Charlie Weis deserved one more year at Notre Dame

Posted by Tom Keegan February 1, 2013 at 1:27 p.m.

He never says anything around which quote marks could be placed to prove it is so, but KU football coach Charlie Weis appears to harbor bitterness toward Notre Dame, his alma mater.

He uses phrases such as “another institution where I worked,” or “while working at another school.” If he says “Notre Dame,” it’s only in a printed release. Nobody actually hears the words roll off his tongue. The question is not whether Weis harbors resentment toward Ole Notre Dame, rather why?

The answer: Because he’s human.

A closer look at his Notre Dame career suggests 2010 very well could have been a turning point season so successful that if he had been allowed to stay one more year it’s entirely possible he would have been on the job for the duration of his 10-year contract.

Think I’m crazy? By that I mean do you think that even more so than usual? Think again.

Weis got shafted by his school, the very same university at which he used to sit in his dorm room and second-guess every move made by then Notre Dame coach Dan Devine. Never mind that Devine won a national title Charlie’s senior year. Weis was a football-crazed college student. What’s the point of investing your emotions into a football team if you can’t second-guess the coach?

To understand what must boil inside Weis’ belly every time he thinks about what might have been in 2010 requires a close look at his fifth and final season at Notre Dame. The 2009 Fighting Irish went 6-6, not a record that sits well with alumni from a school with such a rich football tradition. But look closer. Not one of those six losses was by a margin of greater than a touchdown. Add up the margin from all six losses and it’s a paltry 28 points.

If Weis had returned, it requires no great leap of faith to believe quarterback Jimmy Clausen would have delayed his NFL career by a year and would be a better NFL quarterback today for having done so. Clausen’s improvement each year under Weis was significant. Plus, he could have contended for the Heisman Trophy. With Clausen and Weis back, maybe receiver Golden Tate returns as well. Both players announced they would forego their senior seasons six days after Weis was fired.

An additional year of experience from countless returning players easily could have turned most of those close losses into close victories. No need to venture outside KU football history books for evidence of a 6-6 football team plagued by close losses bouncing back with a 12-1 team driven to the top by coming out on top in the close ones.

Mark Mangino’s sixth Kansas football team went 6-6. Two of the losses (Toledo and Nebraska) came in overtime, two others (Baylor and Texas A&M) by a combined margin of four points. A year later, Mangino was holding up an orange with that signature semi-smile, an image that represents what is possible when a stubborn football coach is given time to do it his way.

That doesn’t mean Weis would have executed a similar leap forward under the Golden Dome, but the similarities between KU in 2006 and ND in 2009 certainly tickle the imagination. Weis’ first KU season included five losses by margins of seven points or less. That doesn’t exempt the coach. Sometimes close losses can be traced to the head coach’s decision-making.

In the home loss to Rice, the Owls never could have closed the 11-point deficit if Weis, who doubles as offensive coordinator, had stayed with the run. The Jayhawks’ offensive line was manhandling the visitors. Not yet aware he did not have an accurate passer in the huddle, Weis mixed in too many passes instead of staying with the run and opened a door through which Rice stormed.

In the overtime loss at Texas Tech, a surprising pass-play call on second and five at the Tech 15 predictably failed and took the momentum right out KU’s upset bid. Kansas had started that fourth-quarter drive on its 11 and gained 75 yards on six plays, all runs. A Nick Prolago field goal tied the score with 45 seconds left. Nothing suggested Tech was going to keep KU from getting five yards on two more running plays. By then, Weis had changed quarterbacks and knew accurate passing was not Michael Cummings’ forte. It was a strange call in a game Kansas might have won had Charlie called a run play there.

With promising Brigham Young transfer Jake Heaps at quarterback the next two seasons, Weis’ team has a chance to perform better in close contests. Even if it doesn’t, that won’t change the reality that Weis deserved one more year on the job at ND, a year that might have been so successful it earned him many more.

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Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I agree Tom that Weis abandoned the run in the Rice game. We were pounding right down their throats on a drive in the 4th quarter with the lead and at their 30 yard line we had a holding penalty on first down. Weis called passing plays on the next 3 downs. If we had James Sims that game, we probably win.

