Pressure Still on Weis

I was at my "other job" today when I heard the juiciest Notre Dame rumor since the Christmas Eve bowl game beat down that the Irish layed on Hawaii.

Not surprisingly, there have been talks around South Bend that Charlie Weis needs to have a huge year to keep his job. This is not news. Anyone who follows the Irish (or reads this blog) could have figured that out. What is news, however, is the fact that Urban "Notre Dame is still my dream job" Meyer may still be in the mix.

Those at South Bend share the same thought process as I do. If Meyer is serious about his desire to eventually come to South Bend, one more great year in Gainsville may be enough to signal the end of the Gator years. College Football coaches are typically always looking to make the next step in their careers. With Tim Tebow leaving after this season, Meyer may convince himself that his job at Florida is done and look to jump to his "next step."

I did some snooping around on this story and found this from the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

In a long interview on the Paul Finebaum Radio Network, (Steve) Spurrier called Meyer one of the nation’s top coaches, then digressed.
“They’ve still got that rumor going down there, Paul, that if he has about one more big year he might be the Notre Dame coach,” Spurrier said. “I know you’ve heard that rumor.”
Finebaum chimed in that “people at Notre Dame firmly believe” Meyer will jump to South Bend next year.

This fascinates me. Everyone knows that Meyer was the first choice after Ty Willingham was fired. He was offered a contract, but turned it down because he didn't like the idea of having to recruit athletes who could also preform inside the classroom (ie. high academic standards!) Being the fine educational institution that it is, Notre Dame isn't lowering academic standards anytime soon. But, I wonder if Meyer's opinion on academic standards has changed after two national championships. Maybe this was the plan all along for Meyer. Get the rings with the athletes who are less "academically pigeonholed" and then take your dream job. Not a bad deal, if you can pull it off.

The other question, of course, is what this means for Charlie Weis in 2009. I would think that if the "Notre Dame thought process" reported in the AIC is accurate than Weis has to make it impossible for ND to fire him. This would mean, at the very least, a top 25 finish without an embarrassing loss (ie. Syracuse or Navy at home...or anywhere). With the relatively easy schedule ND is playing this year, Charlie has to be extra careful of those nasty trap games.

In Tony Barnharts CFB blog, he has Notre Dame at number 24 in his spring football top 25. I'm not sure that even this would be enough to save Weis if Urban Meyer is dangling. Believe it or not, that October 17th game with USC might be a job maker for Weis. A low top 25 finish that includes a win against USC would make firing Weis indefensiable. However, a low top 25 finish that includes a 40-17 loss to USC might be enough to signal the end of what would be one of the most disapointing stories in Notre Dame history.

Jordan Lauterbach