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Notre Dame paid Charlie Weis lots of money to not coach

By JK Long

Jan 23, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; East Team head coach Charlie Weis prior to the East-West Shrine Game at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 23, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; East Team head coach Charlie Weis prior to the East-West Shrine Game at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Weis made more than current head coach Brian Kelly in 2014

October 29, 2005 will live in infamy in the annals of Notre Dame football. It was only seven games into first year head coach Charlie Weis’ career. He had just come over from the New England Patriots, having just completed a stellar stretch as offensive coordinator during which the Pats rolled off three Super Bowl wins in four seasons. His Fighting Irish team on that fateful day in ’05 was a respectable 5-2, with losses only to growing powerhouse Michigan State and #1 USC.

So what did the athletic brain trust at ND do? They gave Weis a contract extension through 2015.

All Weis did during the next four-plus years at Notre Dame was win just 25 more games, win one bowl game (the 2008 Hawaii Bowl) and get fired after the 2009 season. Since then, Weis’ total buyout from ND is just short of $19 million and his total compensation package for coaching in South Bend will be around $49.5 million, making his one of the worst contracts in the history of sports.

In 2014, the most recent year tax returns for the University are available, Weis actually made more than current head coach Brian Kelly.The university paid Weis a payment of $2,054,744 for the reporting period of July 2014 through June 2015. Kelly made $1.62 million from the University during that same time period.

As bad as his stint in South Bend turned out to be, Weis’ coaching career at his next stop, Kansas, fared far worse. Although far from Notre Dame’s caliber, in just over two seasons at the helm of the Jayhawks, Weis won six games and won just one game in the Big 12. He was fired from Kansas in September 2014.

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