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Notre Dame football: The complicated legacy of George O’Leary

By Daniel Morrison

1 Jan 1999: Head Coach George O''Leary of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in action during the Toyota Gator Bowl Game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The Yellow Jackets defeated the Fighting Irish 35-28. Mandatory Credit: Erik Perel /Allsport
1 Jan 1999: Head Coach George O''Leary of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in action during the Toyota Gator Bowl Game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The Yellow Jackets defeated the Fighting Irish 35-28. Mandatory Credit: Erik Perel /Allsport /
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NEW ORLEANS, LA – OCTOBER 03: Former Notre Dame football Head coach George O’Leary of the UCF Knights at Yulman Stadium on October 3, 2015, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Benjamin Solomon/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA – OCTOBER 03: Former Notre Dame football Head coach George O’Leary of the UCF Knights at Yulman Stadium on October 3, 2015, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Benjamin Solomon/Getty Images) /

We take a look at the story of former Notre Dame football head coach George O’Leary, how he got here, and where he is now.

Brian Kelly is on his way to passing Knute Rockne as the winningest coach in Notre Dame football history. Along the way, he did something that almost seemed impossible for twenty years, he made Notre Dame relevant again on the national stage.

Since Lou Holtz’s tenure, the Irish had been through four coaches, all of whom failed to bring Notre Dame football back to relevance for any extended period. However, only three of those coaches between Holtz and Kelly managed to coach a game.

One, George O’Leary, resigned after five days as head coach in disgrace.

No one was going to accuse George O’Leary of being a dynamic young coach, and no one was going to tell you that he was the biggest name out there. O’Leary was, however, a coach who knew how to build a career, work up the ladder, establish himself, and win.

He inherited a disaster at Georgia Tech and he not only stabilized the program, but he made them one of the best programs in the ACC.

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