Some More Irish Talk

I am not a hater, I like Notre Dame. Even as a Buckeye fan, I like Michigan. I like the new guard, the old guard, and a MAC game on Tuesday night. I like Running Down the Hill in Death Valley, Jump Around at Camp Randall, The Sooner Schooner, and hearing "Fight On" 354 times during the Rose Bowl. That is the beauty of college football, the tradition, the fact that there is always something to hang your hat on week after week. In other words, college football as a whole is something special. When one of its soldiers is down, the unit isn't the same. 

To overuse a typical cliche, it is good for college football if Notre Dame is a powerhouse. Bottom line, they have barely mattered for over a decade. Since Lou Holtz left after the 1996 season, Notre Dame is 95-67 (59%) and 1-7 in Bowl games, including a blowout from LSU and a two touchdown defeat to Ohio State. During the Lou Holtz era,  Notre Dame was 100-30-2 (76%)  and 5-4 in Bowl games including a National Championship. Lou Holtz was offered a life-time contract and turned it down, since that denied proposal the program hasn't been the same. As with all college football, it comes down to coaching. 

Notre Dame's selection of coaches after Holtz has been abysmal. Bob Davie, I can't even listen to the guy call a game on ESPN, how did 18 year old recruits listen to him in their own home. Ty Willingham would make a good Athletic Director, not a good head football coach, let alone THE head football coach at THE school. Charlie Weis, another short-sighted Belichick-tree decision. How's the Belichick tree look without Belichick? Hows it look Mr. Crennel, Mr.  Mangini, Mr. McDaniels, Mr Pioli, and Mr. Weis? 

College football coaches need to be master communicators, motivators, and recruiters. None of that describes any of the three coaches Notre Dame hired after Lou Holtz. USC, Ohio State, Michigan,  Alabama, and Oklahoma all struggled with hiring head coaches after an icon left the school. Eventually, a Carroll, Tressel, Schembeckler, Saban, and Stoops were found. Even Florida found a more aggressive, cocky, run-up the score maniac to replace the "old ball coach!" 

Notre Dame must be very un-Notre Dame and aggressively steal another school's top-tier coach. "Thou shall not steal unless you haven't won a BCS Bowl Game in 10 years." I'm not talking promote up, I'm talking highjack and high-tail it back to South Bend. 

• Urban Meyer already said "no," so what, keep asking until the state of Florida issues you a restraining order. 
  
• Bob Stoops already won a National Championship in Oklahoma, start offering non-stop service from South Bend to Norman immediately. 
  
• Pete Carroll already coaches your rival, great! 100% less earthquakes in Indiana. 
  
• Nick Saban already proved he will jump teams just for the hell of it, keep texting him. 
  
• Lane Kiffin already shook up the most corrupt conference in sports, facebook friend him now!
  
• Jim Tressel already is getting run out of Columbus, get some graduate assistants in sweater vests as quickly as possible. 

Time to get irrational Notre Dame, college football needs you to.