Notre Dame vs Purdue: Who Will Survive Longer, Brian Kelly or Tommy Rees?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish started the season off with hopes to reach a BCS bowl game. Although they got off to a rocky start to the season as they started off 0-2.

Recently they have turned things around with wins over Michigan State and Pittsburgh but there is still some improving to do.

There has been several reports that want to see head coach Brian Kelly fired and others that question if Tommy Rees is the right quarterback for Notre Dame. This is what happens when you don't reach the expectations.

Who will survive longer if the Irish continue to struggle? Let's take a look.

Quarterback Tommy Rees

When the season first started Tommy Rees was the backup to Dayne Crist but after a horrible performance by the senior in week 1, the Irish decided to moved on with Rees.

Rees is playing well, he is completing 66 percent of his passes. He has thrown for seven touchdowns including a three touchdown game that put his team in position to win against Michigan in the Big House. 

He is also displaying a great deal of confidence and leadership that you would see in most seniors. This grows as the weeks go by. 

The main thing that people have a problem with is he is extremely turnover prone. Sure, he has thrown seven touchdowns, but he has also thrown six interceptions in just four games. He is constantly throwing in double and triple coverage and making boneheaded throws.

Anytime you're watching the Irish play, just count how many times a ball should be intercepted that Rees has thrown. I bet you'll need an extra hand by the time the game is over with.

This is a valid reason why people are questioning if he is the right quarterback to lead the Irish to where they want to go.

Head Coach Brian Kelly

Head coach Brian Kelly is a great coach and one of the best offensive coaches out there.

He got the best out of his players when he coached for Cincinnati and led them to three consecutive double digit winning seasons and four consecutive bowl games. 

But during his first two seasons at Notre Dame he is simply not getting the job done. Notre Dame is the epitome of a winning tradition and a 10-7 record is not keeping up with his part of the deal when he signed a five-year contract.

There have been several times Kelly was caught on television losing his mind and even cursing at players on live TV. He has since apologized for his actions but there is no excuse for that.

There is also no excuse for turning the ball over 15 times in just four games. That's the reason the Irish are 2-2. If you take just one turnover away from those two losses, the Irish are 4-0 and we're not even having this conversation.

You can blame the turnovers on youth, inexperience, good defense, poor conditions, poor preparation, or whatever excuse you want to use.

Eventually when the losses pile up high enough, there is only one person that will get the axe.

Overall

I believe that both are here to stay.

Tommy Rees has a ton of potential, the interceptions and bad decisions will reduce with more experience. People must remember that he is only a sophomore and hasn't even started enough games to fill up an entire season yet. 

Brian Kelly must step it up but the leash isn't as tight as most people think it is. Every coach goes through a rough period and every good coach finds a way out at some point. Kelly is a good coach and should be able to fix the turnover problem. (Which is really the only thing holding this team back)

If for whatever reason things don't get straightened out in South Bend, then yes, Brian Kelly would be let go and the Irish would be off looking for another head coach once again.

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