A great part of the honor of playing or coaching at Notre Dame is the unparalleled loyalty and enthusiasm of the Irish faithful. A difficult part of the honor of playing or coaching for Notre Dame is the unparalleled loyalty and enthusiasm of the Irish faithful.

As I recall in the not too distant past we were all mired in the debacle of the 2001 football season. We watched as one fiasco was played out and another was beginning. The predictability of the offense was subject of daily conjecture and criticism, and rightfully so. Talented wide receivers were misused or not used at all (David Givens-New England Patriots, Javin Hunter-Baltimore Ravens, John Owens-Detroit Lions, permit me to throw in Tony Fisher-Green Bay Packers). We shuttered at the thought of this squandered talent. Personally, observing the looks of despair upon the faces of young men who “signed up” for an experience far more positive than that they were being dealt reflected the entire saga.

With the dismissal of the incumbent coach, the hiring of his successor, the dismissal of the successor and the hiring of Coach Tyrone Willingham, I ask you to put yourself in the minds of young 17 to 22-year-old men. What would your mind set be? Confusion? Mistrust? Anxiety? Dysfunction?

Think with me! I am coming out of this nightmare. I am almost awake, it is a great morning, the sun is shining, it is fall like outside. I see a great group of young men leaving the field at Michigan State, the look on their faces is one of pure joy, enthusiasm, confidence. They are wearing gold helmets, their leader is quietly confident, almost to a point of exuding the thought of what is the big deal? This is Notre Dame isn’t it?

Am I dreaming? I just pinched myself. Has the Good Lord taken me to the big Coach’s Office in the sky? Not yet Bobby C., but close. It is the morning of Sept. 23 and the Fighting Irish are FOUR and OH!

Carlyle Holiday has led this team to four consecutive wins and is performing in an offense that he has been a student of for basically 10 weeks. Holiday’s athleticism has given that offense the opportunity to succeed when breakdowns occur, and he’s put that offense in the right play time and again. He has become a leader on and off of the field. His greatest statistic, for those who look to these numbers in judgment, is that Notre Dame is in 4-0.

The offensive line has improved to a man and has shown signs of depth, thank you Jim Molinaro. Our running backs are becoming complete in their assignments. Our tight ends are in fact being used as a component of the offensive game plan, they also can block, my goodness! Our wide receivers can actually catch and run after the catch, and even win the faithful a football game.

Defensively, our secondary is performing as well as any in the country, even if I saw one mistake in the fourth quarter. Our linebackers are reminiscent of Anthony Denman, Michael Stonebeaker, Bob Crable et al. The defensive front is stout and took the smoke out of the Spartans.

I am awake! It is a beautiful morning! The Irish are Four and Oh! I can’t wait for the Stanford game and yet another look at “T-Ball.”

Bob Chmiel served as Notre Dame’s recruiting coordinator from 1994-97. He worked as the Coordinator for Football Operations from 1998-2000. Before joining the Notre Dame staff, Chmiel was the University of Michigan’s recruiting coordinator from 1988-1993.