Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick Explains Team's Interim Head Coach Situation

Brian Kelly was officially announced as LSU's next head coach, leaving Jack Swarbrick to fill the vacancy at Notre Dame.

Notre Dame's coaching search has begun less than 24 hours after Brian Kelly decided to leave for the LSU head coaching vacancy.

But rather than appoint an interim coach right away, Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said the program could try a different approach.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Swarbrick said that no decision has been made as to an interim coach and that they might not appoint one at all. He also said that if they did appoint an interim coach, that coach would not be considered for the head coaching position, per SI's Ross Dellenger. 

He says whoever the interim will NOT be a candidate for the permanent job.

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 30, 2021

For the upcoming bowl game or College Football Playoff, Swarbrick said that the only thing that is certain in that Kelly won't be leading the team. 

“No, we will have our current coaching staff—I hope—largely intact and we’ll designate the person who has to make the jump ball calls like how to use timeouts and the coin flip,” Swarbrick said. 

"But we’ve got a great staff and we’ve got great coordinators and so I have every confidence that we will be fully prepared for what I hope is a CFP game. If not, I’m certain will be a great New Year’s Six (bowl) game and Brian will not be a part of that for us.”

Swarbrick added that while he "was not surprised" by Kelly's decision and that there was "no sense it was motivated by sense we couldn't take the next step," he said Kelly never gave Notre Dame the chance to match LSU's offer of 10 years, $95 million. 

"He did not discuss with me the conversations he had with other universities. We are always taking about the program's needs. There was nothing identified at any time that was something we could not meet."