It hasn’t even been 48 hours since the final seconds ticked-off the clock in Notre Dame’s BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama, but Irish head coach Brian Kelly has apparently already interviewed for a job with at least one NFL team.
CBSSports.com and the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Kelly has interviewed with the Philadelphia Eagles about their current vacancy since Monday’s 42-14 loss.
Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter of ESPN also tweeted this, "Eagles interviewed Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. Sides will revisit when Kelly returns from out of country."
Kelly was asked at last Saturday’s BCS Championship Game Media Day if the NFL might be in his future.
“How can you not be intrigued,” Kelly replied. “It all comes down to time and place. What is the right time and what is the right place? I never take any of that off the board.”
Kelly was also asked more specifically if any NFL teams have contacted his agent.
“Any of those things that occur relative to contact, there’s a strict protocol for that,” Kelly responded. “They have to contact my representation and then they’ve gotta follow through that. If that did occur then all that stuff is secondary to this football game.”
“This is the biggest game that I’ve ever been involved in,” he continued. “So my focus is one hundred percent on this football game. All that other stuff – that happens when you’re winning football games. I’ve been through this a lot in my career. It’s flattering if there is interest, which I don’t know that there is.”
Kelly received a contract extension about a year ago that runs through the 2016 season. That extension came on the heels of back to back 8-5 records and before this year’s 12-0 regular season and Monday’s loss in the BCS Title Game.
“I think when I took the job at Notre Dame I think I said it was my dream job, but I never went around day to day thinking about being the Notre Dame coach, because the job that I had in had was what I was thinking about,” Kelly said last Saturday.
“I think that’s the same thing with the NFL. I think from my perspective I’ve got the best job in the country – NFL, college, high school – it doesn’t matter. I just look at the place that I’m at and I’m thankful for the opportunity that I have.”
The Chicago Bears are among the other jobs which remain open as well. It is considered by many to be the most attractive of the current NFL opportunities.
