SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -Charlie Weis’ preseason mantra for 2009 was that he and the Fighting Irish would show how good they were, not talk about it.
Five games into what many felt would be a defining fifth season for Weis, fans are still trying to figure out what the Irish (4-1) and their coach have shown. With dramatic wins against three sub-.500 teams and a loss to Michigan in the final 11 seconds, the Irish are an enigma. The same can be said of their coach.
Are Weis and the Irish on the brink of restoring luster to the golden dome or on the verge of being exposed?
The Irish have five games left with teams that currently have just one loss each, starting Oct. 17 against No. 7 USC (4-1). In the eyes of the Irish faithful, every one of those contests will be a referendum on Weis’ future. Win, and his job is secure – until the next Saturday. Lose, and at least some will be calling for his head.
But, as Weis points out, it’s not just if Notre Dame loses.
it.”
The Irish have started 4-1 in four of Weis’ five seasons. The first two led to Bowl Championships Series appearances, the best back-to-back seasons in more than a decade at Notre Dame. Last year, the Irish lost five of their next seven.
Weis concedes that, like fans, he would have liked it if the Irish had beaten Michigan State, Purdue and Washington more convincingly. But he believes the last-minute wins have done more for the players than big victories would have.
“I don’t think there would be any more gas in the tank leading into the bye week and USC if they had won by multiple touchdowns,” he said. “From the team standpoint, and this is really about the team, not about me, I don’t think their expectations could be any higher than they are right now after coming off these back-to-back-to-backers.”
For some, though, it is about him. They see Weis as encompassing all the bad traits of the Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick coaching tree he comes from. A Slate.com headline for a story on Weis during the dismal 2007 season, when Notre Dame went 3-9, called him “the worst football coach in the universe.”
He is widely viewed as being difficult with the media, although with rare exceptions he is amiable to reporters and with each passing year has been more forthcoming.
those with special needs in honor of their 14-year-old daughter, Hannah, who has a developmental disorder. In 2005, he also famously called a pass on a game’s first play for a 10-year-old boy dying of brain cancer who had requested the call, even though the Irish started on their own 1-yard line and the child had actually died before kickoff.
Boston College linebacker Mark Herzlich finds Weis’ reputation hard to believe. He didn’t know Weis other than a brief greeting after games until Herzlich was diagnosed in the spring with a rare form of cancer. Herzlich received messages of support from Weis and a lot of other college coaches. Weis didn’t stop there.
Weis kept texting and started calling. A friendship grew. Weis called one time to let Herzlich know he had lit a candle at the grotto, a shrine on campus where thousands go to pray. In August, when practice began, Weis sent Herzlich a text: “Our boys are fighting out at practice. Hope you are fighting, too.”
“It’s one thing to reach out and give encouragement. It’s another thing to take it upon yourself to become a guiding force and really a friend where there’s really no reason for him to be one,” Herzlich said. “He’s been great.”
at also hosts events for people with special needs.
“They could have just provided for what Hannah needed, but instead they decided to provide for the community,” Parker said.
Parker said he never talks to Weis the football coach. He talks to Weis, the father of a special needs daughter.
“He comes here for the joy of seeing his daughter have a chance to have a dance with friends,” Parker said.
Weis believes part of the reason people see him as arrogant is a “60 Minutes” segment three years ago. The piece was largely complimentary, although reporter Steve Kroft said Weis comes up short in self-control, patience and humility. Weis also set the tone for his image with some brash talk at his introductory news conference (he promised an intelligent, hardworking, nasty football team). Weis said he was trying to send a message to the players, not the media or the public.
“The players needed a cold slap in the face of reality,” Weis said.
Whatever the reason, a negative view of Weis persists for many Notre Dame faithful. But it is what happens on the field, not the perceptions off it, that are going to decide the future of the Irish and Weis. It starts against USC, which has beaten the Irish a record seven consecutive times. Five of those losses were by 31 points or more, including the last two under Weis.
t can’t be happening any more,” Weis said. “That’s not what we’re talking about any more. We’re at a different level now.”
The Irish are averaging 470 yards a game total offense, just 7 yards fewer than in 2005, when the Irish came within a play of winning until Reggie Bush shoved Matt Leinart into the end zone with 3 seconds left in a 34-31 win.
Despite last year’s 38-3 loss in Los Angeles, when the Irish didn’t get a first down until the last play of the third quarter and finished with just 41 yards passing, Weis believes the Irish have closed the talent gap.
“We have enough top-line athletes to compete. I’d still say we don’t have as many across the roster, but we’re at the point now where we have enough front-line guys to go toe-to-toe,” Weis said.
Fans will be watching to see if that is so.
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