Just for perspective, a sampling of news bits from when Charlie Weis was hired as Notre Dame's head coach.
"A widely-respected disciple of professional coaching standouts Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick, Weis currently is the highly-regarded offensive coordinator of the New England Patriots (under Patriot head coach Belichick). He has played an integral role in New England's victories in two of the last three Super Bowls - and the Patriots currently own the best record in the NFL in 2004 at 12-1."
"Weis has been a winner everywhere he has coached - and he has received widespread notice as one of the most creative and innovative offensive coordinators in football."
"All along the way, Weis has displayed the ability to develop successful offensive players."
"Current New England Patriot wide receiver David Givens (he played for Notre Dame in 1998-2001) on Charlie Weis: "He's been a teacher and coach of high school kids and he's got so much experience coaching NFL players like myself. There's no doubt in my mind he would be an outstanding recruiter because he relates so well to young people. I can say this because I've played for Charlie and I played at Notre Dame. I understand the pressures of playing and the pressures the coaches had coaching us at Notre Dame. They're all things Charlie would do very well with."
"Former Notre Dame All-America quarterback and current ESPN analyst Joe Theismann on Charlie Weis: "I think Charlie Weis in the right man for the right job at the University of Notre Dame. He understands throwing the football. That's what this era of college football is today - the ability to put it in the air. He's been a student at Notre Dame so he knows the culture of the University. He's worked on a big stage, having been part of World Championships two of the last three years with the Patriots. He's very inventive - his offenses have included defensive ends at fullback and linebackers at tight end. He's inventive as well as creative. He's a man who will bring a quiet discipline to the program. I think it's a great hire."
http://www.und.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/121204aae.html
I have nothing against Charlie Weis. I am not pretending I thought he was going to fail. He was the hottest head coach prospect for college OR the NFL in 2004 and it was a clear choice for Notre Dame to make. I bring this up because I think it is ridiculous that anyone is blaming him completely for their recent disappointments. Their program is broken because they've lost the prestige of playing for the Irish. High school players aren't impressed by Knute Rockne, Touchdown Jesus, or the Golden Dome. Brian Kelly has done well in three seasons at Cincinnati. But don't forget his success came with players that Mark Dantonio recruited.
2 comments:
Notre Dame never should have gotten rid of Ty Willingham.
I have nothing against Weis either and I don't blame him for Notre Dame's mediocre record...they were competitive in every game, with games often decided on the last possesion.
But they set the bar so high with Willingham that they can't lower it for Weis. (although they did give Weis more time) They set a precedent that good coaching is irrelevent to keeping your job if the wins aren't there.
I had no problem with the hiring Weis at the time, either. He seemed like a good fit with his ties to Notre Dame and all. He just wasn't a very good head coach, in hindsight.
I think it was the Navy game, where the head coach told everyone after the game that he knew his team had a good chance to win because he knew Weis wouldn't change his gameplan from the last time they played. Basically, Weis' offense was predictable and his defensive schemes were of no surprise. When teams know what you're going to do and how to attack you with ease, that falls on the coach.
What separates Kelly from Weis, to me, is the fact that Kelly is a winning college coach. He knows how to get it done at the collegiate level, whereas Weis only really know how to run a pro offense. And I'm not that much into "well he won with another guy's players". Dantonio spent 3 yrs at Cincy (coaching another guy's players?) and compiled an 18-17 record. Kelly got them to an Orange and Sugar Bowl. Kelly gets results, from turning around Central to making Cincy a player on the main stage. That is what the Irish need- a man that gets results.
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