-
-
-
-
-
- CBB Front Page
- Scores
- Teams
-
Conferences
- Players
- Stats
- Standings
- Rankings
- Schedules
- Women's Hoops
-
-
-
-
- Soccer Front Page
-
Leagues
- MLS
- England
- Champions
UEFA Cup- English Champ
Germany- Italy
Spain- France
Netherlands- Scotland
Belgium- Mexico
Copa Lib- Copa Sud
Copa Oro- Copa America
World Cup- FIFA U-20
SI.com college football writer Stewart Mandel shares his commentary, analysis and random tidbits on the latest developments around the country.8/26/2007 02:01:00 PM Weis Shows True Colors with QB Decision
By now, you’ve probably heard a few hundred times how Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis is "arrogant." Not just from judgmental sports columnists like me, mind you, but from actual Irish players ("He seemed a little arrogant," former defensive end Justin Tuck said following Weis’ first team meeting) and opposing coaches (“Weis is arrogant as hell," one such coach told The Sporting News last year).
Charlie Weis has done his best to protect the identity of his starting quarterback.AP
In my first two-plus years of observing Weis, I failed to reach the same conclusion. Was the NFL-bred Weis a little different from most college coaches? Yes. A control freak? Absolutely. But it’s not like I’d ever heard him say, "I’m a freaking awesome coach," or "These guys I face every week are amateurs." Following both of Notre Dame’s blowout losses to Michigan and USC last year, the coach was appropriately humble and accepting of responsibility for the result.
But arrogance can take on many different forms, and over the course of this offseason, in managing to turn a seemingly mundane quarterback decision into a matter of national security, Weis has shown his true colors.
From the first day of training camp, Weis made it abundantly clear that none of us peons would be privy to the identity of his new starting quarterback – either junior Evan Sharpley, redshirt freshman Demetrius Jones or true freshman Jimmy Clausen -- prior to the first snap of Saturday’s opener against Georgia Tech. Weis’ reasoning? "I'm not really in the business of passing out free information [to the Irish’s opponent]." That’s interesting, considering numerous other coaches who seem to know what they’re doing -- Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops, Florida State’s Bobby Bowden, Nebraska’s Bill Callahan -- apparently did not see the same harm in publicly announcing similar decisions over the past week.
Georgia Tech has had nearly eight months to prepare for this game. Does Weis really think Jackets defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta hasn’t watched every available high-school tape (or, in Sharpley’s case, those two collegiate pass attempts) of the three QBs by now? Furthermore, Tech just played the Irish last season, so it’s not like Tenuta isn’t familiar with Weis’ offense (which is far more important to know than the identity of the QB himself). And while the athletic Jones does present a potential wrinkle with his running ability, I’m guessing the Jackets aren’t unfamiliar with the concept -- considering their last game was in the Gator Bowl against West Virginia speedster Pat White.
It’d be one thing if Weis was still genuinely stumped as to who he might tap come Saturday, but last week the third-year coach said he’s actually known "for a week or two," adding agitatedly, “Do you think I'm going to be so fickle that I won't know who the quarterback is going to be?” In the same breath, however, he said he hadn’t yet bothered to tell the chosen quarterback himself.
Does he really think we’re stupid enough to believe that? Arguably the biggest key to the success of a first-time starting quarterback is confidence, and there’s no better way to build a guy’s confidence than to let him know he’s your man. Weis may be having fun playing cat-and-mouse with the media, but I seriously doubt he’s keeping the actual players in suspense.
Besides, Weis has now given us plenty of reason to no longer believe much of anything that comes out of his mouth. As you may recall, the coach became very annoyed last spring when various news outlets reported that Clausen, ND’s much-touted freshman phenom, was suffering from bone spurs in his throwing elbow and would eventually undergo a surgical procedure. Despite the fact the reporters in question had spoken with a fairly reliable source –- Clausen’s own father -- Weis was aghast. "He's full-go, contrary to recent reports," Weis said of the freshman. "Just so we clear that one up, the only one who will answer for the health of our players will be me."
Last Friday, however, Clausen himself spoke for the first time, and, contrary to Weis’ contradiction, said, "Following spring practice, I had a procedure on my elbow to arthroscopically remove a bone spur. It was a minor setback, and I've been rehabbing ever since." Weis did not necessarily lie about the injury -- he merely insulted the intelligence of anyone with a brain.
Give the coach credit for one thing, however: he’s managed to create far more intrigue and attention surrounding his decision than should really be merited for an unranked, rebuilding team. That said, it’s fairly obvious at this point that Sharpley, the most experienced of the bunch, will start on Saturday. Perhaps Jones and Clausen will see action as well, but no one really believes Weis, a pro-style guy to the core, is suddenly going to start running the shotgun-spread so Jones can burn people on the QB draw, and clearly Clausen (whose throwing velocity, practice observers have noted, has not been the same as the other two) is not yet healthy enough to go full-time.
Clausen will take over soon enough -- ND did not recruit the phenom to sit on the bench for two years. Whether that will come in week two, week four or week eight, we don’t know. The only thing we know for certain is that we won’t know of Clausen’s promotion ahead of time. Because obviously we, the untrained masses, cannot be trusted with such information.posted by Stewart Mandel | View comments |Comments:
It's all about you, isn't it Stewart. Talk about arrogance!Let's file this under "Duh."
Everyone in the free world came to this conclusion years ago.Wahhhh! Wahhhh! The coach isn't telling me what I want to know Mommy!Perhaps you neglected to see Weis's own comments that all 3 qb's continue to work out with the starting offense. I disagree that leaving a question as to who will start is a bad decision - 2 pro-style qb's and one all-purpose qb means that GT will have to prepare for both types, meaning that they can devote less practice time to other matters and cannot develop a defensive scheme premised around an immobile qb. How is that arrogance? Seems pretty smart to me to let GT wonder.I think this is just Weis' NFL experience coming into play. How many smokescreens do NFL teams use during the draft? Seems like it's the same principle here.Hopefully you will get a few more hits because of this article. Thanks for joining the "let's enflame the Notre Dame lovers/haters with a worthless article" club. And I thought I would actually get to read a real, informative article on college football.I wonder what BCS bowl Notre Dame will go to with their 7-5 record, only to have thier 9 game bowl losing streak extended?
Hmmmmm...If "It's fairly obvious" why do most people think it is Jones? Furthermore, Justin Tuck never even played for Charlie Weis, so that makes his comment pretty irrelevant. And just because Stoops, Bowden, and Callahan discuss similar issues with the media, does this somehow obligate Weis to follow suit? If so, I am quite unaware of this standard. Weis (or any coach for that matter) is under no obligation to release any bit of information to anyone he does not want to. Get over yourself, and try to write one article where you mention ND without a negative tone. If you accomplish this (and do so in a serious way), I will personally send you $1, which is more than you deserve with most of your ridiculously biased writing.Stewart you are just upset that you don't know the answer and have to continue to speculate. Let's be honest here, an advantage is to be gained with the QB decision being shrouded in mystery. It's no secret that Charlie is an arrogant SOB, but in this case he is not going to let the media bully him into making the decision public (the question about who the starting QB will be is asked multiple times at each presser; some of these journalists are complete morons). I disagree with your conclusion that since GT has been preparing for eight months they have looked at most of the tape on all of these QBs. That doesn't mean a thing! Each QB has a unique play set based on their abilities and situation. One thing Weis has been able to do is surprise teams when they think they have done all the homework they can do.
You're right about the arrogance but wrong about the reason why.It's about time someone has criticized Charlie Weis. I personally think he's so arrogant b/c he knows where to get the best burger in the universe and he just won't tell us!
Everyone: Watch ND get bent over again, this time in Ann Arbor, on September 15th.Seems to me that Weis has made a strategic decision not to reveal his starting QB here. The fact that you disagree that it his decision will make any difference is not only irrelevant, it's laughable. You're not a coach or a player. And I suspect you never were.
Weis's decision doesn't reveal arrogance. Your reaction is tellling though. It shows that you're kinda self-centered and self-important. Get some perspective, please. Your cries of arrogance are nothing more than the thinly veiled rants of another jilted reporter.Way to go Stewart, the only way you wouldn't think he was arrogant was if ou had never actually talked to him or watched him on TV.I'll be the first to throw a Notre Dame hating comment out there. Someone's gotta do it and it might as well be me! (Plus it's SO much fun! ;-)) All due respect to Weis's record and abilities as a very capable coach but it's no surprise that such arrogance comes out of Notre Dame. Like seeks out like. They found a true son! When you ascend to the ivory tower you can forget that you actually have to deal with people who can think!
-V"The thinly veiled rants of another jilted reporter, eh?" This would make sense if I was an ND beat writer trying to break the "scoop," but in fact I've not had the opportunity to be jilted by Weis myself because I've never asked him about it. I don't consider it a particularly pressing concern on the national beat because I don't expect the Irish to be a national contender this year.
As for the reporters in South Bend who keep asking abut the QBs, remember, they're only doing so because their readers want to know. As I said in the post, it would be one thing if Weis hadn't made up his mind yet, but he says he's known for two weeks now. As "theaustin" wrote, this is a case of Weis' NFL mentality in that he actually believes he's gaining some significant advantage over his opponent by keeping it a secret. Personally, I doubt it's affecting GT's preparation one way or the other. If the chosen QB does indeed lead the Irish to victory, it will be due to his talents and/or a superior game plan, not because of his secret identity.
