There's going to be a lot of questions for Notre Dame football in 2017, and it looks like athlete director Jack Swarbrick is trying to set things straight before this year's season begins.
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In an interview with IndyStar, Swarbrick affirmed the school's commitment to Kelly as the head football coach, with Swarbrick calling Kelly a "natural leader," and a role model for the program. Swarbrick also said that despite a 4-8 season in 2016, Kelly's job status with the program was "never" in question.
From the IndyStar:
Despite reports of friction between the athletic director and coach, Swarbrick, who is in his ninth year at Notre Dame, says that was just outside perception. He reaffirmed Kelly's job was never in question. "No," he said. "Never."
Related: Brian Kelly responds as Notre Dame forced to vacate 21 wins
Kelly's troubles weren't limited to just Notre Dame's performance last year, as blowups on the sidelines and in interviews led a firestorm of controversy for Kelly to deal with. This included attacks from alumni, who took out advertisements in the school's newspaper in an effort to get Kelly and Swarbrick fired.
FanBuzz's take
Kelly has generally done well in his tenure with Notre Dame, and he's done a fine job recruiting in recent years. With the confidence of Swarbrick, he should be safe for the 2017 season, but another bad year could put both him and Swarbrick in real danger of losing their jobs.
Notre Dame isn't used to losing seasons, and while Kelly may get a reprieve for now, don't expect that kind of patience to last long.
