Fire Weis?

While I was perusing ESPN.com when I was supposed to be listening to a lecture on Microsoft Access, I came across an interesting Gene Wojciechowski article about Charlie Weis and Notre Dame. The article wasn't interesting because it addressed the age old Weis - Willingham comparison, but because it talked about fans turning their backs on the coach:

"Notre Dame alums and fans feel empowered by the precedent set when Willingham was dismissed. [. . .] Some of them want a new coach."

Over the last week, Charlie undoubtedly took some heat (even from the Nasties crew) for (among other decisions) not kicking the field goal against Navy, but I have yet to hear any students on campus challenging his job position. The ND blog roll also appears to be responding the same way, by criticizing the coaching, but not necessarily the coach.

"Weis is going to have to live with the "Fire Charlie" chatter"

Even though this season is breaking all sorts of bad records (only two other Irish teams have lost 8 games in a season), I feel that our fan base has been smart enough to tough out this season knowing, not hoping, that things will get better quickly. The reason ND locked up Weis with a big contract so early is that when he is given the talent to work with, the results have been two BCS bowl bids, and once this current Irish squad develops in terms of skill and experience, fans expect nothing less than a perennial championship contender.

Wojciechowski also was critical of Weis' recruiting, basically saying that even though his classes have been ranked very highly, it doesn't matter because high school player rankings can be so wildly inaccurate. On this point, I'd like to refer this professional ESPN writer to the research done over at the Blue-Gray Sky, where over the summer, the boys reviewed the high school rankings of the current college seniors and compared them to their on field performance, and here are some of the conclusions they found:

• 30% of the top 50 seemed capable of playing in the NFL after only 3 years of school
• Only 10% of the top 50 were considered true "busts"
• Purdue's top 50 players seem to bust more than others (just a fun fact)

Also interesting was that the BGS team found that the hardest positions to evaluate were the offensive line and cornerback positions, so I guess that the ranking of the upcoming class could be somewhat skewed given that it contains 7 o-linemen and DBs, but the point is that a top ranking seems to be a decent predictor of college success. Oh, and by the way, the #1 ranked player of the 2008 class just set a single game rushing record in the NFL. I think his name's Peterson or something like that.

Up to this point, I haven't been sucked into comparing Weis and Willingham at all. Actually, I think this might be the first time I wrote the word "Willingham" in a post. But given that I am criticising an article that discusses him, I think I should at least say something on the issue. Well, I'm not going to, but I will point our loyal readers to a Huskie blog (link courtesy of Her Loyal Sons) so they can see how they are doing with our former head coach.

The ESPN article also includes a very good video of Mark May and Lou Holtz breaking down Notre Dame. Lou talked about how Notre Dame needs to get back to the fundamentals of toughness and good technique; Weis seems to have had some difficulty with this in the 07 season, and my only rational for it is that he is used to coaching experienced players, but not yet used to developing inexperienced players. One of May's criticisms was that Charlie has been unable to translate the recruiting rankings onto the field, so hopefully Chuck can prove him wrong as he learns how to better deal with youngsters.

Commenting on the loss to Navy, Lou referred to the 1987 team that lost in the Sugar Bowl, saying that that loss was able to fuel the team over the offseason and allowed them to go after the championship the next year. I personally believe that ND has faced enough "adversity" between getting walloped in its last two bowl games, getting hammered by USC in four out of the last five contests, and losing a record eight games this season, but if snapping the 43 year old winning streak against Navy ends up being the catalyst that leads to future success, I'll take it for now. This leaves us with the quote of the week:

"[losing to Navy] could be the best thing that happens to [Notre Dame]" - Lou Holtz

When life gives you lemons... Beat Falcons!

Navy Duds and Studs

At least the Browns won this weekend...

Duds:

ND Secondary: There is absolutely no reason that our secondary should have allowed all-name quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada to complete 6 of 8 passes. I guess that I stirred up some bad karma in my game preview with the accidental Minter reference because our secondary looked just about as lost (out schemed, too slow, whatever you want to say) as it ever has over the last three years. Navy isn't exactly bringing in Calvin Johnson freaks of nature at the receiver positions and I doubt Kaipo will be nominated for the Golden Arm Award any time soon. Even worse than the 75% completion rate is that several passes gave Navy key first downs (and one touchdown in overtime). Getting sucked into an option playfake is no excuse for allowing this type of passing efficiency to a running team like Navy.

