Sighs

[RAGNAR]

Not the kind of echoes Weis wanted to wake up to
By JIM LITKE - AP Sports Columnist

Just about everybody except the higher-ups at Notre Dame has already figured it out: Charlie Weis isn't going to return the Fighting Irish to the top of college football anytime soon.

A loss to Navy for the second time in three years -- and at home again, no less -- should be proof enough. One of the cardinal sins of coaching is losing to a team with lesser talent, which Weis has committed more than once. What's worse about this latest loss is that afterward he stubbornly insisted he wouldn't change his approach.

Yet that's precisely what sunk Notre Dame against Navy. Whether it was complacency or their success against the Midshipmen's triple-option offense a year ago, the Irish began the game using the same defensive schemes and didn't adjust until it was too late.

"I really hope this doesn't come across wrong," Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said after Saturday's 23-21 win, "but I think the thing that helped us this year was last year, because we knew they'd line up the same way."

Notre Dame nose guard Ian Williams said much the same thing, which still had Weis fuming a day later. At his news conference Sunday, he pointed out that safety Kyle McCarthy said Navy's success wasn't the result of the Irish scheme. Then Weis added, "There's a reason why one guy's a captain and one guy's not."

Never mind that ripping one of your own players for stating the obvious is a low blow, or even that McCarthy, too, conceded the Irish "just tried to do the same stuff as we did last year."
Turns out Weis was just getting warmed up.

"The whole theme this week is going to be about accountability and dependability," he said, looking ahead to next Saturday's game at No. 8 Pitt. "I can authoritatively get in front of these guys and say, 'OK, we want to talk about what happened,' and just go through the game.

"Without being just totally condescending and demeaning, let them know that -- 'You want to know why you lose? Here's why you lose,' and go right down the list. It's always easy," he added, "because I always start with me."

Not exactly.

Weis is gracious about sharing credit, but after five years, there's more blame to go around and most of it belongs on his shoulders. Looking at game tapes and "authoritatively" pointing fingers isn't the point of coaching; it's putting players in a position to succeed before the fact. Everything about Weis' tenure suggests the opposite.

He's got a miserable record against winning teams, losing seven straight to top 10 opponents. The closest thing he owns to a "signature" win in five seasons is a close loss to Southern California in 2005, and the Trojans have beaten the Irish four times since. USC, in fact, might be the only alumni chapter lobbying for Weis to hang onto his job.

He's on his third defensive coordinator without producing even one topflight defense. Weis has had a chance to bring in his own recruiting classes -- including a few that were consensus top 10s _ yet fared worse with them than he did with the holdovers inherited from fired predecessor Ty Willingham. A loss at Pitt would leave him with the same winning percentage (.583) that got Willingham fired five years ago and the same record that got Bob Davie fired in 2001 -- but Weis has a contract that runs through 2015.

Kevin White, the athletic director who signed Weis to a six-year, $12-million deal at the end of 2004, is gone. But not before he tore up that contract just seven games into Weis' rookie season and nearly doubled the terms. Right about now, Notre Dame would be lucky to find anyone willing to take him off their hands at any price.

It's easy to see what Notre Dame liked about Weis early on: his Irish pedigree and Notre Dame diploma, three Super Bowl rings and a handful of seasons running the offense for Bill Belichick's New England Patriots. And arriving when he did, just after Urban Meyer rebuffed the Golden Domers and took the Florida job instead, Weis was greeted with hosannas instead of tough questions.

Notre Dame has three games remaining -- UConn and Stanford are on tap following Pitt -- and while a BCS bowl is out of reach, something on the order of the Gator Bowl might not be. And if the Irish are ready to settle for consolation prizes, they've probably got the right man for the job.

But this much is painfully clear: The boasts that so thrilled the faithful soon after Weis arrived on the scene -- "Now it's time for the X's and O's. Let's see who has the advantage now," he said upon unveiling his first recruiting class -- have awakened all the wrong kind of echoes.
___
Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke@ap.org

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ND's loss to Navy puts pressure on Weis again
By TOM COYNE - AP Sports Writer

SOUTH BEND, Ind.— After his first season as Notre Dame coach, Charlie Weis hung a banner in the weight room that read: "9-3 is not good enough."

