AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2005 > August > 20 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USWeis refuses to let Irish be mediocre
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
South Bend, Ind. â€â€? The first thing you notice about Charlie Weis is not only is he evolving into the next Rockne, Leahy, Parseghian and Holtz before the Fighting Irish’s eyes, but nobody fibbed about his unyielding ways. Once football camp starts, he becomes more rigid than one of these legendary statues around the Notre Dame campus.
Weis does smile, though. It’s just that they are quick ones. They appear only long enough for this pleasantly cocky coach in his first season with the Irish to make a point. For instance: When the subject is Notre Dame’s slide toward mediocrity, accelerated by the underwhelming coaching and recruiting of Bob Davie and Tyrone Willingham, Weis’ point is along the lines of, “Believe me, pal. I know something that you don’t, but keep watching. Greatness is about to happen.”
My words, not his.
As for Weis’ words, listen to what he says about resurrecting Notre Dame’s mostly dormant recruiting in the South. (Just so you know, the Irish once grabbed national championships with those such as South Carolina’s Tony Rice. They currently have Buford running sensation Darius Walker, but mostly because he was ignored by the University of Georgia.)
So will Weis seek to battle his counterparts on the Bulldogs for the prize talent around the state of Georgia? He flashed that quick smile, took a swig from his water bottle outside of Notre Dame’s new Taj Mahal of a football building worth $25 million and said in a hurry, “Absolutely.” Then came another quick smile and another swig, before Weis added, “I have a few guys in particular, which I’m not telling you who they are, that I’m hoping like [heck] to get.”
The quick smile became a long one, before Weis added, “See, in recruiting, you can’t be afraid of losing. If you’re going to go against the big boys of the SEC, for instance, and if you don’t get [some of those prize recruits], you don’t get them. Just to assume that they’re going to Georgia, that’s a loser’s mentality.”
Speaking of which, any derivative of the word “lose” is foreign to Weis, fresh from helping the New England Patriots win three of the past four NFL world championships as Bill Belichick’s offensive coordinator. He also got a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants under Bill Parcells. And, yes, he chats often with the two Bills about coaching stuff.
As for Notre Dame stuff, he already huddles with Ara and Lou, owners of three of the Irish’s 11 national championships. “I just ask questions of them and listen,” said Weis, who had a long breakfast last week with Holtz. “Whenever they have a thought about something, I want them to feel free to give me their opinions without holding back and without sugarcoating it.”
Translated: Weis is conjuring up the ghosts. Rockne. Leahy. The Four Horsemen. The Gipper. The nearly century-old legacy that includes those national titles, seven Heisman Trophy winners, the Rocket and the Victory March.
Since Weis is a 1978 Notre Dame graduate, he embraces the ghosts. Willingham and Davie were scared of them. “The old philosophy was kind of like, ‘Let’s start our own legacy,’ whereas Coach Weis wants us to create our own legacy while honoring the past,” said offensive lineman Dan Stevenson, among those whose eyes nearly leaped from their sockets after the start of camp.
First, Weis showed the movie “Rudy” to the team. Afterward, he said he couldn’t imagine what the real Rudy experienced, so he pointed to the real Rudy sauntering into the room amidst gasps.
“We didn’t have many of the former players come back in the past,” said wide receiver Maurice Stovall, recalling how Weis also used Joe Montana, Joe Theisman, Tim Brown and Chris Zorich as honorary coaches in the spring game. “It’s helping us focus more, and it’s helping us remember how grateful we should be to be at Notre Dame, and that it’s important for us to bring back the tradition.”
This is just as important: Notre Dame suddenly has a slew of dandy assistant coaches (compared with those of Davie and Willingham), including three former head coaches. It’s the Irish’s current one that has everybody’s attention.
“He’s so brutally honest at times that it can catch you off guard,” said Brady Quinn, the junior quarterback, threatening to turn potential into reality through Weis’ offensive genius. “The best thing about his honesty is that it’s fair. He doesn’t play favorites. He’s even more intense now than he was in the spring, and I’m sure that he will become even more so when we start playing the season.”