Playcalling: Because this blog will lose some of its relevance if ND cuts ties with Weis, I don't want to be too harsh, but there is no excuse for not kicking the field goal at the end of the game. Say what you want about running Thomas in the goal line packages or the decision to go for it 8 times on fourth down, I haven't found one person that agrees with Weis' decision to scrap the field goal late in the game. Charlie rationed that the team needed to get the ball to the 20 in order to attempt the field goal, but lets be honest: when the offense needs to put points on the board, kicking a 41 yard field goal has a much higher percentage than converting a 4th and 8 (and even if we do convert, we still don't have guaranteed points on the board). In an interhall game earlier this year, I saw a team that had never even practiced kicking extra points (they figured it was easier to go for 2 all the time) organize a field goal team for the first time during a game and kick a game winning 40 yarder as time expired. If a bunch of hung over college kids can do it, there's no excuse why varsity athletes can't.

The offensive line: Coming into the season, Navy had only 4 sacks (and that was against all of the Ball States and Dukes of the world), and our offensive line continued to disappoint by allowing 4 sacks in Saturday's game! It's no secret that Navy's linemen on both sides are limited by Naval Academy size restrictions, but somehow they gave us numerous problems. In addition to having poor pass protection, ND only averaged 3.7 yards a rush, and this leads me to point the finger at the coaching staff. There is no way that we don't have the talent to overwhelm Navy at the line of scrimmage. John Latina might as well pack his bags after this game; it might be ok to have a bad running attack in a rebuilding year while facing top 25 teams, but a 3.7 yard average against Navy is unacceptable.

Studs:

Pat Kuntz: Without our workhorse nose tackle, Navy was able to get 3 yards up the middle at will, which forced the Irish to assign extra men to help out with the middle rush. In struggling with stopping the run up the middle, the Irish opened themselves up to be attacked on the perimeter. Hopefully Kuntz won't be out long.

Armando Allen: James Aldridge played well, but Allen has to get the 'best running back' award. With 91 yards on a 5.9 average on the ground, 3 catches for 20 yards, and 115 yards on 4 kick returns, this freshman knows how to fill the stat sheet. Against Navy, I could see what Weis meant when he said Allen was seeing things slow down on the field; his burst of speed seems more natural, and I'm excited to see him continue to develop as a player.

Duval Kamara: Another bright youngster, Kamara showed flashes of potential against Navy. Most notably, his long touchdown reception on 3rd down to help keep the Irish in the game. Look for Kamara to start with Robby Parris against Air Force as Grimes continues to look average and Tate has yet to do anything exciting since Purdue.

Here are some of the better write-ups about the Navy game from other blogs:

The Irish Roundup: Pardon me as I stab myself in the eye with a fork.

Blue Gray Sky: Bad Notre Dame Jay

OC Domer: Navy Sinks Irish Dreams of 5-7 Season

Colonialhead's Irish Blog: Hating the Haters

Enjoy. Go Irish. Beat Falcons.

Douh!

Maybe not quite as bad, but this loss seemed to sting a little...

Weekend Preview: We WILL Score Points Against Navy

Looking forward to the Navy game tomorrow, there are a few stats that I find encouraging, and few stats I find frightening. Read on to see what the Nasties crew thinks of the Midshipmen in an edition of good stat / bad stat.

Good Stat: Navy surrenders 38.1 points a game. What makes this figure even more potent is that the points were against teams not exactly known for their prolific offenses: Temple (30), Ball State (34), Duke (46), Wake Forest (44), and most recently, 1-AA team Delaware (59). Despite the adversity, I've remained positive about Charlie and his army, but if we can't put up some points this weekend, you might see me pulling out all of the hair on my head and drowning my sorrows at the fro-yo machine.

