In the last 10 years, Brian Kelly has achieved rarified air in college football annals. In his final season at Cincinnati in 2009 and then in 2012 and 2018 at Notre Dame, his teams finished 12-0 in the regular season.
About a handful of college football coaching titans have achieved that distinction. Kelly's body of work since the early 1990s ensures him a future spot in the College Football Hall of Fame. The Holy Grail remaining at Notre Dame is the football program winning its first national in 31 years — after being recognized by the NCAA with winning 13 in the 70 years from 1919-88.
Here is Part I of our interview with him for Blue & Gold Illustrated's 160-page 2019 Football Preview:
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Six years ago you were widely celebrated for a 12-0 regular season in just your third season, and earning a berth to the national title game. Sustaining that success became difficult, and the team was only 31-20 the next four years with no top 10 finishes. What did you learn from that experience that can be applied after another 12-0 regular season — and continue to build on that momentum?
