John Kelly stood on the roof of FAU Stadium on a Tuesday last December, ascending 145 feet into the sky and three floors removed the commotion below him. The Florida Atlantic president showed off one of the campus’ crown jewels. He pointed straight out to the Atlantic Ocean. He picked out downtown Miami and Fort Lauderdale in the distance to his right.
Below him, FAU’s newest head coach greeted university dignitaries and reporters soon after Kelly introduced him as “the genius in coaching: Lane Kiffin.” An empty stadium served as the backdrop to both Kelly’s impromptu tour and the start of Kiffin’s reign at FAU.