Bad Stat: Navy scores 35.8 points a game. Fortunately, these stats are also against the opponents above, but being able to put up 48 points on Pitt (even though it was overtime) and 24 on Rutgers is arguably better than the Irish could do this season. There will be a lot of pressure on the Irish defense to hold Navy to minimal scoring.

Good Stat: Navy only averages 100 yards passing per game. Compared to some of our past opponents, the Midshipmen do not have the height and speed at the receiver position that has given us problems up to this point in the year. This allows Minter to call more man coverages and apply a little more pressure up front.

Bad Stat: Navy has one of the top ten best rushing attacks in Division 1. Averaging over 300 yards on the ground, our front 8 (that's the regular 7 plus Zibby) will have to step it up if we want to stall their offense.

Good Stat: Geoff Price averaged 45 yards per punt last game. Especially against a ground attack team, the field position game is imperative. A team that stretches the field with the pass can go 80 yards in 5 or 6 plays, but for a grind-it-out running team, such drives normally take 10 to 12 plays. Translation: its much harder to string together 10 or 12 good plays than 5 or 6.

Bad Stat: Notre Dame has only scored 17 first quarter points this year. When facing a team that is great at running the clock like Navy, it is important not to get behind early. Hopefully, ND can get a quick touchdown to keep the pressure off of the defense.

Good Stat: The Irish have beaten the Midshipmen in 43 consecutive meetings. That has to count for something, right?

In other news, good luck to the men's basketball team, who is tipping off against St. Ambrose in their first exhibition game tonight. Although the team will be without power forward Luke Harangody, who is nursing a broken hand, I expect nothing less than a 30 point victory.

Also, keep Robert Hughes' family in your prayers. The sophomore running back's brother was shot and killed a few days ago. His funeral was scheduled for 11:00 am today.

Quote of the Week

I was fortunate enough to be able to attend a lecture earlier in the week that Weis spoke at, and now our loyal readers will be fortunate enough to catch my quick summary:

Anyone that has heard Weis speak about the University and the football program before knows how passionate he is about both, and this was further strengthened in his talk when he said "One of two things is gonna happen. Either Notre Dame's gonna get to the top, or I'm gonna die." However, any American citizen knows that this season, Notre Dame is anything but at the top. As he stated at the lecture, Weis knew that coming into the ND job, it was going to take a full cycle of recruiting in order for him to get ND to where he wanted it to be. Winning 9 and 10 games his first two years was nice, but according to Weis, the Irish aren't supposed to win 10 games one year and 6 the next; we should be on top every year. Chuck said that in order to get the program to this level, it would take 4 or 5 years (full cycle of recruiting).

The point is that Weis obviously cares about the program, and with anyone who combines the passion he has with the talent that he is recruiting, it won't be long until this program returns to its winning ways.

For those of you who weren't satisfied with that, here's a nice highlight video for you to watch:


My personal favorite line: "That might be the most SENSATIONAL, UNBELIEVABLE, play in DIVISION III!"

Happy Halloween

Nothing beats sitting in a three hundred person lecture class and watching people walk in wearing some festive attire. In engineering today, two students dressed in business garb complete with briefcases promptly strolled into the room during the middle of a lecture, and, pointing at a student in a red and white striped shirt, shouted "There's Waldo! Get him!" The student in the Waldo attire immediately dashed up from his seat and out of the classroom in order to escape his adversaries who followed in pursuit. Its stories like this that remind us all why the holiday is meant for tricks as well as treats.


Happy Halloween. Go Irish.

Hunt for the Heisman

In a year that didn't have a clear Heisman front runner to begin with, last week's onslaught of upsets threw some of the more obvious contenders out of the race, virtually throwing the doors wide open for anyone who wants it. Andre Woodson, who started off strong in a very difficult conference, looked average as Mississippi State handed Kentucky its third SEC loss. Super Sophomore Tim Tebow seems to have lost something in his run game while he nurses his shoulder, and it showed in a loss to Georgia. Speaking of injuries, running back Mike Hart has already missed two games with an ankle problem, so he can be counted out, and a broken finger has kept John David Booty off the field in So. Cal.

