The Sports Rumors

The Curse of Willingham

Everyone knows about Notre Dame’s struggles by now. In all honesty, it’s past the point of even being funny. When they were 0-4, I was laughing but we are beyond that position. It’s ridiculous how bad they really are. If anyone has seen a single game of theirs, you know what I’m talking about. The team doesn’t look like a team. They have no emotion, no confidence, nothing. Charlie Weis went from the toast of the town to being questioned louder and louder on a week to week basis.

The much publicized firing of Ty Willingham a few years back was starting to look like a thing of the past; something that Notre Dame would no longer have to answer for. After two straight BCS bowl appearances, it looked like the replacement for Willingham was the right choice. It earned Weis a 10 year contract. But this is college football and things can change from better to worse as fast as anything we know. The Willingham saga is now rearing its head again as critics are asking the question, “Will Charlie get fired? Ty Willingham did.”

It’s a valid question. Everyone who has an ounce of sanity knows that what happened to Willingham was not right. Now as much as I hate Notre Dame and dislike Charlie Weis, and as much as I like and respect Ty Willingham for handling his departure with class, I can’t sit here and say that firing Weis is the right decision. Yes, he is having the worst season in Notre Dame’s history. Yes, he doesn’t seem to have much, if any, control over his team. Yes, he looks lost. Yes, if this was a scenario where you replaced Weis with Willingham, Willingham would have been fired for sure by now. But two wrongs don’t make a right. I firmly believe that. Firing Willingham was a hasty, improper decision. But you can’t correct that mistake by treating Weis the same way.

Suppose you fire Weis and the next coach comes along and has similar struggles. Do you give him the same time span you gave Willingham and Weis? If you fire Weis now, you have set a precedent for the future and nobody will want to coach there.

As much as Notre Dame has struggled, let’s not forget that Charlie Weis is no dummy. The guy knows how to run offenses and he will get things rolling again. Give him a couple of seasons and if the results are not what Notre Dame fans and alum are expecting, you can make the change. But making a change now just for the sake of it will cause much more harm than it will good.

Ty Willingham may be on the other side of the country, but his presence is very much felt these days in South Bend.

College Football Week 1 Recap

What a weekend!  What a great way to start off the 2007 college football season.  The main headline of the weekend is obviously the historical upset of #5 Michigan by Appalachian State, 34-32, in the Big House no less.  I was watching the post game shows after Virginia Tech’s 17-7 victory over ECU and trying to keep up with what was going on with the Michigan game.  I wasn’t buying into the potential upset until the fourth quarter, but even then, I dismissed it as Michael Hart ran in for a touchdown giving the Wolverines the lead with less than six minutes to go.  However, Appalachian State stayed composed and drove down for a game winning field goal.  They kicked the field goal on first down though with 28 seconds left in the game and got lucky that Michigan’s special teams couldn’t prevent a block.  Had Appalachian State not blocked that kick at the end, it would have gone down as one of the biggest coaching blunders in history.  Funny how a block can make one coach leave the stadium carried off on the shoulders of his players, and the other coach contemplating resigning.  Michigan got down inside the 25 with six seconds left and was ready to sneak out with a victory but a blocked kick as time expired prevented that, as well as Michigan’s national title hopes, from happening. 

 (The end is near for Lloyd Carr)

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Virginia Tech was the main headline going into the weekend but the Hokies seemed to have come out drained from all the hype and won in a very unimpressive 17-7 game against the ECU Pirates.  Sean Glennon’s first throw of the season was an interception and sent many Hokie fans into a “here we go again” frame of mind.  By halftime, the boo’s were loud and clear as chants for Tyrod Taylor (the 5 star freshman qb) were in full effect.  Glennon did play better in the second half though and that silenced the growing chants for him to be benched.  The Hokies defense didn’t play as well as they normally do, as they gave up 144 yards on the ground and didn’t have much of an answer for the speedy ECU quarterbacks.  However, Victor Harris gave Tech the spark, and the lead that they needed by intercepting a pass and taking it to the house.  Virginia Tech didn’t look very impressive in week one, but it was week one after a very long offseason for the Hokies.  They’ll need a lot more consistency from Glennon and the running game if they’re going to have a chance against #2 LSU next Saturday night. 

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The top teams did not have the big blowouts that we normally see every year in week one.  USC defeated Idaho 38-10, but 38 is a score you’d expect the Trojans to drop on Notre Dame, not Idaho.  Texas beat Arkansas sate, but only by the score of 21-13.  Wisconsin defeated Washington State 42-21, but 14 of the points came in the fourth quarter.  It was a one touchdown game heading into the final quarter, which was unexpected. 

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#12 California got revenge from last year on #15 Tennessee by defeating them in a very fun to watch shootout.  The final score was 45-31, but felt like it was much more than that.  The game was filled with big plays, big returns, and tit for tat scoring.  Definitely a great game for the Saturday night spot on the season opening weekend. 

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Notre Dame got SPANKED by Georgia Tech, 33-3, which completed my Saturday and left me feeling content.  I am not a Notre Dame fan by any stretch of the imagination, and I felt that Charlie Weis was being an arrogant prick by not announcing who his starting quarterback was going to be.  Yeah, well he definitely kept Georgia Tech on their toes.  Miss Brady Quinn much?  I’m going to enjoy watching Notre Dame suffer this year and I’d love to hear what those bandwagon Irish fans have to say now… because after week one, they’re awfully quiet.

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It’s halftime right now of the #19 Florida State @ Clemson game.  Clemson is thumping them 24-3, but you never know what the second half will hold.  I’ll have my Week 2 College Football Rankings out tomorrow before noon. 

I’ll also be putting together some sort of column for the upcoming NFL season opening weekend.  I’m trying to decide if I’m going to pick four games a week and break them down or if I’ll go all out and try and analyze each one, while providing my picks versus the spread.  I guess you’ll have to check back tomorrow to see.  Until then…