Don't Blame Brian Kelly; Blame UC
Thursday, December 10, 2009 at 6:17PM 
By LEE GEROWITZ
Special To One Great Season
NEW YORK -- When rumor turns to reality, as it did with Brian Kelly leaving Cincinnati for Notre Dame Thursday, love often turns to hate.
This particular saga, which, quite frankly, started the day Kelly stepped foot on UC's campus, began as a love affair.
The University of Cincinnati, its students and fans who had supported the program throughout the years, all wanted a winner in Clifton. After all, many of these folks were witnessing a once-proud basketball program struggle to recover from the fallout of the Bob Huggins era.
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Enter Brian Kelly. The wins on the gridiron quickly piled up, and the love affair was on.
A 22-6 record in two seasons, including a BCS berth in the 2009 Orange Bowl, will make football fans fall in love with you. Follow that up with an undefeated 12-0 regular season and another BCS berth in the Sugar Bowl, and Notre Dame comes knocking on your door.
Brian Kelly not only answered the door, but he let them in, let them take all of his belongings, pack them up and move them to South Bend, Indiana.
And now, some, not all, but some UC fans are hurt. Some are betrayed, even hateful toward the man they once supported. For these people, the love affair with Kelly is clearly over.
And why? Because Brian Kelly lied to them. Kelly promised them he'd stay at UC. He told the media, the fans and even his own players so.
One Cincinnati blog recently displayed comments directed at Kelly such as "Two Faced" and "...liar, traitor and he shall be marked with the sign of the beast for eternity!"
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Well, there are always two sides to a love affair gone wrong, and if you're one of the bitter ones, shame on you. Shame on you for being blind toward what are the real reasons why UC is looking for a head football coach ... again.
BK, as the kids called him, was always up front about two key things: 1) What he thought it would take for UC to compete for a national championship each year, and 2) His admiration for Notre Dame. He repeatedly stated his case for point No. 1, and those close to Kelly were well aware of point No. 2.
And let's get this out of the way before we continue: Blame the NCAA for the supposed dishonesty you get from the Brian Kellys of the world during sagas like this. It's the NCAA that allows schools with coaching vacancies to hover like vultures over coaches who currently have jobs and seasons that are still playing out. Because of this, if Kelly denies a rumor if only to protect his players, he's a liar and a traitor. Or, if BK gives an honest answer if only to protect his players, he's a liar and a traitor. It's a lose-lose situation for a coach like Kelly, but before you so quickly judge him, ask yourself something: What would YOU, the angry, betrayed fan, do if you were in his shoes? What would YOU do if you had the opportunity to upgrade your life for your family, all while trying to protect the players that helped you get to your current superstar status?
Kelly's message to UC was always clear: he and his staff would need sufficient monetary support to stick around. His team would need to practice on a field other than the one they played games on. The 107-year-old, 35,000 seat stadium, which he called the "Wrigley Field" of college football, would need to be upgraded and expanded.
To its credit, UC listened. In tough economic times, the administration supported Kelly and his staff as best as it could. Money was raised for the practice fields, which are currently under construction. Possible scenarios to expand and upgrade Nippert Stadium are being considered.
But it's too late. Unfortunately, the University of Cincinnati played a waiting game, and got burned.
Simply put, UC wanted to have its cake and eat it too.
UC wanted a coach who'd be the school's rock for years and years to come, but didn't provide enough foundation for him to build upon. Mark Dantonio arrived at UC in December 2003. Nearly three years later, he recognized the program's shortcomings, accomplished his mission of using UC as a stepping stone in his coaching career and was off to Michigan State, which drew 25,000 fans ... to his first spring game.
A week after Dantonio was named MSU's coach, Kelly arrived at UC. And three years later, he's gone too.
The bottom line is, if UC truly wanted a coach to commit to the Bearcats on a long-term basis, UC should have committed to upgrading its program a long time ago. How about after Rick Minter, who coincidentally came to UC from Notre Dame, ended his 10-year, 53-63-1 tenure with the Bearcats in 2003?
UC's facilities have certainly improved in recent years with the completion of its Varsity Village, but one has to wonder, at what point was UC going to sweeten the pot for the long-term stability of the football program? At what point were they going to make the program a destination job, not just a stepping stone, for a football coach?
Kelly certainly used the Cincinnati football program as a stepping stone in his coaching career. But he did much more than that. He showed anyone who has ever supported this program that the school with no practice fields, the school with the 107-year-old stadium that is the smallest in the Big East conference, is a school that can compete for national championships.
Kelly may be gone, but the momentum he built is not. At least not yet. There is a small window of opportunity for the University of Cincinnati to capitalize on what Brian Kelly built in such a short amount of time.
Kelly's departure leaves two questions: Who will be the next Bearcats' coach? And will UC allow time to run out on him, too?
Gerowitz is a New York-based television producer, a Cincinnati graduate and occasional OGS contributor.Brian Kelly, Cincinnati, Lee Gerowitz, Notre Dame
Reader Comments (6)
UC answered and gave him everything he asked for. While here he made the UC football experience better, but he also showed that he is no better than anyone else who says one thing and does the other. One day a coach will live up to his words, one day.
What??? Where'd you get this drivel?
Last time I checked UC gave him an annual contract extension and increased his pay so he was in the top tier of Div 1 coaches. Oh ... they also gave his coaches a raise ... purchased a bubble to cover his current practice facility that will go up next year .... went into debt to construct a football practice facility.
