SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Two seasons ago, Brian Kelly sat in his office in the days before spring practice and explained the thorough overhaul both he and the Notre Dame program had undergone in the offseason. Coming off a 4-8 season, Kelly’s name was constantly preceded by “embattled” and he found himself on enough hot-seat lists that he seemingly needed padded drawers.

Kelly shook up his staff with three new coordinators, jettisoned his longtime strength coach and tailored his own daily coaching schedule to be more engaged with the players and divorced from the day-to-day workings of the offense. “I’m going to be sure that never happens again,” Kelly told me just two winters ago. “We failed and I failed.”

Last week, the conversation with Kelly in a wide-ranging interview in his office tackled distinctly different themes. The Irish have gone 22-4 the past two seasons, with six wins over programs ranked in the top 16 and an undefeated regular season in 2018. Kelly struck a relaxed tone, chatting freely about his desire to retire at Notre Dame, his coaching profile emerging alongside some of the school’s legends and why he’s crossed the NFL off his list of career ambitions. “There’s less drama, less noise than probably at any other time,” Kelly said of this offseason. “It comes with consistency and winning, but you have to do it every year.”

Kelly’s career arc has seen Notre Dame revive its national relevance after he started in 2010 shrouded by questions about whether the Irish could sustain independence and remain a factor in the sport’s postseason conversation. Notre Dame played for the Bowl Championship Series title after the 2012 season, eventually slid back to necessitate the overhaul and reached its first College Football Playoff in 2018.

After a semifinal blowout loss to Clemson in December, Kelly faces a drastically different tension than when he arrived. Now he’s figuring out the final step to push his program from Top 5 to a national-title winner. In other words, the Irish are trying to figure out how to leapfrog Clemson and Alabama. “The big picture, no question, is the championships,” he said. “Yeah, I'm in it to win a national championship for Notre Dame, but what really drives me is the relationships with the players.”

View photos Brian Kelly has led Notre Dame to a 22-4 record the past two seasons. (Getty Images) More

Kelly, 57, plans on sticking around South Bend to figure it out. He told Yahoo Sports that he plans to coach out the remaining three years on his contract. “I may look to see if we can add two more years,” Kelly said, reluctant to offer a specific retirement date but acknowledging the end is closer than the beginning. He’s flirted with the NFL in the past – most significantly with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013. He says he’s moved on from that curiosity because “of the way it’s set up,” as he prefers the more “coach-centric” college model with full roster control. “I think if I'm fortunate enough to go five more years here, I would be very happy,” he said.

Entering Year 10, Kelly finds himself just one season behind three Notre Dame legends – Frank Leahy, Ara Parseghian and Lou Holtz – who all coached for 11 years in South Bend. Kelly’s 81-34 record means he’ll be expected to pass Leahy (87-11-9) this season for No. 4 on the school’s all-time victory list. (Kelly’s total doesn’t factor in the 21 victories redacted by the NCAA for impermissible academic help.)

Kelly is just 24 victories behind Knute Rocke, who ranks No. 1 in both victories (105) and total tenure (13 seasons). That leaves Kelly three eight-win seasons from catching Rockne in victories and four seasons – including this upcoming one – from Rockne’s mark for longevity.

Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick points out that the three coaches Kelly is a year away from tying in tenure – Leahy, Parseghian and Holtz – struggled with the demands of the job. “It just ate 'em up,” Swarbrick said. “I think Brian's personal approach to the job – his ability to self-reflect, his balance – positions him for a longer run.”

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