Pete Cordelli Blasts Brian Kelly, Dabo, Jack Swarbrick, Recruiting, & Admissions Alibis

The Seamy Side of Recruiting and Recruiting Services

When discussing Lou Holtz’s predecessor, Gerry Faust, Cordelli said that Faust wanted to prioritize recruits with high star ratings. Cordelli said the problem with such a plan is that prospects rated four or five stars often don’t turn into good players and that rather nefarious methods often overrate them.

“College coaches will call recruiting services and tell them that they need them to ‘bump this guy up from a two to a four because I get a bonus for every four-star or five-star that I sign,’” said Cordelli. “There’s kickbacks going on all over the country on that stuff. There was a guy on the Alabama staff that made no bones about it.”

King, a former voice for Rivals Radio and a veteran of several decades in the recruiting business heartily and completely agreed without hesitation.

Cordelli added that an Alabama staffer bragged about getting a Rolex watch because of his ability to get recruiting services to bump up ratings on players that he signed.

Every Game is Big at Notre Dame – No Academic Admissions Alibis 

Cordelli talked of his time at Notre Dame, which was before the current College Football Playoff era. Thus, every game was a must-win for Notre Dame because of their independence. The early season matchups with Michigan were considered the biggest game of the year because of it being a nationally relevant matchup that the Fighting Irish could not afford to lose or their season would be, in essence, over.

As he has said in previous appearances, Cordelli has no patience for former Notre Dame coaches using the excuse of academics as the reason for not being able to get quality players into the program. Admitting that South Bend isn’t for everyone, Cordelli said that Notre Dame had to increase its recruiting pool to over 300 prospects, almost double compared to a normal program. But that was the successful method utilized to deal with the unique circumstances of football life at Notre Dame.

Cordelli remains highly critical of how bad Brian Kelly and Notre Dame showed in the national championship game against Alabama in the 2012 season. “You have to win those games,” said Cordelli, who added that those matchups are for a Notre Dame coach’s career legacy.

Cordelli remains mystified by Notre Dame's failure to win a national championship since 1988. This is a bitter disappointment to Cordelli, who adds that Notre Dame should be in the expanded CFP every year and the national championship game “every four to five years.”

Cordelli praised the Holtz era, saying, “We changed the whole dynamic of recruiting.” He added that player development is a critical part of Notre Dame’s success formula. 

Cordelli compliments current coach Marcus Freeman and his recruiting success and is also excited about athletic director Jack Swarbrick's departure.  

Cordelli is Not a Jack Swarbrick Fanboy  

Cordelli is disappointed that, in his eyes, the Notre Dame schedule has been watered down from what it used to be. And he can’t understand why recently retired director Jack Swarbrick surrendered the chance for Notre Dame to earn a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. Cordelli has little use for Swarbrick and implied that he hurt Notre Dame more than he helped it.

Cordelli and King both sneered and chuckled about Swarbrick’s enormous ego and his aura of being the smartest man in the room. Clearly, they do not believe that to be the case, nor does anyone who knows anything about college football. 

Dabo Falls Behind and May Not Recover  

King and Cordelli pointed out that Dabo Swinney deserves credit for his two national championships but that he has slipped.

“Back when he (Swinney) won those national championships, we didn’t have the transfer portal,” said Cordelli, “everyone was playing on the same level playing field. Now that the game has changed. I think he’s being stubborn. We know Clemson has money. The last time they won, there was no transfer portal. Now that there is and we have NIL, I don’t know what he is trying to prove. I’m not saying go wholesale like the dude out at Boulder (Deion Sanders), but I don’t understand his thinking.”

Cordelli also had a fascinating point regarding Clemson’s coaching staff turnover. The retirement of Dan Brooks was a major loss because of his recruiting ability. Cordelli said that Brooks was “one of the most respected recruiters in the country.”

“After that last national championship, that staff changed dramatically,” said Cordelli. “That staff has gone through a lot of change. The one thing that Dabo had when he first took over was continuity of staff. He hasn’t had that lately. That, coupled with not going to the portal and not using the NIL has put Clemson in the decline they are in right now. And I don’t know if they are going to get back.”

Cordelli thinks coach Mike Norvell’s Florida State program is the best in the ACC and sees Mario Cristobal of Miami and Brent Pry of Virginia Tech as coaches and programs on the rise.

Not everyone will agree with Cordelli's bombastic diatribe. But his takes are refreshingly blunt, honest, and thought-provoking. In this era of being scared of offending somebody to the point of fearing that they will crawl into a safe space, it was a welcome change.  

Bravo, Pete!