Leaving Late or Coming Late - Greg Schiano or Charlie Weis

So which is a worse hit for “The Team”? 

A coach quitting days before National Signing Day (NSD) as in Greg Schiano formerly from Rutgers.  

OR a coach being hired and not able to truly devote recruiting and signing time because of NFL commitments and a Super Bowl as in Charlie Weis formerly of the Patriots, Irish, Chiefs, Gaters and now Jay Hawks.

We feel sorry for the Rutgers coaching staff and training staff left behind.  Especially also for the young men who committed to the Scarlet Knights to play football for Schiano.

Money and opportunity.  Opportunity and money.  Quite a combination.

Rutgers has/had 17 verbal commitments so far (same as Notre Dame this year) and it will be interesting to see who tries to poach and who tries to jump ship.  We suspect that if there is anyone Urban Meyer’s would have wanted he would have poached him already.

More interestingly where to do find a head coach this time of year?  If you rob a head coach from another school, you’ve just screwed them.  Do you hire within to try and hold the team together?  Is there anyone qualified on the staff or are you looking to tube the season?

The school is in the process of spending $$$ to upgrade facilities and enhance the football program because of Schiano and his winning ways.  Will be interesting to watch Rutgers the next few years and see if the investment pays off.

Apparently talent is in place at Rutgers, something lacking on defense and the offensive line when Charlie finally arrived at Notre Dame after winning the Super Bowl for Tom Brady.

Schiano has his work cut out for him in Tampa.  The Subway Alumni Station has a Blue Line from Tarpon Springs to Tampa and some things are known about the Bucs.  (1)  They quit last year on their coach, quarterback, and fans.  (2)  They are not very good.  (3)  Josh Freeman and Tommy Rees could be related by the number of turnovers they both committed last year.  (4)  The fan base is dissatisfied because the Bucs don’t sellout and the home games are blacked out by the NFL.  (5)  Management dicked around in waiting to fire R. Morris and lost out on all the available head coaching talent.

We think a coaching resigning just before NSD is worse than one coming in late trying to no avail to play catch up.

18 Notre Dame Does Not Have To Fret Over

Ran across an enlightening article in USA Today (1-19-12), read it Here.

65 underclassmen having college football eligibility left have declared themselves for the 2012 NFL draft.  This is the most in ten years.  The draft starts on April 26^th and it appears that Notre Dame will have at least four contenders based upon their selection for post-season all-star games.

Robert Blanton

Gary Grey

Trevor Robinson

Harrison Smith

Michael Floyd (   Has Declined To Particiape In Post Season Actitives   )

I would guess that if any of the four are not drafted, they will at least get some free agency tryouts.

Anyway, out of those 65 underclassmen, 18 come from eight different schools the Irish will play in 2012.  This can only be a very good thing.

Miami (FL)      6

Stanford           3

USC                 2

MSU                2

BC                   2

Purdue             1

OK                   1

Wake Forest     1

I won’t bore you will repeating the names, the complete list is in the USA Today article.

The interesting point is the apparent abandoning ship down in Cane Country.  Between the transfers that have taken place and now underclassmen departing the handwriting on the wall must be obvious even to those guys.  I wonder what kind of a recruiting class is coming in this year for the Canes?

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Flying Rumors and Flying Pigs

Well just when we thought things were settling down and we were beginning to lick our wounds after losing recruits Ron Darby and Taylor Decker.  Plus the coaching shakeup, defections and position changes taking place on the staff. The jokes on us.

Now these rumors!!

**  Gunner Kiel to Notre Dame!  We will wait until we can put our fingers into the wounds on his hands though.  Supposedly his mama wants him closer to home and that does not mean Bourbon Street.  Guess IF IF IF he is highly successful with the Irish, he would have to play for the Bears or the Colts.

**  The Armstead brothers on campus?  Armond and Arik.  A package deal coming together?

**  Reported that future fifth year senior John Goodman (WR) has been offered a slot?  Wow!  He was on the bubble for returning.  Returning in not returning punts that is.  So if that is true, it implies other fifth years have been accepted.  Which means the recruiting season is really over.  Numbers have been set.

