Cincinnati Reacts To Kelly Leaving For Notre Dame

The players, the press and the patrons at any local store in Cincinnati all have an opinion about head coach Brian Kelly leaving for Notre Dame and we’re guaranteed to hear all of them over the next few days. Natural emotion is going to flow when a public figure makes a controversial -in this case brilliant on Kelly’s part – move, whether it be leaving for another job or resigning due to public scrutiny and there is no lack of it in this story.

Here are some sound bites and articles that only prove how successful Kelly has been in his short tenure in Ohio. If he was simply average, the public outcry wouldn’t be so emotionally charged.

-”He went for the money,” receiver Mardy Gilyard told Joe Kay of The Associated Press. “I’m fairly disgusted with the situation, that they let it last this long.” If Gilyard was 3 inches taller he would have been long gone after his junior season with the Bearcats….FOR THE MONEY!!! South Bend Tribune

- Apparently Cincinnati players were among the last to know about Kelly’s decision to leave them for Notre Dame. Bearcats Last To Know

- Brian Kelly thanked his players for helping him land the job at Cincinnati but it wasn’t any consolation for most of them. Associated Press

- Notre Dame’s 2010 recruiting class reacts to Kelly’s hiring. Irish Sports Daily

- The other side of the story is that Cincinnati is now without a coach. Will the Bearcats’ position now become a stepping stone job that attracts some of the hottest young coaches in the business? Turner Gill is still out there! Cincinnati.com

- And then there is the Ohio reaction. The Buckeye State will stand united and say, “To hell with Brian Kelly!” and pretend that his accomplishments never happened. Check out the title of this story, A Lousy Last Chapter For Kelly. Yeah, a multi-million dollar check from a BCS Bowl is a terrible last chapter. Give me a break!

- You can find video of both players and fans at ESPN.com