In a move that might have been almost as predictable as the sun rising from the East, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly confirmed that third-year Fighting Irish quarterbacks coach Tom Rees will be calling the plays — with some collaboration from the sidelines — in the Camping World Bowl versus Iowa State on Saturday.
Former offensive coordinator Chip Long (2017-19) and Kelly parted ways earlier this month, leaving the play-caller role vacant.
Kelly had indicated thereafter that Rees would coordinate the passing efforts and first-year running backs coach Lance Taylor the ground attack, but ultimately play-calling duties had to be handled by a main figure.
That will be Rees, who started 31 games at quarterback for Kelly from 2010-13 and passed for 7,670 yards, third most in the program's history, 61 touchdowns (second most) and 37 interceptions (third most).
“It’s pretty obvious that Tom is going to call the plays,” Kelly said. “I don’t know that there’s any secrets out there. There will be certainly collaboration as there has been. Tom will be in the box. He’ll send the plays down through me — not that I’m going to be micro-managing what he’s doing.”
Notre Dame held its 10th and final practice Thursday for the bowl game, and Kelly indicated that throughout each session there have been 15-to-20-minute windows where Rees would call unscripted plays.
Unlike Long, who was on the sideline throughout his career, Rees will remain in the press box, where he will send the plays through to Kelly. How the 27-year-old Rees will fare in this debut is an element that can only be answered once the event takes place.
“Everybody gets a first time. …We all had first times,” Kelly said. “So what do you need to be prepared for that first time? You’ve got to have, first of all, a great background. He had a great background leading up to this.
"He’s been in this arena before. He grew up in this arena of college football and he’ll be well-supported.”
If there is any advice Kelly would have for Rees, it would be to not be afraid to stay with what is working rather than overthink and feel like he needs to call every play in the book.
“Dialing up plays — we’ve got plenty of plays,” he said. “We’ve got to execute them.”
Kelly has maintained that he will still have a national search to get the best possible coach — whether it’s at coordinator or a specific position group — to fill out the staff on offense, but it won’t begin in earnest until after the New Year.
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