**  Brian Kelly is bringing in/back Gary Darnell to join the staff.  Darnell is a former head coach at Western Michigan and Tennessee Tech and defensive coordinator at ND, Texas, Florida, Texas A&M, Wake Forest and Kansas State.  I’d like to see the stickers on his luggage.  Guess he would come in as a position coach on defense somewhere.  Man has his stock been up and down.  Lou Holtz basically ran him off if I remember correctly by taking over calling defensive plays.

This is dated, January 17^th at high noon.  Stay tuned.

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Notre Dame and the 2012 Murderer's Row Schedule

Well Notre Dame’s 2012 Murderer’s Row Schedule is starting to look even tougher than after the first glance we gave it when it was finalized last year.  6 and 6 is becoming a real distinct possibility even this early in the year.  Rivals.com has come out with their top 25 and Notre Dame is not on it. 

No not this murderer’s row.

Unfortunately 5 of our opponents did make it:

2.  USC

5. Oklahoma

8.  Michigan

13.  Michigan State

20.  Stanford

Also consider:

**  You can bet MSU head Coach Mark Dantonio has already circled September 15^th (in East Lansing) on his calendar and is figuring out how to cream us as payback for last year.

**  We have not figured out how to beat Denard Robinson and quite to the contrary will we figure out another way to give the Skunkbears yet another game? 

***  Last year we managed to squeak by Wale Forest, Pittsburgh and Boston College by an average of five points.

**  We can’t seem to win all the “easy games” as in USF, Tulsa, Navy and always find a new and exciting way to lose.

**  Matt Barkley (QB), WR’s Marqise Lee and Robert Woods return along with 14 other starters to USC and we play in California.

**  Michigan returns 14 starters, a better yet defense and Robinson who has our number.

** Oklahoma returns 13 starters along with QB Landry Jones and we play them in Norman.

**  Do not overlook Miami or BYU, teams that we will be matched pretty close.

Some pending in-house issues:

**  The Irish do not have a quarterback and if we do, I have not seen him play.

**  Brian Kelly has not hired a Special Teams coach and there is no indication that it is in the works.  The Irish need to settle on a place kicker, improve the kick-off game and establish a punt return among other issues.

**  Proven wide receiver depth is kind of scary.  The loss of Michael Floyd (100) and moving Theo Riddick (38) back to RB hurts.  TJ Jones (38), Robby Toma (19) and a maybe returning John Goodman (7) is all she wrote.

So anyway, this schedule is going to give us fits.  You can check it out and cry over on the right side of the Blog.

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KELLY GETS TWO MORE YEARS ! POOR US !

Well the moronic outrage has begun.  God help us all.  Notre Dame has exercised an option/contract clause provision to extend Head Coach Brian Kelly’s five-year contract through 2016.

Everyone is pointing at his 18-10 record and the really stupid extension that was given to Charlie Weis after less than one year at the helm.  How could Notre Dame repeat such an ugly, terrible, historical event?

No big deal.  Let’s get real.  Grow up you idiots over at NDNation and misc. blogs.  The Good Fathers of the Holy Cross dumped Ty Willingham  and Charlie Weis early, they can/will do the same with Brian Kelly.  The $$$ makes no difference.  The fools at NDNation are still hoping that Stoops, Meyers, Gruden, JoPa, Skip Holtz, Knute Rockne, et al, etc, and anyone else in the current favor will come to Notre Dame and wake up the echoes.

Most of those guys listed above are not in lock-step with graduation rates, course grades, recruiting of street thugs, and kids that only want to play until the NFL calls.  The administration won’t even talk to those type coaches anymore.

The problem with Brain Kelly is that the individuals who for the last two years have touch the football right after the center hikes it to them have not very good.  That includes, Nate Montana, Tommy Rees, and Dayne Crist.

Whether Andrew Hendrix or Everett Golson are the answer remains to be seem, however it would appear lacking a freshman QB recruit in 2012 that Brain Kelly’s tenure remains in the balance.

Notre Dame's Tyler Eifert Decision

Well January 15^th and NFL declaration day is only 11 days away for Junior Tyler Eifert of the Fighting Irish.  Everyone here at the Station is holding their breath and hoping Tyler makes the right decision best for him.  We think that decision is also best for subway alumni fans, return for a third year.

Tyler received his NFL draft projection and got a 3^rd round possible pick.  That and $4.95 will get you a small cup of Starbuck’s coffee.  Just ask Jimmy Clausen or Brady Quinn.