Even so, Weis does smile (sort of), which Quinn saw on this day, when the team stretched before practice. “I didn’t know if it meant it was going to be a good day or a bad day,” Quinn said, laughing.
It meant it was going to be a Weis day at Notre Dame. Or else.
Permalink | Comments (44) | Categories: Other, Tech / ACC, Terence Moore, UGA / SEC
Comments
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By Greg
August 21, 2005 01:48 AM | Link to this
Wow, an article about how great the Fighting Irish will be. I remember when Willingham was the next great thing at Notre Lame. I’m sure the new coach in three years, when Weis has failed and the losers in South Bend have run him off, will also be a great savior who will return the Irish to significance.
But no mention of their offensive racial mascot Mr Moore? Surely you noticed people in you’re previous column registering their offense at the demeaning way the Irish are protrayed by the Lamers.
Is there anyone that confirm Terence really exists and isn’t a bot that recycles the same 3 articles?
By BOB
August 21, 2005 01:56 AM | Link to this
—-IN THIS YEAR 2005, NOTRE DAME WILL WIN THE NCAA FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!! YOU SAY “IMPOSSIBLE, SUCH A FEAT WOULD REQUIRE THE MOTHER OF ALL MIRACLES—-AND THAT KIND OF MIRACLE HAS NOT HAPPENED IN THE LAST 2000 YEARS”.
—-“NOT TRUE”—-NOTRE DAME NOW HAS A FOOTBALL COACH WHO IS A PROVEN MIRACLE WORKER——AS AN ASSISTANT COACH WITH THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS CHARLIE WEIS WAS GIVEN A 199TH DRAFT PICK AND A 253TH DRAFT PICK TO WORK WITH—-UNDER WEIS’S TUTELAGE THEY BECAME AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS—-IT IS NO ACCIDENT THE PATRIOTS HAVE WON THREE OF THE LAST FOUR SUPER BOWLS—-YES, TOM BRADY WHO WAS NEVER CONSIDERED A TOP QUARTERBACK IN COLLEGE AND DAVID GIVENS A BASIC NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL PLAYER ARE NOW STARS IN THE NFL——THIS IS THE GENIUS OF CHARLIE WEIS.
—-HAS THIS KIND OF MIRACLE EVEN HAPPENED BEFORE?—-WELL ALMOST—-41 YEARS AGO ARA PARSEGIAN TOOK OVER A 2 AND 7 NOTRE DAME TEAM—-IN HIS VERY FIRST YEAR ARA TOOK THE IRISH TO WITHIN MINUTES (OR AS IRISH FANS SAY WITHIN A COUPLE OF BAD CALLS) OF THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP—-IT WILL HAVE TAKEN 41 YEARS TO EVEN THE SCORE AGAINST THE INVINCIBLE TROJANS (PICKED #1 BY THE LARGEST MARGINS EVEN SEEN IN THE PRESEASON POLLS FOR 2005)—-BUT RETRIBUTION WILL TAKE PLACE ON OCT 15TH 2005 WHEN UNBEATEN USC (WITH THE ALL HEISMAN BACKFIELD) FACES UNBEATEN NOTRE DAME IN NOTRE DAME IND.
—-THERE ARE A LOT OF SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE NOTRE DAME TEAMS OF 1964 AND 2005—-PREVIOUS TO ARA AND CHARLIE, NOTRE DAME HAD GONE THROUGH VARIOUS COACHES IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME—-ARA STARTED ON THE ROAD AND SO WILL CHARLIE—-IMMEDIATELY ARA HAD TO DRILL A WINNING ATTITUDE INTO HIS 2 AND 7 TEAM AND HE SUCCEEDED—-HIS PLAYERS BOUGHT INTO THE IDEA THEY COULD BEAT ANYONE—- CHARLIE HAS INSTILLED THE SAME CONFIDENCE IN HIS 2005 TEAM—-ARA MOVED MANY PLAYERS TO NEW POSITIONS IN ORDER TO GET MAXIMUM EFFECTIVENESS ON THE FIELD—-CHARLIE IS DOING THE SAME—- ARA WAS TOUGH, IF YOU BROKE ANY OF HIS RULES YOU WERE GONE—-CHARLIE IS JUST AS DEMANDING.
