The conflict between the two sides of the abortion issue created a lot of controversy in advance of President Obama's commencement speech at Notre Dame on Sunday. Imagine what kind of outcry it would have created if people knew that the school's athletic department whitewashed history with a fervor that would have made Stalin blush.
The school recently released their 2009 football media guide, but reporters using it may need to do a little more legwork if they want to get a clear picture of Charlie Weis' career as head coach. In Weis' biography, the school has chosen not to make any mention of his record during any season in which the team he was working for had a losing record, including 2007's dreadful 3-9 Irish team. That would seem to be important information to include about the head coach of the Notre Dame football team in the Notre Dame football team's media guide, no?
No one's asking you to rake the guy over the coals. Just be honest while doing your best to avoid the ugly truth. As Spencer Hall of The Sporting Blog points out, NFL Films will still be making a highlight video of the Detroit Lions' winless 2008 season. You can bet that they'll mention the team's winless, though, but the film will doubtlessly close with the narrator speaking of the better days that are sure to come for Detroit's proud gridiron warriors.
Alas, Notre Dame's not that interested in truth. The athletic department says they omitted the records when Weis was hired because he didn't have any head coaching experience, which does very little to explain why the guide includes his winning records before becoming a head coach. Maybe they just think it is more relevant that Weis was a coach on South Carolina's 1987 Gator Bowl team than what he's done since coming to South Bend.
If Weis and the Irish have another subpar season in 2009, he'll have to hope that the school's boosters use the same criteria when deciding his future. It's more likely that they use other reference guides when it comes to those decisions, though.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com.