With all of these prospects out, who's in first?

An ESPN poll has Razorback Darren McFadden in fourth (behind Hart, Tebow, and Woodson), but without a win against a ranked team (Arkansas also has a 5-3 record), McFadden may have to prove himself in upcoming games against South Carolina and LSU in order to get votes.

Following the recent trend (of the Heisman going to the QB or RB of the team with the best record), it looks like BC signal caller Matt Ryan remains in the race after a sloppy game in Blacksburgh. But if Ryan is up for consideration, then why not Todd Boeckman of OSU, who is projected to have stats not unlike last year's winner, Troy Smith? Here's a table comparing some of the stats to the unbeaten quarterbacks this year, with Grahm Harrel of Texas Tech in there just for fun:

As you can see - not one of these players appears to stand out in all of the categories. I'm also ruling out Brennan because his team plays the 119th toughest schedule in Division 1-A (in case you didn't already know, that's last; more should be expected from a "top 25" team). To be honest with you, I didn't even know who Todd Reesing (Kansas) or Rudy Carpenter (Arizona State) were until I looked them up for this study, so if the national media is giving Ryan Heisman attention, then why shouldn't Reesing and Carpenter be getting any? In fact, I might argue that those two are better Heisman candidates for bringing their less talented teams to the top without the fifth year talent Ryan has, but I digress...

The point is that no quarterback should win the Heisman this year with the exception of maybe Tebow, who represents an integral part of the Gator offense in a way unlike any other high profile quarterback in the country. Maybe McFadden, Slaton, or Johnson can close out the year well and get some attention, but if not, this could be a good year to give the Heisman trophy to someone who doesn't line up directly behind center.

My pick, and this has nothing to do with me being a student, is Trevor Laws (write in vote for him here). Just something to think about. Go Irish.

Quote of the Week

The Irish Roundup (newly added to the Nasties ND blog site bar) put up an interesting post today about why Trevor Laws should be considered for the Heisman Trophy. Seriously. Don't worry Domers, the Roundup crew isn't delusional, but the argument they put forward is pretty interesting and worth a read.

I mentioned below that Laws was leading the team in tackles and having a very impressive season, so this week's quote comes from an interview with Trevor on Inside Notre Dame:

"I hurts when someone congratulates me on having a good game because we're not winning. I'd gladly trade the statistics for wins"

And that folks is why Trevor Laws is such a stud. Laws is a great asset not only because he is able to dominate opposing offenses, but because he is an unselfish leader; he will be greatly missed next year.

Speaking of seniors playing in their last year, it looks like Mo Crum has confirmed that this year won't be his last. An article in the Observer reports that Maurice Crum Sr. said that his son would be returning for a fifth year at Notre Dame. Holding on to a middle linebacker as solid as Crum will be a big benefit for the Irish next year as he will be able to become a force on the field and mentor the youngins at the position.

Of Bye Weeks and Youngsters

In case you haven't realized it yet, Notre Dame has a week off before playing the Naval Academy, and that means an extra week to regroup and gameplan among other things. Weis had some interesting statements in his latest press conference found here, but for those of you who read too much during mid terms, the Nasties crew will try to summarize.

Weis has used the bye week in past years as a chance to talk to all of the seniors with a year of eligibility left, and this year is no different. Because student-athletes at ND must apply for a fifth year, Charlie wants to wait until his players do so before saying who's staying, but it sounded like Maurice Crum Jr. might be interested in playing another year, which is good news for Domers.

Now that the team is no longer bowl eligible, Weis says that he will begin working some of the younger players in more. Expect linemen Taylor Devor, Chris Stewart, and Thomas Bemenderfer to see some more snaps next week.

On some of the younger players: Weis praised Duval Kamara and Robby Parris for their development as receivers, but still issued some props to speedster Golden Tate, adding that he too is developing quickly. However, perhaps the most encouraging youngster has been running back Armando Allen. Charlie commented that for the first time, Allen has shown the speed in the game that he shows in practice.

Unless something dramatic happens in practice, Sharpley will get the nod against Navy. Weis said that it would be unfair to pull someone for losing against USC because "a lot of people lose to USC."