In the meantime, Weis can only off as condescending by continuing to lord his little secret over both the fans and the media, and with his poorly veiled attempt to cover up Clausen's injury. Most media fully respect a coach's wishes to follow certain policies, but they don't take kindly to being intentionally misled.Actually Stewart, if you watched or read Weis' press conferences, he said he knows who the starter will be, and the starter knows also. He made a point in the presser to acknowledge that not telling the starter until kickoff would hurt the others' confidence. Do the research. You showed your true colors by writing this misinformed biased piece.Hey everyone, its Spewart Mandel...the "man" who tries to go to war with Switzerland--this article is just as un-called for. What did Weis ever do to you?Does writing anti-ND articles and consequently getting anti-Your Article comments from ND fans get you high? Because you do it quite often. Even some of the jokers over at ESPN manage to write an ND-Friendly article every now and then.I actually appreciate this blog entry, even as a Domer. It's better than the "I'm-just-like-Bill-Simmons-everyone!" nonsense you pepper into your mailbag. Tell us more, Stewart, about how much you're a bro's guy. Tell us more about Superbad and "more cowbell!" and The Office and The White Stripes and mailbag crushes.
Oh, I read your stuff. I read it as it posts. I may even buy your book (Congratulations, by the way). But, man, I just need you to admit the above. Please, own your insecurity in your muddled identity. I'll be less uncomfortable reading your next response about how great and powerful your Wii abilities have become. Bless you.Does Weis really think Tenuta is worried because he doesn't know the starting QB? It was only 12 short months ago that Tenuta's defense shut down the arrogant Weis and his Heisman-hyped QB Brady Quinn. Coach Tenuta will once again have his defense ready for anything the otherworldly Weis can dream up. And this time, he won't have to overcome his own QB as well...I'll go with letter c:) Who gives a damn? Notre Dame will be miserable on D again this year, and without Quinn to put up 30 points on lesser teams, the Irish will lose at least 7 games. Let's move on to a situation that more than just golden-domers care about.I usually like your stuff Stewart. I missed you here though. Weis appears to be cocky. I'll give you that. But I am not sure that is such a bad thing. Maybe you could do an article on proven, successful college coaches who are wallflowers and tell journalists everything they'd like to know? I doubt such an article would include any names like Carroll, Tressel, Stoops, Spurrier. But if it did...now that would be an interesting read.I currently live in the room next to Clausen, RB Armando Allen, and DB Gary Gray, and down the hall lives LB Morrice Richardson. Yes, it is true that the players do, in fact, know who the starting QB will be; however, contrary to your belief, Stewart, Weis has NOT explicitly told the team who the starter is. Rather, the team has noticed that one guy has received more reps than the others in the closed practices. Further, due to the lack of an explicit announcement, 1. all three QB's feel that the coach and team are confident in their ability, and 2. all 3 are kept on their toes because there is a very real possibility that Weis will make a change if the week 1 starter is ineffective.Good journalists learn in high school not to write these kind of articles.This post has been removed by the author.What is arrogant is the sense of entitlement sports journalists have to every tidbit of information they want to mull, dissect, second-guess and criticize.
Weis owes you and your brethren nothing. Maybe he wasn't authorized to discuss a college kids' health issues. Maybe he and his team are well-aware of who the QB is going to be. Maybe the fact that all of them bring different skills to the table which in turn changes the game planning is a pretty good reason to keep the decision mum. Maybe he knows that after what Quinn went through with the press, and what Clausen has to endure now, never having even played a college game yet, he wants to keep his QB and his new inexperienced team focused on the first game and not the hoopla and inordinate attention that the QB from ND will inevitably face.
Or maybe he just doesn't like you guys any more than you guys like him. Whatever the reason, get over it and write about something that is news rather than whining about the fact that you don't have any.I may not read the quarterback situation the same way, but I too think Weis is extremely arrogant. Whether you hate ND or not, Weis comes off poorly to just about every third party observer. Sorry Domers, but he's a douche bag. Just be glad he is not a turd sandwich."I don't consider it a particularly pressing concern on the national beat because I don't expect the Irish to be a national contender this year."
And yet, you found it to be a pressing enough concern to write an article about.
Additionally, if you don't expect the Irish to be a national contender, then you certainly expect ND to struggle this year, potentially against GT. So, why is it such a big deal that a coach would attempt to use any advantage he could in the game? You may certainly disagree as to the extent of such an advantage or even whether any advantage could be gained at all; I just don't see how the attempt makes him arrogant.I really like how ND lovers come on here and bash Mandel for pointing out a truth of college football. College football thrives in that it makes the coaches celebrities, and if your favorite one of is truthfully a fat chode, can you really complain or argue? I wish he were more humbled by the bowl game beatings he takes every year. His team has bloated rankings constantly because of the media, thankyou Mandel for going against the grain.Ted--you're an idiot.Once again, the media is coming down on ND for being arrogant. They've created and perpetuate the monster then complain about it. OU has QB questions and they are a ranked team. Go bother them. ND is unranked in a so-called rebuilding mode and yet we are subject to the constant coverage of who the QB is. Does it really matter? They're unranked and will be lucky to finish .500 according the "experts". Why do you even care?This is typical for Notre Dame....have you seen Lou Hotz on ESPN? He has Notre Dame going 5-1 in the first six games, when anyone with a brain sees them as 0-6. Too much ink is devoted to a team that isn't even ranked. Weiss's 15 minutes of fame is about up....maybe he will be able to do Slim Fast ads next.Somehow, I find it hard to believe that Weis is the first coach to ever do this. But, he sure is the first to get taken to task by several national writers.Have you ever thought that he isn't withholding the decision because of football strategy but instead doing it to limit the exposure and pressure for the first time QB? Notre Dame QBs are always viewed under a unique light and I think by letting the QB get through a game without having to face being alone in the spotlight can make a huge difference. Call Charlie arrogant but whoever the starting QB is going to be for the Irish he has one less thing to worry about before his first game.It is sad that people have stooped to such level, Stewart wrote a blog an opion, which is argumentative. However most of the responses attack him as a person not his argument, this is a logical fallicy called ad hominem or attacking the person, Notre Dame is a fine acedemic institution and i would expect its supporters to handle themselves in a better fashion. Stewart please continue to state your opinion.What's the difference? Tenuta is gonna shut them down just like he did last year. I think he'll take the experienced guy to start but Tech is gonna win anyway. Reggie was the 12th defender on ND last year.Weis has been this way since arriving in South Bend. During the Fiesta Bowl press conference in 05'/06' he made the belittling comment that "one" of his Super Bowl rings trumped Tressel's five national championship rings. Hey Charlie, you are coaching college football now so those championship rings Tressel has are what you are shooting for. It must have been very fullfilling for Tressel to beat the hell out of that "Super Bowl" genius.How many days before the Domer's lose their billionth bowl game in a row is my burning question. If they are a game over .500 people will be making a case for a BCS bowl. Join a conference and play a decent schedule..Oh..I forgot about your sweetheart NBC deal. Next up...Navy..ooohh so dangerousRSolinksi...ND needs to play a decent schedule? Is 4 pre-season top 20 teams in the first 6 games, as well as 4 road games in the first 6 not decent enough?So it's obvious to Stew that Sharpley is the starter and it's equally obvious to the folks over at the four letter network's website that Jones is starter. It good to see that the experts can agree on the obvious.Citing an article in an Atlanta newspaper linked on your own website:
"It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."Hmmmm...so you "think" that witholding the QB info is of no consequence to Gt and Tenuta.....no arrogance there *lol* I'm sure your experience in coaching and playing led you to this conclusion* I doubt that *lol* You've never spoken with the man. A player who never played for him (Tuck) called him arrogant after he ripped them for their lack luster efforts.... let's see 5-7 and 6-6....I'd say it was a fair description.So with all these "factual" accounts.....you've reached your conclusion.Great reporting.Hey....your boss will give you kudos for the responses *lol* We should all be so lucky....trash someone....and you get a pat on the back.What a job.hey mandel....tuck never played for weis...show some poise and learn the facts you hack...man you are a tool!Weis just wants to keep ND in the news, which he is doing. His team is going to be average but has to keep ND in the news somehow. He comes off as arrogant in saying that I am the only one who knows about my players, period. Nevermind, that Clausen's dad might know a little about his son's medical condition, but don't believe him, only the all knowing Weis. Then when Clausen states he was hurt, it only makes Weis look like a foolish, childish assGeorgia Tech L
Penn State L
Michigan L
Michigan State W
Purdue L
UCLA L
Boston College L
USC L
What is that, like 1-7? Notre Dame sucks, Weis is fat and ugly, and NBC sucks for showing us ND games so much.The height of arrogance is believing you are entitled to something simply because of your position or profession. Stewart Mandel's business is reporting news, and if he can't find news (i.e., when a college coach makes a perfectly reasonable tactical decision), he makes his own news. When Charlie Weis doesn't do what Stew wants, he gets bad press. Guess what. Weis doesn't care about newsmaking news reporters. And he shouldn't. He's a football coach, not Stewart Mandel's guardian ad litem.Arrogance??? I think Weis is scared! How bad does your team suck that you have to lie to everyone and keep secrets in a pathetic attempt to gain the slightest advantage to win ONE game... Wow!Stewart this article made me smile. I am sure you did all of 10 minutes 'researching' this piece so you can limit your downtime away from promoting your new book. If its anything as promising as this article, I am sure it will be on the discount racks quite soon.Don't lump the masses in with you, Mr. Mandel--you're flying solo on the untrained part.Arragonce. Try this bastard's website . . .
http://www.petecarroll.com/site/intro.htm
Humanitarian? WTF?It's actually a smart move by Weis, GT won't know who to plan for, and does it hurt your feelings not knowing the starting QB Stewart? GO IRISH!!!!!!!!!Must be a slow news day. Weis doesn't want to reveal injuries or personnel information to the media to try to give his team an advantage, and he is therefore arrogant. How'd you make that leap? By the way, ajc.com reveals that Tenuta is indeed preparing for 3 quarterbacks. I can't imagine a way that doesn't make game preparation more complicated for Tech.Maybe he is waiting to lose 75 lbs before he names the QB.Hmmm...is it really arrogant to keep the QB a secret? that really seems like a stretch. Wouldn't arrogance be the opposite--telling everyone what ND is doing because Weis doesn't care--he can still kick your a--? So to speak. Wouldn't that really be the picture of arrogance? Instead, again Stewart, you really show YOUR true colors in this piece....no real research--just top of the headlines knee jerk reaction...of course most ND football fans have known about your (ignorant) BS for quite a while, but you just love making ND fans crazy, don't you?? OOOOh yeah, you just love it...Isn't that your real motivation for another lackluster ND piece?
