Notre Dame’s Deal With the Devil

As storied programs Notre Dame and USC prepare to meet each other this Saturday in what is considered the greatest intersectional rivalry in college football, the two schools couldn’t find themselves at more opposite ends of the spectrum.

The Trojans are currently 9-1, and fifth in the BCS standings. Notre Dame, on the other hand, is crawling to the finish line. At 6-5, the Irish are coming off an embarrassing defeat to doormat Syracuse.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way. This game was supposed to be a clash of the titans. The only problem is that Notre Dame is not holding up its end of the bargain lately.

The recent success of USC under head coach Pete Carroll has been well chronicled. Since taking over in 2001, the former NFL coach has compiled an 85–15 record, with six straight Pacific 10 titles, two national titles, and a 5–1 record in BCS bowl games.

Notre Dame tried hiring their head coaching "savior" in 2005 in the person of former NFL assistant coach Charlie Weis. To do so, however, the Irish had to fire Ty Willingham (the only black head coach in Notre Dame’s history) who was just completing his third year as the Irish head coach. So what’s the big deal? Just fire Willingham whose last year ended with just a 6-5 record—right?.

Well, prior to Willingham, Notre Dame had a special and unique relationship with its football coaches. The administration guaranteed that every football coach would have at least five years to recruit and develop his own players. That five-year period matched the length of time of a new player’s eligibility. This five-year guarantee was part of the Irish value system. And love them or hate them, you had to admire this standard.

Notre Dame stood apart with this guarantee to its head coach. While other football programs impatiently pulled the rug out from under its coaches by firing them in sometimes unreasonable time frames, the Irish looked like a "city on a hill." It was just one of the reasons that Notre Dame football was considered "the" best coaching job in the profession.

There was intense debate within the Notre Dame administration as to whether they should trash its traditional deal with incumbent coaches to chase the next hottest coaching name. After all, a move like that would seem to be hypocritical. But ultimately, they decided to go back on their word to Willingham and fire him after three years. And in the process, Notre Dame shook hands with the devil.

The Irish pursued coaching wunderkind Urban Meyer, who turned them down and went to Florida. But Notre Dame rebounded by hiring NFL "genius" offensive coordinator Charlie Weis. With that firing and hiring junket, the Irish threw away an honorable tradition and dove head first into muck and mire that comes with a win-at-any-cost attitude.

As is the case with any deal with the devil, things look good at first. In 2005, Weis won 10 games with his "decided schematic advantage" using Willingham’s leftover players. In 2006, the Irish won 10 games again. And with Weis, Notre Dame was recruiting well as  the program ranked in the top eight of all recruiting classes each of the last three years according to some recruiting services.

But cracks began to show in 2007. Notre Dame finished 3-9 in 2007, and in some games couldn’t even execute the snap from center. In 2008, the Irish are only 6-5, with skin-of-their-teeth wins over out-manned teams like San Diego State and Navy. The embarrassing upset loss at home to moribund Syracuse simply sums up the Irish season.

Only now do the ramifications of Notre Dame’s deal with the devil become apparent. Charlie Weis is good at recruiting and using other people’s talent, but he can’t develop the talent that he brings in on his own.

As Weis' fourth year concludes with what figures to be a shellacking at the hands of the Trojans, Weis is at the center of a fan and media firestorm demanding his head on a platter. But firing Weis is complicated by the fact that the Irish administration gave him a contract extension after his first year. That contract extension to Weis is rumored to include a $21 million buyout should he be fired before his contract is up.

So as the greatest intersectional rivalry game approaches, it turns out that Notre Dame has 21 million reasons NOT to fire Weis no matter what happens on the field of play. In an ironic twist of fate, Weis will get that magical fifth year Notre Dame used to guarantee to all of its head coaches.

Man, those deals with the devil are expensive.