Most older Notre Dame fans remember Gerry DiNardo as an All American guard who was also on the 1973 Notre Dame National Championship team. Most younger fans remember him as rather unsuccessful head coach at both LSU and Indiana and as an occasional college football analyst since being fired by Indiana.
Well., DiNardo was giving some of that analysis on Notre Dame, his alma mater, and here’s some of the gems DiNardo had about the Irish earlier this weekend from the South Bend Tribune…
“They’ve become what they never wanted to become. Football is clearly the most important thing on campus. And it wasn’t that way when (coach) Ara Parseghian was there (1964-74) and he couldn’t make more money than the highest-paid professor on campus.”
Well Gerry, find me a single coach in the country willing to lead the Irish for the same price as the highest paid professor at the University and then get back to me. Times have changed a bit since Ara’s time at Notre Dame and having a rule such as the head coach not making more than the highest paid professor is simply not possible. Unless of course, you could convince a high school coach to….. er nevermind.
“As an alumnus, I was always proud of the fact that it appeared Notre Dame kept football in perspective. You can’t use graduation rate and academics as an argument that they have kept perspective, because when (former coach) Bob Davie got fired in 1999, he said, ‘Well, we’re doing well academically.’ And the university told him, ‘We take credit for that. Not you.'”
Um, Notre Dame’s graduation rate for its football team is 90% and the team just recorded a 3.0 grade point average again this term so how has football not been kept in perspective for Notre Dame? Academics are still very important at Notre Dame so it’s not as though they have traded classroom success for on the field success. Charlie Weis has been able to accomplish both and that is why he is the head coach and Bob Dave and Tyrone Willingham no longer are.
Good old Gerry apparently also doesn’t like that Notre Dame gave Weis an extension last year…
“Shame on Weis and shame on the university for giving him more money,” DiNardo said. “I think that’s why a lot of people root against them.”
Well now Gerry, what should Weis have done with the offer? Turned it down because it was too much? I guess you can’t fault DiNardo here, he’s a coach who is used to universities ending contracts prematurely as opposed to extending them so he’s not used to be in such a situation.
And then DiNardo went on to show his complete ignorance with the following classic line.
“If he didn’t ask for more money, what else could it be?”
Again, this is coming from a coach who is not used to being offered MORE money or being asked to stay some place LONGER. I guess the idea of a coach getting more money for on and off field success is completely foreign to a coach who had just three winning seasons in 12 as a head coach.
Who knows, maybe DiNardo is just upset that he is thought of so little as a head coach that he hasn’t even been an honorary coach for the Blue Gold game like former players Tim Brown, Joe Montana, Joe Theisman, Chris Zorich, Rocket Ismail, Bob Golic, Mike Golic, and Jerome Bettis have.
Love ND, dislike Gerry DiNARDO. The guy is a bonafied loser, and has not accomplished anything since taking credit for the Failed I-Bone in NCAA FOOTBALL. He conned LSU after walking out on Vanderbilt, and not honoring the pay out clause in 1994-95. He failed @ LSU because they found out that he could not coach. Later he tried Minor league Football in Alabama, and failed there.
The guy has loser written all over him, Please ND fans and Alums write this guy off. Oh by the way He once indicated that his long term goal was to be head coach @ ND. Thats not gonna happen !!!!!!!!!!!!
I tend to agree w/ you Frank, but NY media does not, so Weis needs to be proactive & nip this rumor in the bud. And don’t think for a minute that the buyout would be an obstacle for a team that is looking for a “savior”.
ND is on the fence w/ so many top recruits (incl. 2 from Louisiana) that they can’t afford another blowout loss to an elite team, much less rumors that the coach is leaving. Weis needs to record himself saying that he has no interest in the NFL until ND has won at least one national championsip. Then he can push play when he’s asked about this subject at every presser to get his point across b/c the media will continue pushing the subject regardless of Weis’ (or your) adamant denial.
Good Humor I.R., that loss to BC has never set well with me either.
Weis isn’t going ANYWHERE. How many times does the man have to say he came to Notre Dame to retire…
Uh-oh, DiNardo may get his wish. Weis is being rumored (I stress the word “rumored”) as being the #1 target of the NY Giants, should they axe Coughlin. Actually, they would go after New England GM, Scott Peoli first w/ his first chore being to woo Weis away from South Bend.
I, for one, will be rooting for the Giants to get into the playoffs to save Coughlin’s ass. If not, all hell could break loose. It’s been 13 years since the Coughlin-led Boston College ruined ND’s Nat’l Champ. chances w/ a last second victory, now he, inadvertently, has a chance of setting the Irish back yet again.
I don’t think much has to be said on this subject. Gerry DiNardo sounds like the typical ND hater except that he’s actually a former All-American from ND!
Maybe he should offer his consulting talent to the search committee at Alabama where he can recommend Bob Davie who obviously is devoted to academic success but not athletic success. I’m sure the Crimson Tide alums would love this idea!
Football and academics have always been important at Notre Dame. Does Dinardo even recall a guy named Knute Rockne? Or Frank Lehy? I remember Ara and when I was a kid, I thought he was more important than the president of the United States. Because he was the head coach of Notre Dame. And ND has always held up it’s academic standards through all those years. So Charlie Weis gets paid a nice salary – he deserves it! I guess Dinardo would be happy with a Bob Davie and a 6-5 team year after year. Well Garry, in the words of Bear Bryant – “You can’t exactly rally around a math class”!
I wonder, is there this much contention about other Universities who have high profile football programs? It seems to me that a lot of over reaction comes ND’s way. Are we that much of a lightning-rod for disfavour? And from a former ND All American?
I think Weis’s contract stunned most everybody but why begrudge him what he’s been offered? Obviosly the mucky-mucks who make these types of decisions felt it prudent to make the offer. What, Weis is gonna say NO I’ll wait to see if I have another winning season.
Such whiners out there. Whining about any and everything.
Poor Gerry D.! Life went on after him. The football world left him behind. Cry me a River. Ba Hum Bug!
Have a good feast all! And I hope all are having a good day today.