In January, and after some heavy flirtation with the NFL, it was reported that Notre Dame was working on a new deal for head coach Brian Kelly.
Nearly eight months later, that work has paid off for both the program and the coach.
Following the Irish’s 28-6 thumping of Temple in the opener, Notre Dame announced that it has reached an agreement on a contract extension with Kelly. The new deal is a five-year extension that would potentially keep Kelly at the school through the 2017 season.
The old deal was through the 2016 season.
There’s been no information released yet as to the financial incentives in Kelly’s new deal, although they are expected to be fairly significant. As Notre Dame is a private institution, they are not required to release the contractual particulars as it relates to salary.
In his three-plus seasons with the Irish, Kelly has gone 29-11 after the program had gone 16-21 the three years prior to Kelly’s arrival. Included in Kelly’s ND record, of course, is a perfect 12-0 regular season and BCS title game appearance last year.