An increased emphasis on minimizing penalties seemed to pay off against the Trojans: the Irish were only flagged twice.

Trevor Laws is continuing his All-American year. His 66 tackles are not only the most on the team, but the most in the nation by a defensive lineman, but don't forget about another senior on the defense. I've been hard on Zibby at times this year, but he's been playing well the last few games, or at least well enough to be named a quarterfinalist for the Lott Trophy. Nice work guys.

Despite a poor performance on the field this year, the Irish have been tearing it up off the field in recruiting. In addition to five star WR Michael Floyd (video highlight), the Irish also landed RB Jonas Gray over the weekend. Experts expected Floyd to commit to Notre Dame, but Gray was somewhat of a shocker because he decommitted from Nebraska to select us. The craziest part is that he left Nebraska because they were having a bad season! Ranked as the top prospect out of Michigan and the 3rd best running back overall by rivals, this guy is a beast and is definitely a good pickup.

That's it from the Nasties crew for today. Go Irish.

Duds and Studs: Back to Training Camp

With Notre Dame getting absolutely thumped out of bowl contention and my Cleveland Indians completing an epic collapse to get denied from a World Series berth, this weekend has basically ripped the sports heart out of my chest and backed over it with a two ton truck, and it is on that note that the Nasties crew breaks down the Duds and Studs for weak (thats not a typo) 8.

Duds:

Receivers: After holding USC to a 3 and out on the first possession, dropped passes continually were able to kill any momentum that the Irish gained in the first quarter. The inability to get open down field or break tackles serve as a reminder for the void left with the exit of Stovall, Shelton, McKnight, and Samardzija over the last two years.

John Sullivan: This one may or may not be warranted as I'm not quite sure who calls out the blocking at the line of scrimmage, but if it is Sullivan's job, than he gets a solid F for this game. The issue against the Trojans wasn't talent: their talented defense linemen didn't overpower or outrun our big uglies any more than was expected, but the amount of missed assignments was out of this world. Up to this point in the year, the line has looked foolish whenever the opposition either overloads one side or sends a delayed blitz. As a senior, Sullivan should be able to better communicate the blocking scheme along the line.

Pass Defense: While our front seven (up until the fourth quarter when they must have been exhausted) looked pretty decent against the run, ND was unable to challenge Sanchez with any sort of pass rush. The depth of Southern Cal's team was on display as their backup quarterback was able to hit receivers in stride perfectly in the middle of our zone coverage.

Studs:

Rush Defense: On the other side, our run defense was about as stout as can be expected against a team with the arsenal of running backs and experienced line that USC has. Trevor Laws and John Ryan were able to fill holes and hold the Trojans to little gains. As is the case with many of the games this season, the numbers don't really give an accurate presentation of our defense; the offense was unable to produce first downs (Price punted 6 time in the first half) which prevented the defense from getting much rest, and multiple times they were left guarding against a short field because of a Travis Thomas or special teams blunder.

Michael Floyd: By the grace of God, this five star receiver somehow committed to ND after witnessing this terrible loss. A true success story, this kid will be able to make an immediate impact next year, and it is a true testament to his character that he is so excited to be a Domer given the debacle that is this season. Breifly touched upon in this Rothstien article, Floyd mentions that one of the reasons he committed so early is that he has made good friends with fellow commit John Goodman (no not that John Goodman). It is situations like this that affirm my faith in the 2012 commits; no one's jumping ship just yet.

Paratroopers: Props to the paratroopers that touched down before the game on Saturday. I've posted some videos (new technology for the Nasties crew) in case you missed them.

You don't have to read Charlie's Nasties to figure out that our team stunk it up on Saturday, but always looking at the sunny side of the street, things do look good for Navy. I think that our run defense will be able to keep the Navy option attack off of the field and hopefully our offense will be able to string together some decent drives. My arms are getting weak this year from the lack of push ups in the student section.

O well, with the Indians out of the World Series hunt, at least I can finally shave my playoff beard.

Have a good Fall Break. Go Irish.