Did you see the other articles (coming out a day before yours) about "What's the big deal about the QB secret?" and think "wow" I've got an idea to really needle that ND fan base? Real creative, genius...
Rob HeglinStewart, why don't you go write about something you are actually qualified to write about. How about some kind of eating competition?Sounds like sour grapes, Stewart. What duty does Weis owe you, your colleagues or the public to disclose the starting qb? I'm still waiting for you to write an article about Weis' dedication to improving the team, his 20 hour work days, his tireless efforts to undo the damage done to the roster by Willingham's complete and utter indifference to recruiting, Weis' charitable works, the ND football team earning the highest GPA in its history under Weis, Weis' dedication to his family, ND winning the games it should win while rebuilding the talent base, Weis' ability to recruit and retain quality assistants, Weis' having two African American coordinators, ND's commitment to graduating players with meaningful majors, and on and on. The answer: anti-ND articles create page hits and help sell advertising. Grow up, dude.Proof is in the pudding, without ND you would not exist Stewart! hahaThink a little bit deeper here Stewart. He made the comments about already knowing who the starting quarterback is on Thursday, while Friday was the first day that the freshmen (Clausen) were allowed to talk to the media. Charlie is playing mind games here, obviously. It's a common mistake to write off confidence as arrogance. He knows he has a great system, as he does have more than a couple of Super Bowl rings. How many rings do you have Stewart? Charlie doesn't pretend to be a literary critic, so don't pretend to know more than him about coaching. If you'd like to start your coaching resume, my sons PeeWee team is looking for a special teams coach. You can work with the kickers.Lay off Stewart guys.
Charlie Weis is absolutely an arrogant guy, although I'm not sure not naming a starter at QB is an arrogant thing. It's his program; he'll run it however he wants.
That being said, considering Notre Dame is overrated every year (and is still treated like a big-time program even though they aren't), it's refreshing to see someone with the balls to criticize the chromedomes. With so many biased pro-ND "analysts" out there (see Holtz: Lou) it becomes easy to forget that this is a school that has lost their last 9 bowl games.Holy cow. Did EVERY DOMER IN THE COUNTRY decide to hit SI.com, cuz frankly, it sounds like nothing more than sour grapes when your mediocre mid-major school got insulted :P
Yeah. Mandel could've perhaps been a little more...hmm, tactful (unlike my comment, lol - love yanking chains) but he does make a valid point.
I think ND fans really don't understand the level of either hatred or total ambivalence the rest of us have for that program. Join a conference. Earn your media exposure.WTF cares?WTF cares? While this is an interesting plot of the pre-season, it is far from being anything that's going to significantly affect the National Championship or Heisman race. Notre Dame Notre Dame Notre Dame...I just can't wait to get this overhyped program shoved down my throat all season long.I swear I just read an article in which Chan Gailey is quoted as saying this about the ND QB situation:
"It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."
Hmmm...seems to me that not naming your starter is a good idea. Yet, according to Stewart, this is just showing his "true colors" of arrogance? Stewart, you are normally much better than this. Very disappointing.Charlie Weis being arrogant didn't start when he went to Notre Dame. He's been arrogant for a long time. And I'm a Patriots fan who thinks he's an offensive genius, so I couldn't care less how arrogant he is!
But, c'mon. Playing personnel games with the media? Lying about injuries? That's not being arrogant; that's being a Bill Belichick protege. And a Bill Belichick protege coaching in college, where (unlike in the NFL) he's not required to provide accurate injury information. This is so completely Belichickian I'm surprised anyone even finds it notable!I simply cannot understand why Lou Holtz continues to worship and kiss the ass of ND. He was run out of there on a rail, yet he still fawns all over them. He's like the guy whose girlfriend cheats on him, treats him like crap and dumps him, but he still thinks the world of her and doesn't see her for the whore that she is.
Notre Dame is a 7-5 team at best this season...and I'm sure the blind ND fans will blame Ty for it.
Also, what has Charlie Weis actually accomplished at ND? He has won a whopping ONE big game in his time there, yet he is treated as a god-like figure.Do you like Notre Dame FooOOoootball Stewy?This post has been removed by a blog administrator.Stew's wrong again:
Jackets prepare for 3 possible QBs
Notre Dame coach won't reveal starter
By MIKE KNOBLER
T
Published on: 08/27/07
Kyle Manley hasn't been himself lately.
Sometimes, he's a pro-style quarterback so highly hyped he held a news conference at the College Football Hall of Fame last year to announce his commitment to Notre Dame.
Sometimes, he's a junior who threw only two passes in eight games as Brady Quinn's backup.
Sometimes, he's a sophomore who has yet to play a down for the Fighting Irish but is so athletic he has been compared with Vince Young.
Manley plays all those roles on the scout team for Georgia Tech, which doesn't know which of the three quarterbacks it will face in Saturday's season opener against Notre Dame. On the subject of quarterbacks, Irish coach Charlie Weis has declared only that he won't declare. Even candidates Jimmy Clausen, the hotshot freshman, Evan Sharpley, Quinn's former backup, and Demetrius Jones, the athletic sophomore, don't know who won the job, Weis told reporters last week.
That leaves Tech guessing. Or, more accurately, not guessing and covering all three bases.
"We've got to be prepared for anything," linebacker Shane Bowen said. "There's not much we can say or do about it. They're going to come out that day with a quarterback, one of the three of them, so we've just got to be prepared for anything."
"It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."
The secrecy goes beyond the starter's identity. Unlike Tech, which kept practices open until classes began Aug. 20, Notre Dame held a single open practice, at which Clausen, the hotshot freshman coming off arthroscopic elbow surgery, never threw the ball downfield. Did that mean anything? Was it a ruse to throw off onlookers, and by extension the Yellow Jackets? Who knows?
Gamesmanship can extend beyond what coaches do when practices are open to what coaches and players say when talking to reporters.
Are people at Notre Dame really reading newspaper coverage to mine for insight into Tech?
"Every day," Gailey said.
And does Tech read newspaper coverage of its opponents?
"Every day," he said.
Does it ever yield anything useful?
"A little. Not a lot," Gailey said. "Not that's going to make a vast difference, but injuries always help. Little things here and there we learned."
In the end, though, the big things aren't really secret. Weis has a long, very public history of designing offenses and calling plays. Whoever he puts at quarterback will still be running a Charlie Weis offense, which is likely to be similar in most key respects to what the Irish ran against the Yellow Jackets last season.
"There will be a wrinkle here and there for us, but it's Notre Dame. You've got to prepare for Notre Dame," Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta said. "We have film on all their games. You prepare for Notre Dame. I know probably more than they want me to know."
The secrets will be revealed Saturday.
Meanwhile, Manley plays three roles.
Imitating Clausen and Sharpley isn't much different; they're both expected to pass first and run only if necessary. But when Manley imitates Jones, he has to try to use his legs to get past Tech's defense. Manley's legs weren't really designed for that.
"We say move around the best you can," scout team coach Nathan Burton said, "and watch out for [linebacker] Philip Wheeler."I guess this article has many ND fans reading and appropriately responding. Sorry ND fan, cannot defend arrogance of the coach, he may not want to tell everyone his QB b/c he has no idea. Georgia Tech does not really care who the QB is, they saw ND's best with Brady Quinn last year and handled him just fine. Good luck to the irish this season, shaping up to be a 2-10 campaign, will you still be arrogant when that happens.....Who really cares if Weis hasn't named a starter yet? Also, why are you even writing this article if its a "mundane quarterback decision" on a "unranked rebuilding" team? don't you have articles to write on more relevant teams? I think your about the only person in the whole world of college football who even cares to know who the Quarterback at Notre Dame is going to be.
As a big anti-Notre Dame fan, it drives me nuts when idiot sportwriters, like yourself, think your writing a solid hit piece when your actually only raising Weis's and Notre Dame's Profile.Honestly, as a Tech fan, I don't care who starts for ND. Do I think it is somewhat arrogant of Weis? Sure I do, but I also have full confidence that Jon Tenuta will be prepared for any of the three. Just look at what Tech has done to young quarterbacks on the road the past couple of years and you will know why I'm not worried about it. @ Auburn, 2005, ranked #15, Brandon Cox first start. Tech wins and snaps a long home winning streak for Auburn. @ Miami, 2005, ranked #3, a young Kyle Wright gets destroyed by Tech. @ Virginia Tech, 2006, ranked #10, Sean Glennon in his first big ACC start gets owned by Tech's blitz schemes. All three are road victories for Tech. I definitely feel history will be repeated. Regardless I still do not respect the real hunchback of Notre Dame...er...I mean Charlie Weis. GO TECH!!Stewrat, was/is/always will be a 2nd tier writer. I bet right now, you wish you would have been accepted to ND. As for Chuck, keep it up, you're doing a great job.Thanks for posting that AJC article, Rob. Otherwise I never would have seen this quote:
"There will be a wrinkle here and there for us, but it's Notre Dame. You've got to prepare for Notre Dame," Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta said. "We have film on all their games. You prepare for Notre Dame. I know probably more than they want me to know."
