Head Coach Brian Kelly Gives A Humble Interview: “Every Place I Go I Make Better”

// July 6th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // Uconn, Uncategorized

[Rivals]

I respect swagger, I really do.  But this is some grade-a spin right here (I expect nothing less from the son of a politician).  He give no credit to his players, no credit to his support staff, its all “me, me, me”  Going a step further, Kelly has no problem glossing over the fact that he abandoned his team after they went 12-0, refusing to coach in their bowl game thus leaving them high and dry.  All this was after he held a team meeting to tell his players he would not be taking the job at the Notre Dame
You may be able to fool the hordes of blind-Notre-Dame-faithful but I have a feeling that the fans on Cincinnati football (including me)  have a different view on the Kelly era:  He raised a program up, only to abandon them in the national spotlight.

My Bracket Is Donezo…Get The Kool-Aid Ready

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Its probably the only time of the year when it is acceptable for grown men to yell furiously at their office computers (thanks live streaming) or, call it quits at noon mid week.  Double Whammy on the mid week drinking by the way, St. Pats?.. now this?  I bet the campus of Notre Dame looks like a scene from Jonestown.  Just bodies strewn everywhere, blacked out from excessive green beer.  I feel bad for the people in South Bend, just a joyless existence out there…you know, besides mediocre football and touchdown Jesus.

Its Official: Kelly To Notre Dame, And Players. Are. Pissed.

// December 11th, 2009 // No Comments » // Rob Lunn, Uncategorized

Brian Kelly, Chucks The Deuces At His Team

“He went for the money,” Gilyard told The Associated Press. “I’m fairly disgusted with the situation, that they let it last this long.”

“We already knew what he was going to say. We weren’t giving him a round of applause or anything,” tight end Ben Guidugli said. “It’s like somebody turned their back on us. We brought this whole thing this far. We’ve come this far. To have someone walk out now is disappointing.”

“Just blindsided by the fact that it’s a business,” Gilyard said. “People lose sight of that. At the end of the day, NCAA football is a business. People have got to make business decisions.”

[ESPN]

The Fat White Guy on ESPN Radio: Talking Bowl Games, Notre Dame, Recruiting, and Randy Edsall

// December 9th, 2009 // 3 Comments » // Uncategorized

A Coaching Vacancy? And Randy Edsall Is A Candidate? You’re Kidding.

// December 2nd, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Uncategorized

According to NBCSports.com:

Finally, a new name to kick around a little bit when it comes to the Notre Dame coaching vacancy.

Look, I’ve been in the locker room for a lot of these rumor and suspicions and its all heresay.  While Edsall is definitely a good Catholic, I don’t think he’ll be taking that job anytime soon.  Which, at the current rate of sin, should cost him about 4 Hail Mary’s and an Our Father or two.

[Special thanks to Mike for the tip.]

What Charlie Weis’s Firing Means For The Players

// December 1st, 2009 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

The firing of Charlie Weis comes as a surprise to well, no one.  Except maybe me.  I am always a fan of the long shot and I truly thought that if he had bested Stanford (or even kept it close for that matter) that Weis would be granted a pardon by the football Gods and return for one more season as a Golden Domer.

No such luck, as he has cleaned out his office and is moving on to greener pastures.  The hot talk right now is which coach De Jour will fill the void and where Weis will end up.  What is not being discussed is the implications this has on players, and their time at Notre Dame.  It is same to assume that after a stellar season and without Weis, we can say goodbye to Golden Tate and Jimmy Clausen.

Aside from a deep loyalty to the university (and I’m not counting that out), it would be an unwise decision to return under a new coach and new system that might not suit them as favorably as this season’s did, 93 Receptions for 1,496 yards and 15 touchdowns and 3,722 yards and 28 touchdowns, respectively.  The other big question mark is whether or not those recruited under Weis will stay, or scatter like rats from a sinking ship.  Take it from me, the recruiting pitch might have included the school, but staying or going depends on the football.  The NCAA mandated year of ineligibility for transferring to another Division I school might keep some recruits in South Bend.  But coming off a 6-6 season and without a solid coaching candidate in sight, might be enough to force some to jump the NCAA’s hurdle.

