ANELLO HURT

This note involves a discussion about coach Charlie Weis of Notre Dame. I personally do no know Coach Weis but I have seen what he has done for communities and a very under rated high school program before he took command. I personally have played football all my life from peewees thru high school as a quarterback. So my comments and insight are a little bit more deeper than the normal armchair fan or alumni who only cares about wins not the character of the individual and program (behind the scenes of the team). I go around to see the better talent of individuals on the field and the so called better teams for entertainment. I also rout for these individuals to succeed on the field and in life. Which brings us back to coach Weis. He took over a high school team in my area of NJ that had no leadership and individuals who had lots of problems and molded them through his compassion, knowledge, determination to succeed and to show how leaders lead. I was just an outsider looking in at a marvelous outcome. Without his dedication a lot of these kids would not have taken the right steps in life. At this point I will tell you I do route for Rutgers which brings us to a very interesting comparison. Four years into the Rutgers coaching job the fans and armchair second quessers were asking for a change in coaches. Basically where you’re at now at Notre Dame. What all these people did not see or realize is the passion and leadership very few individuals have in putting together through relentless hours and devotion a base of concrete on which to build a program. Your base is now in place by watching the various recruits which because of coach Weis have come to ND. When he took over just like our Rutgers coach he took over a glorious JV squad that was playing varsity level big time football with no depth at all on the team. At Rutgers we never really had a winning program that was competitive on a major scale but of course Notre Dame has. Problem is it’s quality of players was not up to pare for what they were trying to achieve. Charlie Weis now has his recruiting classes on the field just like Rutgers at that same time period the team now has solid depth. The next 3 yrs should really prove to be wonderful at ND. I say this because the pieces are together like a jig saw puzzle it has strength and that’s because coach Weis put the pieces in place. Of course, there was a lot of whoopla and fan fare when he was hired as the head coach , we know he has done extremely well in the NFL and there’s no reason with all the time put in to the Notre Dame program times will be like in the past. I also remember nothing but praises of certain individuals that he recruited, example one of the best prospects out of high school at the QB position, but sometimes individuals need an extra year to develop physically or mentally and this goes along with other positions of course. As you know the recruiting class coming in is extremely gifted and will continue to be gifted recruiting classes in the future because of the solid and stability of a strong leader such as coach Weis. Also he’s had tremendous victories with the type of talent he inherited and that’s because the kids believe in themselves and know what it’s like to be a ND player under a very special coach who is also a father figure for example that people don’t know about either. Also a few coaches left for other jobs after a few good seasons so now he has to reteach his philosophy and find a few more coaches that believe in his system. So he’s not only teaching players but teaching coaches. I for one would love to be an assistant under Charlie Weis and I would be there for as long as he was coach and that’s how assistant coaches should think. Such as the dedication at Penn State. He and the fans have suffered through the worst lately at ND but there nothing but tremendous football on the horizon. He has his team in place, has tremendous depth and ability and with his leadership and caring of the program ND will once again be a powerhouse. Give him his next few years as the pieces are in place -- he’s earned it! Fan of football, your’s respectfully to those who’ve read this. Joseph Bielak