CSNbbs

If he expected to start the next three years after Clausen came on board this past January than shame on him. Weis never publicly announced a starter going into the season and even specifically never told any QB who was going to be the starter. His cat and mouse game with naming his starter was ridiculous, as it was such a secret and played up in the media, but that doesn't make DJ's case at all, just the opposite. If Weis was so intent on misleading him then why would he even start him, as it was a 3-man race for the job? And his performance in game #1 was horrible, and proved he shouldn't have the job. He's just lucky he got out in time and is eligible for next season.

Polish Hammer Wrote:He's just lucky he got out in time and is eligible for next season.

ND is obviously horrible this year. DJ is lucky he got out in time and is eligible for NIU next season. Really looking forward to seeing a QB that can play, its been a while.

Polish Hammer Wrote:If he expected to start the next three years after Clausen came on board this past January than shame on him. Weis never publicly announced a starter going into the season and even specifically never told any QB who was going to be the starter. His cat and mouse game with naming his starter was ridiculous, as it was such a secret and played up in the media, but that doesn't make DJ's case at all, just the opposite. If Weis was so intent on misleading him then why would he even start him, as it was a 3-man race for the job? And his performance in game #1 was horrible, and proved he shouldn't have the job. He's just lucky he got out in time and is eligible for next season.

Weis is a horrible coach.Considering the amount of talent ND has and not to score an offensive TD in 3 games is ridiculous.It's obviously not the QB's.

Polish Hammer Wrote:If he expected to start the next three years after Clausen came on board this past January than shame on him. Weis never publicly announced a starter going into the season and even specifically never told any QB who was going to be the starter. His cat and mouse game with naming his starter was ridiculous, as it was such a secret and played up in the media, but that doesn't make DJ's case at all, just the opposite. If Weis was so intent on misleading him then why would he even start him, as it was a 3-man race for the job? And his performance in game #1 was horrible, and proved he shouldn't have the job. He's just lucky he got out in time and is eligible for next season.

We can all debate who told who what. None of us know the real truth. You weren't there and I wasn't there. All we have is he said-he said nothing more. As for his performance in the first game, he may have been bad but Clausen was just as bad or worse against a team that lost to 1AA team.

I'll be at the MSU- ND game Saturday to see firts hand who wins the stink contest.

Just remember, DJ is not a team player. I doubt that changes at NIU.

Mark this post.

FlashFan Wrote:Just remember, DJ is not a team player. I doubt that changes at NIU.

Mark this post.

And you know this how? Do you know the man? Do you know anything about him except for what the ND and their fans want you to believe? Have you been roommates? Were you at ND practice? Remember, ND NEEDS to make DJ look bad so it doesn't hurt their recruiting by having recruits question the coach/school.

Now Notre Dame isn't going to release him from his scholarship. He is going to have to pay his own way at NIU just because front butt Charlie wants to jerk him around a little bit more.

Liam9903 Wrote:Now Notre Dame isn't going to release him from his scholarship. He is going to have to pay his own way at NIU just because front butt Charlie wants to jerk him around a little bit more.

Notre Dame is not being smart with all of this. You would think they would want to cut ties with someone who no longer wants to be a part of their program. Chicago high school players may take note of how ND is handling all of this and think twice about going there.

I won't get into whether or not Weis can coach, but Notre Dame's OL has looked like swiss cheese this season. When you can neither run nor pass and there are regularly tackles made in your backfield, not much a coach can do, other than try some different bodies up front. That and recruit those positions harder.

Its not just Chicago. I have no idea why anyone would want to play for that jerk. Weis is an egomaniac who thought he could win based on his own genius with Xs and Os, he made a joke out of that QB situation, he threw his team under the bus after the Michigan game, and now he is chasing DJ out of town and keeping him from getting a scholarship for a year purely out of spite. This is not the kind of guy who should be leading young men.

If I'm a coach, and a player walks out on the team during the season, he gets no favors from me.
You guys want to give carte blanche to players to just pack up and leave whenever they want and show up at the next school and play, with the place they gave their original committment giving their blessing? Or is this just about a MAC school vs. ND?
Maybe you should suggest to your coaches that they announce that anyone who is not starting is free to transfer anytime they want, to go anywhere they want, with the school's blessing and a full release from their scholarships.
There's a damn good reason why players aren't unlimited free agents every year. College sports would get really ugly if schools could start recruiting athletes who play for other schools already and get them in the way you guys want for this kid. Imagine if the shoe is one the other foot and one of your kids wants to pack up after 2 games and head to another MAC or other school because he says he was "misled" about his playing time.

axeme Wrote:If I'm a coach, and a player walks out on the team during the season, he gets no favors from me.
You guys want to give carte blanche to players to just pack up and leave whenever they want and show up at the next school and play, with the place they gave their original committment giving their blessing? Or is this just about a MAC school vs. ND?
Maybe you should suggest to your coaches that they announce that anyone who is not starting is free to transfer anytime they want, to go anywhere they want, with the school's blessing and a full release from their scholarships.
There's a damn good reason why players aren't unlimited free agents every year. College sports would get really ugly if schools could start recruiting athletes who play for other schools already and get them in the way you guys want for this kid. Imagine if the shoe is one the other foot and one of your kids wants to pack up after 2 games and head to another MAC or other school because he says he was "misled" about his playing time.

What he said.

He is gone any way. This is a financialy punative action by someone who was entrusted to look out for the kids best interest when he signed his LOI. DJ is allowed to transfer, he has to sit out a year and he will. That is the rule that protects college sports from getting ugly. The idea of not releasing a kid from his scholarship is just a petty way of hurting the kid because he doesn't want to be part of your program. It means he has to pay his own way which will likely hurt his athletic and academic progress, and for what?

