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It is important that the Irish finish strong, both for the sake of the freshmen and sophomore classes, as well as the crop of current recruits, committed or still interested. The vultures are already circling ND's top recruits and a loss to Navy or Duke will make national headlines. Charlie & Co. are taking the proper tact in being as forthcoming and intimate with recruits as possible, however, all the good will and promises of future success will sound like a used car pitch if significant cracks become obvious in the program's foundation. |
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He's saying the right things, but if it was just about talk, Ty would still be coach. Hopefully next year he can get us to 8-4 or better. He's doing some things right, no doubt, but at the end of the days it's Ws and Ls. |
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Au contraire -- Ty was quick to blame anything & anyone but himself & his coaches. Still is. Check out some of the commentary this week after their loss to Arizona. It ain't pretty. |
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I can only say two things. |
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Ol' Ty has won two games at UW this season. They are 0-5 in the Pac-10. I guess the chocolate milk after practice didn't work. |
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I really have to echo what Brad just said. I am mad the Irish haven't done well this year, but I like Charlie taking the blame and not putting it on the players. It shows he is willing to accept his mistakes, learn from them and ultimately move on. |
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Also, I'd just like to remind everyone in this post to keep Robert Hughes and his family in your prayers. |
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well what else are you supposed to say when most of your games are not competitive and you are 1-7? if he didn't say it's his fault he would be considered even more arrogant than he already is. |
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So if he doesn't take the blame, he's more arrogant, if he does, that's only proof he IS still arrogant? |
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What's the deal with Robert Hughes? |
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Charlie relayed at the top of the presser that Hughes' brother Tony had died unexpectedly, and that Robert was taking time off to be with his family. There aren't any other details at this time. |
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The mistake that the anti-ND or anti-CW fans make is reading his transcript. |
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Thanks. For some reason the presser isn't opening on my computer... |
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It would have been nice if CW had publicly mentioned Malloy, White, and Ty as the prime reasons for this years record. |
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Ha! |
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I live out in Washington state, and after the quick start and the shine of Locker has worn off, people here are starting to get frustrated with Ty, his inability to finish games, his baffling "communication" style, etc. |
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Reading through my comments, I want to make it clear that I realize he does do that and think it is awful, not that I am in denial that he blames individuals. |
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Don't forget to add Wadsworth. ND's football program did not go downhill overnight. It occurred over several years primarily as a result of Malloy's, Beauchamp's, Wadsworth's and White's foibles (Moose is in heaven in disbelief). These guys were/are too elistist to belong to ND and the word on the grapevine is that CW speaks to White as little as possible. CW has blamed no one but himself and his actions speak for themselves. He has recognized for some time that if ND is truly to return to glory, he needs to recruit exceptionally well and based on his verbals thus far and his prior two classes, he has. As Bear Bryant used to say "great players make great coaches". Criticize CW all you want but in reality, what would have been, what would be and what will be the state of ND's program if CW was not hired. That's truly a scary thought on Halloween! |
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It is quite obvious that people like Anonymous, who wont reveal who he is a fan of, will cut Weis down at any available moment. I agree with the other posters, CW has taken the blame all year, and as a graduate of the finest university in the land it has to make him more ill than anyone that he is responsible. The gorilla is squarely on his back and he knows that. ND cant stumble in these last four games, that lowers the program to very new depths. Weis knows this, we need to give these men and the coaches all the support we can over the next four weeks, show the new recruits that this is the place they need to be and cheer on the Irish. |
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All the talk of Wadsworth and White brings me back to something I continually ask myself again and again. |
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I certainly agree with the FUPA that a lot of the blame lies with him. Still, he takes so much of the blame, it almost seems as if he doesn't KNOW what the problem is. There is a way to describe problems without calling out individual players ("The offensive line is not playing tough enough football, As a team we need to pick up the intensity" etc.). He seems to be babying the players too much. There needs to be some accountability, and calling out problems on the field to the press could be motivation for players to get it together. |
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"He's saying the right things, but if it was just about talk, Ty would still be coach." |
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I agree Brad, or how about the gentlemen at Minnesota or Ohio St are they not ND grads? There are many others, Gene Corrigan and Dick Rosenthal did well, for that matter look at Ara or Tom Pagna. I know they are aged, what about Roger Valdesari or Brian Boulac? |
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Krazy Karl, when Lou came to ND he was asked about the brutal schedule and his response was, "I am not responsible for who we play, when we play or where we play. I am responsible for how we play." Isnt that what Charlie is saying? The coach is ultimately responsible for how the games are played,I have yet to see players stripped of their scholarships because the team did not perform well. |
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Brad, I always find your posts very insightful and thought provoking. And then you said the two phrases "Athletic Director" and "Gerry Faust" in too-close-for-comfort-proximity-to-one-another. |
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The Holtz era ended with the appointing of Mike Wadsworth as AD. It is possible to graph the NFL draftee drop off to the first class after Wadsworth moved in. Holtz used to tell his recruits, "I guarantee you will play for a National Championship during your 4 years at Notre Dame". After Wadsworth arrived with his 'character upgrade', I don't believe Lou felt he could make that promise anymore, so e left. In fairness to Kevin White, he came into that 'new culture' of mediocre football. Most other sports have done well under his tenure, even Bball is on an upswing. I think White has seen the energy (and money) that top shelf football brings to the campus. Father Jenkins is a big supporter and that has to make Kevin White's job easier. |
