This isn't a post on my position about whether or not Weis should be fired. (For the record, it's 'no'). But regardless of your position on 'should' or 'shouldn't' we need to get the facts straight here folks.
Fact: Notre Dame has a head coach named Charlie Weis.
Fact: Not a SINGLE PERSON within the ND administration has even mentioned looking for a replacement at this point. Jack Swarbrick, the AD, has specifically said that there is a review process in place, that MAY or MAY NOT have anything to do with Weis' termination. The VERY SAME process would happen in a year where ND goes 11-1. Therefore, there is just as much evidence for there being NO PLANS TO REPLACE HIM as there is for there being plans to replace him.
Fact: 100% of the rumors, innuendo, and discussion around a potential firing comes from 1 of 3 places, none of which have direct access to the decision-makers. 1) The media - it's a good story 2) ND Fans - they're miserable and need something to talk about since the on-field results are no fun to talk about 3) ND Haters - it's fun for them to stir up the talk
Fact: The only person that's said anything about Weis' job in public that might have a LITTLE bit of access is Shaq Evans. He says Weis is staying. Of course, Weis told Shaq he's staying, so we clearly take that with a grain of salt. BUT, it's the closest thing to 'real' information anyone's gotten.
CONCLUSION: Weis is ND's head coach, whether the media, fans or haters want him to be or not. There is literally ZERO EVIDENCE that a coaching change is even being considered (no, fans' ranting and raving about things, and saying "let's get Gruden" or "Meyer will come here now!" does not count as evidence). That's EVEN BEING CONSIDERED, let alone the idea that there is already a short list for the job. Repeat: There's NO EVIDENCE for this, other than the media and the fans running their mouths.
Until someone with some authority at ND comes out and says that a change is EVEN POSSIBLE, we should all assume that Charlie Weis will remain Head Coach of ND. Charlie is assuming this, and his currently-top-7 recruiting class is (and should) as well. You should too.
If we hear anything different (and my assumption is that we won't, but that's irrelevant), then we can act/respond accordingly. But right now, the chatter and the ranting and raving does not serve anyone but yourselves. It makes you feel good, you have fun doing it, it shows your 'love' for ND (right), whatever.
But it doesn't help. It won't help make ND fire Charlie if that's what you want. It won't make some magic-wish-coach appear to be interested even though there's no chance of it (let's hear it for Cowher!). It may freak some recruits out (which doesn't help whether he stays or not), which certainly shouldn't be your intent if you truly want the best for the program. If your true goal is to help ND be the best program it can be, zip it and see how it plays out. The recruits don't need your rants - it can throw kids off and start them questioning their commitment. The players don't need your rants - they're already bummed as it is, and don't need you tool-bags all over them online (and don't even start me on the snowball-throwing you pansy-ass traitors. If I were in the stands at the time I'd have knocked your teeth out and tossed you from MY STUDENT SECTION, bc in my section we freaking love and support our fellow players - we don't boo them, we don't bash them and we certainly don't FUCKING THROW SNOWBALLS AT THEM IN THE MIDDLE OF A GAME THEY'RE TRYING TO WIN YOU DOUCHEBAGS). I digress.
And the administration doesn't need it either. Your collective voice is that of a ranting lunatic strung out on coke-laced sugar cookies and CRUNK Cola. It's not gonna hold sway with ND leaders, sorry.
The season is over. Other than scoring more recruits, there isn't anything Charlie can or can't do at this point either.
So let's just chill, and let the current team and the current coaches do what they can do to make this program better - recruit and practice for a bowl game (assuming that still happens). We'll know soon enough one way or the other.
By John Karamazov December 1, 2008 - 8:51 pm
Not as sexy as an angry rant against Weis, but well-said and you’re probably right about just about everything. Moreover, I agree that in general it is in poor taste to criticize the players. But you’ve gotta admit, these past few teams have been pretty friggin’ heartless. Where’s the passion? What we need is more coaches like Corwin Brown who is madman on the sidelines, jumping up and down and screaming at people. And what we need is more players like Blanton, Anello, and Kuntz. Let’s put some damn FIGHT back in the Fightin’ Irish.
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By san diego irish December 1, 2008 - 9:31 pm
My nephew was in the student section and he said it was only a couple of knuckle heads chucking snow balls towards the players and that they did catch a beating from their more loyal classmates.
