dave-wannstedt-pittsburgh-pantherscharlie-weis-notre-dameCharlie Weis and Dave Wannstedt were hired at Notre Dame and Pittsburgh, respectively, in 2005. Weis looked like a keeper after compiling a 19-6 mark (despite two bowl losses) in his first two years. Wannstedt opened a pedestrian 11-12. Both struggled in year three – Notre Dame’s program hit a nadir with a 3-9 record; Pitt went 5-7, and Wannstedt’s job may or may not have been on the line. The last two years? The Irish have improved marginally (13-9), but not like Pittsburgh, which is 17-5 and currently in the Top 10 and could be BCS-bound.

While everything’s been quiet in South Bend this week – anyone see a credible outlet even report rumblings? Calm before the storm? – a loss here drops Notre Dame to 6-4 and it still has to play up-and-coming Stanford, which has looked terrific this season.

We’ll stand by our prediction from a couple days ago – if Notre Dame doesn’t win tonight, Weis will be gone in the coming days. It is a guess based on nothing … except that Weis is 1-9 against ranked opponents since 2006, and 3-16 against teams with a winning record since 2007. In a season that began as BCS-or-bust – with a favorable schedule that screamed 10 wins – there’s no point to keeping Weis around to see if he can beat Connecticut and rapidly-improving Stanford. If the Irish plan on aiming high and going after an expensive, big-name coach to turn this mess around, they must act quickly.

(We should add Pitt is wildly overrated. Simply because it has one loss, the Panthers are in the Top 10. They have not beaten a ranked team. Its loss is to 4-6 NC State, an ACC bottom-feeder. Out-of-conference wins? Youngstown State, Buffalo, Navy. It isn’t absurd to think Notre Dame’s offense rolls in this game – and the Irish win convincingly. But would it even be the best thing for Notre Dame if the Irish beat Pitt, Connecticut and Stanford to end the season, an Weis stayed? Isn’t it time to start over, anyway?)

If you detest all things Golden Dome, there’s always UFC or boxing. Something called the Pac-man is going up against outfielder-turned-boxer Henry Cotto.

Here’s what Mississippi State fans think of Alabama in Starkville:

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