—-LASTLY—-MOST EXPERTS PICKED NOTRE DAME 37TH OR LOWER IN THE PRE-SEASON POLLS—-THEIR RATIONALE?—-MOST TEAMS WILL SCORE AT WILL AGAINST NOTRE DAME’S POROUS DEFENSE (3 STARTERS RETURN )—-HOWEVER, THEY DID NOT ASK THEMSELVES THE CRUCIAL QUESTION—-WHICH IS—-CAN ANY TEAM STOP THE IRISH OFFENSE? (ALL 11 STARTERS RETURN)—-ANSWER—-“NO”—-THE ESSENTIAL DEFENSIVE BENEFIT GAINED FROM THIS OFFENSE IS THAT THE IRISH DEFENSE WILL BE RESTED, FRESH AND MOTIVATED—-REMEMBER, THIS DEFENSE WILL BE ON THE FIELD A LOT LESS THAN IN PREVIOUS YEARS—-NOW I AM GOING TO SIT BACK AND WATCH THE MOTHER OF ALL MIRACLES COME TO PASS.
BOB MARTIN PACIFIC PALISADES CA 90272 TEL-310-454-4840
By Ringleader
August 21, 2005 08:00 AM | Link to this
Nope, Notre Dame will have to do it differently now. They no longer have the luxury of having 125 scholarship players and the Thugs of Parseghian, ck the blotter, or the cheaters and Chicks of Holtz. But, they do still have the phony schedule. It will take some healing and reality to bring them back, was only a couple of years ago Nebraska outnumbered the fans in their own stadium.
By doc
August 21, 2005 09:25 AM | Link to this
how insensitive to continue to use the term fighting irish when it brings such sad connotation to many. right now i think of an oppressive religion that has beaten down those who think in a different manner about their lord and savior. how many little people have been hurt by such action and some still think they can selectively ignore those who have been abused. that kind looking magical cartoon mascot really represents 100’s of years of oppressive strategies taken against the poor and seekers of a different light. when will people be more socially conscious in the sports pages when it is just a game or diversion from the realities of life?
By Tony
August 21, 2005 09:36 AM | Link to this
Ty was a good man and a good representative of the best University in the nation but did not produce or adapt to ND’s strong points. Weis embraced the past but wants to incorporate this past to blaze into the future. Watch out Ga Tech, ND opens in Atlanta next year. Oh yeah, Darius Walker is not the only local product from GA that will be on the team next year. Come on down Asher Allen and Toryan Smith to take part in ND’s 12th national championship against the toughest schedule in the Nation and earn your way to the NFL. Come one come all!
By doc
August 21, 2005 09:43 AM | Link to this
i know it might be overstepping my boundaries a bit but lets have a name the notre dame mascot session instead of talk football as we want to do the right thing. i think if we call them the Mother Teresa’s that would fit better into what the church would want to project to the world.
lets go you mighty MT’s!!!!!
By doubledomer
August 21, 2005 11:36 AM | Link to this
RE: Doc. You are a nut. Good luck in life, you’ll need it.
By Mike
August 21, 2005 11:38 AM | Link to this
Wow. The combination of misconceptions and just plain ignorance of Notre Dame detractors in these comments is…not all that surprising. Morans.
By Knute
August 21, 2005 11:48 AM | Link to this
Love all the haters that are coming out. Just more evidence that ND is on the way back. I know it’s a hard pill to swallow for the never-has-beens(dawgs, ramblin wreck, etc), but Chucky is about to add to the greatest football legacy in the world. GO IRISH!!!
