San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly met with the media on Wednesday, marking his return to the facility following his father’s funeral in Maine. The press conference also came the same day Willie Taggart was announced as Oregon’s next head coach, so naturally there were questions about that.
Kelly insisted that he never planned on leaving the 49ers, and was not interested in the job. He said that he has never left a job with games left to play, and was not planning on changing that. He said it would be disingenuous to look for another job after making a commitment to the 49ers. He went on to say that he could not look players like Joe Staley and Antoine Bethea in the eye and talk about the importance of commitment and the team if he was busy trying to find something bigger and better.
Some people will believe him, others will call BS. He was pretty passionate about it, talking about how it was a character trait instilled by his father. But whether you believe him or not, he will in fact remain with the 49ers the rest of this season. Well, I suppose he could be fired before the end of the season, but you get the point.
Speaking of Kelly’s father, the highlight of the press conference might have been when he said his dad was buried in a 49ers sweatsuit. Kelly said his dad did not want to be buried in a suit, and so he went with 49ers gear. When asked if Paul Kelly had become a 49ers fan once his father joined the team, Chip laughed and said his dad knew where his son was at.