Sticking Up for Charlie

The mainstream sports media has been all over Notre Dame football coach Charlie Weis these days. After the Irish lost their last regular season game versus the overpowering USC Trojans, the Irish dropped to a 6-6 record- not the kind you’d expect from a football program as prestigious as Notre Dame, but still a stark improvement from the 3-9 effort last season. After an auspicious beginning, in which the Irish jumped out to a 4-2 start, Notre Dame started playing harder teams and losing close ones, and wound up with a mediocre record. Now some fans are calling for his head, and the media is jumping all over the story. If you’d like to hear a voice of reason, check out the Bleacher Report, an open source sports reporting website with a fair-minded, magnanimous look at Weis.

Some things the article either brings up/things Jack Swarbrick should consider:

  • Weis is the nation’s No. 1 recruiter, in possibly the most difficult situation for recruiting.
  • How many of the losses were turnover related vs. how many were strategy related?
  • Production significantly increased this season, in all elements of the game. Why stop progress?
  • Firing Willingham Baer, O’Leary and Davie so quickly didn’t exactly breed long term success, did it?
  • Think about the contract.
  • Who are you going to replace him with? You just know it won’t be the solution.

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Permalink - Posted in General on December 2, 2008 - Post a comment