By IRISH1
August 21, 2005 12:09 PM | Link to this
WE KNOW THERE ARE THOSE WHO WILL MISUNDERSTEND US, THINK US ARROGANT OR WISH US TO FAIL. SO BE IT. WE DO NOT NEED TO EXPLAIN OURSELVES. WE ARE UNBOWED. WE ARE THE FIGHTING IRISH OF NOTRE DAME AND WE WILL BE CHAMPIONS AGAIN! IT ALL STARTS TWO WEEKS FROM YESTERDAY, ON NATIONAL TV AT 7P.M. IN PITTSBURGH, PA. ALL YOU HATERS WATCH US AND WEEP; WE ARE ND!!!
By William Cutting
August 21, 2005 12:22 PM | Link to this
Charlie Weis has what takes to bring the Irish back where they are suppose to be. Message to all the haters be prepared to share your venom because everything is place for another great run by Our Lady’s University. It just takes the faith of a mustard seed:)
By Pauly La
August 21, 2005 12:31 PM | Link to this
Let’s face the truth…people! Charlie Weis is a stubborn, grumpy, brilliant coach from Jersey…..he does not know how to fail! It may not be this year…but sometime in the near future you will hear more of ND than the beloved Kobe and Terrell combined….
By We Are ND
August 21, 2005 12:52 PM | Link to this
I’m often amused at those who claim that the “Fightin’ Irish” moniker is that of a racial one.
These people have no clue.
Often, they are like my neighbor, a Notre Dame hater, who claims that he will write to the NCAA and say that he is IRISH.
If he was IRISH, he would be proud of the name. He would also understand its use.
I’m also amused that these same “haters” don’t understand Notre Dame, nor what it stands for. In the same realm, I’m most proud of the reactions of visiting fans to Our Lady’s University. “Wow, this is a special place - I had no idea”, or “I can’t believe how well everyone is treating us and how beautiful this campus is”
To those same “haters” I always look them in the eye and sincerely say, “THANK YOU” because I know that their frustrated reactions can only be the most ultimate compliment because they know no better.
It’s a special time like this, now that we have a real coach, who: 1) Understands Notre Dame 2) Who makes no excuses 3) Who does not dance around questions of reporters or alumni 4) Who has the players organized, believing in themselves, and prepping to become something special
…that I truly enjoy the detractors because I know that can only mean one thing… “Weeeeee’re Baaaaaack”!
Go IRISH!
Dave Phillipson San Diego California
By Rjp4nd
August 21, 2005 01:04 PM | Link to this
Are you people serious about the mascot? Get real! I am so sick of this whole NCAA B.S.! If thats the Case the New England Patriots should change there name too! I am offend that are forefathers are being used as a mascot for a football team. they died for this country. See my point!
The Irish are back on track. Charlie is taking us back where we need to be. Go ND!
By RP McMurphy
August 21, 2005 01:17 PM | Link to this
Excellent article Mr. Moore.
Regardless of the subject, I see something that is generally lacking in sports journalism today….the ability to paint a picture with words.
Unfortunately, there is far too much sensationalism and opinion-passing as journalism. The sad byproduct is the knee-jerk “have a take” that fans result to because they cannot form thier own opinions because they have been force-fed on how to think.
Thus, the reactions of “Greg” and “Ringleader” above.
I pine for the days when reporters actually investigated a story, checked their facts, checked the other side for balance, and then wrote their article. Thank you Terrance Moore for a glistening window into that past!
By Matthew Cafaro
August 21, 2005 01:35 PM | Link to this
You guys are all idiots.
Do you not know or understand sarcasm when you see it?
The people who are writing about NDs mascot are doing so in protest to Terence Moore’s rampant hypocritical nature. The man actually believes if one person finds something offensive, ti should change. So, Mr. Moore, what happens if someone really is offended by the half-drunk, half-cocked, ready to fight Leprechan of your beloved ND? Would you write a ridiculous story standing up for the Irish and Irish decended peoples who are offended and demand a change?
No… you wouldn’t do that Mr. Moore?
That is why you are a hypocrite.
