..a mercenary worried only about his own future in the NFL or elsewhere wouldn't make these comments. He will take a lot of heat from the outside (particularly ESPN which has a different narrative that it wants to present).
Kelly loves this team & cares personally about his players & it shows here. A lot of ND fans from You Know Where have unfairly and incorrectly criticized him for being a mercenary who isn't really part of ND. After all, if he were would he ever suggest Field Turf? Would he ever talk about a Jumbotron? Would he change the gameday rituals like he has? And most of all, would he ever spurn the sacred and almighty Chicago Alumni Rockne Dinner if he were actually a true ND coach to the core?
Answers: yes, yes, yes, and yes.