Before and After

I bumped this into its own post, because Pat's raw unbridled emotion needs to be read and we all know nobody checks the comments (more to the point, nobody actually bothers to read this blog. Perhaps this will boost our circulation numbers...journalism reference, T-Mac).

I am tired. I am tired of this crap. I can't stand to go on NDNation and the like sites and see people frustrated over the fact that they didnt't start the fire Charlie Wies.com website. I am sick and tired of people sitting back and critiquing playcalling for a game they never played.

Does anyone realize the fact that Notre Dame has played the hardest schedule in the country? Does anyone realize that Notre Dame returned 30 letterman, the third least in the country. Hell, half those letter man played special teams last year.

Yes they lost to Navy, but we saw this coming. Reading message boards, listening to the media, I'd think Notre Dame football as we've known it is done. I am sad to call myself a Notre Dame fan when I read this digust. Basically, we lost to a good group of men, most of which won't ever sniff a down a football again because they will be defending our country. We should have lost to them atleast twice in the past 10 years. Beating Navy this season wouldn't have marked progress of any sort.

In fact, is anyone more upset about the loss this week than the one 2 weeks ago. I am much more troubled by the fact that we didn't show up against our greatest rival. Losing by 38 to a team having a "down" year really hurts. It shows how far we have to go to reach the peak again.

And is it just me, or did Charlie Weis all of a sudden become a bad coach? Listening to the media and reading the thoughts of ND fans, you would never guess that this guy has won 4 Super Bowls and lead a group of Notre Dame men to a BCS game the last 2 years. Wow, he really sucks as a coach. We should fire him and go out and get a guy like Paul Johnson. He's really shown that he knows how to call 5 plays a game. Honestly, if you want to cast Charlie Weis aside now you're nuts. Recruiting is at an all-time high (signing day can't come soon enough) and the current young players are starting to show signs of greatness. Look at the guys who played well today, Allen, Aldridge, Kamara, all Weis guys. You almost get the feeling that Weis is trying to show the media and world that Sharpley does indeed suck and that he was right starting Kimmy as he did.

Yes Weis has stuggled, but he isn't exacltly working with a full cubbard. The kicking game is inexcusable. They need to find someone who can kick the ball into the end zone and be counted on to make a 40 yard field goal. Hell, our men's soccer team was ranked number 2 in the country 2 weeks agon. You're telling me Joseph Lapira can't kick the ball into the end zone. So there have been some errors on Charlie's part this season, but I am not willing to write him off. First of all, who the hell else are they going to get, and secondly, do they forget that they went to two BCS bowls the last two years?

I am tired of the negatives. Yes ND is struggling. Yes we lost to Navy. Yes the coach has made some mistaks. But give him a chance. Things will turn around, and the rest of the fans will be soon to hop on the bandwagon.

PS: Mike Brey will screw his team over more than Weis ever could. This team should be special, but just wait and see....

-- Pat Girouard, at 3 AM.

The Next Day...

"Wow, I was really drunk when I wrote this." -- Pat, 10:38 PM.