believe the Irish should consider and some I have heard they are looking at.