If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was lifting my material :)Charlie Weis has a front butt.Dangerous Dave -
Take a look at some research on the issue of under-rated vs. over-rated at ESPN.com, compiled by Mark Schlabach and updated 8/18/07. You'll learn that a number of other big name programs in the last 10 years are really the over-rated ones, more so than the Irish. As regards CW's "arrogance," he's a no-nonsense, in your face, "Jersey guy," who cares deeply about his school, his program, and his players; and not a wit about what you or Stewart Mandel or anyone else in the CFB punditry thinks, something he made abudantly clear when he first took the job. In fact, he's just what the program needed after 8 years of two guys who had no business being head coaches at the D-I level, no matter how much "nicer" they might have seemed to others. If you're really interested in arrogance, take a good, long look at the "Poodle."Nice article,Stewy. Must be a real slow news day. So Weis, in a rebuilding year, tries to make it as hard as possible for the opposing team to prepare for ND, and this makes him arrogant? I guess you think he should just give Gailey his game plan.<><> If you want the essence of arrogance, and self-importance, try your dating partner Pedro Carroll in La La Land!!!!!!!!!Stewart repeat after me, “NOTRE DAME IS THE UNIVERIST OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL” one more time, “NOTRE DAME IS THE UNIVERIST OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL”. Wise does not owe you or the rest of your cronies any thing. LOVE ND or HATE ND, we sell you thoughtless magazines and news papers. So pay your royalties to ND and show some RESPECT.Stewart, I guess you missed this part of the article which apparently is the reason Weis is doing what he's doing....or maybe he's just arrogant....
That leaves Tech guessing. Or, more accurately, not guessing and covering all three bases.
"We've got to be prepared for anything," linebacker Shane Bowen said. "There's not much we can say or do about it. They're going to come out that day with a quarterback, one of the three of them, so we've just got to be prepared for anything."
"It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."btw...if Tenuta has all that ND film, Stewart, where is it that he has film of Weis film with a running qb? :)gee stu, somehow you've reached the obvious conclusion that Sharpley is the guy, yet over on ESPN Herbstreit seems to think it's Jones. Sounds like things aren't as clear as you suggest. If you're so sure it's Sharpley, why do care whether he tells you or not, just write the story as though Sharpley's the starter. Even if Weis is arrogant, so what? He's a head football coach. Have you ever heard a Spurrier press conference? How about Rockne? Not exactly known for his humility. Lots of great coaches possess more than their fair share of hubris, it's sometimes part of what instills confidence in the team they lead. The only difference about the ND situation this year is more people care when any controversy involves the Irish.seriously? thats the best we got? a belicheck coach doesn't give us information? this is like the 4 letter network running sal palantonio at us to tell us when terrell owens is going to the bathroom. if you don't have news, dont write anything. but i find it hard to believe that the only thing that happened the first week of the season is something that didn't actually happen.Hey Tressel4Pres, how's Tressel doing these days after the BEATDOWN Florida put on THE Overrated State University?? HMM??U know why they have more than one BOWL game in college football?? Money. That's all. Not love of the game or even because these games MATTER. So get off this "they lost 9 bowl games in a row" talk. WTF cares if you win (or lose) the Gator, Cotton, or Independence Bowl? The National Title bowl game is the only one that matters, obviously. To win a championship you should have to win it on the field. Can we get PLAYOFFS anyone? U shouldn't be on your way to a national title because of the preseason polls or because you "had a great recruiting year". Maybe if ND dropped its academic standards like all these other big time programs it'd be easier to get a title. But then they wouldn't be the Golden Domers. Join a conference?? (hahaha, oh that's funny). That's like askin the Yankees to drop their pinstripes...stupid! Notre Dame IS a conference or don't you pay attention to popularity and revenue. In conclusion...GO IRISH!Ahhh you Notre Dame girls are real funny....I can't wait to see Weis and Fighting Irish Women get humbled and embarred by multiple teams this year...Stewart --
We (the Alums) are behind Charlie.
He's one of us.
We know he's healing the program.
He gets it.
That's all that counts.
Thanks for trying to be relevant.Imagine that, Jabba the Weis is an arrogant prick. Anyone could have told you that one Stewart.
And don't take this stupidity from NoD fans lying down, just wait to hear the crickets when they start the season 1-7 (and possibly 0-8 if Coach Dantonio gets something going at Michigan State).....
NoD fans are front runners and while they are protecting Jabba right now, they'll be jumping off his bandwagon and calling him arrogant (along with quite a few other things) as the season wears on....If you have never had any interaction with Weis then how is it you feel you have the experience to call him arrogant? Also, if the subject is minor in your world why write about it? You come off as an idiot sports writer with nothing to do but invent another story. Maybe you and Jayson Blair of the New York Times fame can get together and concoct some more stories to irritate us with. Geez, find some news that's worthy of a read please.Stewart - You've really outdone yourself this time. My father was a college football coach and I grew up around college football. You're either trying to take another dig at Notre Dame because your adolescent affinity for Southern Cal prevents you from striving toward any type of professionalism or you're so naive as to think that Weiss is somehow more arrogant than any other big time college coach. In case it's the latter, I'll let you in on something: Nearly all big-time college coaches are arrogant! It's part of the reason they have gotten to where they are. I wish they could all be Joe Pa, but I also wish that big time college atheletes were also "student-atheletes", and upstanding citizens, and we know that's often not true.
So, either write some analysis about football or take your gossipy trash over to a tabloid mag.I think you all are missing the point of the article. The point was not that Charlie Weis did this, and then Stewart thusly proclaimed him arrogant; rather, it's that there were several evidences of Charlie being arrogant that Stewart either missed or didn't view as arrogant, and then this withholding of qb information was "the final straw" if you will, where Stewart would view him as such. And I think he's right. But a lot of you are right in saying this is a stupid article about stupid things. Yes I think Stewart is right, but does that really matter?
Regardless, if I'm not mistaken Stewart's job is a writer. And the point of him writing his articles is for them to be read. He wouldn't write it if no one read it. So all of you denouncing him as a writer for writing a stupid and pointless article, you're the ones reading the article and finding it worthy enough to comment on, thereby giving him more readers and more credibility. And before all of you jump on me saying "you also called the article stupid," I merely said so agreeing with some of you, however not saying Stewart sucks as a writer. While it was stupid, I thought it to be a good time-waster for me, and ultimately worthy of writing. After all, people read it right?
That being said, Notre Dame sucks. 6-6 and a loss to Arizona in the Las Vegas bowl.
Oh and jgordonc, does that comment mean you're admitting that Notre Dame is a sell-out? That they don't actually care about the football game just what money will come of it? Ok. Cuz I was having serious inklings towards that via the NBC contract and whatnot. Thanks for proving me right. Fight onNicely encapsulated, Mandel. Now feel the wrath of the echoes!*
*echoesneednotbefeared"In the meantime, Weis can only come off as condescending by continuing to lord his little secret over both the fans and the media."
Maybe, like any half-decent coach, Weis doesn't make decisions based on whether or not he will come off as condescending... he makes decisions based on what he thinks will give his team the best chance to win.Seems you really use a lot of energy on the Irish and particularly on Weis, Stewart. Your 'journalism' is as journalistic as my comments are towards you. Will be interesting if and when the Irish are back in the driver seat anytime soon how quickly you will be asking for a VIP view Stewart...hahaha.3 words - ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!3 words - ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!And this is shocking why? He coached for the Patriots, under probably the most arrogant and secretive coach in the NFL, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.Congrats to all the guest bloggers for taking Mandel to task. You all produced about a hundred pointed, sound comments. Clearly an internet beat down.
Mandell gives us no reason whatsoever to leap to the conclusion that Weis is "arrogant" just because he is using reasonable gamesmanship and won't reveal the QB's name. Even GA Tech's coaches seem to respect the tactic for what it is.
How arrogant, on the other hand, to believe you're entitled to this information.
As other bloggers have noted, this is nothing but a typical Belicek/Parcels method for handling the situation. Weis is doing exactly what he believes he should, according to that school of coaching. Give him a break.
Charlie is confident, and a tad bit cocky on the surface compared to the average librarian; but well within the limits of appropriateness for a sports field general. Virtually everyone who knows Charlie thinks he is a great guy. The "arrogant" tag was invented by sensationalist journalists like Mandell.
Charlie is a Jersey teddy bear. His players love his tough talking exterior, and get a kick out of it. Further, he has an awful lot of great friends throughout the NFL. He is a sweet man who spends all of his free time helping his daughter's charitable cause.
Frankly, Mandel sometimes appears to be a gutless writer; who changes his opinions with the winds in an attempt to suit the masses and his bosses. Apparently, he thinks the thing to do these days is write anti-ND sentiments, so that's all he does. We get it, Mandel. It's popular to hate on the Irish.
Mandel also playes fast and loose with his information here, in several places. For example, from following ND football closely every day, I know he has no reason whatsoever to believe Sharpley is "obviously" the man. But he acts as if he is reporting fact. Shoddy. Others have pointed out other kinds of misinformation very well.
