Lessons Learned

As Notre Dame begins to adjust to the tectonic shift that occurred today, let's examine some of the lessons that have been learned since 2001--all of which bode well for the future:

1. Three years is enough to judge the direction of a football program.

The three year benchmark has always been an accurate barometer of success at Notre Dame and the decisionmakers finally recognize it. No more lip service to the sketchy precedent of granting struggling coaches five years to display their mettle. As if getting waxed by 30 pts the next two seasons will somehow make the program more honorable.

Now critics will say that by terminating the contract, ND is abandoning its principles.
Nonsense.
ND is standing on a greater principle--the commitment to excellence.

2. Don't worry about the media's reaction. Do what's best for Notre Dame.

One of my favorite Holtz quotes is, "Don't tell people your problems. 90% of them don't care and 10% are glad you have 'em." In ND's case, that 10% works at ESPN.

Hey, they're gonna hate us anyway, so they might as well hate us with an effective coach.

3. Football matters. The suddenness of this decision reveals that program had reached a crisis-level, at least in the eyes of the movers-and-shakers within the University. You wouldn't see this kind of decisive action in relation to the hockey team. Although fencing maybe... (sorry, Chris)

4. The ND message boards are the best indication of the program's pulse. The folks that post there are the true stakeholders in ND football; ignore their influence and knowledge at your own peril.