Comments on The Rock Report: If Weis Fails

Great article, largely horrible posts and comments...

2008-03-25T20:59:00.000-04:00

Great article, largely horrible posts and comments.

Like it or not, Charlie did inherit a "veteran team." However, I believe he did more with those veterans than Ty could have ever hoped to have done. Its hard to lose with someone like BQ as your QB.

Charlie has faults, and I think they are, at this point, readily apparent. Thankfully, none of them are completely damning. Watching Charlie coach, even when our team is entirely anemic, is still not as bad as watching Ty or Davie. Regardless of how bad we are, there is still a different feeling between the CW and TW/BD teams.

While it pains (and everyone else) to see a season like last year's, patience must be encouraged. We cannot continually change coaches; it would be/has been program-suicide. CW has shown he can be a very good coach when the talent is there and that he can recruit very well. I feel its best to try and "wait out" some of CW's college coaching "growing pains."

If in another 2-3 seasons, nothing is looking up, then it may be time to reevaluate his hiring.

I want to thank a couple of posters for the laugh ...

2008-03-25T16:49:00.000-04:00

I want to thank a couple of posters for the laugh I got from two of the most ludicrous comments ever ascribed to this blog.

Cardinal... That CW has done a terrible job in his time here. Yeah, 2 BCS bowls with Willingham recruited (read: less than ND-like) talent really blows.

The winner, though was the entrant who suggested perhaps many of the bloggers could do a better job than Weis (one "s" by the way). Pure idiocy.

Weis has already proved he's a good coach. Let him...

2008-03-25T16:42:00.000-04:00

Weis has already proved he's a good coach. Let him do his job. Quick fretting over a program with talent, tradtion, a reasonable schedule and great assistant coaches. ND will be fine. I'm just as proud of my Irish now as I've ever been in my 25 years as a fan.

GO IRISH

This if for Chris, you sound like a raider fan, al...

2008-03-25T00:39:00.000-04:00

This if for Chris, you sound like a raider fan, always thinking you know more about football than the guy calling the plays. I for one am an Offensive Coordinator and know how hard it is to call a game and hope it all works out well. Trust me there might be some guys here that know about football, but how many can say they have been they guy that takes the hit when things go wrong. Walk a mile in his shoes before you criticize.

To say that there are guys on this site that can do a better job than Charlie Weis, is a bold statement. You better really know your football and have actually coached football game where you called the plays.

All of you that want to doom and gloom on ND because of last season have no faith. You may even be undercover SC or MU fans. Remember What Charlie did with a talentless team in 05 and 06. It's even harder to do a good job with an inexperienced team.

Just so you know who I am since I can't post my name, my name is Vince from Ca. So get over yourselves and if you are a real Irish Fan try supporting the team.

Great article. I hate to say it but ND made anothe...

2008-03-24T21:11:00.000-04:00

Great article. I hate to say it but ND made another bad hire. No head coaching experience coming in. With that being the case you don't surround yourself with MORE inexperience at the coordinator positions. QB situation was a disaster. Good players couldn't even wait until after the season to leave the program. Two years max, he's back in the NFL.

While I share some of the concerns you raise, ther...

2008-03-24T17:16:00.000-04:00

While I share some of the concerns you raise, there is a theme of success which you have overlooked. Charlie Weis has a history of success. He has worn many different hats in his coaching career and he has succeeded in every assignment he has taken. What is happening now at ND is Weis is learning that some methodologies he used successfully in the NFL do not work in college. Some successful college coaches are not able to succeed in the NFL, and some successful NFL coaches are not able to succeed in college. Why? Because they are not able to adapt to the realities of the other level. In my opinion, Weis's resume is proof that he is highly intelligent, analytical, and adaptive. In his brief time at ND, Weis has already shown a willingness to make changes when performance does not meet expectations (e.g. approach to recruiting and hiring C. Brown). He is a man who expects results and holds himself accountable. He is also a man who is able to learn from mistakes, work damn hard, and figure out how to get where he wants to go. Finally we have a coach who is truly a smart guy and is willing to bust his ass for ND and all their fans. What ND and all their fans need to do is give this guy some time to make the adjustments to the college level. He will succeed, he always has. Why is Latina still here? I don't know, but it may be that Weis concluded his (Weis's) blocking schemes were too complicated and it would not be fair to hold Latina accountable for his (Weis's) mistake. At the very least, I think Weis realized he needed to let go of some things - he can't control everything. At some point you have to trust your assistant coaches and let them coach. Latina and Haywood will now have their opportunity to show they are up to the task. If they fail, Weis will replace them. There was a lot of rebuilding to do when Weis arrived. Be patient.

Weis is a good coach and I believe he can be great...

