It was a spring of change at Notre Dame.

Maybe not so much on the field, but there are a couple of big-picture, program-defining themes at play, the foremost of which is the stated desire of coach Charlie Weis to be more accessible, more involved in the whole team ... basically, to be kinder, gentler.

Toward that end, he ceded play-calling duties to coordinator Mike Haywood so that the head coach could focus on being the head coach of everyone -- not just the quarterbacks and the rest of the offense.

"You have to make sure you're actually giving the guys an opportunity to do it, that you're not just being superficial about what you're doing," Weis said.

Not much is expected to change in the scheme as sophomore quarterback Jimmy Clausen is back as the starter after a mostly rough debut season. Last year, though, he was battling for a starting spot and trying to learn a new offense. Things are much more comfortable this time around.

"Last spring, each and every day was a new install and you had to remember the stuff from the other day. It was just piling on top of each other," Clausen told the Chicago Tribune. "This spring, it was a lot easier. You were just trying to get the little bits and pieces down."

The other big change was on defense, with the addition of former Georgia Tech coordinator Jon Tenuta. He will bring a more attacking, blitzing style. Notre Dame, with better speed in its younger classes, will be able to play faster on defense.

In all, it was a productive spring for a team trying to erase the stench of a 3-9 season. Notre Dame is not nearly as good as it might be in 2009 and beyond, but there will be improvement this season.

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