And Fighting Irish fans are today, at best, divided over it.
Myself, I think Notre Dame almost had to give him one more year.
Paying all that money to buy out his contract, in these tough economic times, probably looked to be a very hard sell. The team did improve over last year's record, although bettering a 3-9 mark wasn't hard to do. They'll make a bowl game. By all accounts, Weis again will bring in a top 10 recruiting class next year. It can be argued that he deserves the right to do what he can with next year's team, with these top recruits, which are all his. Notre Dame wants stability in its coaching ranks (it's men's basketball coach, Mike Brey, has been there 9 years now; it's women's hoops coach, Muffet McGraw, has been there over 20 years).
Obviously, though, next year will be make or break for Weis. And I'm sure he knows that.
One thing ND did that was very smart was this: they announced Weis' return very quickly. No reason to allow controversy to swirl for days and weeks and for Weis, his staff, and players to feel like they were swinging in the wind.