Now, as for ND, Ringleader must not know a damn thing about college football, because if he did, he’d know that ND consistantly has on of the hardest schedules in all the nation. As much of a Dawg fan as I am, Ringleader, I can tell you that when I see Louisianna Tech or Northeast Bumble Georgia on our schedule, I feel a bit ashamed. Notre Dame doesn’t play any patsies. Even Navy, finishing 10-2 last year, cannot be considered a patsy anymore. So, Ringleader, brush up, okay?
ND will have a much better year. Willingham was the wrong choice for ND. He was so detatched, so dispassionate on the outside. That turned the boosters off, and the administration off. Another knock was he wasn’t Catholic. Weiss is.
Weiss should do okay. I’m thinking 8-3 or 9-2, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t hav a couple of upsets in there. They will beat a vastly overrated Michigan team, and they might, just might beat who I think is an overrated USC. USC won the last 1 1/2 Nat’l Championships without playing the best teams of those years, LSU and Auburn. ND could beat them under the Golden Dome if it is close in the 4th Quarter. Then again, with the defense, it might be blowout for USC.
Charlie Weiss’s biggest chore isn’t the offense, it’s the defense. He observed two defensive geniuses for many years, in Belichik and Crennel. If his new DC is anything like those guys, the ND D should be much, much better.
By Mr. Dowagiac
August 21, 2005 01:57 PM | Link to this
I don’t know who Weiss is, but I do believe that Notre Dame has a Fightin’ chance with Charlie Weis at the helm despite playing 3 teams in the top 5, 5 teams in the top 25.
If you take the weakest 3 teams on their schedule, it equates to the middle or top three of most other teams’ schedule.
BTW, doc, rinleader, and greg cracked me up!
Mr. Dowagiac, Home of the “Cheiftains”!
By Clete
August 21, 2005 02:33 PM | Link to this
Notre Dame. Yeah Yeah Yeah Blah Blah Blah, who cares. Nothing about Notre Dame means squat to me and when I think of Notre Dame’s football program, all I do is YYYAAAAAWWWWWNNNNN!!!!!
By BILL STONEBREAKER
August 21, 2005 03:24 PM | Link to this
HEY CLETE! YOU HAD BETTER LOOK FOR BARGAINS ON NO DOZE, BECAUSE YOU WON`T HAVE TIME TO YYYYYAAAAAAAWWWWWWNNN WHEN THE IRISH, START TO WINNNNNNNNN, WITH A TRUE NOTRE DAME MAN AS COACH.
SO GO ON BACK TO DREAMING OF WHAT YOUR TEAM COULD EVEN REMOTELY ACCOMPLISH, COMPARED TO NOTRE DAME.
GO IRISH!
BILL STONEBREAKER.
By Jim Hartley 63
August 21, 2005 04:56 PM | Link to this
Excellent article Mr. Moore.
Nobody mentions the fact that Charlie coached a New Jersey team to a NJ state championship (Charlie relates to everybody). Nor to the fact Ara was aided by the additon two platoon system. I graduated in 63 and those players were simply poorly coached by Kuherick.
By Chris
August 21, 2005 05:08 PM | Link to this
The first comment from Greg is so angry. He must not have graduated from such a fine school as Notre Dame. What a hater. Just jealous I guess.
By doc
August 21, 2005 05:39 PM | Link to this
thanks matthew, some people need an interpreter. it seems one cant be irreverent when it comes to the golden dome. for now the passion for notre dame lives, harkening back to the days of yore. sadly n.d. folks have even less of a sense of humor as we dogs do when it comes to detractors of any kind. some of this stuff almost makes you want to cry. are they talking football or did i find myself in a chick flick?
i really hope they do well this year but dont make it more than what it is, as the second coming has been seen in many disguises over the past few years. it was sad that willingham didnt succeed as that would have been a great story and he may not have been treated fairly as i dont think anyone can succeed against that schedule and expectation. weis is next up.
now, a simple reminder, dont they say “pride goeth before the fall”.
