Charlie Weis Might Get Fired.

In a wonderfully entertaining turn of events, Notre Dame is horrible. I mean, granted, I was convinced they were horrible for a while now, but they've taken it to another level. For the first time in their 119 year history, the Irish are 0 and 4. It was wildly speculated that there'd be some rebuilding after Brady Quinn and, um, those other guys left, but nobody, even me, dared to dream this big. They stink. This week, they scored two offensive touchdowns, and that was cause for celebration: even though they lost by 17.

Rumblings about big ol' Charlie losing his job have already begun. This, a couple years after South Bend tripped over themselves to give him a ten year extension. I'm giddy. It infuriated me to no end to see Ty Willingham shown the door the way he was. Then, it drove me up the wall hearing the calls for Brady's sainthood when he'd yet to win a meaningful game. I'd get a lot of satisfaction watching them get walloped in every bowl game they play. But now, it's a question whether they'll even make it to a bowl game. And, it feels so good.

I don't dislike Notre Dame on principle. I'd be fine with them if they belonged to an actual conference, didn't pad out their schedule with cupcake opponents, and didn't expect a bowl game slot on principle. A couple more seasons like this one, and maybe that will happen. Maybe.

O Who?

WITH ARMS WIDE OPEN!!!!

Chris Petersen and Bob Stoops met in Glendale Arizona to settle a bet: who had the bigger stones? Bob was picked as the winner long before the contest ever began. After all, his balls have had a long and illustrious career, he'd earned it. But, the man from Boise State would not be intimidated. He came out swinging, taking advantage of some early mistakes and proving he deserved to be there. But Bob, just like you knew he would, came roaring back. Too bad that Chris Peterson just has bigger balls. They're huge, and if you watched the 4th quarter and the overtime, you'd know it was true.

When I started out watching this game, I thought most of what I would have to say about Boise State would involve their quarterback. Specifically, that he looked like a Creed concert. But yeah, he's a baller. He did what ballers do and recovered. He's an amazing quarterback, and should be given an opportunity at the pro level. But for real, if a guy who looked like him started dating your sister, you would be pissed. Even as he spoke to the post game reporters after winning it all, I couldn't help but be distracted by his bad facial hair and tribal tattoo.

And to repeat the standard argument, yes, this is an incredible argument for a playoff system. Hopefully we can get this resolved in the decade. There are just too many good small schools who deserve their chance. My appreciation of Bob Stoops is documented, but you were not publicly pantsed by Chris Petersen in vain. Woo UT won our bowl. Minor gloating. San Antonio has a river with an area you can walk on, I'm told.

Marcus Vick Does Not Like Money.

"Yes, I am a dumbass. Next question?"

For those of us lucky enough to attend college, the last year can be one fraught with anxiety. As the semester draws to a close, the impending approach of the real world bears down hard. How will you pay off those student loans? Do you need more schooling to get the job you want? What the fuck do you want to do with your life? But for people blessed with physical gifts and athletic talent, the situation is a bit different. If you happen to play Division-IA Football or Basketball, there could be a gold mine right around the corner. Just focus on playing well, staying healthy, and keeping out of trouble. If you do, you just might make millions. Or, if you'd like to be like Marcus Vick, you can blow it all and end up a few million in the red.

While not as highly touted as his brother, Marcus certainly had enough ability and media attention to be drafted into the NFL. But something in his personality, be it arrogance, ignorance, stupidity, or some stew of all three, would not allow him to emerge from Virginia Tech unscathed. First, it was the primadonna behavior. Then, the charges that he provided alcohol to minors. Next, flipping off the crowd at West Virginia and colliding with a Mountaineers coach. But in the morally ambiguous world of high stakes athletics, that was not enough to damn him. No, Marcus kicked it into the next gear. During the Gator Bowl, Vick was caught on tape stomping on the leg of an opposing player. Out of options, the Hokies dismissed him from the team.

Now, at this point, Marcus had certainly cost himself some money, but he still had a career to salvage. But, no, it wasn't enough. Next, he pulled a gun on a couple teenagers who were giggling about him at McDonald's, resulting in criminal charges. Unsurprisingly, he went undrafted, was picked up by the Miami Dolphins, and then cut. I have never seen such abject determination towards self destruction in college football. Sure, Maurice Clarrett had a very loud and very public meltdown. But, to me at least, Clarrett's story was different. I had an easier time feeling sympathy for him. It seemed like Ohio State and the NCAA used him up, then hung him out to dry when he started to make a mess. That story brought up a lot of interesting issues: of race, economics, and the contradicitons involved in 'amateur' status.

Marcus Vick had no excuse. His brother is a millionaire! He knew that if he kept his nose clean there could be a big pot of cash waiting for him. But through an amazing sense of entitlement, he ruined it. And his troubles aren't finished. Today, a suit was brought against Marcus: $6.3 million for sexually abusing one of the 15 year old girls he provided alcohol to. Incredible. Getting hit for that amount of money would and should sober most people up, but I don't want to undermine Marcus's ability to make it worse. Maybe he'll make a bald eagle egg souflee and clean the pans with the American flag. Or, steal a schoolbus, get drunk and naked, and drive it into a convent. Anything's possible.

A New View from the U...

Here's a tiny lil' Randy Shannon.

