Kelly tested by on-field, off-field issues in 1st year

Associated Press

SOUTH BEND, Ind.

Even by the standards of one of college football’s highest-profile jobs, the first season for Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has been tumultuous.

And the game has been the least of it.

There has been tragedy — the death of student videographer when his tower fell over on a windy day as he was filming practice — and now allegations that one of Notre Dame’s players committed sexual battery.

Those situations make the problems stemming from a 6-5 record with one regular-season game left seem small.

Kelly says the only way to get through such serious issues is to level with his team.

“The first thing is you don’t hide. You try to offer transparency, you try to be direct,” Kelly said Tuesday, during his weekly news conference.

“You try to give all the information you can in handling those things. And when I say information, talking to our players. It’s important that there is an ongoing conversation with your players, as well, regarding all things surrounding your football program.”

Student videographer Declan Sullivan was killed last month when the tower from which he was filming practice fell over. Kelly said earlier it was his decision to hold practice outdoors that day when wind gusts hit 51 mph at the time of the accident.

And on Monday, St. Joseph County prosecuting attorney Michael A. Dvorak said his office is reviewing a report from the Notre Dame campus police about an alleged case of sexual battery on Aug. 31.

The accuser, a St. Mary’s College student, said her assailant was a Notre Dame football player, the Chicago Tribune reported Sunday. The woman subsequently died on Sept. 10. The Tribune, citing the sheriff’s office, said the cause was a suspected drug overdose.

Notre Dame, citing privacy laws, has not commented specifically on the allegation, and St. Mary’s has not provided details of the woman’s death.

Amid the tumult, the Irish seem to be building some momentum on the field. Notre Dame is 6-5 with two straight wins headed into a regular-season finale at Southern California.