By ron
August 21, 2005 06:23 PM | Link to this
this is a free country so I guess we will have to put up with people like greg…we don’t get mad he’s probably just a wolver whinner. As for dammers we know we have a long way to go and we will make great strides this year. Wolver whinners every where are terrified just from what has happened thus far. Greg please don’t use racially motivated statements towards my beloved ND when corn and blue has such a low grad rate of their black players..seems to me they just want players that can say give me da ball. Please take a look at the gpa’s of our players…black and white. We are proud of our young men and always will be… GO IRISH!!! BEAT PITT THEN CREAM THE CORN AND BLUE
By jimtheduffer
August 21, 2005 07:16 PM | Link to this
Hehehehe!
It’s nice to see all the haters out there. I was present at the ND vs. Michigan game last year. The Michigan fans were so cocky. I sat behind the Michigan bench and a large group of them left midway through the fourth quarter with their heads down. It was so gratifying! Muck Fichigan!
ND will be back so deal with it b***!!!!!!!!
And when you continue to hate on us don’t forget the 11 National Championships and 7 Heisman Trophy Winners, MORE THAN ANY OTHER SCHOOL…………………..PERIOD!
By Tom Garvey
August 21, 2005 10:51 PM | Link to this
64 Ara didn’t play four out of 5 road games….Don’t compare Ara’s schedule to Lou’s or Charlie’s…..use to play a lot of mediocre teams (Military Academies) outside of Purdue, Michigan St and USC on a annual basis…Injuries will be a factor not a lot of depth…Quinn or Walker gets hurt on offense …BIG TROUBLE….Secondary is Weak on D…IF CHARLIE GOES 6,7 or 8 wins…helluva a year…Lou went 5-6 first year but the come from behind win against USC in the Coliseum showed there was no quit….Maybe had they upset highly ranked Michigan (double digit underdogs) in the opener instead of losing 24-23 the 86 season would have been different. Being there I recall the Irish got a standing ovation for their play…outside of Tim Brown there wasn’t much speed on that team….Charlie will get it done if recruiting continues the way has gone. Maybe upset Pitt Darrin Walls will announce….sooner than later….CB’s and S are critical in 2006…GO IRISH
By Bill
August 21, 2005 11:00 PM | Link to this
Right Duffer - Rememeber you can’t spell scum without a U and an M.
By Al Farley
August 22, 2005 09:35 AM | Link to this
It amazes me how college football fans rate teams based on last year’s performances…..big mistake. This isn’t the NFL. Notre Dame has awesome offensive weapons in Quinn and Walker. Everybody is back. I don’t count Ryan Grant because Walker outplayed him. This team will win 8 or 9 games this season!! Write it down. The defensive unit will be ready. This is Notre Dame…Pitt will get run OVER!!! Michigan will be, as always, a major obstacle because of the rivalry. The same as USC. But, everybody else will be beaten!!! Purdue, Tennessee, Navy, Stanford….etc… GO IRISH!!!!
By Lou
August 22, 2005 09:45 AM | Link to this
Doc - Get real, Greg - Get a clue, Racial ??? maybe ethnic but then again political correctness has run amock and people are glad to play the part of the victims… Weis believes in the tradition and will bring that fevor to the players and fans. Only time will tell and write history. GO IRISH
By Indy
August 22, 2005 01:28 PM | Link to this
Al,
Oct. 2, 2004 Orton Leads Boilermaker Rout Of Notre Dame, 41-16
You got one Irish win all wrong. They will lose in West Lafayette!
By Paul
August 22, 2005 01:31 PM | Link to this
Reply to Greg,
You sound like another one of those bleeding heart liberals of the overly politcally corret left. Since you have the courage to be so critical from your lazyboy and laptop. Why don’t you tell us your college team. Then lets compare notes after a couple of seasons. I find the quickest way to shut the traps of ND haters is to open a can of whoop a** on them. On the football field that of course. I mean it’s one thing not to be a fan, but to have to come and display your pure hatred only shows your complete ignorance. GO IRISH!!!!
Proud to be a Bender,
Paul
By Paul Hornung
August 22, 2005 03:26 PM | Link to this
It took some time but ND has finally found the coach that will keep them in every prognosticators mind season after season. Charlie Weiss expects nothing but the best. We’ll be there this year at the end.