I think if we had an average kicker and average QB play we would've beat Rice, NIU, OSU, Texas and TTU to finish the regular season 6-6. With Michael Mesh, Eric Kahn and Trevor Pardula at kicker and Heaps at QB we have major upgrades at those 2 positions. Remember, after breaking some of Steve Young's single season records at BYU his freshman year, Heaps got replaced by Riley Nelson his sophmore year because their coaches changed offensive systems, Heaps got hurt, and Nelson played better in the spread than Heaps did.

clevelandjayhawker 4 months, 2 weeks ago

amazing how many games comes down to the right foot of some 19 year old kid

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I think Doherty missed 2 kicks in the Rice game. From that point on KU rarely attempted FG's, and with good reason.

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

...meh.

1-11.

Couldn't beat Rice or NIU at a BCS conference school.

Not entirely convinced Notre Dame screwed him over.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Mangino went 2-10 his first year, and back then the Big 12 wasn't nearly as deep or talented as it is today.

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I wasn't referring to the Big XII losses.

Rice and NIU......emphasis on Rice....at home.....in Memorial Stadium....

Inexcusable; not to mention hilariously sad.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Like I said above, if we had James Sims or an average kicker, we beat Rice. Weis shouldn't have abandoned the run on 1st and 20, but nobody could've known Crist was that bad at the time. As for NIU, they went to a BCS bowl, and if Doherty made his FG and Crist threw a fairly accurate pass to a wide open Kale Pick on the 4th and 19 we win that game as well. It's not like Weis was out there throwing passes with horrible accuracy and missing chip shot FG's.

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

A Big XII coach should be able to beat Rice at home if he suited up the school's intramural ultimate frisbee team....

We still had Tony Pierson...one of the best...and both Cox and Bourbon should be able to tear up RICE's defense.

I don't care if our kicker only had one leg....You beat Rice at home. End of story.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

So KU should fire Self because he lost to Northern Iowa, Bradley, and Bucknell?Seriously, Rice was way better than KU was at key positions like QB and kicker. The worst thing Weis did in that game was call a passing play on first and 20, and follow it up with 2 more passes. If he knew how bad Crist was at the time, I'll go out on a limb and say he would've called running plays there instead.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Reuben, but that didnt happen. Thats my whole point: why did we lose that particular game. I want "more" than just a standoff comment like we could suit up the Sisters of the Poor and they could beat whoever. More analytical about each loss, please. But that would prevent you from making the blanket-comment blasts you like to do, eh?

1_Jaydoc_1 4 months, 2 weeks ago

This is so incredibly inaccurate its not ever worth rebutting

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

First of all, I didn't say we should fire Weis. I don't think he lives up to his reputation as a coach, but he's the best we can get right now. So whether I like it or not, we're stuck with him.

Secondly...I didn't think we should necessarily fire Self after the Bradley loss, but there were people putting him on the hot seat at the time.

But we're comparing apples and oranges here. KU in basketball is dominant, and the NCAA Tournament is a wild card. We compained and whined and demanded his head at times, but we were also Big XII Champions, so firing him would not only be unjustiable, but completely insane.

And getting upset in a basketball tournarment is quite a bit different than getting owned by Rice's quarterback.

Now...if Bill Self was 1-19 right now instead of 19-1, then your question has merit.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Realize your "KU in basketball is dominant" is pure hindsight. We all see that it is now, but back during Bradley, Bucknell days you may have missed the total bitterness by many KU fans about missing Roy, yet realizing also that Roy jilted us. Self got a real chance to prove his ways. And frankly, I believe those ways are better than any other college coach, hands down. All I want is a real football coach be given a real chance (multiple years). But we also cannot have a sub-3 win season ever again, to be quite honest, if one has truly built a program up...We are entering the NextStep year...(we have left behind the 1-11 TotalRebuild year). See how slow/methodically this turnaround is built?

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I was joking about Self. I expected you to have enough common sense to be able to take that joke. As for the defense, which a year ago was the worst in college football history, giving up 25 points when you're playing your 2nd game of the season with completely different scheme and coordinator who had only been at KU for 8 months isn't that bad. The missed tackles on that key 4th and 4 conversion for Rice late in the 4th quarter were bad, but last time I checked, Charlie Weis wasn't one of the defenders at fault.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

(my post aimed at Reuben, that is who I quoted).