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Duff Man scores again! |
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Kevin White is still AD because in the minds of the elistists, he has elevated the level of all ND sports. If anyone has attended any home football games this year, other ND teams are on the field being recognized during the infamous TV timeouts. Sometimes I have wondered if ND has placed more emphasis on the Director's Cup standings than football rankings. It is wonderful to be good in other sports no doubt. But White can't be given all the credit either. During the last 15 years, ND has given scholarships in other sports, male and female, azt a level it had not done previously, allowing ND to attract talent, for example, in baseball and soccer. Unlike Moose, Rosenthal and even Corrigan, White does not and probably never will bleed Blue & Gold. |
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Great posts, Duff Man and Voice. I like voices choices. Fr.Jenkins is a key, he has a similar viewpoint to FR. Heshburg and realizes the importance of a quality football program to the university. Fr. Malloy and Wadsworth both thought that "de-emphasizing" football would not hurt the university, they lost millions. |
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Condoleezza Rice would be an awesome choice!! The only problem is that she is a very close friend of [name redacted] from their Stanford days. He may have poisoned her against us, but after dealing with the PLO, Hamas, Iran, North Korea et al, I am sure she can spot a liar and a phony from a mile away. |
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I would like to see Clausen start these last four games. He is the future and the experience and confidence boost, assuming we can win, would be big. |
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Agree with you, E. Gotta give Jimmy these next starts, unless his shoulder is just too bad to throw upfield. |
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When I was a student at ND, I lived in the dorm room next door to Steve Orsini He is an exceptional ND man and would make a great AD. |
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Voice, is Jimmy's shoulder ailing? I know his elbow, but has he injured his shoulder too? He has taken a beating this year. |
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I thought it was Clausen's hip myself. |
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Until Clausen can throw the ball more than 15 yards he must stay off the field. This was part of Charlie's big mistake, thinking that somehow Clausen's 3 yard passes would be enough. but I digress...If you want an example of how a coach does throw a team under the bus and take no blame, read the bruination stuff about Karl Dorrell. This past week he blamed his loss on new guys not familiar with his system. This, a team with 20 returning starters. Give me CW everytime. |
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Doug-Of course you are right...it's the elbow. I just had a "Tim Tebowian Slip". Tebow's got the bum shoulder. |
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Ah, the sweet smell of catharsis. |
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I think Clausen's arm's not right. I saw him play a couple of games last year, and he had no problem throwing the deep ball. This year, I counted five long throws that looked Pennington-esque in their lack of steam. |
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Charlie is committed to Sharpley, he said so in his presser last week. He said something like "It wouldn't be fair to do a one-and-done on Evan." A reported asked something about that being the case for Jones and CW gave some convoluted answer about game plans. I'm fine with CW starting Evan, but only if Jimmy's not 100%. Personally, I hope Jimmy's 99% so that he's justified in starting Evan, because I think there is a lot to be learned by watching a couple games from the sideline. However, just to start Sharpley because it "wouldn't be fair" actually isn't fair to the team as a whole. I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but at least it's arguable that there are pros and cons to either player starting. Sharpley better play a helluva lot better this week than against USC, though, his passes were not crisp at all. |
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Doug - I am always amazed that people think Fr. Hesburgh was a big booster of the football program. I have nothing but admiration for the man, he was a great president and an even better human being. But he was the first one to de-emphasize football as he thought it was necessary to raise the academic standing of the school -- check out the fortunes of the luckless Terry Brennan who got stuck with the bill. Eventually Fr. Ted came around but it was a long dry spell between Leahy and Ara. |
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I know a surgeon here in Summit, NJ. |
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Congratulations to Lush and Duff Man for recognizing the root cause of the problems with the football program. |
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Voice, |
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Rays, I agree with you there. Although Brennan was right before my time and I was more of a follower after Ara came aboard. I think that Malloy deemphasize even more, but when looking at history it is about the same length of time. With the fact that all the money from football goes to the general fund of the university, as I believe and I may be wrong, it would behoove ND to put the very best teams on the field every year if for no other reason than to keep collecting the millions that go to the school from tv and BCS bowls. Let's face it, college football is a huge money machine today. |
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Voice, |
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Doug, |
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Matt, please read the post by Brad. It appears shortly after yours. He has it right. |
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CW may be no Ara, but who is? I think the fact that he realizes he is mortal is pretty evident. He made a mistake hiring Minter - gone. He made a mistake scapping the O and starting DJ - admitted and gone. He made a mistake with the pro-style practices - fixed. Now, is he a little cocky? Better be to have that job, better have the cajones. |
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Disagree that Gerry Faust was/is a boob. I am in Moeller's back yard and by all accounts he is a genuinely fine Christian gentleman and a devoted Catholic. His deep and abiding love for the University has been very evident in all my own dealings with him. AD? Probably not. Ambassador for what ND stands for? I'd say yes. |
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Remember this little tidbit from Ara, when the students yelled "Ara stop the rain!" early in his years he asked Pagna if he thought he could. A few years later he asked if he should. Ara was extremely confident, but quiet and gentlemanly always. If you arent confident when you come to ND then you are already behind the eight ball. |
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Domerplayer, |
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