Wednesday, December 1
Notre Dame Blows It
A tragedy occurred yesterday in South Bend. The firing of head football coach, Tyrone Willingham, was a mistake of monumental proportions. Let me begin by outlining my dislike for all things Notre Dame. I don't like the Play Like a Champion Sign. I don't believe Jesus cares if Notre Dame scores ten touchdowns or none. I hate that Notre Dame is on network television regardless of the opponent or the score. But all that being said, Notre Dame is still a fine academic institution with a history of football excellence. Yesterday, the athletic department and school administrators panicked and didn't realize what a good fit Willingham was.
Three years is not enough time to rebuild a storied football program. Three years is barely enough time to teach a new offense. Willingham, like Parcells this year with the Cowboys, is a victim of overachievement. Notre Dame didn't have the players to win ten games two years ago but somehow they did. The ND alumni grew excited and dreamed of national championships, Heisman trophy winners, and national prestige. But last year ND fell back, the victim of mediocre talent and an impossible schedule. Willingham wasn't even give the opportunity to recruit, coach, improve, and graduate his own players. The only players he personally recruited are only freshman and sophomores. Underclassmen dominate college basketball, but most are not
physically gifted enough or mentally tough enough to make immediate impacts in major college football.
All that being said Notre Dame is victimized every year by their independent status and their name. They don't get to play Mississippi or Baylor or Rutgers or Illinois in conference or get to schedule cupcakes like
Louisiana-Lafayette or North Texas. ND plays one of the most difficult schedules in the country year in and year out. They have perennial powerhouses Michigan and USC every year and up and coming teams like
Pittsburg, Boston College, and Purdue. This year they also played Tennessee in Knoxville. Of course they play Navy and Stanford every year as well, but those are not in the same category with the above mentioned teams.
If Mississippi wins an SEC game, that is considered an achievement. But if Navy or Air Force beats ND, that is historic. They might as well cancel the rest of their games because they will not have a bigger win the rest of the season and maybe not the rest of the decade. ND may very well attract the hottest coach in the country, Urban Meyer from Utah, but they will still have made a mistake. What top notch high school recruit will want to go to Notre Dame now? They gave up on their coach too soon and without much merit. Willingham accomplished all he could in three short years: two bowl berths, competitive games, and a step in the right direction. Until the administration decides to give up big time NBC money, join a conference, and play a weaker schedule, they will be searching for renewed hope at the end of each football season. My dislike for Notre Dame grew just a little more yesterday afternoon.
--AW--
**********************
I absolutely agree with Andrew. Three years is a ridiculously short amount of time to try to rescue a program from Bob Davie. I have to believe there's something else at work here; most likely, as Andrew suggested, Urban Meyer Salivation Syndrome. While I think Meyer is a fine coach, I can't say that I think bagging Willingham was a good idea. As Andrew correctly noted, it isn't fair and it sends a horrible message to kids who might want to go there.
Notre Dame may have once stood atop the mountain, but from where I'm sitting, this is yet another step backwards...
--PB--
Three years is not enough time to rebuild a storied football program. Three years is barely enough time to teach a new offense. Willingham, like Parcells this year with the Cowboys, is a victim of overachievement. Notre Dame didn't have the players to win ten games two years ago but somehow they did. The ND alumni grew excited and dreamed of national championships, Heisman trophy winners, and national prestige. But last year ND fell back, the victim of mediocre talent and an impossible schedule. Willingham wasn't even give the opportunity to recruit, coach, improve, and graduate his own players. The only players he personally recruited are only freshman and sophomores. Underclassmen dominate college basketball, but most are not
physically gifted enough or mentally tough enough to make immediate impacts in major college football.
All that being said Notre Dame is victimized every year by their independent status and their name. They don't get to play Mississippi or Baylor or Rutgers or Illinois in conference or get to schedule cupcakes like
Louisiana-Lafayette or North Texas. ND plays one of the most difficult schedules in the country year in and year out. They have perennial powerhouses Michigan and USC every year and up and coming teams like
Pittsburg, Boston College, and Purdue. This year they also played Tennessee in Knoxville. Of course they play Navy and Stanford every year as well, but those are not in the same category with the above mentioned teams.
If Mississippi wins an SEC game, that is considered an achievement. But if Navy or Air Force beats ND, that is historic. They might as well cancel the rest of their games because they will not have a bigger win the rest of the season and maybe not the rest of the decade. ND may very well attract the hottest coach in the country, Urban Meyer from Utah, but they will still have made a mistake. What top notch high school recruit will want to go to Notre Dame now? They gave up on their coach too soon and without much merit. Willingham accomplished all he could in three short years: two bowl berths, competitive games, and a step in the right direction. Until the administration decides to give up big time NBC money, join a conference, and play a weaker schedule, they will be searching for renewed hope at the end of each football season. My dislike for Notre Dame grew just a little more yesterday afternoon.
--AW--
**********************
I absolutely agree with Andrew. Three years is a ridiculously short amount of time to try to rescue a program from Bob Davie. I have to believe there's something else at work here; most likely, as Andrew suggested, Urban Meyer Salivation Syndrome. While I think Meyer is a fine coach, I can't say that I think bagging Willingham was a good idea. As Andrew correctly noted, it isn't fair and it sends a horrible message to kids who might want to go there.
Notre Dame may have once stood atop the mountain, but from where I'm sitting, this is yet another step backwards...
--PB--
Comments:
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I agree with a lot of what you're saying, Travis, but I don't think there was any case being made for why ND should fire Willingham. It's not so much that I don't think they have a right to (they do), it's that such a move is impatient and unjustified. Willingham is a damn good coach, in my opinion, and I think ND made a mistake in rushing to the judgment that he isn't.
Notre Dame's problem is not that Willingham can't get them to the top of a system that's built for them, it's that they have the chicken shit white boy culture. I agree with you - if they want to win, drop the pretense of being about building solid young men. Drop that BS and not your excellent coach...
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Notre Dame's problem is not that Willingham can't get them to the top of a system that's built for them, it's that they have the chicken shit white boy culture. I agree with you - if they want to win, drop the pretense of being about building solid young men. Drop that BS and not your excellent coach...
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