11-15-2009, 08:39 PM
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/st...id=4656607
PITTSBURGH -- When a replay official ruled that quarterback Jimmy Clausen's right arm wasn't moving forward on a controversial fumble with 2:10 to play, Notre Dame's fourth loss of the season was sealed. No. 12 Pittsburgh would hang on for a 27-22 win.
Sometime during the next three weeks, Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick will have to decide whether his school's once-storied football program is moving forward in coach Charlie Weis' fifth season.
"I evaluate every program at the end of the season," Swarbrick said Saturday night just minutes after Notre Dame lost its second game in a row to fall to 6-4. "It's not about evaluating coaches; it's about evaluating programs."
But Swarbrick made one thing clear Saturday night: Money won't be an issue when it comes time to decide Weis' future.
It was believed Weis might be safe for at least one more season because Notre Dame wouldn't want to pay his hefty buyout. Weis has six years left on a 10-year contract extension he signed after coaching the Fighting Irish in only seven games in 2005. The exact amount of Weis' buyout isn't known -- Notre Dame is a private school and its coaches' employment contracts aren't subject to state open records laws -- but it is believed Weis would be owed in excess of $10 million if fired after this season.
If Notre Dame fires Weis and wants to pursue an established coach such as Florida's Urban Meyer, Cincinnati's Brian Kelly, Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson, Stanford's Jim Harbaugh or former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden, who might command as much as $4-5 million per season, the school might have to be willing to write a $20 million check to fire Weis and his assistants and hire their successors.
PITTSBURGH -- When a replay official ruled that quarterback Jimmy Clausen's right arm wasn't moving forward on a controversial fumble with 2:10 to play, Notre Dame's fourth loss of the season was sealed. No. 12 Pittsburgh would hang on for a 27-22 win.
Sometime during the next three weeks, Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick will have to decide whether his school's once-storied football program is moving forward in coach Charlie Weis' fifth season.
"I evaluate every program at the end of the season," Swarbrick said Saturday night just minutes after Notre Dame lost its second game in a row to fall to 6-4. "It's not about evaluating coaches; it's about evaluating programs."
But Swarbrick made one thing clear Saturday night: Money won't be an issue when it comes time to decide Weis' future.
It was believed Weis might be safe for at least one more season because Notre Dame wouldn't want to pay his hefty buyout. Weis has six years left on a 10-year contract extension he signed after coaching the Fighting Irish in only seven games in 2005. The exact amount of Weis' buyout isn't known -- Notre Dame is a private school and its coaches' employment contracts aren't subject to state open records laws -- but it is believed Weis would be owed in excess of $10 million if fired after this season.
If Notre Dame fires Weis and wants to pursue an established coach such as Florida's Urban Meyer, Cincinnati's Brian Kelly, Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson, Stanford's Jim Harbaugh or former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden, who might command as much as $4-5 million per season, the school might have to be willing to write a $20 million check to fire Weis and his assistants and hire their successors.