Minor Talks Strong Endorsement
Charlie Strong may not have been Kory Minor’s position coach at Notre Dame, but he obviously made a huge impact as the Irish’s defensive line coach during Minor’s period as a standout linebacker in South Bend from 1995-1998.
And now Minor would love to see Strong return to South Bend to fill the role of defensive coordinator for the Irish. It may be a longshot, especially with the former Texas head coach reportedly a strong candidate for some head coach vacancies, but still one Minor believes is worth Notre Dame and Brian Kelly pursuing.
"I just really believe right now with what we have going on at Notre Dame, we need someone to come in who has morals and values to help these young men see the right way," Minor says.
"Not only that, but I believe his time as a coach at Louisville and Florida is proven, even at Texas. When he took over the defense at Texas, the defense got better."
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As a former captain and four-year starter, Minor is as interested in the Irish’s progress off the field as on it.
"I really believe at Notre Dame right now, we're in the position where we need to bring someone in who can bring this defense back to life, but someone these young men can look up to as a role model for how to carry themselves in the community,” he says.
Based off his time with Strong during his college years, Minor is convinced Strong would be a tremendous addition.
“He just wanted to know how you were doing off the field,” Minor says of his experiences with Strong. “It wasn’t always about X’s and O’s. How’s school? How’s the family? Is there anything I can help you out with?
“He was definitely a coach who was engaged and who wanted to know what was going on in your life besides football, besides sports. He cared about you. He showed love for you. We need somebody like that at Notre Dame and I really believe he’d be a great fit for us, I really do.”
That’s the kind of bond that carries onto the field.
“If I know someone cares about me more than just me being a player then I’m willing to go the extra mile for him,” Minor says.
“If I know someone cares about my family and how I’m doing – how is it being 3,000 miles away from home – for someone I know who cares about me and I can believe in, confide in, trust in, I’m going to go play harder for that guy, I really am.”
It’s not a requirement to be a great coach, but in Minor’s opinion, it’s one characteristic that makes Strong great.
“There are some coaches who aren’t players’ coaches like Bill Belichick, he’s not a players’ but people love him,” Minor says. “Everybody has their knack.
“I know from being with Coach Strong that he’s a man of great integrity, he’s a man that wants to win and he’s been to Notre Dame, so he understands the magnitude of Notre Dame. I really believe he can come in and do a great job. I hope he gets a shot, at least an interview. I’m sure he’ll have some head coaching jobs as well.”
But while Strong’s résumé may suggest he’ll be a head coach again sooner than later, Minor still believes it’d be worth the chance.
“That’s part of the coaching circle, that’s part of the business,” he says. “You never know when a coach might get fired or a coach might go to the NFL. You just never, never, never know. At the end of the day, you can’t worry about that.
“What I find fascinating is that he’s been to ND before, so he understands it. He’s been a head coach before, so he understands that. So, I think Coach Kelly can pick his brain a bit.”
Minor points to Strong’s history not just in South Bend, but at Florida and Texas and even Louisville, where the program he helped built is chasing new heights.
“I think Coach Kelly could say, ‘Hey, you’ve been a head coach, what do you see I’m not doing? Or what do you see that I could be doing differently?’” Minor says.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about helping each other out. It’s not about egos. How do we figure out how to get Notre Dame back to the top and get our young men in our community doing the right thing? That’s what it’s all about.”
Minor is also convinced Strong would improve the Notre Dame defense from a schematic standpoint.
“I think getting more production out of our front four,” Minor says of how Strong could help on the field. “We need to be able to rush the passer with four people. We need to be able to get sacks with just four people. We shouldn’t have to blitz all of the time to get sacks.
“I think with his schemes, he’ll find the best matchups to help us win on defense. He’ll bring a tenacity of how to tackle, how to hit, how to be strong-minded. He did a helluva job at Florida and did a helluva job at Louisville. At the end of the day, I really believe Coach Strong can turn our defensive program around tremendously on top of the character issues we’re having in school. I think he can help with that too and that’s what I really care about more than anything.”
Minor thinks back to the head coach who recruited him, Lou Holtz, when he thinks of how Strong could help current and future Irish players off the field.
“A guy who came to my house and looked my mom in her face and said, ‘He’s going to graduate. He’s going to be a great man in society,’” he says of Holtz. “He was like a dad to me, you didn’t want to let him down.
“I’m not saying Coach Kelly is not that way. I don’t know Coach Kelly very well, but I know Coach Strong very, very well and I really believe if he had the opportunity to come to Notre Dame and got around these players and they could see the person he is, not only would they be motivated for football, but also for life and that’s what we need.”