You can do better than that, Mandell. Please grow a set, learn about ND, and try to be more objective. You have succeeded in appealing to the "Charlie is fat, ha ha" crowd, as the replies demonstrate. But maybe we can take it to the next journalistic level?
Otherwise, stick to your "ND is irrelevant" mantra; have some integrity with that; and leave the topic alone.
But if you still want to write trash about the Irish at every opportunity, expect to get thoroughly spanked for it by one of the more intelligent fanbases in sports; like my fellow bloggers are doing so well. Bravo.P.S. Although there's no doubt that sensationalist pieces like this one give Mandel a temporary spike in readership, I have to believe that quality journalism is what gets readers for the long run.
For example, since he started going with the "ND hater winds" (regardless of his personal feelings, as he once reminded someone), I have read far fewer of his articles, even though I was indeed moved to post my first blog on the site by this one. Perhaps some others are reacting that way too.
Just some food for thought, FWIW.Get over it. The coach won't give you the skinny and you're pulsing a stroke over it. Why should any coach give out any info whatsoever? The name of the game is win, and gamesmanship is part of the equation. Sportwriters don't play, so they don't matter.Stewart, you are fully entitled to your opinion, but there is one element in this story I won't give you a pass on, and that's your ridiculously out-of-context use of Justin Tuck's comments on Charlie Weis. Here is the complete quote, to refresh your memory:
"He seemed a little arrogant, but in a good way. Real confident," senior defensive end Justin Tuck said. "He was the first person to come in as a guest speaker and kind of rip us. ... Normally, a guest speaker comes in to talk about the tradition of Notre Dame and how great it was to be here. That wasn't his focus. He came in and gave us criticism, positive criticism."
Obviously, your eyes gravitated to the use of dreaded 'a' word and all else, such as the true intent of Tuck using it and his impressions of Weis as a person and coach, flew out the window. Bravo.Of all the pathetic piles of trash put out by this site, this was the worst. Every point proved itself wrong as it was being typed. That the modern media are mostly complete idiots is just the other reason no one believes them: the real reason is they are untrustworthy.
So let us recognize the good in this article: the author is sincere, and nearly correct with the few stated facts. Of course, he is pathetic and small-minded, but honesty is a rare find these days, right? LMAO!
D'OH!It's scarey Stewart that the College season is about to explode into another great season and this is what you have to write about! Unbelievable! ND will have an OK year at best and quite possibly a bad year. God forbid you don't follow media rules and say nothing about ND when there's nothing to say. Weis not tipping his hand is not news worthy. Wake up!Stewart, This isn't the first time in recorded history that a coach hasn't revealed who a started will be. Any casual follower of the sport knows this. So this makes a coach arrogant in your mind???? So much so that you just felt compelled to comment on it??? You must have really been struggling to come up with an article to write.I find myself conflicted about this article. I read of how arrogant a coach is for not disclosing a bit of information to a rent-a-pencil. I surmise that you are the arrogant one because you actually think you deserve this information. It seems that more and more reporters think they are due much mmore than they actually receive simply because they exist. Please write about sports stories instead of downing someone becdause you "feel" you are entitled.Hmmm, I wonder why this article isn't about how arrogant Romeo Crennel is for not announcing his starting QB for the exact reason. Or University of North Texas coach Todd Dodge who is doing the same thing. Or the large number of college HCs from NC State to Miami who haven't announced their head coaches.
For all people like you claim that Notre Dame get advantages because of who it is, articles like this make it obvious that hack writers love to get a free article from making unsupported assertions just to rile up ND fans. Weak.HE's the coach. HE decides what's best for the team. Not the media. The COACH will reveal what HE wants to reveal when HE wants to reveal it. So what if the media doesn't get its story ASAP? Climb down off your high horse and grow up.Did General Eisenhower inform the Germans about his invasion plans for D-Day prior to the event? Did General MacArthur let the North Koreans know about his planned landing Inchon prior to the event? Of course they didn’t! Football is about strategy and it is Coach Weis' decision alone, not your ARROGANT, Drive-By sports media horse excrement, to determine HIS strategy to win the game; what ever it takes! So go back to chasing the water, water boy, for the BIG boys need a gulp!Actually I have no idea if Weis is arrogant or not. ND is irrelevant in NCAA football these days and has always had the advantage of being a small school with a huge hype machine. Why do I have to be exposed to them because of some Four Horsemen or some other fossils? Who is the jizz bag anyway who decided ND gets in BCS games if they beat 50% of whatever schedule they create for themselves? Personally I hope Brady Quinn wows 'em in Cleveland in time to get his butt stomped week one by the Steelers.So really, half the anti-Weis comments are about his weight? Seriously you guys. All you other big-time college teams who knock ND for their schedule, but yet have Division 1-AA teams on theirs, need to give it a break.
Weis is a good coach, and he has proved it the last 2 years with sub-par talent. Exposed against great teams like UM and USC is not really a slam. Not many other teams could hang with them either."As "theaustin" wrote, this is a case of Weis' NFL mentality in that he actually believes he's gaining some significant advantage over his opponent by keeping it a secret. Personally, I doubt it's affecting GT's preparation one way or the other." Until you posted this Stewart, my wife & I were content to let you ramble as an obviously biased reporter who is very anti-ND. However, at this point, we decided that the ignorance must be corrected. As a former football player & then coach for MANY years [& the wife who supported those long hours of preparation], I must point out that Coach Weis's decision is a sound one strategically. Have you coached or played football ever? We think not. If you had, you would realize the time that goes into preparation for the other team's offense...the defensive stunts that must be reviewed to be used, the tendencies the other team has on first & 10, third & long, red-zone offense possibilities, etc. To a coach, Weis's strategy make sense; to a novice reporter & football watcher, it seems silly. I have spent long hours designing adjustments & reviewing stunts for offenses I KNEW I was going to face...just so I could WIN. Interesting. Too bad you never coached, it would all make more sense & you would write better also.Finally, an articel critical of ND. I never thought I'd see it form the national media. Weis acts this way becasue of the national media love affair with ND. Kudos for going against the grain and not giving us all the,"He's a genius for not telling anyone...," crap. Calling it like it is, a rebuilding unranked team with a relatively easy schedule was the best I have seen in a long time as far as truth in journalism.Why are we even talking about Notre Dame here who cares they are going to be terrible!!! Besides I heard he had the starter written down on napkin but it got sucked underneath his c-cup man boobs and hasn't been seen since. Thats why he wont tell, he can't remember who he chose...Also, for all you ND fans, I'd worry more about who's going to play any number of defensive positions before I worry about my QB.Well, Notre Dame is entitled to a little arrogance, I mean, look how great this program has been over the last ten years. I mean, they have played in a # of BCS games. And I know some of you are going to bring up the fact that they have been blown out in every one of those games and really did not look like they deserved the bids, but what about the other bowl games they have gone to in the last ten years? Oh yeah, they got whipped in those too. Uhh, yeah, I'm not sure why they are arrogant.Stewart,
Congratulations on writing an article that didn't give a plug for your new book. Thank god!
If ND is not national news and not going to be a "contender" this year, then why even write the article? You said it shouldn't matter to GT who starts at QB, so why then do you care?You seem to forget this guy learned from Parcells and Billie B. He is not going to give the media anything.
It is funny how you complain because the coach doesn't tell you what you want to know. Isn't it arrogant to assume the coaches have to tell you these things?Wow. I knew the ND Irish were passionate but I didn't realize they were so loudly irrational. Good god, you'd think that SM had written about something way off base and used some sort of racial slur or something. He's just giving some insight into the coach and pointing out some very unnecessary and somewhat telling theatrics. BTW, a nearly identical article was published on espn.com so clearly SM is not operating on some sort of personal mission to piss of the 'fighting' Irish. I'm an Ohio State U alumn so I know all about passionate football fanhood; however, I'll read any article on my beloved scarlet and grey - positive or negative. Seriously, you guys need to get over yourselves.
anyway - good article SM. I figure ND will be 7-5 this year. Despite the theatrics they'll still lose to GT but will take comfort in still selling more t-shirts than the yellow jackets.The ultimate in arrogance is thinking everyone cares what you think when nobody asks. (Uh oh, now I'm doing it). This isn't reporting, it's an editorial. There's no news here, just one dude's opinion on another dude's personality. Not unlike little teeny boppers talking trash on MySpace. Only big Stew gets paid for it. If only I could get paid to write an article about how freaking annoying Stewart's articles are.
As for Weis, he is probably arrogant, just like Stoops, Saban, Bowden, Spurrier, Carroll, and anyone else worth their multi-million dollar coaching contract. Notre Dame may be rebuilding this year, but given time, they will be serious national title contenders. Weis' recruiting is just beginning to work its way into action.
I can see why everyone hates ND by the way. A bunch of punks who barely squeak by on their SAT's and grades to get into college, cheat in classes, get arrested, and tarnish an "academic" institution's good name. Oh, wait, that's everyone else in college football. My mistake.Stewart lost me when he ranked Florida as a "king," despite going 59 years without a conference title before Spurrier arrived in '90.Did Lloyd Carr pay you to write that blog, Stewart?Nebraska’s Bill Callahan -- know's what he's doing?! Are you freaking high? The guy looked lost on the sidelines at Oakland and lost when they played SC.This is Weis following the Belichick way--just like Romeo Crennel, is he arrogant too?
From SI NFL page
"DENVER (AP) -- Charlie Frye can see Brady Quinn in his rear-view mirror -- and the rookie is closing fast.
The incumbent starter knows the clamor for the rookie first-rounder is loud. And Frye's not sure he's going to be the starter when the season opens.