By Clete
August 22, 2005 04:37 PM | Link to this
These posts are hilarious. I actually hope ND has a decent season, but that’s really all you ND people should be looking for this seaon, DECENT. Y’all need to realize Notre Dame is going to have to earn its way back to respectability. A new coach does’nt mean anything to anybody, except you and Moore, unless he wins. Until then, Notre Dame football….YYYYYYAAAAAAWWWWWNNNNN!!!!
By Phillip
August 22, 2005 11:10 PM | Link to this
I believe it was Elie Wiesel (or Diane from Cheers) who said that the opposite of love isn’t hate; it’s indifference. That’s what I and many people feel for Notre Dame. The fact that I feel nothing for Notre Dame doesn’t make me a hater. The fact that I’d rather watch the Jefferson-Pilot game than Notre Dame vs Michigan doesn’t mean that I hate Notre Dame (or Michigan). It just means I’m not from there and given the choice I’ll watch something that has meaning to me. I’ll watch Michigan on New Year’s Day or Notre Dame in the Insight Bowl, but until then (when they’re pretty much the only game in town) I’ve got other games to watch. I wish Notre Dame good luck and ask only that her fans hit the caps lock before they type. And I’m out.
By Marc
August 23, 2005 12:31 AM | Link to this
I am simply amused by all the stereotypical fans of the “Fighting Irish”. Why anybody would want to celebrate a group of drunk, boorish hooligans is beyond me. They make the fans of UGA look like those at an English Cricket match by comparison.
“Consider those Canines!”
By John
August 23, 2005 11:12 AM | Link to this
Marc, your comment is ridiculous. Clete, you must not be a Notre Dame grad, your grammar is terrible. I don’t mind the criticism of the leprechaun - it delineates how ridiculous the NCAA mission to remove stereotypical nicknames is. Phillip, not everyone can be on the ND bandwagon, but we’ll save a spot for you when you wish to get on. All I can say is this - I will not make any pronouncements until they actually play. But look how many people are talking about Notre Dame football is August… It tells me one thing - Coach Weis is on the right track.
By Bryan
August 23, 2005 11:39 AM | Link to this
It’s funny. If you really are indifferent to Notre Dame and have no feelings toward her at all, why on earth would you read an entire article about ND’s head coach? And then why would you take the time to post at the end of the article? The only thing worse than haters is haters who try to say they don’t care.
By Phillip
August 23, 2005 12:34 PM | Link to this
Bryan, I read all of Mr. Moore columns, as well as thoses of Messrs. Bradley, Schultz, Bisher, and Barnhart. I always have. I sometimes respond. In this case, I only tried to point out that Notre Dame is not the end-all for many fans of college football. I took no swipe at Notre Dame; I didn’t denigrate any accomplishments or deny that she has a great tradition. I simply chose to point out, electronically, what I’ve often said, in person, to my Yankee friends, when they speak to me of Notre Dame. John, Thank you sir, you’re very kind. I’ll do the same for you on the Bulldog bandwagon. If things are going well when y’all play the other USC I may take my seat, but for one game only I’m afraid. Thanks much.
By proteustein
August 23, 2005 12:38 PM | Link to this
I’m not a Fighting Irish fan but I will be pulling for the Irish when they play the overated thugs from knoxville … can you take out Fulmer this year also!
By doug
August 23, 2005 08:03 PM | Link to this
At the end of the majority of games this year, the other team’s fans will be able to say , ” Hail Mary, full of grace, Notre Dame’s in second place . “
By Mike
August 23, 2005 08:06 PM | Link to this
Greg, are you Irish? I am, and I love the mascot. Its a mascot and means pratically nothing. You make it out to be something it isn’t. NCAA or any other sport doesn’t need youe BS politics. Go focus on an ant hill that needs saving!
Great article, really liked how you displayed Coach Weis’s cocky side. That gets lost on a lot of people. Bringing in Rudy and others has really helped the program!