2008-03-24T15:33:00.000-04:00

Weis is a good coach and I believe he can be great. Let us all just have a little faith. This year is going to be much better. A little easier schedule and more talent. I am looking forward to watching the Irish take the field. Go Irish!!!!

this is the the article that is perfect for Good F...

2008-03-24T04:41:00.000-04:00

this is the the article that is perfect for Good Friday, thank you judas. again right on time , a negative toilet is delivered.

This assessment of Charlie Weis is long overdue. ...

2008-03-23T19:24:00.000-04:00

This assessment of Charlie Weis is long overdue. Up until now everything written has bordered on hero worship. With the exception of USC in 2005 the lack of competitiveness against top 10-15 teams has been very troubling.

That and I've read where he has a tendency to insult the players during practices. That type of approach caught up with Parcells in his last couple of years in Dallas with many of the players glad to see him move on.

I'm nervous at having Haywood prepare the game plan and call the plays. I hope his inexperience doesn't lose games for ND.

If Weis ultimately fails the next coach should come from the college ranks and have a minimum of 5yrs head coaching experience. No more assistant coaches no matter who many super bowl rings or how impressive his credentials.

I like your articles for the most part but the las...

2008-03-23T12:27:00.000-04:00

I like your articles for the most part but the last few have me wondering if you really undterstand football, sprcifically ND football. While your critisims of Weis are sometime indefensible, I disagree about your philosphy of running (maybe not at MSU). I also disagree of passing. The way you play the game is run until they stop it and you pass until they stop it. If that means passing 25 straight times you pass 25 straight times. there is not rules that says you have to run to win games. If it isn't there you don't do it. Running the ball is not going to solve the problems. Also, I totally disagree about in-experienced coaches as being scary. If you go back and look the best coaches from from lesser known schools or div II. See Brian Kelly or Jim Tressel. Brian Kelly is IMO the best coach in college football. Give him USC's talent and I'll be he could win a title every year. So the mantra for ND (which has been the cause of their problems) was to always try to land a big name coach with tons of experience when they should have been looking at Div. or 1AA. App. State coach is a great coach, to take his team with a bunch of backup into the big house and win. So to have inexperience at coaching is not a bad thing and can have huge payoffs if done correctly. With Weis he at least recruits and we can't hire a new coach every 2-3 years, this will bring down any program no matter how great it is.

Jack, I think you're right about the start of a wi...

2008-03-22T20:27:00.000-04:00

Jack, I think you're right about the start of a winning streak. I think the team was starting to turn a corner by understanding the level of competition, and that they do have talent. I think the new class will find that the previous two classes have all positions covered except D-line (we need Yeatman). I think freshman that find regular teams playing time this year will be very special athletes. And dammit, we really need to punch Michigan in the mouth this year.

You're mistaken, Jason. Navy was the opponent the...

2008-03-22T20:14:00.000-04:00

You're mistaken, Jason. Navy was the opponent the week Hughes lost his brother. He didn't look too bad on that day either.

The W's don't even matter anymore, would just like...

2008-03-22T14:44:00.000-04:00

The W's don't even matter anymore, would just like to see some competitiveness at this point. If ND goes 0-10 and the margin of defeat is 7 or less, that'd be a successful season at this point.

Last year, I think I saw a beginning of a winning ...

2008-03-22T14:31:00.000-04:00

Last year, I think I saw a beginning of a winning streak. At a game watch, Duke, and at Stanford. With Jon Tenuta, the puzzle has been solved for Weis.

Anon - as far as Hughes against Michigan State, do...

2008-03-22T12:24:00.000-04:00

Anon - as far as Hughes against Michigan State, don't forget this was the week his brother was murdered. After his touchdown, Charlie said Hughes had a glazed over look in his eyes and could tell he wouldn't be able to play the rest of the game.

That's the reason you did not see him in the second half.

Very ironic overall. I have questioned Charlies ge...

2008-03-22T11:50:00.000-04:00

Very ironic overall. I have questioned Charlies genius ever since he came to ND. I have not seen anything resembling genius in any of his offensive play calling thus far. Ultimately he only served to open the offense up by throwing more. The last time I saw some real play calling was when Dave Roberts had the opoportunity to do the ofennsive play calling during the Vanderbilt game when Lou was unable to coach. Talk about keeping it simple and keeping the other team totally off balance. While Vandy was not a powerhouse by any stretch - it was masterfully called. All ball Bob didn't do so bad either on the defensive side of the bawl!

In any case this remains ironic overall as ND paid the big bucks to secure Weis' offensive guru status - extended his contract prematurely in my opinion and now Charlie gets to protect his reputation and escape any second guessing by passing the offense onto Hayward! What exactly then is the University paying all these milions for then I ask?

I also disagree to an earlier argument. There are a lot of very good football minds on this blog with more than a few of which could do a better job than Coach Weis. To be afraid of how one may interpret some discussions and to hide behind political correctness only serves to make an undesirable situation worse.