"You're asking the wrong guy," Frye said. "You need to ask coach (Romeo) Crennel what he thinks about that."
Crennel isn't saying."
As a UW alum, I wish they'd hired Weis when he wanted the Job, pre-Willingham. He's arrogant, but with good reason: he is a great coach! Those first two patriot superbowl teams had the immortal Antwoin Smith as starting RB, Deion Branch, David Givens, and Troy Brown as their 'gamebreaking' WRs. I think he showed his skills there.A direct quote from Chan Gailey says otherwise Mr. Mandel. Writing a Weis/Notre Dame is arrogant article certainly will appeal to the haters, but when the Tech coach says the following, then you are wrong.
"It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was. It would be a lot easier if you knew."Mandel is a third rate hack who is meaningless and readerless because of his constant anti-Irish diatribes. SI will soon be reassigning this fat windbag because of his monkey doodie. Roert Sam Anson, my editor at ND, would have chewed up and spit out this cub reporter because he never checks his factoids and is a poor excuse for a journalistic slug.Stewart, I would've thought that you had something better to write about than the fact that Weis is not revealing the starting QB in their opening game. While I am a ND fan, I recognize that they are unranked and there are a lot of other schools more deserving of preseason coverage. Your article says more about you as a sports writer than it does about Weis. Either you are obsessed with sensationalizing every word that comes out of Weis' mouth to suit your own end, or you just are not smart enough to write about something original in college football in this preseason. Regardless, articles like this reflect poorly on your status as a legitimate sports writer.GT's starting defence is made up of 7 Seniors, 3 Juniors, and one Sophmore. Not knowing who the starting QB is for Notre Dame before the game, just leaves our defence anxious to know which one of them they are going to be sacking all night.Err...Hello?
Don't you see the advantage to this move? Patrick here got it right. I guess it escaped you.
I'm not a big ND fan but obviously if a defense has to prepare for 2 versions of an offense they don't get to focus as much on either version. I've heard Weis say multiple times that he builds his offense around his quarterback, not the other way around.
As a coach, instead of saying, "This is what you do here when he does this," to your players, you have to split time. It becomes, "This is what you do here if this is the QB, and if the other guy is the QB, you do this."
Is that not a natural tactic of confusion? They get to practice 50% for one guy and 50% for the other.
How could you be writing for a major sports publication and not realize that? Wow!Charlie Weis = GENIUS!
The brains behind the Patriots for all those Super Bowls.The ND faithful have predictably answered this challenge by hurling the usual childish insults at the “Hater.” If the good people of Indiana were so easily galvanized over a meaningful issue there would be no crime in the state, and the nation’s armed forces would be wearing gold helmets.
Truth be told, a young player from USC was badly injured when a desperate Weis followed through on his promise and let the grass of the field become so deep players had to stand on the benches to tie their shoes. Shocking was his failure to even admit to the failed ploy he had already stated he would use to slow down the Trojans. Pressed on the issue, and perhaps fearing the type of civil suit he likes to file himself, he barfed-up a botanical buffonary about a unique (and new, one time only) length requirement of the rare species of grass apparently known only to the crappy climate of South Bend. - LiarGoodness! What are sports supposed to do? Bring people together? All sports that have financial support from a fan base are adversarial. One adversary subjugates the other. One loser and one winner. This is not an excercise in excellence. It merely shows pleasure in conquering an opponent...morbid pleasure. And endless stupid bickering among the fans and those who derive money from the sport, including reporters and columnists.
Do you like sports where every participant wins? Where the results are winners/winners, enjoying excellence? Do sports have to have winners/losers always? No. But that's the only way people part with their money...when was the last time you paid for watching some win/win sport, like the Special Olympics, or maybe some local summertime camp, where every participant wins? No, but clobbering some adversary is what people want to pay for...including bashing coaches, reporters, hated teams, etc. It's all crazy...Babel all over again.Stewart, are you serious with this article? You aren't reporting anything here. Charlie is the head coach and can do what he wants with his QB's. Stop bitching and write something that that is newsworthy.In a season that will mostly be about rebuilding, Weis is just creating a story where one doesn't need to exist so that reporters won't focus on the fact that ND won't have much of a team this year.
It's just about keeping his team focused so they won't be distracted.
And Pickle Boy will prove to be a joke just like his brothers proved to be a joke too. The one good thing about Pickle boy is that he's coming in at such an old age for a freshman that he'll be able to pick up Soc Sec when he retires from being a ND back up.Personally I think it is smart move. Because of the following question:
How does Notre Dame from announcing the starting quarterback?
It would put a young person who already has the world on his shoulders by just being named the Quarterback at Notre Dame more under the microscope.
There will be plenty of time to over examine the players after the start.
There is no question that, at least, on some level Georgia Tech would benefit from knowing who the starter will be. They may not benefit greatly, but there is no way anyone with any level of intelligence can say Georgia Tech would be, at least, slightly better off (even if it is 1% better) knowing who the starter is going to be.
All you have to do is look at the question and weigh the positives and negatives...
nothing bad may come from announcing the starter; however, nothing that would benefit the Notre Dame Football Team would come from announcing the starter.
Regardless of the actual question and regardless of who the person making the decision is, be it Coach Weis, you or me, I think that if anyone sees more downside then upside, logical people would all make the same decision.Why does the media feel the need to have to know EVERYTHING??? Report on the game, report on what you see in practice, but game plan is not something that should be in the press or the 'story of the day'. What's next, do you want to know the first 10 plays they plan to run? You're not being arrogant here, you're being a brat (I WANNA KNOW!!!!! TELL ME!!!!!! TELL ME!!!!!!! WAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!)College football as a whole was so much more enjoyable when Notre Dame was utterly irrelevant. I take great comfort in knowing that by the 5th week of the season (with 4 losses), ND will be put on the back shelf of the closet and not heard from again in '07. Can't wait.This post has been removed by the author.Oh Lord! Charlie Weis isn't talking to Stewart Mandel! What a big deal. Give me a break. Dodd on CBS SportsLine wrote the same thing on his site. How sad and pathetic. Who cares if Weis doesn't want to tell who the starter is? How does it affect you at all? How is it arrogant?Stewart, I'm a big fan of your writing and I don't think you're a ND hater. However, I think that in this case you are making something out of nothing.
I think Weis, knowing that his team is not what it was last year, is using any and every advantage he can get over GT. Seems like a smart move to me. Why get up in arms about it?
Is Weis arrogant? Sure, that's his style. I think it works for him. No doubt this is a constant frustration to the media, but I don't think the media's opinion should guide his decision making process.I hate ND as much as the next guy but if your comment "Personally, I doubt it's affecting GT's preparation one way or the other." is true then what is the difference in him naming the starting quarterback ahead of time? If GT is not affected then it seems to me that YOU are the one with the arrogance. Because he will not tell YOU this entry was written. Just watch the game, or not, and you will find out who starts. Get over yourself!It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."
i realize this quote has been posted several times on this thread but i believe that Mandel owns his readers his response to it, since it flies in the face of his claims that Weis is only not naming a starter in some fit of arrogance. How do you respond to the OPPOSING COACH making you look like a moron?
Furthermore, congrats on taking Tuck's quote out of context and only using a tiny piece of it. Frankly, this is one of the most shoddily reported and written sports pieces ive read in a long time.
If its so "obvious" that Sharpley is the starter, why is ESPN speculating its Jones? And if the story is so overblown on the national level because you feel ND wont be competing for a championship, why did you devote an article to it? You have shown yourself to not only be a poor reporter, but a hypocrite as well.We're in a new age now where Notre Dame football is second class. Who cares who their QB is, they're not even one of the Top 25 Teams in the country!!!I don't care much about Weis, but I agree that the annoying thing here is that this is news that has been a "headliner" for over a week on every site. That he has named a starter is barely news, and certainly not HEADLINE news. And certainly not something we have to see and hear about for 10 days. I'm dreading the headlines for when ND actually wins a bowl game, which they may do this year since they'll be playing San Jose State in some December 12th bowl game.The role of a sports journalist . . . make something out of nothing. If a sports journalist doesn't create controversy, they are flipping burgers at McD's because they do not have any transferable life skills, except a radio shock jockey.Come on guys I am columnist, the most impotrtant people in the world. It is very very important that you tell me all things, even if it is not really necessary for me to know them until kickoff. Thats it I am taking my ball and going home to write another article about how Notre Dame is overrated and arrogant. BOO HOO!!!Charlie Weis stole my lunch money in 5th grade --- and then he stole my lunch!Stewart, perhaps you don't know about Weis's past and who he studied under. As it happens he learned to coach from Bill Parcells and Bill Bellichek. Go follow them for a year and tell us all how Weis is more arrogant than they are - simply because you're in the 50% who hate the Irish with a passion. Maybe they're unranked, maybe they're rebuilding, but when they command the number of fans that they do, when Clausen takes a crap, it's news.there is no law that says a coach has to reveal any of his starters prior to the game to the media. your whiny article proves why ND is so hated by the outsiders, and loved by everyone who is fortunate enough to be a part of the ND family.N.D. will once again choke this year... Weis is arrogant just like his mentor is up in New England.. They believe all their information is sacred.. They need to grow up and realize that they are not the best coach's around... N.D. will once again suck this year...Denfensive Coordinator John Tenuta of the Jackets has decided not to disclose who will be the first Tech defensemen to sack Charlie Wies’ secret quarterback. However he did say he expects it to be in the first set of downs that Notre Dame has the ball.What a horrible article. all based on your whining about him not saying who is the QB? come on loser, its part of the game plan for Georgia Tech to keep then guessing who it will be. Belichek does this all the time, good to see Charlie using it as well. Keep them guessing about who they are going to be facing.