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Ralster, unlike Rueben, I click on the reply with the arrow at the bottom right of the comments I intend to reply to. Sorry for the confusion.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Reuben, I will just say this, at this point regarding your own same pattern and attitude regarding KU football (you have left ample evidence): See your initial post here starting with "...meh. 1-11.....". Your whole post is a gut-reaction to a truly horrible season that started with some expectations--maybe your patience level simply isnt equipped to handle such a crash? Consider the similar crash this season by KC Chiefs fans, who were expecting a playoff contender (experts picking KC to win the AFC West...then wow, look what happened). You look at "should win" regarding Rice and NIU, but leave off TX, TxTech, OSU...as those were 1-made-play away from W's. I wish we had won them just to make people with your gloomy outlook feel better. Speaking for myself, Im just glad to have real coaches back in the saddle, but at least I know this takes time. Look at the gamefilm of each loss: Sims out for 3 games was an enormous factor, and there are other obvious reasons such as QB + WR play, and defensive talent limitations. See, your "gut reaction" posts about KU football TOTALLY fail to do any sort of analytical justice or commentary on "why" each specific game was lost. You do not do justice to the truth of "why". Saying 1-11 to me only begs the question, "why" each loss. Reuben, do you see/feel a difference between a Gill 1-11 season vs this last 1-11 season? Most people see progress in most areas, and yes that did not carry over into the W column last year. You talk about 1-11 as if you didnt see a single game, now just assume from this record that KU football is zero % better than it was under Gillidiot. Thats what you sound like with your gut-reaction-to-the-crappy-record. Realize other readers here are NOT 14yrs old, and may be more analytically inclined as we continue to judge our own football program (not just the record in a total-rebuild year). And why shouldnt have Weis sounded "optimistic" to start the year last season? Yes, of course he has to show real W/L progress this season. I just dont get your rationale for posting what you did. I do think you care about KU football getting back to winning ways, not doubting that...

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Nothing but respect, ralster.

And I do want...more than anything for KU to get back to those winning/competitive days.

Just being honest about it. You can argue about competitiveness all you want, but if you can't win, it's worth nothing.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

There's no denying that if we had an average Big 12 kicker and Jake Heaps playing at the level he did at BYU, we would've won at least 6 games last season with wins over NIU, OSU, Texas, and TTU. See my first comment at the top of the comment section for more on Heaps and the kickers we'll have next season.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

No worries, Reuben. Lets see what we can do this coming season. What boouk says just above my this post, is exactly the tantalizing tidbits that have me on the edge of my seat regarding this coming season. Gotta start winning the close ones--nothing teaches a team how to finish better than actually doing it a few times (the power of 'belief'). Self's teams the last 2yrs have that. Thats the mentality I want KU football to develop, Weis is trying, but gotta get the Ws also...RCJH!

akgjenkintown 4 months, 2 weeks ago

NIU did go to a BCS bowl game. Apparently beating KU last year brought success to those who were fortunate to beat Weis' team. An amazing 10 teams KU played went to a bowl game. Can't imaging that 10 out of 12 teams one plays go onto bowls very often, if ever. Tom retire the Notre Dame stories. Time to look forward.

clevelandjayhawker 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Im trying to forget last season, it hurts to think about sometimes.

HouTexHawk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

What is with these puff pieces about Charlie Weis? It sometimes appears to me that local newpaper are cheerleader or marketing arms of the team which is not good. Weis' teams got progressively worse at Notre Dame and 3-9 at Notre Dame is probably worse than 1-11 at Kansas. He lost to Navy. Notre Dame has a longer winning streak against Navy (43 games) than Nebraska had against KU!! I have always been one of those who cheer against Notre Dame and remember finding Weis, as ND coach, to be particularly arrogant and not likeable.

