Mailbag: There's no hate like Dome

Updated Jan. 27

OK, let's get this out on the table right now.

All you Domers drinking the Kool-Aid, put your junk food where your mouth is. I'm willing to bet a super-sized order of McDonald's fries on your premise that Charlie Weis is a better hire at Notre Dame than Tyrone Willingham is at Washington.

Said it before: Ty will be in the Rose Bowl before Weis is in a BCS title game.

Those two bowls are the expectation at each school. Just checked, too. Willingham already has been to a Rose Bowl. Weis is 0-0 in his career.

I like my chances.

Your reaction this week to a simple offseason ranking of new coaches (Changing of the guard: Rating the new hires, Jan. 19) bordered on the inappropriate. Wish Notre Dame's defensive line had that much energy and meanness.

Fire up the grease basket, Domers, because I'm coming for ya...

From: brian kessler

Charlie Weis No.8? Are you kidding me? How many rings do the seven guys ahead of him have? Did you watch the (Patriots') offensive performance against Indy with one first-round draft pick starting on offense?

Plus, since taking the job, he has had seven recruits visit ND that weren't committed and six of them have since committed to ND. The only one that didn't was already committed to Iowa. You're a joke.

Brain:

News flash: Suddenly, it's not about coaching WITH first-round picks, it's about producing them. Notre Dame has had one offensive player taken in the first round since 1999 (Jeff Faine, Cleveland, 2003). Don't even get me started about the lack of skill players. Weis can't sign a Corey Dillon at ND.

From: Joe

How you are qualified to write this, I don't know. Are you kidding me ranking the Urban Meyer hire and six or seven others ahead of Notre Dame's hire of Weis?

Have you bothered to look at how recruiting is going now at Notre Dame with Weis? Better yet did you see that game that New England played against the Colts? I mean you can't tell me that win was all on the Patriot defense.

Oh, and have you checked how disciples of Belichick have done in college? Get some facts before you write your story.

Mr. Six Pack:

Remind me of the Super Bowls or national championships won by "disciples" Pat Hill, Al Groh and Marty Schottenheimer.

C'mon, you gotta give me something better than that. You're too easy to shoot down.

From: Chip

You're a total schmuck, pal. Uh, saying Tyrone Willingham -- the worst coach in the last 25 years at Notre Dame -- is a better hire than Charlie Weis -- a coach who has won three Super Bowls -- is insane.

You're a complete moron, and I can't wait for Charlie Weis to prove how great of a hire he was.

Oh, yeah, Ty Willingham is a ------ coach and is so overrated.

Your columns blow, too.

Cow Chip:

Charlie Weis had BETTER prove how great a hire he was. He only has three years and the clock is ticking. Meanwhile, he's in Jacksonville game-planning.

From: Terry Maloney You are entitled to your opinion and you've got the microphone. But I'm willing to make you a small wager that in a few years, your ranking of the new hires in college football will look silly.

Charlie Weis is universally considered the best offensive mind in pro football. Yet you have several coaches with no significant accomplishments ranked ahead of him. Why? Because he has no head coaching experience? Remember, every great coach was once an assistant.

You probably would have dissed Green Bay when they hired an obscure assistant from the Giants with no head coaching experience. (Ever hear of Lombardi?) Terry Baloney:

Ever hear of Lombardi's replacement -- the one with no head coaching experience -- Phil Bengston?

From: Mel

You know as much about college football as I know about rocket physics and that is zero.

Incredible CBS lets you write such incoherence.

Mr. Brooks:

That means if we ever bump into each other on a space shuttle bound for the Rose Bowl, we'll have nothing to talk about.

From: Mike from St. Joe, Mo.

OK Dennis, I think your last mailbag was an unfortunate bit of indulgence. Your replies were entirely glib and not really as funny as they should have been given the fact that you had days to cook them up instead of just that drive home from the office during which you might have slapped your head and said, "Now THAT's what I should have said."

Too bad.

Not a thoughtful response in the bunch. Stick to the analysis and leave the one-liners to others. The vacation should be taken on your time rather than ours.

You can do better. Please do.

Mike Blanston
Head writer
Late Night With David Letterman:

Look, all I did was send you the writing sample you asked for after we met at the Everybody Loves Raymond wrap party. No reason to out me in public like this.

Really, what needs work? The puns? The witty commentary? The spelling?

OK, so the weekly mailbag isn't exactly the Sideways script but I'm willing to do anything. Please reconsider. I'd sell my mother to Bedouins to get out of answering the likes of Ohio State Fan.

From: second11

I would like to know what you think of the Iowa Hawkeyes? About their recruiting class? If they have a chance to play for the national championship next year? How Iowa would do in the Big 12? Does Drew Tate have a chance to be a Heisman finalist?

I want your opinions about the Hawkeye program. Thank you for the time. You do a great job.

Coach Ferentz:

Recognized your e-mail address right away. How are you?

Do you have any MORE questions? I need to have time to sleep at some point. Look, you're the coach, I'm only the hack. But if you insist ...

As you know from my rankings and stories I'm a long-time fan. The Hawks should start the season in the top 10. Your recruiting class is already in the top 10.

I get the feeling Bob Bowlsby could take away 20 scholarships and you'd still contend for the Rose Bowl.

Look forward to seeing you at spring practice. You, Drew and I are still on for golf, right?

