Multiple sources, including the Associated Press, ESPN and the Philadelphia Inquirer, report that the Philadelphia Eagles have interviewed Notre Dame Head Coach Brian Kelly.
ESPN reports, citing league sources, that Kelly met Tuesday with the Eagles and there was mutual interest after the interest. ESPN reports Kelly left the country after meeting and the two sides will meet again when Kelly returns from a trip out of the country this weekend.
A spokesperson for Notre Dame Athletics tells FOX28 the University will not comment on the reports.
Just hours before the reported interview with the Eagles, Kelly coached Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship Game in Miami, falling to Alabama.
FOX28 Sports Director Dean Huppert asked Kelly Saturday about his future, specifically about how tough it would be to leave Notre Dame if he had an offer from the NFL. "I don't even think in those terms," said Kelly. "Leaving is not an option... I mean, I don't have that in my head, like 'what if I leave tomorrow?' I just don't think about it."
"The biggest thing is both of us have unfinished business," Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick told FOX28 earlier this week in Miami. "You know, he (Kelly), like I, wants to complete this thing and I think that, at the end of the day, is the most important element of this."
The Associated Press reports Penn State's Bill O'Brien and Oregon's Chip Kelly have also interviewed with the Eagles last week, but chose to stay at their schools.
"The Eagles have been shut out, and as much as they're going to deny, you know, that this is part of the process, they've been shut out at every turn," Tom Sredenschek, Sports Director at FOX 29 News in Philadelphia, told FOX28's Tom Powell Wednesday evening. Sredenschek says Eagles owner Jeff Lurie is know for going off the beaten path a little bit, so an interview with Kelly wouldn't surprise him.
FOX28 is following this story and will have more on FOX28 News and at fox28.com as it becomes available.
The Associated Press contributed to this story
