Notre Dame's Brian Kelly on coronavirus: 'If we have a better second half, we're going to win this game'
Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly sounds a lot more realistic about the coronavirus pandemic than at least one of his peers.
Kelly met with reporters via teleconference on Wednesday and ended his news conference with a football analogy about the pandemic after thanking people who have been deemed essential and been going to work to help others during this time.
“We will get through it. If we stay at home, we stay vigilant, if we stay patient, we're going to see ourselves on the other side and we're going to be stronger for it,” Kelly said (via Rivals’ Blue and Gold).
“We have not won yet. We're just getting to halftime. We've got a second half to play here. Really good job in the first couple of quarters, but we're just getting into the locker room. But let's look to have a better second half. If we have a better second half, we're going to win this game.”
[ Coronavirus: How the sports world is responding to the pandemic ]
Kelly’s comments aren’t groundbreaking by any stretch. There are lots of others who think that we are just now getting to the midpoint of our efforts to flatten the curve of infections across the United States and that a lot more work is needed.
But they’re also a stark contrast compared to the comments of Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, who said he wanted football to get going so that money could be run through the state of Oklahoma. Gundy also said that the would be willing to consider sequestering players in one dormitory to try to keep them healthy so football season could begin.
Kelly, like everyone else, has no real idea when preparations for football season could actually begin. He noted that the team would need a “minimum” of three to four weeks of preparation ahead of the season.
Could Navy game in Ireland get moved?
Notre Dame is set to open the 2020 season against Navy in Ireland on Aug. 29. The two teams are kicking off the season the weekend before it begins for everyone else in college football. And there’s a chance that game may have to be played in another location, especially if it needs to be moved to a later date.
“Certainly, we’re having to discussions about that,” Kelly said of the Navy game. “Clearly, we can’t wait until May 15 to have the first discussion about going overseas. Those discussions are taking place. [Athletic director Jack Swarbrick] has a number of things on his plate, those are one of them. Navy is aware of it. We’re looking at all options at this time.
“We’d like to play the game in Ireland. Whether we can or not, that is still obviously a topic that is being discussed, but we will have some alternatives.”
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
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