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By Notre Dame (sucks!) December 1, 2008 - 10:09 pm
Just think – when Fat Charlie gets fired and is replaced by whomever the next pipe dream coach is, Notre Dame will have the same number of coaches this decade as the number of first downs they had against USC! (And MORE coaches than first downs if you count George O’Leary.)
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By san diego irish December 1, 2008 - 10:22 pm
Yeah, which makes it hard to explain how the same offense that couldn’t get a first down against SC lit up Michigan’s secondary like the 4th of July. It could be worse, we could have the same lame coach for ten or fifteen years and accept our mediocrity instead of actually aspiring to something better.
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By Notre Dame (sucks!) December 1, 2008 - 10:29 pm
Yeah, you really should just accept your mediocrity. Everyone else in the nation has. Like I said, keep drinking the Kool Aid and believing that Notre Dame still matters.
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By Notre Dame (sucks!) December 1, 2008 - 10:41 pm
By the way, san diego irish, are you SERIOUSLY bragging about how ND’s offense “lit up” a terrible 3-9 Michigan team? That’s like bragging about picking apart Toledo. I’m not a Michigan fan, and never have been. Please inform me how the ND did against Boston College, Navy, Syracuse, or USC, not some crappy game in early September. I’m waiting.
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By san diego irish December 1, 2008 - 11:04 pm
With a lame, derivative name like Notre Dame (sucks!) I assumed you were a loser Michigan fan with nothing better to do than hang out on ND fan site and make fun Charlie Weis’ weight. ND “matters” to ND fans, I could care less who else thinks they matter. Apparently they matter to you too or you wouldn’t be spending your time reading ND sites.
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By Mike December 1, 2008 - 11:09 pm
The only “evidence” to the contrary is any public showing of support coming from the school at all. I’m trying not to look into it too much, but if he was definitely being retained, Swarbrick coming out and saying as much would calm things down and help Charlie while he is on the road recruiting.
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By san diego irish December 1, 2008 - 11:17 pm
I don’t think they would send him out recruiting if he was definitely getting canned. At worst, I think they are trying to find out who else might be available before making a decision.
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By The Biscuit December 1, 2008 - 11:52 pm
I don’t believe these teams are heartless at all. I believe they’re full of heart, and that’s why they’re still fighting, despite all the BS they deal with. The reasons we’re 6-6 instead of 7-5 (1 game different, just a note) or 8-4? 1) Youth – inconsistent play and big, costly mistakes 2) Terrible O-line play, likely tied to scheme 3) Young DL, just lacking size and impact players 4) Inability to finish games (very much, again, tied to youth) 5) Mismanagement/mistakes by coaches at key points in games 6) Again, youth
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By Bad Kermit December 1, 2008 - 11:58 pm
Come on, Biscuit. What do you expect the administration to say? “Yeah, we’re looking at other options right now, but there’s a possibility that we won’t find anything, so Charlie might be back.” Also, what Mike said. The silence from the Notre Dame administration is deafening.
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By John C December 1, 2008 - 11:58 pm
Nice post, Biscuit. I also think Weis should get another year. And the media and some fans screaming about how Weis will be fired without any word from the ND administration is not helping the team. I don’t know whether ND will keep Weis or not, but I’m not going to spread rumors and speculation before ND makes a decision. Here’s to hoping they keep Weis for another year. We’ll see what he can do with a more experienced team.
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By solo076 December 2, 2008 - 9:13 am
Biscuit-I think and have for some time questioned the heart of this team. I question it for a couple of reason 1)Every team who comes to ND plays to win the whole game. SDST who has never been to ND almost beas us, Pitt came back as did Syracuse 2) The team needs that attitude no matter what that no one is going to beat them in their house. There is no reason that with the fan support and the amount of sell-outs plus the talent (all-be-it young) that they cant establish that attitude. The SC game was huge and the kids played with heart the whole game. That is the first game where they have been up for 60 min. Even with a loss and under 100 yards for the game I am proud of them for the fight they put up especially the D. Its obvious the offense needs help but thats nothing that folks here havent said already. Youth and experience plays a huge factor in football as well as life. Even masters degree students dont start out as CEO’s. Most of the kids have winning records and loosing for them leaves a serious bad taste in their mouths, but you have to crawl before you walk and they will walk…Kermit, Biscuit, Domer one serious question; do you think that Ron Powlus is the right man for the QB coaching job?
