Brian Kelly didn’t inherit much when he took over the Cincinnati football team three years ago.  As he tries to replicate his success on a larger scale at Notre Dame, his strategies for building something from nothing can be copied by any sub-par program.

1.  Demand higher expectations from your players, in referencing Tony Pike, the 5th stringer whom Kelly turned into a Heisman candidate, Kelly said: “He was caught in the same malaise the University of Cincinnati program has been caught in all these years.  A collective feeling of: ‘We’re happy to be here, but that’s about it.’”  Kelly told Pike to step up or go home.  It worked.

2.  Demand higher expectations from the program: Kelly refused to build a world-class program with sub-par facilities, and worked hard for better coverage from the press as well.  While the new stadium Kelly got may be unrealistic for your program, building support within the athletic department and faculty of your school is key to any successful rebuild.

3.  Demand higher expectations from your fan base: Kelly took it upon himself to earn the support and growth of his fan base.  “I realized at the beginning that I had to be at every chicken dinner, at every bar, at every community-service event, so the city could see the passion that I had for the program,” says Kelly. “That was the way to build support for it—that and winning games.”

Demand higher expectations, of yourself, your staff, your players, and your school.