Why Phillip Fulmer Will Be The Next Coach At Notre Dame

(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

I know what you are thinking.  This article must have been written by some rabid Tennessee fan, sitting in an orange and white painted room with a picture of him and Phillip Fulmer and a letter sent from the former Tennessee head coach to the writer, framed on the wall just above his desk. 

Well, you’d be right.

However, don’t click the back button just yet.  There is a legitimate argument or two to be made about why Notre Dame would hire the former National Championship coach, and why the man known by southern football fans as “The Great Pumpkin”, would head north to take the reins of the Fighting Irish, a program that is destined to compete for championships on a national level. 

The first thing that has to happen for this scenario to take place is for Notre Dame to part ways with Charlie Weis.  As most college football fans know, this part of the equation is closer to happening than Charlie would like to admit. 

Weis has taken over play-calling duties, made several coaching changes, and is weathering constant rumors about his successor (this article among them), in an offseason that is crucial to Notre Dame’s history and Charlie Weis’s future as a part of that history. 

Prognosticators are mixed on the success that Notre Dame could have this season.  Most believe that this could and should be Charlie Weis’s most successful season in South Bend.  A 10-win season, a BCS bowl, and return to national prominence are on most fans’ minds and experts aren’t arguing. 

Third-year QB Jimmy Clausen returns to lead the Irish through a schedule that “on paper” looks to be easier than most seasons.  Defensive guru Jon Tenuta steps into the role as defensive play caller and Weis’s strong recruiting classes are starting to provide both depth and playmakers. 

The Blazer Chronicles, however, doesn’t see things so positive for the Irish.  Wins should come against Nevada, Purdue, Washington, Washington St, Navy, Connecticut, and Stanford.  Losses could come against Michigan St, USC, Boston College, Pittsburgh, and a Michigan team that will be much improved. 

If Weis survives the entire season, it will give him a 7-5 record.  That record won’t be enough to keep the sweatpants in the press box, and Notre Dame will fire Charlie Weis.  (After Notre Dame loses its third game of the season, Weis, who has said he will coach from the sideline, will return to the press box where he coached the Hawaii game last season, but it won’t make a difference.) 

Now that Weis is out of the way, we need to break down why Fulmer is a good fit for Notre Dame, and vice versa. 

The first thing you should understand is that as Notre Dame undertakes their fifth coaching search since Lou Holtz left in 1996, their administration has to look at the mistakes of the past and avoid making them again. 

Notre Dame can’t afford to hire another coach that can’t win more than 59 percent of their games.  (Weis’s 7-5 record would give him a .581 winning percentage.  Both Bob Davie and Tyrone Willingham held winning percentages of .583.)

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