Oh, and it's gonna be racist if Charlie Weis doesn't get fired . . .

http://www.courant.com/sports/hcu-desmond-0920,0,3698610.story

A sample:


The issue of race can't be played all the time because it's too easy. It doesn't always apply. We know racism is alive and well in this country. Just deal with it.

But did it play a part in Willingham's dismissal? You're doggone right it did.

Willingham went 10-3, 5-7 and 6-6 with two bowl losses. In Weis' first two years, with all those lousy players Willingham supposedly recruited, Notre Dame went 9-3 and then 10-3, losing two bowls.

Now they're 0-3, staring at 0-4 and could be 0-8. And Weis has a contract like that?

 

Wasn't Whitlock telling us this two years ago?

 

Yes. Yes he was.

 

Not racist to keep Charlie Weis.
Dumb, maybe.

 

If Notre Dame was a racist institution, which is basically what this guy is saying without having the balls to flat out say it, they wouldn't have hired Willingham in the first place. They didn't have to. They're one of the most assertively un-PC universities in the country. But they did, because they thought he'd be a good coach, or at least the best who'd take the job.
Turns out he wasn't, at least not at Notre Dame. He had one good year, then two lousy ones. His recruiting got worse every year (which is why they only about three juniors or seniors who are worth a damn), and some of the "great" players he recruited rode the bench when he was coaching (like Samardjia). They probably should have given him another year, but it was pretty apparent he was never going to be great, and they thought they could get Urban Meyer. Not the university's proudest moment, for sure, but not racism, either.
Weis is an asshole and basically dicked away their entire preseason with stupid QB tricks, and yet he'll keep his job. But it's not because he's white. It's because he's a better recruiter, so there's hope for the future. And because he was calculating enough to push for a pricey extension when he had the chance. Something Willingham, a much classier individual, didn't do.

 

Well said, STL.
I really wish they had let Willingham finish out his contract.

 

How come ND honchos see no problem in overreacting and giving Weis a ridiculous extension, but obviously feel it would be wrong to overreact and fire him mid-stream?

 

He did go to two straight BCS games. Granted they were blown out, but he did do that. So that gets him a little bit of leash, I would think. Willingham wasn't fired for one bad season. He was fired for two in a row.

 

Here's what he wrote:

The issue of race can't be played all the time because it's too easy. It doesn't always apply. We know racism is alive and well in this country. Just deal with it.

But did it play a part in Willingham's dismissal? You're doggone right it did.

The writer flat out says it's all about race. Whether or not the situation constitutes racism is certainly up for debate.

But I don't think it's fair to question the writer's "balls."

 

He also wrote this

"Willingham quickly cleaned up after Davie became the first coach in Notre Dame history to start a season 0-3. It is generally believed that athletic director Kevin White wanted to fire Davie after that start in 2001 but let him finish his five-year contract -- and a 5-6 season.

So why wasn't Willingham, the only black head coach in Notre Dame football history, worthy of a contract extension in his first season?"

Then, after dropping that loaded question, moves on to Willingham's thoughts on Weis. Basically, he's implying that Notre Dame cut Davie some slack, and rewarded Weis, but did neither for Willingham because Willingham is black. There's a lot more to it than that.
And he never discusses WHY he thinks race played this role, he just throws it out there and then changes the subject.
Perhaps I went a touch too far in questioning his "balls," and he makes some good points, but the racial angle of this column seems like a cheap shot.

 

William Rhoden has been harping on this concept since Weis was hired. Here is most recent missive on topic:

September 15, 2007
Sports of The Times
Willingham Is Vindicated by Early Success
By WILLIAM C. RHODEN
About three years ago, I began to carry around an imaginary college football scoreboard. It is a colossal contraption with all sorts of facts, figures and notations that go beyond the mere statistics of a game.

Notre Dame-Charlie Weis is the “team” on one side of the scoreboard; Washington-Tyrone Willingham is on the other. I keep weekly and season-to-season updates.

Today the scoreboard reads Notre Dame-Weis, 0-2; Washington-Willingham, 2-0.