Case in point would be Zach Frazer, the highly prized recruit, who was buried on the depth chart after Weis’s arrival, only to transfer to UConn and lead the Huskies in this seasons OT win against the Irish.  At UConn whenever rumors swirled that Coach Edsall would be leaving (Syracuse, Georgia Tech were calling) I feared for my status on the team, that some new coach might come in and think to himself, “Why, exactly, is there a 285lb unathletic white kid starting on our defensive line” and I would subsequently be relocated to a life of football obscurity.  At Notre Dame, no position is safe with a new coach, and the panic and emotion is real.  Especially for players, like starting offensive linemen Eric Olsen, with a deep loyalty to their now former coach.  Olsen, reportedly had to be calmed down by Weis after hearing the news.

ESPN Advertisers Have Come Up With Possible Job Opportunity for Charlie Weis

// November 30th, 2009 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Maybe they  should start screening these ads?  Just a suggestion.

UConn’s Win Over Notre Dame Reveals The Real Randy Edsall

// November 26th, 2009 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

I had a very telling experience here in St. John, while at a beach side bar, I met a guy who worked for the Hartford Housing Authority (or something close to that).  Anyway, conversations between two men, wearing nothing more than glorified loin clothes can be forced at best.  However, he had a Notre Dame hat on, so I figured I’d give him a good natured ribbing.  Turns out he’s a UConn fan and, like so many good men, was married to a Notre Dame fan.  That’s not the point here.  The point is, he asked me what I thought about Randy Edsall.  It surprised me, that a lot of emotion and words surfaced, that I had no problem sharing with this complete stranger.  Coach Edsall is a national figure, a real coach’s coach, I told him.  I said, it was frustrating as a player, who at times wanted to cut corners, to have a coach who was, by definition, not a corner cutter.  He always did things the right way.  Not to mention he has an unwavering work ethic and the emotional/moral capacity to lead, not from a place of rah-rah’s-go-get-em’s, but from the example set by working 18 hour days, year round.   I knew it when I was a player, and then fan, media, through this seasons most tragic of circumstances, learned that he was a guiding light, spiritual rock.  At the height of all “this”– a pain that rarely seems to fade, he was bringing all of UConn and college football through the most difficult of times.  I got the feeling that this “answer” was more than this guy was expecting or wanted, but it was the truth.  Then furthering my opinion of the man, I got a text message back from him after the game to the effect of, “wish you could have been there, I know your parents had a great time”

UConn is, in my opinion, the best 5-6 team in the country.  Not that wins can heal what happened, but, man, in the fourth quarter I couldn’t stand watching those games get away.  Didn’t we deserve one?  It was almost as if something bigger was building.  Then, there it is: UConn and Notre Dame, playing in a football game that just a few seasons earlier would have seemed impossible.  UConn could win? Inconceivable.  On Senior Day at Notre Dame?  Now your just talking crazy.  And sure enough, down 14-0, coming back to win in Double OT.  I smell a Disney Movie in the making.  You couldn’t have scripted it better.  I was in a tropical local bar, screaming at a television, proud to be a husky.  Missing those days.  I was flooded with text messages, talking to the guys who, as Scott Lutrus said it earlier in the week, weren’t surprised they went down there and won.  No one understands UConn football’s mentality, except UConn football, and thats the way they (we) like it.

He’s Right. I Can Do Better…

// November 26th, 2009 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Hey FWG-

“Uconn wins a FOOTBALL game at Notre Dame, the biggest win in the history of the program and you’re giving us 10 questions with Zach Frazer from August? Seriously? One decent quote from Lutrus and a couple 3 month old postings. This is what you have to say about this historic, monumental win? Did you see the Randy Edsall post game interview on NBC (http://soxanddawgs.com/2009/11/21/randy-edsall-notre-dame-postgame-nbc-interview/)? That interview alone was worth several paragraphs of “Thoughts from a Fat White Guy”, not to mention being down 14-0 on Senior Day AT Notre Dame and winning in Double OT.

Please.”

-Love always, Diesel.

You know, I consider FWG fans a pretty knowledgeable bunch.  And here I am in St. John, soaking up sun, deep sea fishing, throwing back rum drinks with the locals, and watching my favorite football team dismantle the Irish, making you, the reader look like an idiot.I give you a few old links, slug down another cocktail, and call it a day-well blogged.  Lazy, Rob.  Just Lazy.   I’ll make up for it, I’ll do better, I promise….

UConn Over Notre Dame

// November 23rd, 2009 // 2 Comments » // Uncategorized

There is a lot I could say about this game, being here in the Virgin Islands, watching the Huskies get Charlie Weis fired.  But I’ve already said a lot, so I’ll refer to these previous posts, somehow now just a little sweeter:

Scott Lutrus, Bravado Non Falso

Former  ND Quarterback Strikes Back

The Confident Quarterback