Brian Kelly’s decision to fire Brian VanGorder four games into the season makes absolutely no sense.
That’s not to say that the defense has been perfect this season. It hasn’t been. After four games, Notre Dame ranks 126th nationally in sacks, 108th in tackles for a loss, 103rd in total defense, and 96th in rushing defense. The Irish D was also mediocre at best in crucial situations this fall, ranking 78th in red zone defense (93rd in red zone TD’s) and 91st in third down conversions. With numbers like that, it would only make sense for VanGorder to be on the hot seat.
However, dismissing him after four games suggests that the defense was the reason for the team’s woes this season. That’s clearly not the case. While the Notre Dame offense hasn’t been horrible this year, the ground game has struggled the last two weeks, rushing for just 3.38 yards per carry in losses to Michigan State and Duke. The Irish also had trouble hanging on to the football in these games, turning the ball over six times.
Translation: Notre Dame has problems everywhere right now. As Brian Kelly correctly pointed out in his press conference yesterday, the Irish need to get better in all facets of the game. He also said that he’d evaluate every position – except for long snapper – this week to determine how he can make the team better.
That’s what makes the decision to fire VanGorder so puzzling. Although the defense definitely needs to improve, it seems strange to make a leadership change before re-evaluating personnel. After all, the Irish finished in the top half of the FBS in total defense last year, suggesting that the problem with year’s defense isn’t the X’s and O’s, but the Jimmy’s and Joe’s.
Rather than give VanGorder – a veteran defensive coordinator with both college and NFL experience – a chance to make a few lineup changes and right the ship, Kelly chose to replace him with Greg Hudson. This decision will raise a few eyebrows, as Hudson’s defenses at Minnesota, East Carolina, and Purdue finished 80th or worse in total defense in six of his nine years as defensive coordinator.
Simply put: this decision doesn’t make the Irish defense any better. Replacing a Broyles Award winner midseason with someone who’s never guided a defense that ranked higher than 59th nationally in total defense makes as much sense as hiring Paul Johnson to take over a program to implement the “Air Raid” offense.
Given that Kelly vigorously defended VanGorder up until Sunday, I get the impression that this was not a decision that he wanted to make. However, when the university brass asks you to do something, you do it, or they’ll show you the door.
Regardless of who made this decision, it’s not the correct one. As Kelly pointed out, the team needs to get better. Changing defensive coordinators midseason doesn’t help the Irish accomplish that goal.