Stewart is an idiot for this article, idiot. As an ND this is just a cheap publicity stunt done to get the ND masses up in anger. Loser."It's not as easy as if you knew who the quarterback was," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "It would be a lot easier if you knew."
Well Stewie, I'd have to say I go with what Chan is saying here. Why get your panties in such a bunch. As you can see by the posts, your taking a huge beating over a lame article. Don't try to tell a proven professional how to do his job. I do regret that no one told you how to do yours apparently.Ya know, I've always heard that Charlie Weis was a genius, and now after reading so many responses to Mandel's post, I have to say: I'm worried.
You see, I'm a USC fan. And, it occurs to me that Pete Carroll's let the cat out of the bag by letting everyone know that JD Booty is going to be his starting quarterback! That, right there, is a strategic advantage that he can never get back. Now, Idaho knows who to prep for, and can watch film, gameplan, etc. It all says "Vandal upset" to me.
The only thing I can't quite get about Weis' masterplan is: how can he keep the air of mystery alive for week 2? Maybe Weis can bring in a different starter every week?
Look, kids, either ND has a QB that's ready for primetime -- in which case Weis should just let us know (like every other program) -- or they don't, in which case it doesn't really matter. Is it arrogance on Weis' part? I don't know. Maybe it is (and I suspect Mandel's in a better position to judge that then most of us). To me, it just seems silly and pointless.If Bobby Bowden did something like this, you guty in the football press would all be talking about what a wiley old fox Bobby is, how he still has that coaching magic. Charlie doesn't kiss your collective self-important backsides, so he must be arrogant.....Stewart,
They are really paying you much too much!Stewart
Your brains are stewed to think that we care what you sportswriters think. If you have an axe to grind against ND, put on a uniform and go out and get your licks in. Otherwise spare us your
sanctimonious arrogance. I pray that you never suffer writer's block. But you live for this bashing don't you?
ND man.Notre Dame is going to loose to Georgia Tech no matter which quarterback they use.Stew your a dope. What CW does or doesn't do is really none of your business. Wait till game time like everyone else. All the QB's have different attributes and fit into CW's offense in different ways. Pretty smart not to tip off G Tech. The other teams who have named their QB's really had no other viable options. Go find some other coach to kiss up to for info it won't work with CW.the starting quaterback isnt going to matter anyway. ND is going run the ball down gt's throat all day long. gt tech cant match the irsh talent on the o line!!!Did I miss something? Is there a story here?I posted earlier about how i felt it was wrong to attack to Stewart, its just not how to win an argument and that stands, it sounds like a group of kids bashing a teacher after a poor grade on a test. I would like to add that in one post someone called Stewart Readerless well it seems by the number of posts hes gotten many many people have read him and many more will read his late posts. So congradulations Stewart on writing an editorial that many have read and has caused such passionate emotions in your readers.I'm just shocked that such an irrelevent football school has so many posters fired up. But what is funny is how many people say the media hates ND. What a joke. The media bows down to the gold helmets even if their last bowl victory was decades ago.
But people should stop complaining the ND gets in good bowls and get blown out. Do you realize how much money I have won in Vegas by betting against ND everytime they make a bowl? It's the easiest bet in the world. So thank you media for over-hyping the Irish every season!I don't think stewie even cares who the ND quarterback will be; I think he just wrote a controversial article because it will generate a lot of discussion (see feedback thus far).
All those other coaches that released their QB info have two major differences: 1) Both QBs competing for the job are similar types, and 2) They're all playing cupcake teams their first week. If ND was playing Montana State, he might be more inclined to show his hand.
Gailey and Tenuta have both admitted that it's tougher to prepare for all three QBs than if they knew who it was, so there goes that argument.
I don't see how not revealing who your QB will be is in any way "arrogant." You could disagree that it's a smart move in regards to strategy, preparing your QB's confidence, etc etc, but it doesn't really reflect poorly on Weis' ego. The public doesn't "have a right to know" anything about who he will play the first day, and if wants to keep it under wraps, that's his prerogative as the flippin head coach of Notre Dame.Y'all are missing the real reason for GT's need to prepare for all 3 QBs. GT needs to prepare for all 3 QBs not because CW won't tell them who is starting but because GT's hard-hitting defense will knock the starter and second stringer out of the game.
That's how Wake Forest surprised everybody last year. Everybody prepared for Ben Mauk, except VT who's defense is solid enough to stop any QB, only to find some unknown freshman beating them like a drum.
Good article, Stew, except you failed to note the probability that ND would use more than one QB.One more thing:
I think it's pretty insidious of you to call Weis' honesty into question. He has never lied to the media and always been more than accommodating. When reporters continue to pry into issues that he has clearly stated he does not mean to discuss, he begins to get a little peeved. But he's been more than fair, just ask those reporters who regularly cover ND football.
He's also a pretty incredible humanitarian and not the "jerk" he always gets painted as. But that just doesn't spark the same little flame under ND fan's butts like this article does. I've been impressed with Mandel's unbiased treatment of football in general lately, but this particular article just seems way off.Hey Stewie, if you wanted secret insider information you should join the White House press corps like everyone else.To all the UM alums here, Harbaugh opened up your kimono for all the world to see. You won't see any ND football players graduating with Sports Communications "degrees".
The rest of you haters are the reason why there are so many articles in the media about ND. Thanks for helping us be the national university that we are and have the following that we do. Please keep hating.
Go Irish!Does anybody on here want to take a $100 wager, via paypal, that Notre Dame starts the year 6-2 or better?
Come on haters, here's your chance to put your money where your mouth is.Well, since Ohio State hasn't named their starting QB, I guess Jim Tressel should be lumped similairly. So accordingly, I expect to see a column thrashing Jim Tressel within the week.
Charlie Weis runs his program how he sees fit. As you have stated, he answers for his program when he gets beaten.
This is another case of Notre Dame envy. And mind you, this is coming from a Longhorns fan.Stew,
I usually enjoy your articles, but this one was terrible. It reeks of bitterness over the fact that he won't tell the media who his starter is. He gains nothing from doing so, and even Gailey has admitted that it makes preparing for ND all that much harder. This article was just not very well thought out. My guess is that you were just looking for a reaction. Well, mission accomplished.
BrianIt's incredible to read all the hateful, stupid comments left by those swinging mindlessly from the sack of Charlie Weis. Get over it, Irish fans. Your team is largely irrlevent, and your coach is a morbidly obese, self-congratulatory punk. Stewart Mandel was well within his rights to pen this piece, and his conclusion that Weis is arrogant can't seriously be challenged.I love how all these clueless domers can only attack Stewart on this made up premise that he somehow feels entitled to the starting QB information.
If they actually read the article, they'd learn that Weis comes off as arrogant because he thinks the media cares like it would for an NFL team. The only people who care are domer fans and the beat writers whose job it is to care.
I'd love to see where in the article it is implied that Stewart or the media for that matter is entitled to that information. All he said was that withholding that information comes off as petty and stupid, which it does.Notre Dame is the most overrated team ever? If they were any other team with the same record they wouldn't get half the publicity they get. What is the last quality team they beat? Navy, Stanford, Purdue. Please. Oh, and one more thing. Can someone please tell me the last time N.D. won a bowl game?Weis is an ass. Any High School Coach that lets him in the door is inviting a humiliating encounter. If not this year, provided your player is 6'4 not 6'3 or 300lbs not 295, next year. Chuckie will make you feel like you dont know the first thing about football. ND football deserves better, or did we forget what Touchdown Jesus really stands for?I don't understand why anybody needs to know who the ND quarterback is, except for the teams that are playing against ND? And why would you tell them?Hook, line, and sinker...Us domers are quite naive. I love ND and have reread your story twice...the responses you are getting are incredible. If ND happens to win more games than expected, or pounds GT, your follow-up article will be just as interesting...all the Domers telling you to eat crow, and all the ND-haters pissed off saying Charlie is fat. You can't lose Stew...except that you are as much a pawn as us in that you write for reaction.what people i dont think are realizing is that charlie in all likelihood will use more than one quarterback not just during the course of the season, but in this first game against GT. One thing I know is it wont be Clausen to start. Put in a freshman quarterback (albeit a good one) and see how well he deals with blitzes half of the snaps, against one of the best blitzing defenses in the country. See how well he does. My guess would be Jones because he can run, and could be pretty effective in draw plays etc against the blitz. But what does it really matter, they're going to lose anyway. My move as a coach would be just to put in Clausen. You're going to lose the game, why not get the kid some experience against a very aggressive defense. But Charlie probably thinks Notre Dame will go 12-0 anyway so what do i know...I love how people say Notre Dame is irrelevant yet they are posting comments about them on a blog referring to a story that has been over-reported since before the Sugar Bowl.
For those who say Notre Dame should a stronger schedule, please take a look at their first 8 games this year. Additionally, please note that Notre Dame schedules their first 5 or 6 games this difficult EVERY year while other "big time" programs are opening up against the likes of East Carolina, Appalachian State, Western New England College, etc.
I understand that your average Notre Dame hater is thoroughly ignorant, but are any of you aware of the talent Weis has recruited in just 2 seasons on the job? Does anybody realize that there are only 7 true seniors on this years roster? These are players from Willingham's last recruiting class.
Weis took over a program with undeveloped talent at the skill positions, but no depth at the positions that build a strong program. Even now they still don't have a full 80 scholarship roster because of inadequate recruiting since Lou Holtz left the program.