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By Vin Franco December 2, 2008 - 9:57 am
Great post biscuit… HLS is a ND site that I can visit and not come away sick to my stomach reading rants from dumbass posters “who love ND”. The immaturity level is off the charts of these arm chair QBs who think they can influence
the decision makers at ND. Having a 22 year old son who is a college athlete, I hesitate to throw stink bombs at our players. Some of the comments concerning J.Clausen are down right hatefull. I believe the team needs to work hard the next three weeks and win whichever bowl game we select… the coaches need to continue recruiting the best players available and I do believe Weis needs to evaluate the performance of his positional coaches and maybe make some adjustments. If the offense can make as much improvement as our defense we will be in good shape next year
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By TBoneND December 2, 2008 - 11:27 am
Lets look at the overall records of -
USC vs ND 1988 through 2007;
USC 157/74/5 = 66.5% ND 165/76/2 = 67.9%
While not happy with the past 12 years please keep everything in perspective.
Charlie should have one more year (with changes in a few assistant coaches positions).
The recruiting of a third top 10 class will load ND with talent and should CW depart in 2009 ND would be able to lure a top talent coach with the stable full.
It is imperitive that OL should still be a focus this new class.
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By solo076 December 2, 2008 - 11:32 am
TBone what coaching changes would you suggest?
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By The Biscuit December 2, 2008 - 11:46 am
Kermit, I don’t expect the Admin to say anything like that. I expect ignorant ‘fans’ to shut their traps until they say what they say. Whatever it is.
Solo, I think CW did Powlus a favor. I don’t think he’s qualified, but I also think that Charlie views himself as the ‘real’ QB coach, so he wasn’t too worried about bringing in Powlus to be CW’s understudy and to help him with Clausen.
Other changes? OL. Either scheme or coach. I’m not sure which it is, but we should have a much better OL, given it’s the one place where we have some age/experience. I tend to think it’s scheme more than Latina, who I have always really liked. But one of the two has to be changed. Now.
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By The Biscuit December 2, 2008 - 11:52 am
Mike/BK, I think the Admin is being quiet because they want to meet with Charlie and let him know the deal. i.e. next year you will do this, this and this or we’ll have to make a change. they may also want to talk about the buyout and negotiate a restructuring of that whole thing in exchange for another year. they’re in a position where they have a little more power in the deal-making, where Weis had it all a few years back. i think they’re not saying anything because they want to lay some things on the table before going public with support/confirmation that he has at least another year. this is smart if this is what they’re doing. anything less would be foolish IMO. one week isn’t going to kill recruiting, it’s just going to give the media/morons a week to rant and rave and stir up rumors. as long as the recruits hang on for that week, which i expect given the way that CW brings them into the program (if we can hold onto the #1 class through 3-9 we can hold the #7 class for 1 week), there isn’t much damage done and the university will come out of it in slightly better position. or at least, everything will be on the table and conditions/expectations will be clear for the bowl game/next season.
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By Frommy December 2, 2008 - 12:10 pm
I agree that Charlie should get another year. Precisely because of the vacuum of available quality coaches. Urban Meyer? I’m sorry, but screw him, he passed the first time. Not to mention he is a sleeze. Brian Kelly? He’s winning with Mark Dantonio’s team. Let’s see where he’s at 2 years down the road when he’s playing with his own recruits. I do think that Charlie needs to make some coaching changes. Jimmy has gone backwards from the beginning of the season in his decision making process. Ron Powlus needs to go. During the Syracuse game, we had 11 defensive players staring at the sidelines for direction. Often Syracuse was already at the line of scrimmage while we were milling around like lost sheep. No matter how much you like Corwin Brown bouncing around the sidelines, that is poor organization and leadership on the part of the defensive coaching staff. If Charlie stays, he better realize he’s in the fight of his life, and cut loose of anyone who is not in the same mode.
