NYT highlights Brian Kelly's GVSU roots

NEW YORK (WOOD) - A coach preparing for the BCS National Championship got his coaching roots in West Michigan.

Former Grand Valley State football coach Brian Kelly is now the head coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, which will play against the Alabama Crimson Tide for the FBS title on Jan. 7.

Kelly's coaching foundation began in 1987 as a graduate assistant at Division II GVSU in Allendale. A New York Times article highlights what he did for the football program, university and the community once he became head coach in 1991.

Kelly's Lakers won two Division II national titles and five Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles, during his 13-year helm as coach. His record was 118-35-2.

"I needed to learn how to be a head coach," Kelly told the newspaper in a phone interview. "Everybody wants to be one, but Grand Valley provided me on-the-job training. It prepared me for everything that came after."

Kelly then moved on to coach Central Michigan University's football team from 2004 to 2006, winning the Mid-American Conference Championship his final season and earning a trip to the Motor City Bowl. The Chippewas beat Middle Tennessee State but without Kelly who departed to begin a career at the University of Cincinnati.

Kelly immediately put the headset on for Cincinnati, leading the Bearcats to a victory over Western Michigan University in the Independence Bowl. Kelly became the first coach at two different programs to beat the same team in the same season, as CMU beat WMU in the MAC regular season.

Kelly stayed at Cincinnati from 2007 to 2009, becoming the Big East Coach of the Year in his first year, and leading the team to two conference titles and three bowl appearances. The team won the first bowl game but he was not there to coach the third game, as he departed to become the head coach at Notre Dame.