I began keeping score on the imaginary board in 2004 after Willingham was unceremoniously, and unfairly, jettisoned as the Notre Dame head football coach, three days after an embarrassing road loss to Southern California.

In the press box that evening, Notre Dame faces were understandably red with humiliation as No. 1 U.S.C. routed the Irish, 41-10. It was the fifth loss by 30 points or more in Willingham’s three seasons.

After an outstanding first year was followed by a losing season, Willingham had been under fire from rabid Notre Dame alumni. So on Nov. 30, 2004, Willingham, Notre Dame’s first African-American head coach in any sport, was fired. Weis was hired from the New England Patriots a month later amid toasts and platitudes, and I’ve been keeping score ever since.

Even though nearly three years have come and gone, Willingham’s tenure at Notre Dame is frequently mentioned. The nature of Willingham’s firing and Weis’s hiring says a lot about standards and double standards and about the enduring unlevel playing field for African Americans in sports and beyond.

Weis was named the 28th head football coach in Notre Dame history in December 2004 when he agreed to a six-year contract worth a reported $2 million a year.

Weis, unlike Willingham, has always been a news media favorite, with his one-liners and zingers. He was a Notre Dame student, loved Notre Dame and bled Notre Dame, but the Irish really wanted Urban Meyer.

In Weis’s first season, the program improved significantly — with Willingham’s players. You can argue that Weis did a better job of coaching Willingham’s players; I like to think they were older and wiser. Midway through the first season of his six-year contract, Weis signed a new contract: a 10-year deal worth a reported $30 million to $40 million.

The common wisdom is that Weis got the contract on the strength a 5-2 record and Notre Dame’s close loss to a great U.S.C. team. There was also the misguided belief that Weis might run off to the N.F.L. I imagine that the same influential forces behind Willingham’s departure felt they’d better lock up their resident genius.

Newsflash: There are no geniuses in this business, only great players. There is smoke and mirrors, and there are video cameras. No geniuses.

Notre Dame has lost four consecutive games by at least 20 points, going back to last season when they were routed by U.S.C. and Louisiana State. The 2007 Irish have not scored an offensive touchdown and could be looking at 0-3 after today’s game at Michigan.

This season Weis is playing with his own players. He recruited quarterback Jimmy Clausen, the high school all-American, and apparently is going to stick with him through thick or thin.

In Seattle this afternoon, Willingham continues to ride his high school all-American quarterback, Jake Locker. Locker, a redshirt freshman, has led Washington to its first 2-0 start since the 2001 season.

Here are a couple notes to put on the imaginary scoreboard:

¶A fourth season should be mandatory for any head football coach at the Division I level. Every coach needs four seasons, at the very least, to coach the classes he inherited and bring along the players he recruited.

¶When a university finds a gem of a coach like Willingham, keep him. The cost of losing is high. Fishing for talent these days requires “feel” and “touch.” Not looking far enough, wide enough or deep enough for talent, choosing the safe and familiar, is not good business; eventually you will pay.

¶Willingham should not be the last African-American head football coach Notre Dame seriously considers — or hires.

¶Finally, the great thing about football is that results don’t lie. From South Bend to Seattle, 0-2 is 0-2; 2-0 is 2-0.

Washington faces a tremendous challenge against Ohio State this afternoon, and Willingham knows how quickly things can change.

Notre Dame could find its rhythm today and defeat Michigan; Ohio State could easily burst Washington’s bubble. Last season Washington went into October with a 4-1 record, including an upset victory over U.C.L.A. The Huskies lost their next six games and ended up 5-7.

That’s why today is an early-season day of reckoning for Notre Dame-Charlie Weis, and Washington-Tyrone Willingham.

Make no mistake: I’ll be scoreboard watching this afternoon.

 

Look who weighed in today:

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/mariottiweb/567699,mariottiweb092007.article

People seriously have to stop thinking they have to weigh in based on every single ND and Washington result from week to week. It's exhausting. And Rhoden has no credibility in this one, because everyone already knows his agenda. "Gem of a coach"? Please.

What everyone forgets is the real reason ND fired Willingham - they thought this was their one and only shot to bring in Urban Meyer. Florida scooped them on it, and the rest is history.