I am all for giving someone second chances, but it is not at all clear to me, given how Notre Dame and Florida as OC performed that Charlie Weis is going take to competitive position in the Big 12. I hope it happens but I also wish there was more objectivity from LJW.

oldalum 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Maybe it's because people are always calling for football articles instead of all basketball. And this time of year, there is nothing but puff to write about.

tkeegan 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Ron Doherty, I'm told, played hurt, hiding a groin injury from the opposition. His return to health could be enough to give KU an average kicker. Dayne Crist's subpar season has tamped down expectations on Jake Heaps, but really has nothing to do with Heaps. I would expect KU will have an average kicker and average quarterback this coming fall. Can KU win six of these seven (listed in order from least-to-most challenging) and earn a bowl bid? 1. South Dakota; 2. Louisiana Tech; 3. Texas Tech; 4. @Rice; 5. Baylor; 6. @Iowa State; 7. West Virginia. Louisiana Tech and Texas Tech have new coaches and are early season games, which could mean those teams don't yet have the new coach's system down.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

WVU loses Geno Smith and Tavon Austin and we play them at home. That could be our least difficult conference game. With an average kicker and Heaps KU should beat SD, LTU, Rice, TTU, and WVU.

April13 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Tom, I believe you in regards to Doherty possibly being hurt. In addition, kickers are like hitters, golfers and tennis players.....once things go a little sideways...it's really tough to get it back - even when healthy.

It's a very specific skill - much like hitting a baseball, tennis ball or golf ball. How many great hitters in baseball hit well when they have a sore rib, pulled back or arm muscle or even a sore ankle?

As you said...we should be improved in this spot next year and it could have a huge impact on the team.

texashawk10 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Doherty was hiding his tweaked groin Tom? I don't remember at this point if he did it against Rice or TCU, but it was obvious at the time he hurt himself because his range was gone after the FG attempt he hurt himself on.

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Leave the negativity to a real KU football fan. We don't need your help to bash our own team.

Charlie Weis was hired on NFL coordinator reputation alone. That's all. It was a failed experiment, but give our AD, Zenger, some props for at least taking a shot. He went and paid for a guy with national exposure at least.

...and no one expects him to be here more than three years. So I understand you came here to start a scuffle, but just remember, no one knows more about sucking at BCS conference football than KU fans.

Your attempts are unnecessary, and your energy wasted.

KGphoto 4 months, 2 weeks ago

He's been pretty clear about how long he will stay, and I've seen nothing in his character since arriving that indicates he's lying. This is a challenge for him. I think he truly cherishes this job and this atmosphere.

You need to take an anti-depressant. : )

tkeegan 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Agree with your opinion that he cherishes this challenge, not an easy one. I'll be surprised if Weis is not KU's coach for a minimum of five years.

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Ha.

Maybe so. I'm a lot more upbeat on the basketball threads...I promise.

I just hate sugar-coating things. I don't think any coach should make excuses for a poor performance, so I'm not going to either.

Rice was inexcusable, no matter how much we want to spin it.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

When did Weis make excuses?

KGphoto 4 months, 2 weeks ago

First off, remember Weis didn't make excuses. Secondly, I don't see what Keeg Party did here as sugar coating or spinning. I see it as reasonable analysis. As a writer Tom is entertaining some what-ifs. No harm in that. It's interesting.

And even if this or that happened in the Rice game, and KU pulled out a close win, would you be satisfied with anything other than a blowout to the lowly, bowl-winning Rice Owls?

More importantly, are you calling Weis a bust already? Is losing to Rice a fireable offense to you? Rice simply whipped Air Force in their bowl game. Surely you don't think they are that bad.

April13 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Didn't Rice go to a bowl game?

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Cant pass condemnation-type judgement when we know how flawed and undermanned team we sent into battle this last season, now can we? Clearly if glaring deficiencies are not improving in 2-3 YRS, (and the W/L column doesnt hit .500 in a year or two), then we can hammer the "he aint gettin' it done" button. Y'all aint sayin nothin' after what cluefull people know was a total rebuild year. Try again in 2-3yrs...I got the time. Do you all?

AzHawk97 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I look forward to the blog that projects what Turner Gill's hypothetical third season at Kansas would have looked like. And it should have the same premise as this blog where every scenario like in Weis's mythical extra year has a positive outcome.

jhawkrulz 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Except that no one was attending classes and our entire team would have been inelgible.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Yes, Gillidiot would have had over 12-14 players academically ineligible, not to mention the usual off-field issues (that Weis dismissed), and dont forget the "conditioning/wt-lifting optional" bullsch-tt--> So how would that be "spun" into a .500 ballclub (which is a very realistic target in Year3 of a KU football coach). Weis should expect the same minimum criteria in Year3 (that is only fair, since I am basically blasting Gillidiot, surmising his "year3" ku team could NOT have attained .500 ball). Not without divine intervention, and what is that old saying?: God helps those who help themselves! (laughter)

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

...(because Gill did NOT help the football program, as he actually deconstructed the foundations of the program)...

