Coach knows Irish aren’t all the way back

SOUTH BEND, IND. — Brian Kelly is entering his sixth season as Notre Dame coach, just the seventh in the program’s long and storied history to make it that far.

That doesn’t mean he is feeling anywhere near settled, not with a 45-20 record at Notre Dame and the Fighting Irish not yet back among college football’s elite — their 2012 run to the national title game notwithstanding. He is confident the Irish have more talent this year than that squad three years ago, but he isn’t quite comfortable.

“I don’t know if you ever get comfortable in the seat at Notre Dame. Comfortable wouldn’t be a word that I would use,” he said. “I think what I would probably say is that the picture is a lot clearer in the sense that I really know where our strengths and weaknesses are as a program.”

The other Irish coaches in the group are Knute Rockne (13 seasons), Frank Leahy, Ara Paresghian and Lou Holtz (11 seasons each), Elmer Layden (seven seasons) and Dan Devine (six seasons). Kelly has the lowest winning percentage of that group at .692, and he and Layden (1934-40) are the only one in the group without a national title.

The Irish have made one run at a national championship under Kelly, losing 42-14 to Alabama three years ago. In four other seasons under Kelly, the Irish have posted three 8-5 records and a 9-4 mark.

The Irish appeared to be on the verge of vying for a playoff berth last season at 6-0 before turnovers and injuries sent them into a tailspin, finishing 8-5. Kelly believes the difference this season is depth.

“It’s a faster team. It’s a more athletic team. We’re deeper at virtually all positions across the board, both on the offensive line and the defensive line. Maybe we don’t have singularly one superstar here or there, but the depth of the group is a whole different football team than that group,” Kelly said.