The combined record of the Notre Dame football team in the 2005 and 2006 seasons was 19-6 with 2 BCS bowl appearances. Times were good then for Irish nation. They were recruiting well, sending players into the NFL Draft and Weis was getting most to all of the credit for this.
However the ND football program hit a little bit of a roadblock - more like a hit a mountain. ND lost their first 5 games and were embarrased in those games too. Then the Notre Dame football program hit one of its low points in their rich history. They lost back to back games to Navy, ending a 43 winning streak against the Midshipmen and to another military school in Air Force, both which were homes games. ND and Charlie Weis suffered through many endless jokes about their program while getting humiliated in games. Everyone in the college football world thought this is it for ND, this is where they start to hit some REALLY rocky years. Everyone also thought that Weis is just another string of ND coaches to prove to be a bust and get canned soon. Recruiting should slip big time as certain recruits were de-committing from ND. Well on National Signing Day, Charlie Weis proved once again why Notre Dame football will never hit hard years, and why they ARE Notre Dame football.
The 2008 Notre Dame's recruiting class were top three on both Scout and Rivals recruiting rankings. ND had to beat out teams for certain recruits like USC, Michigan, and Penn State, all three teams who blew ND out of the water in 2007. When you go 3-9, and you're fighting and even landing recruits against elite teams in college football, you know you're doing something right. When you lose to teams like Navy and Air Force, and barely beating teams like Stanford and you're still recruiting like one of the best is astonishing. Some may argue "it's Notre Dame, they can sell themselves." While that is true, that's not the only reason why they've decided to play at ND. Charlie Weis goes into their homes and sells them Notre Dame. He sells them why they should play at ND and why the best school for them to go to is ND. Even with the recent record and embarrasment that ND had to go through, he sells ND like no other. Now Weis will bring those players in, develop then and most likely have ND at the least being close to the glory they once had.
Despite all the jokes thrown toward Weis, despite all the hate and spew opposing schools throw at him and ND, he can still get it done. Some other coaches that he's going up against have a fine reputation, look much better than Weis. Coaches like Pete Carrol, Jim Tressel, Mack Brown, Urban Meyer are talked greatly upon college football fans. However make one mention of Charlie Weis upon the average college football fan and you get fat jokes about him. Now you may say "well do high school recruits really care about that?" Well I have no idea but they do hear the jokes. They do see the unending humor and laughter toward him and ND. Yet they still commit to him, yet they still go there despite the recent record that ND has had, and the recent doubts that Weis can still coach. Weis doesn't care about what has happened in the past, he's looking toward the future, and apparantly his recruits following suit.One thing that Weis uses to bring in recruits is his vision. His vision to bring ND back to the top, to bring them back to where they used to be. Despite all the negative events that have taken place at ND, he still has that great vision. Weis has proved he can win, he has proved that he can take ND to BCS bowl games, he has proven that he can restore ND football to where it should be. Now all he has to do is install that vision into each of the recruits he's trying to get which is not that easy. To sell that pitch with the recent state of the ND football program is difficult. All it takes for a program to completely crumble is one year, to have one year awful year where recruiting takes a fall. However Weis's vision won't let that happen. His vision that recruits are obviously believe in, will change Notre Dame football in the future.
Yes ND went 3-9, yes there are some doubts about Weis and his coaching, however you wouldn't know it by the way he has recruited. You wouldn't know that ND is going through some problems and difficulties as they try to prove to the college football world that they are still a solid program. You may hate Charlie Weis, you may like him, I don't care. But you've got to admit that the job he's done recruiting is nothing short of amazing.
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