Quick-Hitters: Brian Kelly After Notre Dame’s 31-14 Loss To Alabama
Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly addressed the media after losing to Alabama 31-14 in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Rose Bowl in Arlington, Texas.
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On What He’ll Miss About This 2020 Notre Dame Team
“It was certainly a disappointed locker room. I'm probably more disappointed about the fact that I don't get a chance to see these guys, many of them, as they move on and graduate because it's just been an incredible group of guys to be around on a day-to-day basis, what they've committed to and sacrificed to be playing this year. So from that perspective, the game aside, it's a pretty disappointing feeling that we've played our last game.
“Congratulations to Alabama. They're a fine football team. They made the plays today. Today was about making plays. They made them on the perimeter. Their skill players showed up today as they have all year. Made it difficult for us.
“We battled. I thought we did some of the things that we wanted to today. But we simply didn't make enough plays. We're going to continue to battle, continue to recruit, and continue to put ourselves in this position to win a National Championship.
“So, again, proud of my guys. Proud of the way they battled today against a very good football team. And just wish we made a couple more plays when we had the opportunity.”
On If It’s Frustrating To Get To The College Football Playoff Again And Lose By A Wide Margin
“The margin is not the issue. Losing is losing. I don't know really what the inference is. This football team battled. And they made a few more plays on the perimeter. I'm not sure, really, what the question is. When you lose football games, you know, there are a few more plays that you have to make. We had the opportunity. You watched the game. I watched the game.
“We did not score in the red zone when we had opportunities. We moved the ball into the red zone. We missed a field goal. We had two opportunities in the red zone to score, where this would be a competitive football game. And we didn't make enough plays. This wasn't a matter of getting knocked off the ball or not having enough players to compete against Alabama. This was about making plays.
“I guess everybody needs to continue to carry this narrative that Notre Dame is not good enough. Look at the scores of the games that Alabama has played all year, and I think we need to start to change the narrative a little bit. This team was out there competing and having a chance to win. And I'm proud of the way our guys competed.”
On The Next Step Notre Dame Needs To Take To Be More Competitive Against The Best Teams In College Football
“I really don't want to continue to go down this path. We're going to keep getting here, okay? And we're going to keep banging at it and you guys watched the game, didn't you? They made plays on the perimeter. They made some dynamic plays.
“They had the college football player of the year who made some dynamic plays. We battled. We were right there. So we're going to keep getting back here.
“And I'm sorry if you don't like it or if the national media doesn't like it, but we're going to go back to work. We're going to keep recruiting and we're going to put ourselves back in this position again. And I think our kids battled and played really hard and physical. We ran the ball today.
“And I'm not taking it personally, because these questions keep coming up like we have to reinvent ourselves. We were physical today. They were dynamic on the perimeter like they have been all year. This is a really good football team. And we're just going to keep recruiting and keep playing and we're going to keep putting ourselves in this position. And that's all we can do.”
On The Intercepted Pass Thrown To Michael Mayer
“Ian [Book] got flushed out of the pocket. And he just need today put a little bit more on that, kind of floated it a little bit. I think if he had another shot at that he probably would have put — that would have been a fastball instead of a level two with some touch to it.
“I think he felt like he was in a better position than he was. And a good play by Alabama in that situation.
“But it's one of those where he's trying to make a play. And I told him, I said, listen, I don't fault you at all for trying to make that play. I just think the selection of the type of throw in that situation — and he gets it. He's trying to make a play in that situation.”
On Junior Tight End Tommy Tremble, Who Left The Game Early With An Injury
“No ligament damage. No fractures. He had an MRI and an X-ray. He's good to go. Ankle sprain.
“Tommy's an important part of our offense, but we've got to be able to overcome it. But the margin is very fine when you lose an important piece of our offense. But again, we had other guys step up. I thought Mike Mayer was an absolute beast tonight, the way he competed for every pass that was thrown his way.
“We just needed more firepower, quite frankly. And we just came up short with the firepower. That's it. There is no other wider story than we just came up a little short with making a few plays. And they made a few more plays than we did today.”
On Fifth-Year Senior Quarterback Ian Book’s Legacy At Notre Dame
“He’s a winner. He's won more games than any quarterback in Notre Dame history. Period. End of discussion. The guy's a winner and we're going to miss him. He just wins football games.
“There is no other story, just a winner.”
On If There’s A Talent Issue Between The Best Two Or Three Teams And The Rest Of The Top Teams In The Country
“Look, we beat the No. 1 team in the country. Now people will say, well, the quarterback wasn't there. Still, we feel like we're really as good on any given day as a top team in the country.
“There are certainly a few teams that have a couple more weapons that can be explosive. But you don't necessarily have to walk around and be the best team every week. You just need to be the best team on that given day. And I think there's more than just two or three teams that can be the best team on that given day. And I think that that opens it up to more than just two or three teams.
“So I would say that we're both right. I would say that you're right in assessing that there are two or three that have prolific, prolific weapons and more than some. But I think there's enough balance with this other teams, and Notre Dame would be one of those included, that have enough to beat you on any given day.”
On The Gap Between Notre Dame And Teams Such As Alabama And Clemson
“No, we think we can get there. Look, we were physical. We ran the football. There wasn't a physicality issue out there. Last time we played Alabama and Clemson, I felt like there was a physicality issue. We've got that -- we know where that story needs to end.
“We have to continue to find more playmakers. And we'll keep working at it. We're committed to doing it and we're not going away.
“So great year. It's not where we wanted it. We wanted to win a national championship. But Notre Dame nation, you guys can get some sleep, recharge your battery. And we're going to get ourselves back in this position again. So you don't need to jump off a bridge, a building. We're going to keep working. We're going to rededicate ourselves in the offseason, back in the weight room. And we hope to get right back here in Dallas next year.”
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