By Dennis Dodd
CBS SportsLine Senior Writer
Aug. 12, 1998
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The spin-doctoring came heavy, early and often during Notre Dame's well-rehearsed media day. No more "Infighting Irish" bogged down with NCAA violations and court battles. No more program on the brink.
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In one corner there was coach Bob Davie yucking it up for photos with offensive lineman/star prosecution witness Mike Rosenthal. In another corner, quarterback Jarious Jackson recalled his reputation as "the biggest thing since Elvis" to come out of his hometown of Tupelo, Miss.
Like all good stage productions, though, there's a lot going on behind the curtain. Notre Dame's attempt to heal its wounds in front of the media hid one elemental fact Tuesday. This team isn't very good.
OPPONENTS DON'T FEAR NOTRE DAME anymore. Despite its expansion to 80,000 seats, Notre Dame Stadium is no longer a place that causes opponents to give up before the kickoff. Visiting teams have won here seven times in the past four seasons. It's about respect, something a wounded Irish program doesn't have right now.
"Honestly, I don't think so," Jackson said. "That's going to have to be a goal of ours, putting Notre Dame football back where it should be. The only way we're going to be able to do that is do it game by game. I think it has to do with play on the field. As far as off-field stuff, that isn't really characteristic of Notre Dame either. Our record was 7-6. People are used to 11-1 or 10-2."
And they won't wait very long in South Bend. Davie did his best to paint a rosy picture Wednesday in assessing the 1998 season saying: Jackson is a talented option quarterback, the last two recruiting classes have been closer to the Notre Dame standard and the last two semesters have been great academically.
The ugly stuff he tried to sweep out of his players' minds during a Tuesday night meeting. It was embarrassing that his indiscretion caused Notre Dame to lose an age discrimination suit brought by former assistant Joe Moore. Rosenthal did help the prosecution immensely with his testimony for Moore and against Davie in court. And there is a ongoing NCAA investigation that might involve the eligibility of five current players.
Now, he said, forget about it.
"It's not going to be us against the world," Davie said. "I'm not going to have those kids focusing on things that most of them had no part of. You don't need gimmicks and simple elementary motivation, there's a bigger picture than all that."
THE BIGGER PICTURE IS GETTING NOTRE DAME back in the national picture. Sadly for the Irish, it probably won't be this year. This is an ordinary team with an extraordinary image. Both the team and image need to be rebuilt.
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Bob Davie spent Wednesday's media day sounding a lot more like the coach of a mid-level program than the head of the nation's proudest college football tradition.
(AP)
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Forgetting the cruel summer should be easy for the players. Except for the five who might have broken NCAA rules by being transported to a Chicago Bulls basketball game, the players had little to do with the current off-field turmoil.
A judge has still not ruled on whether Moore will receive "front pay" -- money he would have earned had he still been in the profession. That could cost Notre Dame an additional $500,000. NCAA penalties involving booster Kim Dunbar could be crippling if the infractions involve front-line players. Davie still must look Rosenthal in the eye every day and realize his senior tackle's videotaped testimony went a long way toward deciding the case in favor of Moore.
"In all honesty, that is not a concern to me at all," Davie said. "I'm not trying to put a spin on it. That's not a problem or a concern for me at all because I know the specifics of the situation."
It might not be a problem but it certainly isn't a plus on a team trying to become a national contender again. The Irish haven't played in a New Year's Day bowl game since 1995. They haven't made a run at No. 1 since 1993, and that raises another issue.
THOSE WERE LOU HOLTZ teams. The former coach's shadow still looms over the program. Holtz's current book tour happens to coincide with two-a-days which has to be uncomfortable for Davie. Davie referred to what he termed Holtz's mental instabilities during the Moore trial. Holtz refuses to comment directly on Davie's comments, instead taking on vague slaps at his former defensive coordinator. Davie can literally turn on his television every night and watch Holtz tell another talk show host there was "something missing" during his final three years with the program.
Summer's problems might look minuscule by the time Notre Dame takes on one of the nation's hardest schedules with seven players back on each side of the ball. The season opens with Michigan, the defending national co-champions. The Wolverines are followed by Michigan State, Purdue and Stanford. Domers don't have to be told their team went 0 for 4 against the same teams last season.
Jackson gets his first shot as a starter as a senior. But in his brief playing time in the past, he has tended to be reckless with the ball.
"I know I'm going to make mistakes," Jackson said ominously, "but I'm anxious to open up."
That's not exactly a good jumping-off point for a national championship. Jackson is the key element of the new option offense that Davie said really isn't the option.
"We will run some option, but we will not be an option team," Davie said. "One thing I learned at Notre Dame is things get blown out of proportion. We will not line up in the wishbone. We're going to fight to be balanced."
Huh?
THERE COULD BE FURTHER CONFUSION on defense where Notre Dame was 83rd in rushing defense last season. That's not a big deal unless you consider the biggest criticism of Notre Dame football in the last few years has been size and speed.
"Our defense, I can see, is starting to break through," Davie said. "I do think our talent level is rising. We still have to recruit speed, we still have to get some game-breakers."
Visit Stanford, Air Force, Missouri, Wisconsin or any other middle-of-the-pack team across the country and you'll hear the same type of talk. The difference is those programs aren't burdened by a history of excellence. All in all, Notre Dame is a program that is talking about greater glory but has a long way to go to achieve it.
Until then, the problems off the field will cast as long a shadow as Touchdown Jesus.
"I came to Notre Dame because it's a special place," Rosenthal said. "The Dome means something to me. It means I need to protect it."
Dennis Dodd is a senior writer in CBS SportsLine's Kansas City bureau.