KGphoto 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Speaking of deserving another year. How about 5 more for Snyder? Blech!

http://espn.go.com/ncf/conversations/_/id/8900956/bill-snyder-kansas-state-wildcats-rewarded-5-year-extension

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

gross.

JayhawkInAustin 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Gross as in "It's really gross that we're going to lose to these guys for another five years."?

Reuben_J_Cogburn 4 months, 2 weeks ago

You got it.

JayHok 4 months, 2 weeks ago

As many KSU fans have pointed out congratulations to him on this contract. However don't believe for a minute he'll stay head coach more than a few months even. This is one of those contracts with loopholes. An attempt to keep recruits from wandering and fans in the stands. As I've seen a few KSU fans point out, unfortunately for them their AD won't be able to do a national coaching search as easily. BS said himself the perfect fit for the head coaching job is own son, Sean. Did you see the opening kickoff of the Fiesta bowl? According to the KSU fans I've read that is part of the reason the assistant coaches are leaving, the favoritism towards Sean when he shouldn't be considered. Their program was in turmoil there behind the scenes for the last month, that's why this contract was signed. BS is an incredible coach. He's also the only human being on staff who is able to think football all day and all night to the point of being anti-social in all the other aspects of his life. He's a great fit for KSU but the answer is certainly not his son. That's what the KSU fans are nervous about right now, many of them feel the best time possible to do a national coaching search and get a good one is after an 11-2 season but instead they signed a 73 year old to a 5 year contract. RCJ

KGphoto 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Well, don't forget Paterno won the Orange Bowl at the age of 80 and went to the Rose Bowl at 83. It's not like he can't still coach for 5 more years.

srj 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Weis losing all those close games at ND and KU screams to me bad game day coach.

KEITHMILES05 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Who cares of the "what if's" at ND? That is uncalled for and backwards thinking. Stop. It. Right. Now.

jhawkrulz 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I always think that Charlie Weis' worst mistake at ND was keeping a hands off approach to the defense. With the inheritance of defense he received he got lucky, but it ended up leading to his demise.

I think the best thing was Charlie Weis hired Dave Campo, admitting he needs some defensive help.

tkeegan 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Agree about the Campo hire. Charlie needed to hire a defensive coordinator with enough confidence and presence to battle for his side of the ball, not always an easy thing when the head coach is coordinating the other side. Fact that Charlie let Campo take JaCorey Shepherd is a good sign that the head coach knows his most important cap says HC, not OC. Campo obviously saw a lot of potential in Sheperd, who with a year of seasoning could be primed for a big year at CB.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Keegan, thanks for taking the time to respond to individual posters, and such discourse is highly commendable, and frankly what most of us really enjoy. "Hawktalk" doesnt only have to involve the spirited discussions under the basketball threads. No reason KU cannot try to get serious about football. I have some OU friends who related to me that OU is very serious about contending in basketball, for example, and have hired an old-ball/fundamentals coach in Kruger (who is now contending...), and have done a state-of-the-art, high-tech renovation of OU Mens Basketball facilities. People get tired of losing, big donor alums start squawking (or booming), and Gill & Capel gets the boot. I like your article, as I feel Weis is a real football coach, who has assembled a BETTER staff at KU than he had at NDame. So it follows that such a staff be given the conventional-wisdom length of time to judge progress & results. Thanks for your time.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Campo is certainly better than any of the DC's Weis had at Notre Dame.

sbendjayhawk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Do you know who Weis had at ND for DC? He brought Jon Tenuta from Georgia Tech, widely considered at the time to be one of, if not the best DC in college football. When that wasn't enough, he brought in Corwin Brown as co-defensive coordinator. At the time, Brown was a young, highly touted defensive assistant with the Jets, and was being considered for NFL DC positions. Not saying that either is as good as Campo, but Tenuta was a proven DC. GTech defense ranked highly during his time there and i am pretty sure their defense was at least top 10 his last season there. One of the biggest knocks on Weis at ND was the fact that he assembled such a "great staff" and couldn't accomplish more.

