Weis Will Coach from the Field… For Now
One of the hot topics so far this off-season has been the idea of Charlie Weis coaching from the booth after the success he had calling plays in the Hawaii Bowl from the booth. On Friday though, Weis was quick to mention that his intention for the 2009 season is to coach from the field. Here’s exactly what Weis has to say about his reasoning.
My intent is to coach the game from the field. That is my intent. Okay? As (Bill) Parcells said years ago, I reserve the right to change my mind, but that is my intent.
I talked to people at the collegiate level and pro level, from Andy Reid right on down. By a very, very large majority, almost everyone I talked to were overwhelming thinking I was thinking way outside the box.
Look, I got bad knees. Everyone knows that I just got reconstruction on the right knee. I didn’t do it on the left knee. Could I end up upstairs based off of physical reasons some day? Yes, I could. But my intent is to coach from the field. I’ve gone over the plan with the coaching staff. Coach Ianello would go upstairs and be responsible for the touches. Coach Parmalee would go upstairs and be responsible for the fronts and the blitzes. Okay. That’s their job description on a weekly basis when it comes to scouting reports. So we’ve already gone over this and as of right now, that’s my intent.
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As recently as last month, Weis had considered coaching from the booth after he had named himself the offensive coordinator for the 2009 season, but for now at least, the plan is to coach from the field. While I think coaching from the booth makes a lot of sense for a play caller, the perception of Weis, the head coach, coahcing from the booth would not have been good and would have been used against Notre Dame on the recruiting trail. On the other hand, considering the pressure that there is on Weis to win this year, I think it’s in his best interest to do whatever it takes to win the most games because if he doens’t win this year, it won’t matter what opposing coaches are using against him on the recruiting front.
Weis did leave himself some wiggle room here though so that in the he could make the transition to the booth because of his knees so the concept of him coaching up top won’t go away over the next few months until he’s actually seen on the field calling games.
I see the merits behind both decisions here, but how does everyone else feel about Weis coaching from the sidelines vs. the booth in 2009?
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
i don’t care where he coaches.
just win charlie. just win!
Does it really matter that a head coach is on the field? Weis has hired many other coaches who would be able to handle being down there with the players, i.e. Corwin Brown who is a players coach. I think it would be smart as the offensive playcaller to be able to view the field from above and pick apart those defenses. Just my opinion, but a good one at that!
jason_h537
He won’t go up for to the booth for just one game. I do believe he stated in a press conference that once you go up to the booth, your are up there for good. There no back and forth for certain games.
He should of went to the booth because I think the kids play more uptight when he is on the sidelines..
i agree that coach weis should stay on the sideline. im not sure if someone said it here or on another site, but i like the idea of him coaching in the booth for USC. pull out all the stops. i dont wanna beat USC. i wanna embarass them.
I think weis will stay on the side line for a long as his legs will let him! A head coach belongs on the side line with his players and we all know that weis likes to yell at the refs so that would be pretty hard from the booth! like he said he will have coachs up there letting him know whats going on and im sure with his job on the line this year he will listen to what they are telling him(not that he didnt in the past) im sure the irish will have a good year im guessing arond a 10 win season and maybe just maybe they beat usc! GO IRISH and put up as miny videos of spring practice as you can i really enjoy witching the players practice!