By doc
August 23, 2005 09:32 PM | Link to this
see greg you are like the seminole tribe and need to be protected from yourself as you really dont understand the symbolism of the fighting irish when the name was chosen back before you were born. dont you know it describes a proud poor catholic who drinks heavily, plays hard but fights harder and earns a tough living under great durress as an outcast immigrant in a protestant nation.
yes, greg you are right all mascots mean nothing except they are a marketing ploy to sell a product or a symbol of superiority in the hearts of those that actually buy into the ownership of their school and becomes attached to same. from that same attachment these same people experience the highs or lows of life according to the outcome of nothing they really had any input to except the attachments they claim. in other words they lead an exterior life rather than an interior one in existential terms.
you are quite enlightened, as the golden dome shines at night as well in all fighting irish hearts.
By scott
August 24, 2005 10:52 AM | Link to this
STIR UP THE ECHOES—the irish eyes are smiling!!
By Matthew Cafaro
August 24, 2005 01:22 PM | Link to this
I’d like to take another moment to challenge Mr. Moore.
Mr. Moore, you’re always so ready to take a stand for blacks and the first nation’s peoples of this land, and their real AND perceived slights.
So why not take up to slights that happened to the Irish 100 years ago. Or 200 years ago. Or even 50 or 60 years ago?
Are you trying to say that one kind of discrimination is worse than another kind?
Have you ever heard of “Irish Need Not Apply?” Or replace Irish with Italian, Orientals (now Asian, as Oriental is a racist term), German, or yes, Black, or Indian.
What about the wrong-headed stereotype of a drunk, fighting Irish man. Not only is this demeaning, and wrong, it is blatantly anti-Catholic in a heavily protestant nation. So are you going to fight for the Catholics out there, who a called idolaters and other worse and wrong names by Southern Baptists (who are very hypocritical themselves)? Are you going to fight for Southern Baptists, whom I just called hypocritical?
YOU, MR. MOORE, ARE A HYPOCRITE!
I challenge you to denounce the ugly stereotype of the Fighting Irish.
I challenge you to be a man of principle, as you have so far wrongly claimed to be. Actions speak louder than words.
I am of German-Irish and Catholic decent. I also, like most every American, have a small percentage of my genetic make-up that belongs to the Cherokee Tribe on my Grandmother’s side on my dad’s side. Not a great amount, but a tiny bit.
Thing is, Mr. Moore, most of us are just plain mutt.
I have said this to you before, and I’m saying this again. Biologically, there is only one race - The human race. The correct term for the divisions within this race is ethnicity. So all of y’all from the last column and this column claiming that the Irish who are offended by “Fighting Irish” don’t count, and their argument isn’t as good as the one by the Indians because the Indians are a race and the Irish aren’t… well, not only are you stupid, you’re wrong.
There you have it, Mr. Moore. I am challenging you to take a stand against your beloved Notre Dame for their promotion of terrible stereotype of the Irish. I challenge you to be a man of principle. I challenge you to NOT be the hypocrite that you’ve proven to be time and time again with your actions and your words.
Recant your ridiculous assertion, or call for the end of the Fighting Irish.
Be a man, Mr. Moore. You can either admit your hypocrisy, and be a man and apologize. Or if you really, really believe in what you say, you’ll start a movement, or acknowledge said movement, to end the ridiculous stereotype of the Fighting Irish which the University of Notre Dame profits mightily from.
There is no thing as good and bad discrimination, or high or low levels of discrimination. It either is, or it isn’t. All discrimination, if it truly exists, is bad. Blacks, Indians, Irish, Italians, Asians, and many others have been discriminated against in this country at one point in time and some still to this day.
So take a stand, or remain a hypocrite. The choice is yours, Terence.
I’ll be the thorn in your side on this issue forever. This is me taking a stand against YOUR hypocrisy. And I won’t rest, I won’t stop. Every column you write, I’ll reprint this blog, until you acknowledge your hypocrisy or demand the end of the Fighting Irish.
By Matthew Cafaro
August 24, 2005 01:27 PM | Link to this
Also Italian in there with German-Irish and teeny bit of Cherokee… duh, with a last name like Cafaro, you’d have to be Italian