Those words may prove prophetic.

That record is the best the Fighting Irish (6-3) can finish the regular season following their stunning 23-21 loss to Navy on Saturday, and critics of Weis, who has six years left on his 10-year contract, are out in full throat. Fan message boards are rife with those calling for his firing _ with some saying he should be let go immediately.

South Bend Tribune columnist Al Lesar wrote the loss could be a "deal-breaker," saying that the loss to Michigan had already faded and the loss to USC had been excused. But the loss to Navy is different, he wrote, it won't go away.

"It's one that will be on the top of the pile come review time," Lesar wrote.

Irish players showed frustration, too. Jimmy Clausen, hobbled by toe turf toe most of the season and needing to be helped off the field in the third quarter when he was hit hard and fumbled at the goal line, was called for a late hit for pushing back a Navy lineman after Clausen's pass bounced off receiver Michael Floyd's back for an interception.

After the game, Notre Dame nose guard Ian Williams said that Navy "out-schemed us and I think they just played harder."

That drew a response Sunday from Weis, who pointed out that safety Kyle McCarthy said after the game that Navy's success had nothing to do with the scheme.

"There's a reason why one guy's a captain and one guy's not," Weis said.

But even McCarthy said the Irish defensively "just tried to do the same stuff as we did last year." That's what Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said he was counting on.

The loss Saturday was reminiscent of last season when it seemed Weis had done just enough to get off the proverbial hot seat when the Irish inexplicably blew a double-digit lead in a loss to Syracuse, the first time in its storied history that Notre Dame was beaten by an eight-loss team.

Until the loss Saturday, the Irish were aiming for a Bowl Championship Series berth and the talk about Weis had generally subsided. That changed quickly.

Weis said he didn't hear from any fans after the loss, saying the only two fans he had to deal with were his wife Maura and 16-year-old son, Charlie Jr.

"Trust me, they're a lot worse than the rest of them," he said.

Now the best the Irish appear capable of is going to either the Gator or Cotton bowls, and they still have games left at No. 8 Pittsburgh (8-1) and at No. 25 Stanford (6-3), sandwiched around a game at home against Connecticut (4-5).

Weis was asked how the Irish, who have a star quarterback and two standout receivers, can fail to make it to a BCS game.

"Is the glass half full or is the glass half empty?" Weis asked rhetorically. "We lost three games by 13 points. But there are a lot of close wins that could have gone the other ways for us, too. I think we have some dynamic players on our team, but it still comes down to situational football. You still have to excel in situational football."

The situation for Weis is this: A loss at Pitt would leave Weis with a 35-25 record, the same record that got Bob Davie fired in 2001. It's also the same .583 winning percentage that got Tyrone Willingham fired in 2004. A loss also would leave the Irish at 6-4, just a loss away from the record Willingham had in his last season when he was fired and Weis was brought in.

"Right now you're a 6-5 football team, and guess what, that's just not good enough," Weis said when he was introduced in 2004. "That's not good enough for you, and it's certainly not going to be good enough for me."

The question is: Will 9-3, 8-4 or 7-5 be good enough?

[RAGNAR]

Now I get my say.

You'all can go fuck yourselves.

This is a sport... a contest... a challenge both mental and physical. One must win and one must lose.

Winning is always preferable, but is there shame in losing? NO. Not always. There is shame when one does not give all they have. There is shame when one lets their teammates down, lets down their coach, lets down their fans, by not giving their all. One can lose honorably and not be ashamed. If you give it all you have, there is no reason to look down at their cleats when you shake their hand after the game. You did your best and you can look them square in the eye and know it.

Football is not a game of perfection. It is not a gentleman's sport of grace, charm, and dignity. It is a match up of titans pitting brains and brawn against guts, the elements, and the willingness to sacrifice flesh, blood, and bone, for grass and gridiron glory. Its a game of calculated anarchy punctuated by intense moments of snot bubbles, tasting metal, hits that make a Mother's uterus contract for her baby boy, and being lucky enough or good enough to avoid being turned into a retard or becoming another statistic on a damage report.