The Miami Hurricane football team has been looking for a coach. When talking about Miami, you'd be hard pressed to find a team that has had more success in the modern era, or a team that hs produced more quality pro players. Jeremy Shockey, Clinton Portis, Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, Warren Sapp, Devin Hester: you can do this all day. But this year, the Hurricanes were schizophrenic. There was on and off field drama to spare, culminating in a 15 minute brawl with Florida International. Despite winning a national title in 2001, Larry Coker couldn't survive the turmoil. So the U has been looking for a new captain. They've pursued Greg Schiano and Rich Rodriguez, but reports are coming in that a final selection has emerged, and it's...

Randy Shannon, their current defensive coordinator, and a homegrown Hurricane. Shannon played on the '87 championship team and worked as an assistant up until '97 when he left for the Dolphins. He returned in 2001 and started his coordinating duties under Larry Coker. I think this is an outstanding hire. Randy has demonstrated he can get results. Despite the U's problems this year, the defense was reliable, and ended up ranked 5th for Division I-A. And, he knows the system. He understands the area, the crazy, absurd amounts of pressure for success at the school, and the players trust him.

But, like it or not, this hire will revive a lot of questions about race and leadership in sports. Black coaches at this level are incredibly rare. (Randy will be the sixth.) And the ones who do get opportunities don't get a fair shake. Ty Willingham's dalliance with Notre Dame will always stand out as an example of this to me. I believe his firing had a lot more to do with the desire to hire Charlie Weis than it did with anything that Ty did. Weis has better credentials (who wouldn't ride developing Tom Brady?), without a doubt. But if the Irish fans had a problem with the lack of national titles or wins against big teams, employing Baby Huey hasn't solved that problem. I'll be interested to see how patient Miami is willing to be with a coach who's coming into an extremely tough situation.


After his latest loss to USC, Charlie Weis hit rock bottom.

There's another issue here, and that's perceptions about the relationship between black players and black coaches. Jemele Hill did a great job pointing this out. No coach succeeds by coddling his players. But if Randy Shannon either doesn't win games, or there's more misbehavior... Well, watch and see if some talking head doesn't say it's because the black coach is taking it easy on his 'people'. Does that make any sense? HELL 2 DA NAW! If some wild shit goes down on the seventh floor, Randy didn't create the culture. Miami has been wild for a long time. If you're trying to understand the Hurricane culture, ask Jimmy Johnson why he let Luther Campbell stand on the sideline and throw out hundred dollar bills. Hell, ask Michael Irvin where he learned about blow. I'm not trying to give Shannon carte blanche. But, the University of Miami was collision of social, political, economic, and racial issues before he showed up. Ultimately, this is a team deeply in need of healing. Hopefully Randy Shannon can be a fresh voice that gives them that.

Vince Young Wins Ballgames

I use this photo to keep me warm during this cold, cold winter.

A couple months ago, Vince Young's NFL career had been all but declared D.O.A. People loudly questioned every aspect of his game. How loudly? I think I'd be better off letting this gem by Merril Hoge speak for itself:

Vince Young clearly is not ready to step on the field in the National Football League. He did nothing during the preseason to prove that he can play, but here he is, (with) a coaching staff trying to implement gimmick college stuff to play in the NFL. When they asked him to drop back in a true pro-style look, he had no clue where to throw the football.

I appreciate that sports journalism is, by its nature, capricious. However, Vince got a rough ride. Everything from his throwing style, his speed, his decision making, and even his intelligence has been questioned. It's not unusual for college QB to take over a year to adjust to the speed and intricacies of the pro game. But every shortcoming was a reason to declare him a bust.

It doesn't seem like there's going to be much more of that talk. After last week's insane 21 point comeback, and yesterday's win against a team many consider to be the class of the AFC, the NFL is figuring out what Vince Young can do. He wins games. I'm not attempting to argue that he's not lacking some polish. His throwing style can be hair-raising, and he'll probably take a hard lick sooner or later that will convince him to run less. But, first and foremost, he's a winner. Whatever it takes, he figures out how to get it done. And as Norm Chow's system comes together and surrounds him with good players, he's only going to get better.

Charlie Weis makes how much a year?

Charlie Weis begins another week of intensive game planning.

As a football fan, one of my favorite rites of fall is the annual exhaltation of the Oh So Holy Glory that is Notre Dame. And why wouldn't it be? After all, they've had an undisturbed string of 30 national titles, Heisman Trophies, and Academy Awards, somehow. Every Notre Dame player goes on to be an NFL Pro Bowler, pisses diamonds, and cures cancer. Charlie Weis has recently qualified for sainthood. And lest we forget, let us pay tribute to the second coming, Brady Quinn. Yea, He is the Way, and the Light. His passes always find their target. For the blind to look upon his handsome face is to regain the gift of sight.

Obviously, none of the last paragraph was true. But if you were to take the word of the pundits who overhype South Bend every year, it might as well be. At the beginning of the season, there are always a million reasons why this is finally time for Notre Dame to turn the corner. They never turn out to be true, but oh well. The voters and the media bias still force them up the polls no matter what. Brady Quinn had his best games against no-name teams and military academies? Doesn't matter. Heisman contender.

The results have reinforced that Notre Dame teams do not have the talent to play with the big boys. Ohio State? Demolished them last year in the bowl. Michigan? Hung 47 on them this year. And then last week, the Irish laid another egg at USC, getting blown out by a vastly superior Pete Carroll team. And while it appears that we're now headed towards a possible Michigan/OSU rematch in January, todays USC loss reinforces just how overrated Notre Dame is. An unranked team held an offense that dominated Weis's squad to under ten points. The unfortunate reality of this is that it will probably help South Bend anyway, pushing them into BCS contention. But, realists like me can take comfort that if they end up playing any real team, they'll get beaten. Badly.