Charlie Weis
 | |
Charlie Weis is a fat worthless bum.
Early career
After graduation from Middlesex (N.J.) High School, Weis earned his bachelor's degree in speech and drama from the University of Notre Dame in 1978. While coaching at South Carolina, he earned his master's degree in education in 1989.
Weis began his coaching career in 1979 at Boonton High School in New Jersey, then spent the next five seasons at Morristown (N.J.) High School as a football assistant. In 1985, he was hired by head coach Joe Morrison at the University of South Carolina, where he served four seasons on the Gamecock staff before returning to New Jersey as the head coach at Franklin Township High in 1989. That year, he directed Franklin Township to the New Jersey state championship while also assisting in the New York Giants' pro personnel department.
Parcells' Disciple
In 1990, he launched his professional coaching career with the Giants when he was named defensive assistant and assistant special teams coach under Giants head coach Bill Parcells. The Giants went on to win the Super Bowl that season, edging the Buffalo Bills in 20-19. After Ray Handley took over as head coach in 1991, Weis stayed on as the running backs coach for two seasons, developing RB Rodney Hampton into a 1,000 yard rusher and Pro Bowl player.
Weis then began a four-year stint with the New England Patriots, where he once again served under Parcells. For the first two years, Weis served as tight ends coach (1993-94), developing Ben Coates into a Pro Bowl selection in 1994. The next year Weis served as running backs coach (1995), where he lobbied to draft RB Curtis Martin and promptly developed the rookie sensation, coaching Martin to the 1995 Pro Bowl and a 1,400 yard rushing season. Martin was also named Rookie of the Year. In 1996, Weis served as receivers coach, where he continued his trend of successful development of players, developing WR Terry Glenn into an 1,100 yard receiver as a rookie.
When Parcells left New England following the 1996 season, Weis once again followed his mentor to the New York Jets. In New York, Weis served his first year as wide receivers coach ('96), where he developed Keyshawn Johnson. Under Weis' coaching, Johnson become a back-to-back Pro-Bowler in 1997 and 1998. In 1997, Weis became the offensive coordinator of the Jets, in addition to being the primary receivers coach. In his second year as Offensive coordinator, the New York Jets finished fourth in the National Football League in offense. Weis served as the team's offensive coordinator from 1997 to 1999.
Patriots Offensive Coordinator
Following Parcells' announced retirement after the 1999 season, Weis returned to New England and was named the team's offensive coordinator under head coach Bill Belichick, a position he would hold from 2000 through 2004.
During this stint, the Patriots won three Super Bowls (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX). As offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Weis has been credited for helping develop Tom Brady. Tom Brady was elected to the 2001 Pro Bowl, and named Super Bowl MVP of Super Bowl XXXVI.
The Patriots' Super Bowl runs may have prevented him from accepting one of several head coaching jobs with which he was linked, most notably the New York Giants after the 2003-04 season. NFL assistants can't formally accept head coaching positions until their team's season ends.
Notre Dame Head Coach
On November 30, 2004, Notre Dame released its head football coach, Tyrone Willingham. After preliminary overtures to University of Utah head coach Urban Meyer, Notre Dame narrowed their list down to Weis and Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator and former Notre Dame-star quarterback Tom Clements. The University ultimately decided to hire Weis. On December 12, 2004, Weis was named the 28th head football coach in Notre Dame history, agreeing to a six-year contract worth a reported $2 million per year.
Weis is the first Notre Dame graduate to hold the football head coaching position at his alma mater since Hugh Devore (a 1934 graduate) served as interim coach in 1963 and the first to serve as the Irish football coach on a full-fledged basis since Joe Kuharich (a 1938 Notre Dame graduate who coached at Notre Dame from 1959 through 1962).
In his first season as the head coach of the Fighting Irish, the Notre Dame football program improved after several years of mediocrity. The team's play, particularly that of junior quarterback Brady Quinn, improved over the 2005 season. Weis has also discovered other hidden talent in his existing roster. Notably, junior wide receiver Jeff Samardzija, previously a little-used wide receiver, became Quinn's favorite target and a frequent game-breaker, and set school records for most touchdown receptions in a season (15), most receiving yardage in a season (1249), and most consecutive games with a touchdown reception (8).
Weis' record for the 2005 season was 9 wins and 3 losses. With a record of 9-2, his team finished the regular season ranked sixth in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) standings. This granted them a berth in the 2006 Fiesta Bowl in Tempe, Arizona, on January 2, 2006 which they lost to Ohio State University Buckeyes. The Irish finished #9 in the final AP Poll and #11 in the Coaches Poll. This was the first top ten finish by Notre Dame in over a decade.
On October 29, 2005, only halfway through the first year of a six-year contract, Weis signed a contract extension with Notre Dame. The new 10-year deal, worth a reported $30 million to $40 million, will keep Weis at Notre Dame through 2015. This signing was controversial because of the disparate treatment that Weis and Ty Willingham recieved after similar first season records.[1] [2]
Weis entered the 2006 season stating that Notre Dame's record of 9-3 the previous year was "not good enough". Weis' overall ND record as of October 8, 2006 is 14 wins and 4 losses.
Personal
Charlie and Maura have two children, Charles Joseph and Hannah Margaret. In 2003, Weis and his wife Maura established the Hannah & Friends Foundation, dedicated to children affected by developmental disorders and named after his daughter. In the spring of 2004, the first annual Hannah & Friends Celebrity Golf Classic was held to benefit the foundation.
Charlie Weis has filed a malpractice suit against five Massachusetts General surgeons who performed a gastric bypass operation that went awry in 2002.
Weis was in a coma for two weeks and received last rites from a priest after he suffered excessive bleeding, septic shock, adult respiratory distress syndrome and ongoing leg problems as a result of care at MGH that his lawsuit charges "fell below the accepted standards."
Weis weighed over 300 pounds and had tried Weight Watchers, Slim Fast, the Atkins Diet, the Cabbage Soup diet and many other weight-loss schemes when he finally opted for the radical stomach-stapling surgery as a last resort.
Weis said his father died at age 56 after a second heart attack and he feared he would suffer a similar fate if he didn't take drastic action to reduce his weight.
The surgeons' attorneys said the fact that Weis has kept his weight off and helped lead the patriots to two Super Bowl wins might be taken as evidence the surgery was effective.