A team can have a perfect season, but no team will ever have a perfect game. Too many variables to consider. It can literally come down to as much or as little as taking a breath. The amount of time it takes to suck in a quick breath of air is more than enough time to be offsides... to flinch... to hesitate coming off the line. That brief moment is indeed enough to mean the difference between victory and defeat.

Think about this. Both teams are lined up. Hard count coming, guys are going audible over what they see. Bodies are tensing and ready to explode into action, expecting impact and pain. A guy farts. Nothing major... just a short, quick fart. That is enough for one or two to laugh. Concentration is broken. Some jump at the sound as if it was the catalyst.... the signal of straining bodies being set loose into motion. Whistles blow... flags fly... shit happens. Offsides... five yards... so much for the QB sneak on inches to go. That fart... that lil butt sneeze... that unrelenting lunchtime bratwurst with mustard just cost you the game.

Sure it sounds funny. But it does happen. Football is a game built upon precise imperfections. It starts with a field supposed to be level. Ask anyone who has ever walked onto a football field if its level and they will laugh. It looks nice and level, but I have never been on one that doesn't have low spots, dips, and high spots capable of snapping bones if you are not careful. All ground is not created equal. Some spots are soft, some are like concrete. Some are overly dusty and some just seem to offer no traction at all. Walk a field just after a game and you see more than you did from the stands. You literally can find human biological remains. You can see blood... clumps of hair... vomit.... lung butter... spit... urine where a guy was hit so bad he lost control of his bladder... the list goes on and on. On a good night you may even get to pick up a lost tooth.

So much for that pretty green field with beautiful pure white markings eh. It is a battlefield. Unfortunately, people have even died there. Even spotting the ball is an exercise in precise guestimation. Consider a game where replays and challenges take place second guessing on-field calls... and even after reviewing from every angle known to man the judgement is inconclusive, so they go with the initial best guess option that was made.

Situational football. The entire sport itself is situational. A coach is a general. His staff are his officers. The QB is the platoon sergeant and the rest are soldiers. You have a gameplan. The great master strategy to win this weekend war. Both armies are set. Their respective nations are behind their men. The battlefield is painted and both sides take their places. The kickoff comes.....

The fucking wind gusts above the stadium and all the planning and preparation is shot to hell. The ball goes out of bounds at the 30 yardline and gets spotted at the 33. There is no shot at a return for yardage or score. No chance at a turnover caused... no deep stop for field position. No returnshot for a team record or even improved personal stats. Guess what!!!

Gameplan over.... shot to hell... situational football time.

I guess what I am saying, is someone has to win and someone has to lose. I told woobie before the game started that I could not be saddened regardless who wins. I am a ND fan. My Father was Navy. Both schools have a long history together. When thee two teams meet, it is NOT a game already decided by stats, rankings, or other nonsense devised by idiots who sat around and devised a smoke and mirrors policy to manipulate standings for gain. It really comes down to two groups of guys giving all they have for school, honor, and love of the game. It is classic football at its best even when played at times, at its worst. I feel its wrong to look at the game in terms of earning a spot in a BCS Bowl. That should not even be considered on a week to week basis. What will be will be. Look at your season one game at a time.

Play your best. Give it your best. Play each game as if it is your last. Ask any player who has half a braincell still functional, and they will confirm it. Every game... indeed every play could be your last. One wrong move.... one odd hit.. one strange landing... it could all be over. But maybe that too is part of the grand scheme of things.

Give it all you have. Hold nothing back. Love the sport for what it is... not what others might wish it t be. Play for yourself... for your mates... your coaches, fans, family, for all that is important to you. Never play for personal gain or riches. That removes the gaming aspect and makes it a business.

Compete for the love of the game. Follow in the footsteps of those who played for the love of the game. Allow those who come after you to see and feel your love of the game so they may follow in your footsteps.

You win as a team or you lose as a team. There is no "I" in TEAM. By the same token there is no "U" in TEAM. All are a TEAM.

Add your wins and losses up at the end of the season. But take each week as if it stands alone. When the dust clears, and sometimes it seems only a player or coach can understand and feel it. You could have won every game but still feel you have had a losing season. You can also have lost every game and still feel you had a wonderful, beautiful, and satisfying season.

But whatever happens... do it for the love of the game.