Again - 5 wins would be a tremendous season after last year.

Once again ND fandom demonstrates why no one in th...

2008-03-22T09:26:00.000-04:00

Once again ND fandom demonstrates why no one in the college football coaching landscape wants this job. I believe the article was well intentioned to demonstrate a few of the issues facing the coaching staff and team. However, I fail to interpret it as the gloom and doom many of the responses would have us believe. Charlie has a lot of work to do to get things right, and it's not going to happen overnight. If your patience is that short, there are plenty of bandwagon teams for bandwagon fans. And I love how self-professed alumni and "die-hard" fans call Weis out on the carpet for being overweight. Stay classy fellas.

Worried we're gonna be sitting on our coaches Satu...

2008-03-22T09:01:00.000-04:00

Worried we're gonna be sitting on our coaches Saturdays this Fall with blank stares thinking "I can't believe we suck again this year". I really want to wear the 9-3 rose colored glasses but can't allow myself after last season. "The schedule is soft"..."Charlie learned from last year"..."We have Tenuta to finally install the NASTY we were promised 3 years ago"..."The freshman will step in immediately"...all valid points but not enough to compensate for having the same players and most of the same staff as 2007. Never has OL performance been more crucial to a season as it will be in 2008.

Charlie's loyalty to a couple guys on the staff is noble but alarming; he is trying to make chicken salad out of chicken sh*t and if the OL doesn't perform this year the heat is gonna fall squarely on him for keeping Latina around. We've seen this many times in the past (Willingham with Diedrick, Jauron with John Shoop in Chicago, etc.) and it never seems to work out for the head coach in the long run. Weis must really believe in this guy if he's willing to put his own career on the line for him.

With all that said, word that Jimmy has put on 17 lbs of muscle in the offseason has me pumped. Make us proud this year boys! See y'allz on April 19th...

Thanks for the article. I agree that some of the p...

2008-03-22T00:05:00.000-04:00

Thanks for the article. I agree that some of the patterns in the play calling last year seemed strange and that Coach has some damaging character problems. But we also all, I think, agree that he is a very smart and clever fellow and that his successes in other areas earn him the right to our extended patience.
In the past, I think THE ROCK has tried to defend him and his vices too much. That's probably just normal patriotism taken a bit too far. I have criticized him alot, but that doesn't mean I'm not fully behind him and the team. Some of my ND friends don't understand this and won't speak to me anymore.
Let's be careful how we interpret each other.

Keep calm. This is going to be a good year. We w...

2008-03-21T23:25:00.000-04:00

Keep calm. This is going to be a good year. We will return to a great OL and have a running game as well as an awesome passing game.

Maybe I'm missing something, but in 2006 we were 1...

2008-03-21T21:13:00.000-04:00

Maybe I'm missing something, but in 2006 we were 10-3 and lost to Michigan, USC, and LSU. All of those teams had much better football players than ND. Not sure any of the points brought up in the article could compensate for not having as many really good football players as the opposing teams...

I think if Charlie wants to be pass happy, why not...

2008-03-21T16:27:00.000-04:00

I think if Charlie wants to be pass happy, why not desidn a package similar to that of the Patriots and Tom Brady. A Spread package to use our wr's and te's.
Bottom line we need a running game. I miss the days of when we had a reliable tailback who could carry the ball 20+ times a game and dominate, or the days of a offense line that could dominate too.

first gut cutting great analysis of the fat man an...

2008-03-21T15:46:00.000-04:00

first gut cutting great analysis of the fat man and all his flaws- you forgot his greed and gluttony in pursuing a malpractice ttial in boston who removed 20 feet of his gut on notre dame time and money -with the boston patriot jury rejecting his bs lawsuit in 1 hour- leaving coaching a weak team floundering for 2 months of jury preperation- when weis gets blown out by michigan ,washinton and usc- the annual rape of notre dame football with all star coach polian directing special teams -lets hope that alumni like you and me have bus tickets for the fat man, little charlie with the head set and kevin white on a grehhound out

Why does it take you this long to talk about the w...

2008-03-21T14:05:00.000-04:00

Why does it take you this long to talk about the white elephant in the room. the article is dead on about CW's shortcoming as a college head coach. We have posting this for two years on every website that discusses CF.
Most ND fans cannot accept this thought. Weiss has treated his job like an internship at the expense of the pride and reputation of Notre Dame Fottball. Horrible job.

Thanks for reminding me what at sad day 9/22 was, ...

2008-03-21T14:03:00.000-04:00

Thanks for reminding me what at sad day 9/22 was, watching Hughes obliterate the MSU defense only to ride the bench for the entire second half. Then it took CW, what, two more months to realize the beast that Hughes is? "Pass happy" doesn't even begin to say it.