No Hard Feelings?

Mike Coffey at NDNation summed up for me pretty well how I feel about the current coaching situation at Notre Dame.

I want Charlie Weis to succeed at Notre Dame.

In fact, my "off with his head" mentality has gotten me into hot water with friends who are vehement Weis defenders. But I felt then (as I do now) that accountability demanded that Coach Weis should not have been kept as head coach.

But I have no interest in seeing Coach Weis fail. In fact, I want nothing more than to be proven wrong and to have Coach Weis come in next year and win the national title.

Everyone that knows me knows that I live and die each week by what happens to the Notre Dame football team. Notre Dame is in my blood, and I could no sooner wish ill on the program, or worse yet stop cheering for my Irish, than I could pluck out my own eye or disown a family member. It's just not going to happen.

And I'm willing to eat crow for calling for his dismissal if that should happen. I'll take all of the accusations about being too quick to judge and for not having enough faith in Coach Weis, Savior of Notre Dame Football. But I call it like I see it, and am more than willing to admit when I'm wrong.

I am encouraged by the recent interviews Jack Swarbrick has had about the future of the program. He's a smart guy, and has had great success in negotiating in the past.

I'm sure that, whatever the specifics of the conversation he had with Coach Weis were, he's got a plan he thinks will work. And if the guy that brought the Superbowl to snowy Indianapolis has a plan that he thinks will work, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

More encouraging (if true) is that Swarbrick said that Coach Weis was on the same page during their meeting. That he knew what steps needed to be taken to move forward, and they were in complete agreement.

They say great minds think alike. Let's just hope against hope it's not the blind leading the blind, as both men had no experience going into their current positions. For better or for worse, Swarbrick has hitched himself to the Charlie Weis bandwagon, and will live or die by that decision.

I'm looking forward to what the offseason holds as far as changes go. It's kind of like Secret Santa—you have no idea what's in store for you, and no idea whether the gifts will suck or not. But you're still excited about unwrapping it.