Tommy Rees is back in the Notre Dame quarterbacks room. Except now he’s running the room, and he’s no longer Tommy Rees.
Notre Dame on Tuesday announced the hiring of Tom Rees as its new quarterbacks coach, three seasons after he left school as its starting quarterback.
“When I finished my playing career and graduated from Notre Dame, I wanted to do two things,” Rees said in a statement. “First, I wanted to coach, and second, at some point in my career I hoped to get an opportunity to return and do it at my alma mater. I didn’t know when or if this opportunity might present itself, but I’m so grateful and honored that it did. I’m ready to get things rolling with this great staff and group of student-athletes.”
After starting the entirety of the 2011 and ’13 seasons and playing off-and-on in ’10 and ’12, Rees left school ranking third in Irish history with 7,670 passing yards, second with 61 touchdown passes, and seventh all-time with 23 victories against eight losses. He was named Notre Dame’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2013.
“I’m very excited to have Tom join our staff,” head coach Brian Kelly added. “He possesses an understanding of the game, and most importantly the quarterback position, that’s unique. He’s a true student of the game and great communicator that will offer immediate dividends toward guiding our quarterback room.
“As a former quarterback at Notre Dame, Tom also has a rare ability to truly relate with the quarterbacks on our roster. He’s literally sat in their seat, dealt with the ups and downs, faced the criticism, deflected the praise, and all that comes with playing the position at Notre Dame. He can genuinely mentor them -- not only on the football field, but in the classroom and the community as well.”
Rees jumped into coaching as a graduate assistant at Northwestern in 2015, then spent last season as an offensive assistant with the San Diego Chargers.