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his coaching staff in January and moved Chuck Martin from safeties coach to offensive coordinator. At least to one writer, going from T he news didn't make the splash or stir the debate I thought it de- served when Brian Kelly shuffled Choosing Comfort Over Experience UPON FURTHER REVIEW TODD D. BURLAGE both left Notre Dame to work under Urban Meyer at Ohio State, suggesting some backdoor dealings, as well as a lack of disclosure and communication with Kelly. None of this story is meant as an in- teaching defense to running an offense was a strange career progression at this level of college football. But apparently Martin's success building an offense as Kelly's successor at Grand Valley State from 2004-09 gave the Irish head man a level of confidence in him handling a drastic change in coaching respon- sibilities. Martin worked under Kelly at Grand Valley State during the four seasons from 2000-03. "I wanted someone that knew the system I'm familiar with, and our ex- perience coaching together [at Grand Valley] will make for an easy transi- tion," Kelly said of a bold staff deci- sion that will help forge his legacy and future as the Notre Dame head coach. The news of Martin's reassignment dictment of Martin or his abilities as an offensive coach. He has donned many hats and been successful at every stop along his 20-year coaching career, and his ability to motivate, learn and teach are evident in the sure approach he takes with his players and his peers. This story is more about Kelly mak- In January, it was announced that Chuck Martin would make the unusual transition from safeties coach to offensive coordinator in 2012. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND was greeted by the Irish faithful more with blind faith than the concern it warranted. Martin's offenses piled up 35.1 points and 427 total yards per game in the six years he was the head coach at Grand Valley after Kelly left. But can piling up points and yards at a Division II school against the likes of Ferris State and Saginaw Valley equate to success moving the ball against Oklahoma, USC and Michigan State in 2012? The answer to that question will help steer Kelly's tenure at Notre Dame, and offer some evidence to whether the third year head coach will be around long enough to enjoy any of the two-year contract extension he signed in January, which is expected to keep Kelly here through the 2016 season. For better or worse, Kelly couldn't resist the temptation to return to his strong Division II roots when he sought ways to breathe some life into an offense that grew more stagnant as last season moved along. But familiarity aside, the choice to move a defensive backs coach to offen- sive coordinator felt like either desper- ation or indecision — a drastic switch often done at the high school level, rarely at big-time college programs. 4 MARCH 2012 it's speculation at best, but perhaps five-star wide receiver recruit Deontay Greenberry grew uneasy with a de- fensive backs coach now running the Irish offense when he left Notre Dame at the signing day altar and headed to Houston. Martin's peculiar move from de- We may never know for sure, and ing potentially a crossroads staff deci- sion based on a familiarity built at the Division II level instead of hiring an offensive coach with a proven track record at the elite level the Irish are desperately trying to reach. Martin will bring his best every day. But will that be good enough to ignite an offense that scored only four total touchdowns and averaged barely 12 points the fi- nal three games last season, especially with the quarterback position still clouded in uncertainty when spring football opens March 21? This decision to move Martin to of- fense to offense was predicated when former offensive coordinator Charley Molnar left Notre Dame to take the top job at UMass after six years coaching under Kelly. Molnar's departure was neither unexpected nor a huge cause for worry. As a lifelong assistant for the last 28 years, Molnar was ready for new challenges and something more than a lateral move. But Martin's unexpected promotion fensive coordinator is remindful of when former head coach Charlie Weis gave the defensive coordinator posi- tion to a young and untested defensive backs coach named Corwin Brown in 2007. That move didn't end up working and a seemingly general disconnect within the coaching staff after the loss Dec. 29 to Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl brought reason for con- cern to the foundation Kelly has built his program on. The day before the bowl game, Kelly announced assuredly that other than Molnar going to UMass, the rest of his staff would remain united and intact. "We're very excited that we're going well for Weis, in part because adding Jon Tenuta to the defensive staff one year later created coaching division, chaos and a power struggle that be- came a domino in Weis' fall from his perch. But the promotion was logical because defense is all Brown knew as a fine college and NFL player, and a rising defensive coach. We called Brown's promotion to be able to keep our staff in place," Kelly said at the time. "We're going to have continuity within our staff and maintain that this year." Four days after Kelly's proclama- tion, running backs coach Tim Hinton and offensive line coach Ed Warinner to defensive coordinator in 2007 a "gambling hire." Five years later, Kelly has chosen a similar course with the promotion of Martin to of- fensive coordinator. Hopefully this recent "gambling hire" pays much higher dividends for Kelly than it did for Weis. ✦ Todd D. Burlage has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2005. He can be reached at tburlage@blueandgold.com BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED