Clark Lea has two tasks to undertake, and neither of them has easy, Google-able solutions.
As Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator, Lea has to devise a plan to slow Alabama’s electric offense in Friday’s relocated Rose Bowl (4 p.m., ESPN). As Vanderbilt’s newly hired head coach, he has to put together a staff and start recruiting.
Handling both at the same time seems like a third task in itself. The way Lea sees it, though, there’s not much juggling to do. As long as Notre Dame is in the College Football Playoff, he says his duties with the Irish have his complete attention.
“My singular focus has been on preparation for this game,” Lea said Tuesday. “I know that may be hard to believe, but this is too big. Whatever is to come next for me will be there when this season is finished, but this is a culmination of four years of investment for me. And it’s not just about me — it’s four years of investment with these players. I’m excited about the future, but this is the discipline just to stay focused on the task at hand.”
To Lea’s boss, Brian Kelly, and to his players, that’s old news. It was made clear in team meetings Dec. 14, when Lea formally accepted the head-coaching position at his alma mater. He assured players he would be around for the national title chase. Kelly expected him to stick around. Most of all, Lea wanted to finish his task at Notre Dame, and is doing so with Vanderbilt’s blessing.
“If we're going to be about relationships and about commitment,” Lea said at his Dec. 20 introduction at Vanderbilt, “then it's of the utmost importance that I follow through on the relationships and the commitment that I have in South Bend.
“I'm fully supported in my efforts as the defensive coordinator at Notre Dame by the people here at Vanderbilt.”
Lea has history largely on his side. Those who have been in his shoes as assistants on playoff teams with head-coaching jobs lined up have managed both with aplomb.
The primary examples: Tom Herman (Ohio State’s offensive coordinator) and Kirby Smart (Alabama’s defensive coordinator) helped their teams win national titles as assistants while starting their head-coach ventures — Herman at Houston, Smart at Georgia — from afar. Jeff Scott stuck with Clemson as the co-offensive coordinator through its playoff run last season even after he was named South Florida’s head coach.
There is one that didn’t go as well: Alabama coach Nick Saban fired offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin between the semifinals and championship game in the 2016 season. Kiffin had accepted an offer to become Florida Atlantic’s head coach a few weeks earlier.
Lea’s strategy was to fulfill his initial responsibilities as early as possible to avoid interrupting the two weeks of preparation for the Rose Bowl. He was introduced in Nashville one day after Notre Dame’s 34-10 loss to Clemson in the ACC Championship. Since then, he has been back in South Bend and relying on a transition team to help him with his new job in the small amount of time he carves out for it.
“There are 24 hours in the day, and I will certainly use some of those to sleep, and I will use plenty of them to be with the team and be with the defense in South Bend,” Lea said. “But in the corners of the day, I have people [in Nashville] that I'm relying on and conversations that are ongoing to help start the assembly of a staff and to start putting in action this vision.”
Lea’s final days at Notre Dame require his very best. He must prepare the Irish’s defense for an Alabama offense that has scored at least 38 points in every game this season and no fewer than 35 in a single outing since the start of 2019. It’s a daunting task. It’s also one the defense is running toward. The chance to do the unexpected and to play the best is enough motivation to stay sharp and finish the job.
“It has not been an issue, it won’t be an issue,” Lea said. “And obviously with an opponent like Alabama, every bit of my mental and emotional energy has to be put into this game plan.”
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