He was only here 3 years and only started selling out this year. They started work on the design of the new stadium this year when it appeared he'd live up to the hype.
So how is it UC fault? How about his mutli-year deal?
What else should they have done in the small time frame and budget they had? Remember, unlike most schools, this was the first year that UC football actually funded itself instead of being funded by the school.
I call BS. Kelly got everything he asked for. More money for the program, more money for his staff, more facilities, more money for himself, all at a University that has cut every other budget and frozen hiring due to its financial difficulties. He didn't have to lie, he could have told Notre Dame he wouldn't talk to them until the season was over. And over means after the Sugar Bowl. Instead he talked to them before the Pittsburgh game, probably had a deal pretty much done, and claimed otherwise.
A contact is a promise, and Kelly broke his. Not only that he was so busy negotiating with Notre Dame that he didn't adequately prepare for Pittsburgh and we almost lost. And then he announced at a celebratory dinner that he was leaving, like a kick in the crotch.
Thanks for the comments, I truly appreciate the feedback. I'd also like to address the comments.
"UC answered and gave him everything he asked for."
I clearly stated he asked for and received more money. Also stated was that he asked for practice fields and they are being built. However, they're PRACTICE FIELDS. UC was one of two major college programs, with Marshall being the other, who had zero practice fields. Meaning, about 100 or so other schools figured out that a major college football program needs them. Having said that, if you truly see UC finally getting practice fields as a major victory, I'll simply tell you that Kelly requesting those fields simply gave him ammo/reasons as to why he'd eventually leave for another school. Too little...too late.
"Last time I checked UC gave him an annual contract extension and increased his pay so he was in the top tier of Div 1 coaches. Oh ... they also gave his coaches a raise ... purchased a bubble to cover his current practice facility that will go up next year .... went into debt to construct a football practice facility."
Correct...and the last time I re-read my column, which I encourage you to do again, it pretty much mentioned the same thing. So, I'll mention the same thing I said above...too little, too late.
"A conrtact is a promise, and Kelly broke his."
Absolutely, 150% false. UC gave Brian Kelly a contract that had a buyout clause of one million dollars that Kelly had to pay if he left before before June 10, 2010...which is actually considered pretty cheap. How is that cheap? Because to major programs like Notre Dame, it's chump change. Notre Dame paid that money. Some would go so far as to say UC almost dared him to leave.
Thanks again for coming to the site and reading this. Finally, I will say that the way BK handled himself yesterday was absolutely poor. This was not the focus of this column. The focus was what got us to this point...what caused this domino effect. And that is UC not being pro-active enough. Thanks again.
So a school that is in ghastly financial shape should spend money on a football program that has been a net financial loss for the University for some time? Seems reasonable to expect the program to prove itself financially before committing more money to it. Yet they committed money in coaches, in switching to a BCS conference, in major facilities upgrades, all before the program had proved itself. UC doesn't give it's academic divisions that kind of leeway. They have to operate under performance based budgeting, where the money spent on them is based on the money they bring in.
I agree that the buyout clause was cheap. I expect it was cheap because Kelly wouldn't come for a higher one. And you would say that should have been a warning sign. And you would be right about that. Next contract should have a buyout that provides a real disincentive to leaving. I'm thinking schools should start implementing non-compete clauses. I have one, if I quit my job I cannot take another similar job with a competitor for a number of years. I propose that the buyout clause should be the remaining salary on the contract, plus a non-compete for one year clause.
I stand by my statement that he effectively broke a promise. Contracts come with buyout clauses mainly because everyone needs to be able to move on in extreme circumstances, not because it should be acceptable to just leave anytime you get a better offer. The contract itself, and the buyout money, are supposed to prevent that. And once again, you're right that UC should have made it more expensive, but once again, then they likely wouldn't have had Kelly at all.
Gus, thanks for the comment. With UC about to name a new coach, this will be my final response on the BK deal. I'll let you wipe your eyes with Kleenex for a moment......ok, here we go.
"So a school that is in ghastly financial shape should spend money on a football program that has been a net financial loss for the University for some time?"
Answer to the question above: a resounding, all-caps YES. In the right situation, there is a not a larger potential stream of revenue on UC's campus than that 107 year old, 35,000 seat bowl sitting in the middle of campus. To me, it's simple business....invest now and it should pay off later. There is no indication that, even with BK leaving, UC will suffer in the talent department. Their team next season is loaded. Meaning, with additional improvements, fans will keep coming.
"Seems reasonable to expect the program to prove itself financially before committing more money to it."
Gus, that is like putting a Yugo engine in a Mercedes and expecting the Mercedes to drive like a Mercedes. Have you asked yourself how the program can improve itself financially first? Even with sellouts at Nippert, the concession stands are so inadequate that they cannot properly serve even half of a full stadium. This isn't opinion, it's fact. Do some research and Mike Thomas will talk about this. So, where else does revenue come from then? Well, a sold out stadium helps, but at just 35K seats, there needs to be more revenue. Remember, we're not talking about Ohio State or Michigan crowds here.
The answer is two-fold: Nippert needs expansion (they are looking into this) and luxury suites (also being looked into).
Bottom line, this is a business. You cannot expect the UC football program - A BUSINESS - to generate revenue - without the proper tools first. And my "Cliffnotes: Business 101" book told me that to expect a profit in a business, one must invest in that business first. Not make empty wishes for something to happen without a plan.
OK, time to move on from BK....looks like Butch Jones is the new man at UC,