Realistically, Tyler has two years of eligibility left, however no one expects him to stick around for the 2013 campaign.  2012 would sure be nice and picking up a sheepskin wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

We see three issues:

*** Draft competition and any other juniors declaring.  No sure if the 3^rd round projection takes all that into consideration or just his resume.

*** Who does Notre Dame have to toss Tyler the football in 2012?  Hmmm good point.  He did have 6 catches and 90 yards in the Champs Sports Bowl.  However we are hoping neither one of those guys will be passing the football around come this fall.

*** Not a lot of playing time.

Tyler Eifert’s resume:

6’ 6” – 249 lbs.

Mackey Award Finalist (that and $4.95 will get you another cup of Starbuck’s coffee).

Broke Notre Dame's Ken MacAfee’s single season record (1977) of 54 receptions (57), howver that is not near the NCAA record.

Started all 13 games in 2011:  57 receptions, 713 yards and 5 touchdowns

Played in 11 games in 2010:  27 receptions, 352 yards and 2 touchdowns
Statistic wise NCAA ranked #1 2011 Tight End with: 13 games, 63 receptions, 803 yards, 5 touchdowns.

Rumor has it that Tyler’s blocking technique needs work.  Hmmm, no one in the office wanted to test that rumor.

Subway Alumni Station other points of issue:

Great hands.

Can take hits.

Quiet, team player.

Does not make many mistakes (penalties), false starts, personnel fouls.

It would appear that the potential 2012 Notre Dame All American Tight End would take pressure off a fledging Irish receiving corp.

Editors Note:  About six hours after this posting Tyler Eifert announced his decision to return to Notre Dame, get his degree and once again play with his fellow teammates for at least another year.

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What’s Next on the Schedule

Musings On Where Is The Notre Dame Football Program Going.

Driving back from the debacle in Orlando I tried to find a positive spin on the 18-14 loss to an inferior FSU team and could not think of any rational theme.  It was hard enough just licking my wounds.  Then I got wrapped up in family visiting and just plain having fun around the house with them.  So no posting in over a week.

Did not listen or watch Kelly’s post game comments nor did I subject myself to the zillion stories, articles and commentary over here in Tarpon Springs on the “great FSU win”.  What the heck, I was there and watched in horror as our quarterbacks self-destructed.   Talk about the tired cliché, “snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory.”  I did read a couple of threads on Rock’s House over on NDNation but they seemed bent on jumping out the basement window or trying to slash their wrists with a butter knive over Brian Kelly.  Just checked again and they are still at it.  Why do they think Gruden, Stoops, Meyers, et al would come coach at Notre Dame when graduating is more important than playing football.  They wouldn’t last a season and rightly so.

Notre Dame and Brian Kelly have just announced some coaching changes.  Read it Here.  Knew about Charley Molnar going to UMass however did not think Tim Hinton was leaving just after he said he was sticking around.  Ed Warinner leaving was a complete surprise.  They both get one sentence at the bottom of the news release.  Reading between the lines, I guess the parting was not amiable.  What was missing was any mention of the hiring of a Special Teams coach.  That seems a huge mistake and hope a hire is in the works.

No word from Tyler Eifert.  You would think he’s leaving since if Tyler were staying he would have said so by now.  Can’t blame him.  Looking at the quarterbacks he’s got throwing at him, I’d leave as well.

Seventeen recruits, probably three or four more yet to be committing or picked.  Surprised none have jumped ship after the Stanford and FSU games.  Check them out on the left side of the Blog.

Big decision on fifth year seniors and who will be invited back.  Again, the number of spots is contingent on the number of recruits and if anyone else transfers out.  The list is long and the decisions tough.  Very few guarantees after Braxton Cave, Kapron Lewis-Moore and Jamoris Slaughter.
Looking at the quarterback situation, I don’t see the same logjam that Gunner Kiel did.  The position is wide open.  Or is it?  My youngest son said he would not watch Notre Dame Football this year (2012) if Tommy Rees starts in Dublin.  I was toying with the idea of going over to the game and some sightseeing.  Naw, changed my mind.

Well let’s see the schedule:

**  Tyler Eifert decision.

**  Finish up picking the coaching staff.

**  Finish up recruiting.

**  Decisions on fifth year seniors.

**  National signing day

**  NFL Draft and Free Agency

**  Spring ball.

Can’t wait.

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