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Yep. Now let a couple of recruiting cycles give him talent+size+speed+experience in the same defensive scheme for more than a year, and we just might start to look like we know what we are doing, and maybe make a critical 3rd or 4th down stop.

tkeegan 4 months, 2 weeks ago

How Charlie Weis does at Kansas will determine his legacy as a head coach. If he doesn't succeed, it won't be for lack of effort. He's obsessed with his job. The only place you'll catch him in public is at Dillon's, where I ran into him when we both were shopping for steaks. He goes from work to home with his only stop to buy groceries. He's not using Kansas to get another job. He has his son as part of the program and is grooming him to get his own coaching career started. He wouldn't have that opportunity everywhere. I agree that his staff here is better than his ND staff. Now can he can get some WR recruits who resemble those he recruited to Notre Dame? That might be a little tougher, but he and his staff won't stop trying.

ArgyleJayhawks 4 months, 2 weeks ago

It's going to get super awkward in this paper when Weis leaves for a different gig if he has a successful year...

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Great post Tom. I'll disagree with you to an extent on the WR's, however. ESPN scouts say JUCO WR Rodriguez Coleman, who chose KU over Cincy and KSU, "plays fast and explosive" and "is tall and lanky with good coordination and body control" and "has very quick feet and good start/stop ability given his size (6'2)" and "is a smooth and fluid player." JUCO WR Mark Thomas, who runs a 4.4 40 and chose KU over UCONN and Syracuse, "has quick feet and a quick surge off the ball" and "is a crafty route-runner who is a reliable target with soft hands." Finally, Ishmael Hyman runs a 4.35 40 and chose KU over Rutgers, Syracuse, Boston College, and Purdue. If they can catch (unlike Chris Omigie), there's 3 good WR recruits right there.

CrystalJones 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Wow, so much negativity.

I just don't understand that so many fail to see what we have here. A head coach who has 4 Super Bowl rings, a D-Coordinator who was the coach of the Dallas Cowboys, an All-Pro offensive line coach, the best incoming QB in the Big XII, the best running back in the Big XII (a sure Heisman candidate), the best running back unit in college football, a terrific playmaker in Pierson, and 20 experienced junior college players coming in who have two years of college football experience already.

Sorry naysayers, but I think that's a formula for success. Can't wait for the spring game.

Oh, and Bill Snyder getting another 5 years? LOL. He's going to lose all 5 to us. Bill Snyder is no Charlie Weis.

njjayhawk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Jimmy Clausen a Heisman candidate? No way close. I saw him play in college: he was "ok", but nothing great. Charlie could not deliver at ND by ND standards -- that's a simple fact. So, he's now here, which is good for both him and KU.

keithii 4 months, 2 weeks ago

This an article about Charlie Weis . I have followed him since he came into KU's view. I love Weis and wish him all success for KU, and Charlie. What I think is just as important is the man who hired him, Sheahon Zenger. Weis is KU's first football coach to have the AD at his back. KU said they are serious about football. Everything about Weis says "serious". He looks you in the eye and tells it as he see's it!

There are no guarantees in any hiring. But in my view we could have hardly done better. And I don't see him leaving until he has a winning program, and proves he is a great coach. He has too much pride and too much to lose to do otherwise.

Brock 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Weis' job is to get the football program out of a deep ditch. There is little talent on the squad and, under the circumstances, recruiting is poor (it may be improving but not by much). I am pulling for Charlie, I am watching KU ball on TV, attending when I can, and I think Coach has the guts to keep pushing ahead to make things better.

But, Man, the ditch is hard to climb out of.

Boouk 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Our recruiting class is ranked #41 by rivals. It has 2 4-star defensive linemen. That's way better than Gill's classes.

texashawk10 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Bad argument, Gill's only full class was a top 35 ranked class by Rivals and included some of the better players on the team now like Pierson and Heeny. That class also included multiple 4 star players so that argument is flawee as well. Gill's 2011 was a very good class by KU's standards. The problem however, was every other aspect of Gill's abilities and joke of a conditioning program that didn't develop players to their potential and wasted the great 2008 (maybe 2007) class Mangino brought in that was ranked 31st by Rivals.

