Notre Dame Reportedly Close To Picking Weis

[1niksder]

Notre Dame Reportedly Close To Picking Weis

It appears Notre Dame's coaching search is coming to an end according to several sources. A source told the Chicago Tribune that Notre Dame is in negotiations to hire New England Patriots offensive coordinator and Notre Dame alum Charlie Weis.Weis interviewed for the job Friday, but Patriots spokesman Stacey James said the team would not comment.Patriots coach Bill Belichick said Friday that even if Weis were hired by Notre Dame, he expected Weis to fulfill his duties with the Patriots. The Tribune said Notre Dame has already, according to a source close to the situation, called Bills offensive coordinator Tom Clements and told him that he is no longer in the running for the job. Clements, in his first season as offensive coordinator with the Buffalo Bills, played quarterback for the Irish under coach Ara Parseghian, leading the school to an undefeated season and a national championship in 1973. Notre Dame is looking for a replacement for fired coach Tyrone Willingham.

http://www.profootballcentral.com/

[1niksder]

A Weis move will work: If coach exits, he'll finish jobBy Michael Felger
Saturday, December 11, 2004

FOXBORO - It was 26 years ago this month that Patriots [stats, news] owner Billy Sullivan, after learning Chuck Fairbanks had accepted the University of Colorado job while still the Pats' head coach, declared you can't serve two masters.

Apparently, Bill Belichick [news] disagrees.

Whether that becomes a real issue for the Pats and Charlie Weis remains to be seen. For now, the rumors involving the offensive coordinator and the Notre Dame coaching vacancy continue to swirl, with the Irish yet to publicly declare their intentions.



Various reports have cited the Irish's interest in Weis, and sources have confirmed that Weis is interested in talks with the school. However, reports vary widely when it comes to detailing when and where talks will occur - if they haven't already.

The Providence Journal reported that Notre Dame officials talked to Weis early this week. Other sources tabbed the talks for yesterday or today. CBS Sportsline said there have been no face-to-face talks, only phone calls.

Everyone seems to agree that Notre Dame has talked to Bills offensive coordinator Tom Clements and that the former Irish quarterback is a strong candidate.

The only specific Belichick would offer on Weis is that he expects him to remain with the Pats through the end of his contract.

``Charlie's here, Charlie is working hard and Charlie, I expect, will continue to be here and carry out his responsibilities through the season,'' said Belichick.

In the event Weis is offered the Notre Dame job, and he accepts, then it's likely Weis would finish out the year with the Pats while simultaneously getting the Irish's program off the ground. There's precedent for such a situation.

Belichick was head coach of the Cleveland Browns [stats, news] in 1994 when Nick Saban, his defensive coordinator, accepted the head coaching job at Michigan State late in the year. Saban stayed on with Belichick and the Browns through the end of the season, which concluded with a win over the Pats in a wild card game and a loss to Pittsburgh in the divisional round.

That may be a blueprint for Weis, who could devote time to his prospective new job on off days and during bye weeks, which the Pats could earn in the first round of the playoffs and prior to the Super Bowl. The unknown in the equation is whether the Irish would be willing to wait for Weis with a staff still to be assembled and the recruiting season in full swing. The Super Bowl is Feb. 6.

``(He) split a little bit of the time between the two,'' Belichick said of Saban. ``I think he did a good job. I think he handled the situation well. Nick and I talked about it before he interviewed for the job, after he was offered and after he accepted the job. And we worked our way through it. I don't think it was a problem.''

Belichick was asked if Saban recruited high school players while he was still with the Browns.

``You'd have to ask him that. I didn't follow him around,'' Belichick said. ``He said, `Look, I need this amount of time to do this,' so we worked it out. He took that time, and I don't know what he did. He might have recruited. He might have hired coaches. Might of rearranged his office. I don't really know. Whatever he did are things he needed to do, and he prioritized them.''

http://patriots.bostonherald.com/patrio ... leid=58335

[Jake]

I'm sort of surprised he would leave a comfortable situation in New England in which he can either stay with a winning team or possibly become an NFL head coach after the season. Now he has the choice of being successful at a major university or scrutinized by alumni on a consistent basis. I think he should've looked for an NFL vacancy first but best of luck to him.

[1niksder]

I'm sort of surprised he would leave a comfortable situation in New England in which he can either stay with a winning team or possibly become an NFL head coach after the season. Now he has the choice of being successful at a major university or scrutinized by alumni on a consistent basis. I think he should've looked for an NFL vacancy first but best of luck to him.

I agree but then again it's Notre Dame.

But the way they've been running things they'll name someone Head Coach that we've never heard of, while we are listening to the reports of this deal

[joebagadonuts]

looks like its a done deal.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=1943710

[redskincity]

Weis will be there for two years and be tossed out too.

They want instant wins.