Mike Elston expects his defensive line to be the best in the country.

However, after Kelly addressed the media yesterday in his fist National Signing Day press conference at Notre Dame, Elston met reporters for the first time as an Irish assistant.

Right from the very start, Elston’s message was crystal clear.

“We’re going to be the best defensive line in the country,” he said. “That’s what my expectations are.”

Although he might have his hands full with that objective because of the inconsistent play of the Irish defensive line throughout last season, Elston’s track record at developing players along the defensive front is an indicator that the former Cincinnati assistant is up to the challenge.

“A year ago, I coached the defensive line and they had very little playing experience there,” Elston said. “They were undersized. No one liked them. I moved over from tight end to defensive line. We led the Big East in tackles for loss, we were second in sacks, eighth in the country in sacks, third in tackles for loss. I expect them to be the best in the country.

“That’s what we’re striving to be. We’re striving to win a National Championship. I’m not going to coach them and say, ‘Hey guys, we can finish in the top 50’ or ‘We’re the 50^th best defensive line in the country.’ We are going to be the best.”

At every coaching stop in his career, Elston has always been a multi-tasker. Having directed defensive lines, tight ends and special teams units, the former Bearcat coach has vast experience in a number of areas.

At Notre Dame, his responsibilities will be no different.

“I’ve always had a dual role,” Elston said. “Whether it’s been as a defensive line coach and tight end coach, recruiting coordinator or special teams coordinator, I’ve filled quite a few roles for Coach Kelly. I’m excited about being at the University of Notre Dame and coaching the defensive line and bringing my expertise to that and make it a strength for us and also about special teams.”

In addition to the development of the defensive line, Elston replaces former Irish special teams coordinator Brian Polian as the director of the unit. After leading a number of Cincinnati players to excellence as specialists, most notably punter Kevin Hueber and returner Mardy Gilyard, Elston is looking to bring that success to South Bend.

Huber, a consensus All-American in 2007, and Gilyard have helped the Bearcats win back-to-back Big East Special Teams Player of the Year Awards, as Huber earned the honor in 2007 and Gilyard took the award in 2008.

“We’ve had success,” Elston said. “I can’t say that we’ve won every game because of special teams, but we haven’t lost one because of special teams. With my experience and the help of the staff, I think that we can be very strong.”

Because of Elston’s split responsibilities next season, Kelly did mention last month that special teams responsibilities would be divided between members of the staff. When asked what his specific role would be in terms of the direction of the unit, Elston’s said the decision hasn’t been finalized.

“We still have to sit down and talk about what [Kelly’s] vision is,” Elston said. “At the end of the day, I’m going to coordinate special teams. I will do the game planning and the organizational practices and communicate to the team what their responsibilities will be. And just like at Cincinnati, I had three or four coaches from the different position groups that when their group came to work special teams, they’re also putting their hands on special teams. I will coordinate all six units: the punt return, the kickoff, kickoff return, and the field goal, PAT and field goal protection teams.”

As an alum of the University of Michigan, it would seem that Elston is coaching for the wrong team. However, the 1998 graduate couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to coach at Notre Dame.

Looking ahead to next year’s Notre Dame-Michigan rivalry game, Elston ensured that there wouldn’t be any mixed feelings.

“I love it here,” he said. “Absolutely. I can’t wait to beat them.

“First off, Notre Dame itself is so amazing. It’s exciting for me to be on campus and I haven’t been on campus long. I was hired and then I got on the road for 13, 14 straight days. I’ve been off the road for a few days, so I’ve had a chance to see the campus sparingly, but with how unique and small the campus is, the spiritual aspect and how beautiful it is, the location of how close it is to the rest of my family in Saint Mary’s, Ohio, it’s a great fit for me and I’m having a blast.”

One of the main reasons Elston has followed Kelly from a number of coaching stops, dating back to Central Michigan, then through Cincinnati and now finally to Notre Dame, is because of his mentor’s values on and off the football field.

“For me, it’s about family and what Coach Kelly represents with his family values,” Elston said. “He has three young children, I have three young children. He knows that he puts me in charge of the defensive line and puts me in charge of special teams. And when I get that done, I’m going to go home and I’m going to see my family. It may be 20 minutes before anybody else. It may be 30 minutes after anybody else.

“Early in the morning when I come in, he knows I’m going to work hard, I’m going to work smart, I’m going to get the job done and then I’m going to go see my family. He understands the value of a young family and that’s exciting for me because I have a young family. To balance both a successful coaching career along with being a successful husband and father. He leaves every door open for that growth. That’s probably the top draw for me.”

The second reason?

That’s based on the success that Kelly has had as a head coach in his career.

“The second draw would be, he’s the best at what he does,” Elston said. “He demands the best from you, but he gives you the resources and he gives you the time to get your job done. It’s a tremendous working environment. There’s a lot of things I can say about why I followed Brian Kelly. The number one thing would be family and the number two would be his success both as a man and as a football coach.”