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By solo076 December 2, 2008 - 12:38 pm
Biscuit, Powlus was a huge favor. Being a good QB does not translate to being able to coach the position. Yes CW has a lot to do with it but I think that they need to find another person to fill this void. I think that the play calling needs to revert back to CW for 2 reasons 1) this is an area he knows best and 2) it protects Latina. Scheme is the problem I think. Knowing how to pick up the blitz and run support are two areas that need help. Not all the run support is the lines fault though I think that #5 needs to just hit the hole hard and fast then try to dance (not the other way around). Again I also think that it is not entirely the backs fault either in that its hard to get the feel for the game when your changed out often. Now if the Irish were running something like a two back option set it would be alright except that #7 is not the most mobile or elusive..but that is not why he was brought in. Yes changes need to be made and they will make those changes but the Irish are no different in needing change than any other program. They just have farther to go than other programs CW is a student of the game weather or not he is a good head coach remains to be seen but his knowledge is valuable. As far as the contract who’s to say that CW doesnt want to restructure himself
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By trey December 2, 2008 - 1:51 pm
I think a lot of our problems could be summed up in one fell swoop(note, I dont say ALL) with hiring some assistants who will get out there and fire the team up. Hell, i watch teams like Florida and Bama and Tech, and they have 5-6 coaches after every series high-fiving players, slapping their helmets, and juicing them up. College football, unlike any other sport lives for pure uninhibited joy and excitement, and we havent had that in a long LOOONG time. I dont necessarily think you have to have a head coach doing it, but more people like Corwin couldnt hurt.
Davie and Willy were big snoozes, and Charlie is way too business like for that. It seems like we’ve forgotten what it’s like to love the game and love our school.
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By Jim December 2, 2008 - 2:21 pm
Good sensible post. Thank you for sanity. You just can not keep changing coaches. The turnover will set the program back.
I do think we are not getting the most of the players in terms of fundamentals. Youth is not the issue in the weakest area-the O-Line. I believe this is an area where a change should be made.
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By san diego irish December 2, 2008 - 4:31 pm
Biscuit–I think the renegotiation of the contract works well for both parties. I was thinking that Weis should pre-emptively negotiate for it. If I was him, I would say give me one more year and I’ll agree to waive the buyout. If he’s confident that he can win big next year he has nothing to lose because they won’t fire him if he has a good year next year. It also makes him look more sensitive to ND’s fiscal position.
From ND’s perspective, unless they have a truly big fish on the line (and I don’t think Gruden or Meyer are realistic) they don’t have much to lose. One more great recruiting class will soften the blow from another mediocre season, and maybe Weis makes some changes and gets the program headed in the right direction. If not, they can save ND a whole bunch of cash and use it to land another coach.
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By The Biscuit December 2, 2008 - 5:28 pm
SD Irish, that’s what I was thinking, except I would expect a reduction rather than an elimination. Charlie still needs to feed his kids and fund Hannah & Friends – he’s not going to agree to leave w/nothing, but maybe less. It could also be a 1-year reduction, in that he agrees to a clause that applies to next year, but if next year = X or more wins, then it reverts.
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By san diego irish December 2, 2008 - 6:11 pm
Good point.
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By san diego irish December 2, 2008 - 6:21 pm
I guess they worked something out:
Irish Eyes has learned first, that the Notre Dame administration will retain head football coach Charlie Weis for the 2009 season.
Sources have told Irish Eyes that athletic director Jack Swarbrick will publicly announce, most likely within the next 24 hours, that Weis will be back for his fifth season in South Bend.
There has been some uncertainty about Weis’ future since the 38-3 loss to USC, but it appears Swarbrick will be sticking behind Weis.
In four seasons at his alma-mater, Weis has a 28-21 record. His first two seasons, Notre Dame went 19-6 and played in two BCS bowls. Since then, the program has suffered a 3-9 season, and currently sit at 6-6, and awaiting its bowl fate.
Please check back with Irish Eyes for more information on this situation.
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By TBoneND December 3, 2008 - 7:36 am
In answer to solo076,
I suggest to change Latina OL coach (even Brady Quinn was running for his life)
Haywood OC even though its CW’s offense they do not play with enough emotion. (while in highschool I played for a state championship team. Yes we had some athletes but our coach motivated us to run through brick walls. He expected nothing but great effort and instilled in us the same expectations.)
The coach is now in the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.
The edge is missing from the current ND team. CW needs to bring on an assistant head coach to motivate this team.
Emotion+Talent=NC
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By TubaPete December 3, 2008 - 8:28 am
Telling eveyone to zip it and be patient was the best advice.
Too many “experts” have too many sinple explanations of the causes. The only certain thing is that everyone is frustrated by all the losses.
Rome wasn’t built in a day and it doesn’t look like ND will be able to solve all its problems in one year or two, regardless of who is the coach.
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By Her Loyal Sons » BREAKING: Biscuit Okay, Not Thrilled with Weis’ Return December 4, 2008 - 4:05 pm
[...] 1, 2008, when an irate Biscuit, fed up with rumors swirling about Weis’ possible dismissal, wrote, “If your true goal is to help ND be the best program it can be, zip it and see how it plays [...]
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