Flabby. Ask me for an impression of Charlie Weis football right now and that's the first word I think of.
It's not as if I'm any example of physical prowess, sat at a keyboard all day and swilling caffeine through
the night: I know 'flabby'. But I'm not talking about the Weis waistline, which Charlie attempted to curtail with
gastric bypass surgery back in 2002. It's Notre Dame football that's flabby.
Flabby schedule, flabby effort, flabby record (especially in November).
The Fighting Irish have proud traditions. For one, they're used to winning, which seemed a cast–iron guarantee
when they hired Weis. But Charlie's 'decided schematic advantage' took three quarters to muster a first down against
USC — about as bad as it has been at any point in Weis' reign. They weren't expected to look good against USC,
but they needed to look competitive. Instead, they looked as offensively inert against the Trojans as any FCS team might have been.
Bob Davie was fired when he hit mediocrity (5–6) in his fifth year. His record: 35–25. That's 58%
Ty Willingham was fired when he hit mediocrity (6–6) his third year. His record: 21–15. That's 58%
Weis is 28–21 after four years. If his mediocre 6–6 record earns some at–large bowl, he'll be playing for 58%.
Surely that's not good enough for Notre Dame. If we want an FBS team that's academically strong but athletically
so–so (at least in football), we have Stanford or Wake Forest ...and Wake Forest are 7–5. ND's reputation
is for being a golden domed example of how a university can be outstanding in both. NBC aren't paying $9m a year for 6–6.
It's not as if the Irish don't have talent. When Tyrone Willingham was cut loose, part of the argument against him
was that recruiting was in recession. But it was Willingham's talent that Weis enjoyed those first two years, when
he went 19–4 in the regular seasons. Since then, with Weis' top ten recruiting classes replacing Willingham's,
Weis has gone 9–15.
Then there's that other Notre Dame coaching tradition: motivation. If the problem is players not making an effort,
that reflects on Weis as well. Motivational speeches, from 'Win one for the Gipper' to Coach Lou's pep talks, are
synonymous with the job. But this hasn't looked like a motivated team. This has looked like a team going in the wrong
direction. Whether they need coaxing, encouraging or plain ol' bullying, it doesn't seem to be happening.
Down the stretch, they almost blew a 27–7 lead against Navy, lost at home to a Syracuse team so bad their
coach has already been fired, then had USC turn them into 35–3 roadkill. So how is it possible to justify
the announcement that Weis' will be back for a fifth year? Is it just a matter of not wanting to pay whatever the
bottom line is on his buy–out?
Perhaps it's precisely because Notre Dame doesn't like second–best. Between Davie and Willingham came George
O'Leary, head coach for five days before resigning. Willingham was their second choice. Three years later, they
thought they could land Urban Meyer as a replacement for Willingham. Meyer went to Florida instead. Weis was their
second choice. Recruiting talented players might still be within Notre Dame's reach, but recruiting coaches hasn't come so easy.
Despite that intriguing three–day pause between the USC game and the official confirmation that Weis will be
around in 2009, Notre Dame will plod on, hoping the football program finds a burst of energy.
At least until they're sure what kind of shape they're in.