From: Mike Franco

I really enjoy your work. I think you are skilled enough to actually write articles concerning topics other than USC football. ... I may be mistaken, but try it, you'll like it!

Jealous:

Went to rehab. Lasted only 12 of the 28 days. Couldn't pull it off. I'm so ashamed. Need my USC fix. Please help me ...

From: Lee

Marcus Raines (Big-time programs turn backs on tainted recruit, Jan. 18) will get a shot at a Division I football program, probably the WAC or Mountain West conferences. I'm actually surprised Fresno State hasn't scooped him up yet.

Has he paid his debt to society? According to the courts he has. But the problem is that he is a violent offender. He has proven he is capable of kicking an unconscious man in the brain. This kind of monster deserves all the negative attention he gets.

Lee:

It was never proven that Marcus kicked Christopher O'Leary in the head. Or, if he did, that it led to his death three days later.

Raines pled to involuntary manslaughter after O'Leary's girlfriend testified that Raines kicked O'Leary.

I'll say it again: There is no reason to ruin two lives in this tragedy. Marcus deserves a shot somewhere.

From: Curtis

I live in the city where Marcus Raines killed the young man (and was subsequently) charged with manslaughter.

This was a beating death by three football players against one young man. They beat him with fists and kicked him in the head. So do I feel sorry that Marcus cannot get a football scholarship offer from a major college? No, as far as I am concerned he got off easy and should still be in prison.

Curtis:

Compassion, my friend, compassion.

From: mpctulsa

Please explain to me why many columnists like yourself at times paint ND academic standards as a negative and then at other times cry about the lack of academic integrity in college sports.

It seems to me that you guys talk out of both sides. Instead of labeling ND academics as a negative, should you be holding them up as to what college athletics should be all about?

Tulsa Time:

Never said Notre Dame academics were "negative". I said it's a great, great school with a mediocre football program. Who can argue with that?

It seems to me the ND administration are hypocrites. Tyrone Willingham was praised for doing things right during the week but for falling short on Saturday. By firing him that seems to me that ND is backtracking on academic integrity and emphasizing winning football games.

From: aquavista99

Not everyone in Buckeye Nation hates you, Dennis! I am a huge Ohio State football fan who really enjoys your work. Your previous comments about the 2002 "Luckeyes" were instant classics.

I think most Buckeye fans confuse your opinions as fact, and take everything you say personally. ESPN is beneath you. Keep your day job and keep on talking about Ohio State, whether good or bad. Go Bucks!

waterview:

Thanks, I think.

From: Lawrence E. Rice

If you would take some time and come to the Syracuse area you'd find that it's a GREAT place to live.

Yes, it gets cold and we do get snow. That is not unique to Syracuse. Check out the weather in any area in the Northeast and the Northwest and areas in between. It snows and gets cold, big deal.

We don't have mud slides, forest fires, earthquakes or long periods of times where we don't get rain.

The people that live in this area are nice people for the most part. We love our Orangemen and women.

Just so you know, they play in The Dome in a climate-controlled area. It's perfect every time they play.

Very few people can say that. It's more than cold in Syracuse, it's a warm community and a GREAT place to live. Report that instead of, "It's cold in Syracuse." That's not the whole story. Thank you.

Alfred E. Neuman:

Thanks for the 10-day forecast. Now here's Bill with the sports ...

From: michaelrobertson1

What do you think about George O'Leary's future at Central Florida for 2005 and beyond?

An indoor practice facility is almost complete and a new on-campus stadium is almost a reality!

lastknightsfanonearth1:

Unless that indoor facility can rush the passer, O'Leary is in trouble.

From: Richard

I enjoy your articles. You've probably already done this, but can you tell me what the best way would be for a grass-roots campaign to put pressure on the Division 1-A colleges to create a playoff system?

Dreaming of the Impossible:

Start working on a salary cap first, because if a playoff is instituted, the players are going to boycott unless they get a piece of the pie.

From: Joey

Hey, Dennis, I have a serious question for you. I have been reading your mailbag for a long time and I have been wondering do you ever get serious questions?

It seems like the only questions that get posted are crazy fans ripping on you for making a comment about their beloved school, followed by one of your quick-witted comebacks.

I just wanted to know if you post these questions by design, or do you just lack people asking serious questions about college football?

Pal Joey:

Let's just say that it is apparent in this country that experts in composition and debate are in short supply.

From: George Kramer

The tired, Notre Dame-bashing cliché of lack-of-team-speed has been done to death. How was Oklahoma's team speed in the Orange Bowl debacle?

Kramer:

Actually pretty good considering Oklahoma was playing in its third championship game in five years and second in a row.

From: Corey Spinelli

The only thing worse than your muddled logic, embarrassing lack of sports knowledge, obvious bias, poor writing style and even worse attempts at humor is your frightening hairline in that ghoulish picture.

Spin Doctor:

Boo.

From: Charlie

If you are so in love with the Harvards, Princetons, Columbias, Lafayettes, Bucknells, Yales, Stanfords, Cornells, Penns, and Dartmouths of the world (last week's mailbag) for not being willing to "sell their souls" for a national championship, then why don't you cover their games and conferences?

More Chuck for the Buck:

For some reason most fans like reading about the cheaters, criminals and malcontents. Who am I to argue about covering SEC games?