Who Will Coach Notre Dame? Bob Stoops, Brian Kelly, Urban Meyer

by Jon Azpiri | November 16, 2009 at 12:38 pm

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As Notre Dame continues to struggle on the field, Rumors continue to swirl regarding who might replace Charlie Weis as head coach. Thus far, names like Bob Stoops, Brian Kelly, and Urban Meyer have been linked to Notre Dame.

Some consider Bob Stoops to be the frontrunner for the Notre Dame job.

If athletic director Jack Swarbrick decides Weis' Notre Dame career is over after his fifth season, a source said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz will be in the mix to replace him. The source said Stoops has told confidants he would be interested in talking to the Irish.

You would think the Bob Stoops Notre Dame rumors would have Sooners fans feeling shocked and betrayed, but in fact many Oklahoma fans may be glad to see Bob Stoops move on to the Fighting Irish.

The "Stoops-must-go" crowd of George Steinbrenner wannabes contend that OU's four-loss 2009 season just proves what they claim to have known for years: Stoops has lost "It." To them, it would be a blessing in disguise if OU's head coach decided to light out for South Bend.

Bob Stoops isn't the only coach to have his name attached to the Notre Dame job. Cincinnati head coach Brian Kelly is also rumored to be heading to Notre Dame.

Another rumored named is Florida's Urban Meyer, although it's hard to believe he would leave his powerhouse program. Still, one Floriday columnist sees Urban Meyer as a perfect fit for Notre Dame.

For Notre Dame's purposes, Meyer is the guy who repeatedly, and even in his current biography, calls coaching your football program his "dream job." He's also, and this is no small consideration, devoutly Catholic, even named after a pope.

For Notre Dame's purposes, Meyer runs a clean program, wins, works like a maniac, is passionate about recruiting, and cares deeply about what kind of men he produces off the football field.

In short, he is everything Notre Dame would want.