Emery 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Tom Keegan deserved one more year at Sports Illustrated. Just kidding, Tom. Good article! You know how to stir the pot!

Emery 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Actually, Mark Mangino deserved one more year at the University of Kansas.

AirCapJay 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Weis should have won Rice, Northern Illinois, TTech and Texas. We left those games on the table. Should have had a 5-7 season.

tophawk87 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Turner Gill deserved one more year here....

ralster 4 months, 2 weeks ago

NO. Get a clue. Read above. Gill allowed KU's program to decay to the point it did: laughingstock of Div.1 football. The dozen+ academic ineligibles, the no conditioning, the clueless game mgmt. You obviously didnt watch Gill's games. What? You think Gill was a nice man? OK. But he sucked majorly as a football head coach--absolutely clueless on the gridiron. Try not to post your blissfully ignorant crap here about football. Oh, but let me add the obligatory: '...but Turner Gill was a nice man, God love him..." (does that make you & people like you happy??!). People like you, with no understanding, typify "loser ku fans". Some alums want more on the gridiron than you do. Turner Gill didnt deserve a G-d-mn thing after what he did, other than get punted farther than any kicker he could recruit, and thats exactly what Zenger did! (God love Sheahon Zenger, eh!)

PSM 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Now write an article about how Mangino got screwed.

mahkmood 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Totally agree. The Lawrence media did nothing to support Mangino when Lew's witch hunt was unleashed... and this article neglected to point out that following the 2009 signing day, the Jayhawks' recruiting class was ranked 31st by Rivals. Mangino's final season had losses by 4, 7, 14, and 2 in conference - there were key injuries that season including Reesing... and a lot of key turnovers by proven players (Mangino had no control over those turnovers). This article is basically cheer-leading for KU FB via Weis. There were cheer-leading articles about Gill too. It's the same old story. Prop up the new coach until he's fired, and then write articles about how the new coach is so wonderful and how the future will be better than with the previous guy. To quote my favorite KU FB coach of all time, "Dollar signs"

Jayhawker28 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Gill was the worst coach in D-1.

Mark my words ladies and gentlemen; we are going bowling next year. With this JUCO overhaul which far supercedes the talent than the one Mangino had in '03, and with this coaching staff, we are headed in the right direction.

Rock Chalk!!

jgkojak 4 months, 2 weeks ago

I go back to -- we should have had Rice, we should have had TTCH and Texas - that gets us to 5 wins. And our kicking game doomed us against TCU. That's 6 with a few minor repairs.

N Illinois turned out to be a decent Top 20 type team. No shame there.

NDfan 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Coach Weis while at ND stated that he called his old New England coach to find out what he was doing wrong as a head coach because he didn't know. Any head coach making that statement has some growing to do before assuming the position. The two quarterbacks who played for him during his tenure at ND, which he thought were so great, were just average. Neither player has been successful in the NFL. It takes a great teacher to be a successful college coach. Charlie was great with the pros, but lacked having the ability to teach players. ND saw this, and it was his time to go.

mahkmood 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Whether or not Weis can recruit (for example, a top 10 recruiting class) at KU doesn't mean anything. There's only one question that really matters: Can Weis produce wins with the talent he does brings in? (vis-a-vis Bill Snyder). I like Weis, so I'm hoping for the best. But I totally disagree that Weis deserved another year at Notre Dame; he didn't produce wins against teams that he should have... and what made the losses so bad was the fact that he was getting great recruiting classes. ND's FB program doesn't settle for mediocrity, and nor would KU's BB program. Imagine KU BB keeping a coach that produced .500 winning percentage or less for 3 years in a row. Weis possibly could have improved things at ND given more time, but anyone that thinks Weis deserved more seasons at ND doesn't understand ND football standards. There's a better case for Mangino deserving another season at KU than Weis at ND because KU FB is not a historically successful "brand" (it's more difficult to recruit and win at KU than ND). For what KU football is, Mangino is a better fit than Weis. I hope Mangino gets a 2nd term as did Fambrough. This article seems to be more about propaganda than reality; I can't imagine even 5% of reputable sports writers agreeing with Keegan on this one.

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