Even though he’s out as head coach, Charlie Weis is still supporting his alma mater.
According to Eric Hansen’s report in the South Bend Tribune:
Smith heard from the one man he knows won’t be his head coach in 2010, recently deposed Charlie Weis.
“You get to the point where you don’t want to answer your phone,” the Northern Indiana Conference Player of the Year said. “But when I saw it was him, it was just great to hear from him. I tried to thank him for putting me in the position I am today.
“He told me, ‘You earned this.’ And he said, ‘Don’t let my situation change your decision to go to the university.’
“He told me I made the right decision then, and it’s still the right decision. He told me to give it everything you have and encouraged me to work hard for the new coach, and that I’m going to make an impact as soon as I hit campus.”
“He got me fired up to play for the new coach and to know who he is,” said Smith, who added only one school, Purdue, has tried to poach. “Up until now, I was just trying to get used to the first adjustment, the loss of my coach. But after talking to coach Weis, I think I’m more comfortable now with looking ahead.”As the coaching search continues on, I’m starting to wonder if Jack Swarbrick will ever be able to find a coach that loves Notre Dame more than Weis does.