A Couple Thoughts | by Sean
A couple thoughts:
(1) This coaching search is starting to take on the shape of a bizarro version of "The Apprentice". Each day (or seemingly, each hour) a new candidate is "firing" Notre Dame. Or at least, that's the perception. Technically, you actually have to have a conversation with someone to fire them, but why let that get in the way of the mainstream sports media's "kick ND while they're down" fun? I will say that, as we've all locked in on our personal favorites for the job and some have fallen by the wayside, I'm starting to feel pretty good about putting all of my chips on the "Tom Clements" square on the ND Coaching Roulette table. At this point, I need for Clements to get hired so that I can make up for what I lost on my Bill Rancic-Raj Bhakta "Apprenctice 1-Apprentice 2" exacta. DAMN YOU, RAJ!
(2) Counterpoint to Dylan's post yesterday about hiring Lou Holtz as a short-term solution. I disagree that it would be a win with the media. To the contrary, I think the media would crush us for having to fall back on a 67-year old coach who was "retired" a couple weeks ago, who by the way, has had the job before. I think Notre Dame would be ridiculed that nobody wants this job, and it would be painted as Holtz doing the school a favor. Second, as for it "[alleviating] the growing sense of panic", everyone would know this is a temporary stopgap measure, so I think it would only serve to heighten the panic and make the search for a permanent coach an ongoing distraction throughout the season. In short, hiring Holtz would be a year long advertisement for those who adhere to the school of thought that this job is difficult to fill and "undesirable". Finally, at the end of the day, this thing is still about wins and losses, and I to think that Holtz can reach back and throw his 98 MPH heater from the 1988-1993 days is unreasonable, although I will admit that even under a watered down version of Holtz, 31 point blowouts would be a thing of the past. The fact of the matter is, with his legacy intact and the tenuous health of his wife, this wouldn't be a "win" for Holtz. And in the end, for him, that's what matters. (Healthy debate on the BGS blog. I like it!)
