Why Weis?

When the contract of Charlie Weis was extended last week, opinions were formed regarding the motives for the extension. Some people praised the move citing the passion and fire Weis has brought back to South Bend. Others, including ESPN.com's Jason Whitlock, criticized it and even considered it racist in comparison to the treatment of Tyrone Willingham, Weis' predecessor. Whitlock and critics of Notre Dame have raised some issues that need to be examined. Why Weis? Why not Willingham? Why does Charlie Weis with a 5-2 record get a ten year extension when Willingham received none at 8-0?
On the surface, the reasons appear to be skin deep. Whitlock stated in his column earlier this week regarding Weiss's extension, "Because there's just no way Notre Dame, or any school for that matter, would do the same thing for a black coach."
This may or may not be true, but that does not make the extension of Weis racially motivated, nor does it mean that Willingham not getting one was racist. In order to see this, one must go past the surface, where only skin color matters, and examine the overall landscape of college athletics, especially under the Golden Dome.
There seems to be two glaring issues regarding Weis and Willingham that most people have not taken into consideration when examining their situations. The first issue directly looks at the situation of Willingham starting from the time he was hired at Notre Dame. Willingham was not the first or second or third choice for the job when he was hired. After the firing of Bob Davie, the Irish hired George O'Leary who had to promptly resign thanks to some self-embellishing on his resume. They interviewed several other candidates before deciding on Willingham almost as much out of necessity as it was out of choice. At the time, Notre Dame was praised for the choice, even though it was clear that the Irish were less than enamored with Willingham. He brought with him a less than stellar record from Stanford which included seven seasons as the head coach, four of which were winning ones. It seemed as though Willingham would be a stop gap between Davie and the next great coach to become available. It was only fitting that in his first season as head coach WIllingham started 8-0. To the untrained eye, this record was unbelievable, especially considering how bad the Irish had been in previous years. However, anyone who actually watched the games realized that Willingham was winning with as much smoke and mirrors and Touchdown Jesus as he was with great coaching. Willingham's team faded at the end of the year by losing three of its final five games. The following year was nothing compared to the first. A 5-7 record with losses of 38, 31, 37, and 26 points. I don't care who you are, you cannot lose multiple games by more than 25 points and expect to remain the head coach at a major college football school. In his final year, he was doomed from the beginning after an embarassing 20-17 loss to BYU. He lost two more games by 25+ points during the season, and was beaten badly in their bowl game vs. Oregon St. The writing was on the wall. Willingham's time left was almost out.
Willingham was fired because the Irish wanted to go after a man they actually wanted as their head coach, Urban Meyer. It seemed like a lock. The man who introduced the world to the spread option and Ute football would be the man brought in to breathe new life into the once proud Fighting Irish program. It was going to happen, right? Wrong. The Florida Gators showed how far Notre Dame had fallen by luring Meyer to Gainesville over South Bend. It seemed as though Notre Dame had sustained another black eye, and this time they may never recover. Enter Charlie Weis. Weis, with his three Super Bowl rings, is an alum of Notre Dame, and a man who brings a different kind of intensity to the field. Seizing the opportunity, the Irish made Weis their man for the 2005 season. Weis responded by drawing one of their better recruiting classes for next season, and he has also shown that he can cut it as a coach by starting 5-2. Notre Dame believes that he is the real deal, and who can blame them? Their offense suddenly looks like an NFL offense by putting up lots of yards and points. He has also elevated the game of quarterback Brady Quinn who is now being considered a candidate for the #1 pick in next spring's NFL Draft. Needless to say, Weis has given his fans a reason to believe. The Irish gave relief to many when they extended his deal. In doing so, they hope to eliminate any interest that he might have in returning to the NFL. The man that Weis is, and the way that he has gotten his team playing is why he got the extension. It is not because he is white. It may be a little premature, but the Irish do not want to lose what they believe to be the real deal, especially considering their recent embarassments.
In the end, the extension of Weis' contract may have been motivated by money, winning, and prestige. It was not motivated by race, bias, or bigotry. Was Willingham treated unfairly? Maybe. He did not have his guys in his system yet, but that being said, the way that Notre Dame was losing football games was unacceptable. Why would they extend the contract of someone they did not want in the first place? That is why his contract was not extended. It had nothing to do with color. Weis was a man they wanted. He was a man who has proven he can win. Notre Dame just wanted to make sure that both Weis and his three Super Bowl rings remain in South Bend.