Weis won his 2nd road game of his career at Michigan in 2005 when the Wolverines were ranked what, 2nd in the nation? People argue that Brady Quinn couldn't win a big game, despite doing all he could to put his team in position to beat a USC team that had beaten the Irish the previous 3 seasons by 41 points in each game.
If you hate Notre Dame, fine. They go to BCS games because they bring in big money and corporate sponsors (who are responsible for the bowl games in the first place) enjoy the big money that the Irish bring in.
Notre Dame will beat USC this year.Coach Weis not publicly naming his starting quarterback is no evidence of his arrogance, just as this sports column is no evidence of intelligent life.Awwww! Poor Domers! Someone didn't write an article about how great you are or about how Weis is the greatest coach ever or about how Jimmy Clausen is actually someone else with the same initials. Get over yourselves. Win a bowl game. Win a big game for that matter. Great article, Stewart!!Stewart, I read your work on a regular basis, so obivously I enjoy it. That said, this article is complete garbage. I despise reporters who write about things that have no influence whatsoever on anything, and attempt to turn it into 'something.' This is a non-issue.
Notre Dame will be unranked for the entire season, unless we experience another fluke.
Georgia Tech will be lucky to finish the season ranked.
So who the hell cares? Niether team will crack the top 25. It is a pointless game when it comes down to the national championship picture.
I can't believe you've wasted your time composing this journalistic excrement. I can't believe we've all wasted our time reading it. And now I feel like an idiot for responding to it.
Go Bucks.Stewart, I usually like your articles, but this one strikes an arrogant tone -- on the part of the press. This is the typical kind of hit piece reporters write when they're trying to show that they have power they can wield against anyone who doesn't play according to the media rules.... "Who does Weis think he's messing with? I'm a national sports writer; I can either make him a hero or a goat with my barrel of ink." Not to Mandel: stop taking yourself so seriously.ssword1This isnt arrogance. What it is, is what you stated it is near the end of your article. The coach is generating buzz around an unranked, rebuilding team that if it wasnt ND, nobody would really care about. I am definitely not an ND fan but I notice when they are in the news because they are so good at generating press for themselves; like they've done here. Your story is a non-story...if your not an ND fan, who cares....next!!!!Once again the jealous ND haters have to take a shot at the program. It's ok, I can understand the jealousy. Just think about this: Notre Dame is and always will be the greatest college football program in the nation. When you Michigan fans or whoever else decides to hate, just take a look at how many National Championships your teams have compared to Notre Dame. People cannot stand the tradition and prestige that is associated with Notre Dame. Give me another college football program that has a network deal, or has had a President who played one of it's greatest players ever in a movie. Haters let me leave you with this "Hate Like A Champion Today."In 2005, that Michigan also lost to Minnesota at home, that team finished 7-5.I agree with Ted. You have made your decision based on the fact that you did not get what you want. As far as coaches like Bowden, he was just repeating what he heard at practice...that guy doesnt coach anymore, he is nothing but something for Flordia St fans to talk about, much like Jo Pa at Penn St. As far as not believeing anything that Weis says, you shouldnt believe any coach, do you really think that they are going to devuldge everything that they are planning on doing? That would be arrogant.I enjoy reading all the comments of the ND haters. I they all dislike them because they're jealous or didnt get in to ND themselves. You guys wish your team could be Notre DameAs Weis said earlier this summer, this is the only time he can play this card, so he's going to play it. And it appears to be working:
http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2007/08/26/techfoot_0827.html
If it's causing his opponent trouble, he's doing his job, not being arrogant.Did you have a hard time coming up with a real article topic this week, Stewart? What a load of self-important garbage. It's Weis' job to coach his team to wins, not to provide you or me with insight. That's your job, Stewart, and you aren't particularly good at it.
"That said, it’s fairly obvious at this point that Sharpley, the most experienced of the bunch, will start on Saturday."
Since you're such a critic of Weis' credibility and believe that you're entitled to know certain things, if we find out on Saturday that Sharpley isn't the starter, will we get a line or two in your next article about how it's "fairly obvious" that you're a hack and that we shouldn't believe anything that you post?
I thought not.KURT:
Which BCS bowl did the Irish go to with a 7-5 record? Moron.As for Stewart writing this article to "get more people to read", well, it kind of works. I only read Mandel (or SI.com, for that matter) when one of their reporters writes the obligatory "I hate ND" article. The best part is reading the comments.
Anyway...Stewart...why do you care? I mean, honestly, you read these posts, and have responded, but you haven't answered a basic question that many posters have asked - WHY DO YOU CARE THAT CHARLIE WEIS HAS NOT TOLD YOU WHO THE STARTER AGAINST GT IS GOING TO BE?
Without the capitalization:
Why do you care?
Was there a deadline coming up, and you had nothing else to write about? Were your blog response hits from ND fans below your weekly quota? Did Charlie Weis piss you or some of your media collegues off at some presser?
If, as you say, Notre Dame is an unranked, rebuilding team (which it is, but Charlie would never admit the "rebuilding" part), and is really not even going to be very relevant this year (which many ND fans would agree with), then WHY DO YOU CARE?
As you have decided to speculate and make assumptions that all of the ND fans are upset that Charlie hasn't revealed the starter, then I too will make an assumption - you had nothing elser to write about this week (the week before the start of CFB season), so you decided to create your own news.
Just in case you ever wondered why so many people think you are a hack, the above paragraph pretty much sums it up.
Enjoy the season, sir!I don't see what the fuss is about Weis not divulging who the starting quarterback is. Personally, I don't think this offers that much of an advantage to ND, and I'm an ND fan.
Weis is a little arrogant but he would be the first person to tip his hat to GT and Jon Tenuta if Tech beats ND and plays well defensively. I challenge any ND bashers to show us where Weis hasn't shown respect for an opposing team. Would Pete "the poodle" Carroll congratulate ND had ND beat them in 05' without the "Bush push"? Don't think so, but sportswriters are in love with Petey and those Trojans. Had an ND back pushed Brady Quinn into the end zone we would never hear the end of it from sensationalistic, ND bashing sports writers or the crybaby SC fans.Seeing who Weis learned from in the NFL, I will say it is not as much arrogance as upbringing. Professor Bill will list his whole squad as questionable before a game in the NFL. His relations with the media are not exactly jovial. Professor Bill says very little to the media and I think even used the "free information to the opponent" line before. Coaches are only obligated to reveal the information they are required. Until Weis is told he has to reveal his QB he won't, nor should he have to.Stewart,
you and Mark May must hang out together. I have never seen 2 writers/analysts who are so biased as the two of you. The irish could go undefeated and win the national championship and graduate 100% of the team in the same year and you will write something to bash them. Why do you hate them so much?I think every good coach, whether it's Tressel, Meyer, Carroll, etc., must be arrogant to some extent, and Weis is no more or less arrogant than any other college coach. Look at Spurrier, for instance, demanding that South Carolina lower its academic standards for athletes. That reeks of arrogance because it gives the impression that he believes his football program is more important than the reputation of a state university, and after all, a university is first and foremost an academic institution.
And, by the way, Sharpley did look damn good in the public practice last night.Wait, since Stoops announced his QB, then Weis should as well? Did you even bother to look and see who OU is playing in their first game? Let me do your research for you: it's North Texas. OU could start a kicker as its QB and still win that game. If ND played a creampuff as its first game, Weis would have disclosed who the QB is going to be. Since GT is a legitimate and formidable opponent, there is nothing wrong with keeping everyone outside of the program in the dark until kickoff.
Your little rant here reminds of the reaction of a spoiled teenager when they don't get something they want from their parents. "I hate you!!!!". Grow up.Sorry Mandell, this is no news. I said several years ago, that those that know him, will tell you that is is one big arrogant so and so. I went on to say that he is far overrated as a head coach and should stay as an ass. coach for which he is best suited.
I don't think much of any one that attacks the person writing a story that may disagree with. To attack the substance is fair game, but the personal attacks shows me and the world where your IQ lies and how you where raised.
ND will never do much and haven't done much since he came along. Does any one here know how many bowl games ND has won in the last seven years, never mind that they should have not even been in a few of them?
I don't hate ND, but am I know all over as one that speaks the truth and I don't live in a fantasy land like so many sport fans do.I think Weis is very arrogant. However, I don't think he is arrogant for not naming his starting QB for the opener. I think Weis is arrogant because he thought coming into the ND job that he could out coach every coach in America. He said as much during his first couple of press conferences. I honestly don't think it will matter who he starts this saturday. Tech is going to have them on their tail all game long. The GT defense is under-rated this year.Stewart. You've coached how many pro teams? College? High School? Pop Warner? Right. Just keep trying to do your duty of reporting objectively, unless you continue to feel that your life is so boring you need to pick remote drama with a coach who you don't even personally know. Is there that little news to report in college football you have to pull this out?This kid AJG JR, does not know his football, and is living in dream land with his statement that ND will beat USC. At this time in space, any one that says that is like the rest of those that bush the writer for disagreeing with his story. Fact. ND coach is arrogant, and USC will beat ND.
Some one tell this kid to put up so real money if he believes that. Lets start with a $100.000.00 and go up from there. I am not interest in what comes out of any ones mouth. Only how they live and their action. I am waiting kid.The Book
Stewart Mandel's first book, Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls: Tackling the Chaos and Controversy that Reign Over College Football, is available now. Click here to order your discounted copy.CommentsAll user comments must be approved by the moderator before being published. Due to time constraints, comments will only be published for the first several hours following a new post.More MandelRecent Posts
Copyright © 2008 Time Inc.A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.Terms under which this service is provided to you.Read our privacy guidelines.