Liam...I paid my own way and won several Intramural flag football and softball championships!

Seriously, what axeme said.

When Demetrius Jones signed his Letter of Intent to play at Notre Dame he did so knowing the rules and knowing the ramifications of his actions.

When he decided to transfer to Northern Illinois, he also knew the rules (obviously--by the rush to transfer before the 12th day of classes) and knew the ramifications of his actions.

Jones should have followed the proper channels and asked for his release. Schools are NOT obligated to grant that release--thought that's usually reserved to keep players from transferring to rival schools or future opponents.

I'm not saying Notre Dame shouldn't release Jones from his scholarship, but I'd also understand if they chose not to.

Going back to my first comment...I paid my own way, and maybe that's what some of these kids need to do. Maybe it will help them down the road to appreciate what has been given to them and keep them from ending up on the wrong side of the law, failing out, etc.

What I don't understand is how Jones paying his own way at Northern Illinois could hurt his academic progress any more than leaving Notre Dame? I mean, I'm not saying you can't get a good education at NIU, but he left Notre Dame.

It could hurt his education if he doesn't have enough money to pay for a certain number of credit hours. I guess the kid could take out a loan or something, but it still is a huge bill to have dumped in your lap. I might agree with you if there was any reason for Notre Dame to do this other than spite. There is no good reason why they shouldn't release him from his scholarship. He doesn't want to play football for that University and the coach lied to him, now they are sticking it to him and preventing him from getting the athletic scholarship he earned through his own hard work that another University is willing to grant him. ND is pathetic. They went from a national powerhouse to the laughing stock of college football and the only way they can feel good about themselves is to punish a former player for having the nerve to leave that sinking ship.

Liam, you are certainly entitled to your opinion--but you have heard Demetrius Jones' side of the story; it isn't likely you'll hear the other side.

Again, Jones should have followed the proper channels and he likely would have been granted his release, especially to NIU. Instead, he chose a different path--not exactly the path I would recommend to anyone. He signed a Letter of Intent to play football at Notre Dame. It was his responsibility to honor that "contract" or request the proper release from that scholarship.

He did neither.

I think your view of ND has colored your judgement here. You state a lot of presumptions as fact:

Quote:There is no good reason why they shouldn't release him from his scholarship.

Because you can't think of one, or would refuse to accept any reason they might give does not mean they don't have what an objective person might call an acceptable reason.

Quote:the coach lied to him

Certainly not clear that this is true. It's what the kid says. Doesn't mean it's true. Doesn't mean he is lying, but there are certainly other possible interpretations of the events. It certainly is to his advantage to paint the situation to put himself in the best possible light.

Quote:now they are sticking it to him and preventing him from getting the athletic scholarship he earned through his own hard work that another University is willing to grant him.

He gave up the scholarship he "earned" ( I would say "was given"). ND did not give him a scholarship to attend any school he wanted. He had obligations when he accepted that scholarship and has turned his back on those. It does not necessarily mean he is entitled to seamlessly change one for another. He took the risk by leaving in the manner he did, which I would certainly not recommend to any student-athlete as the best way to get out of your agreement with minimal consequences.
Of course, the rest of your post is just anti-Domer vitriol, which it seems has overwhelmed the rest of what you say. I have no love for ND either, but I think when most schools get stuck like this, they will respond in much the same way the Irish have. And they may eventually wind up releasing him when the thing cools off, like many schools also do.

Liam9903 Wrote:He is gone any way. This is a financialy punative action by someone who was entrusted to look out for the kids best interest when he signed his LOI. DJ is allowed to transfer, he has to sit out a year and he will. That is the rule that protects college sports from getting ugly. The idea of not releasing a kid from his scholarship is just a petty way of hurting the kid because he doesn't want to be part of your program. It means he has to pay his own way which will likely hurt his athletic and academic progress, and for what?

Frankly, financially this is a moot point. Currently, NIU does not have a scholarship available for him and won't until next year anyway. We issued our final available scholarship for this year to a freshman running back who walked on (Chad Spann from Indiana). ND is taking a big risk here in alienating the CPL coaches. The CPL coaches are an extremely tight group and they will not like ND refusing to release Jones from his scholarship.

axeme Wrote:I think your view of ND has colored your judgement here. You state a lot of presumptions as fact:

Quote:There is no good reason why they shouldn't release him from his scholarship.

Because you can't think of one, or would refuse to accept any reason they might give does not mean they don't have what an objective person might call an acceptable reason.

Quote:the coach lied to him

Certainly not clear that this is true. It's what the kid says. Doesn't mean it's true. Doesn't mean he is lying, but there are certainly other possible interpretations of the events. It certainly is to his advantage to paint the situation to put himself in the best possible light.

Quote:now they are sticking it to him and preventing him from getting the athletic scholarship he earned through his own hard work that another University is willing to grant him.

He gave up the scholarship he "earned" ( I would say "was given"). ND did not give him a scholarship to attend any school he wanted. He had obligations when he accepted that scholarship and has turned his back on those. It does not necessarily mean he is entitled to seamlessly change one for another. He took the risk by leaving in the manner he did, which I would certainly not recommend to any student-athlete as the best way to get out of your agreement with minimal consequences.
Of course, the rest of your post is just anti-Domer vitriol, which it seems has overwhelmed the rest of what you say. I have no love for ND either, but I think when most schools get stuck like this, they will respond in much the same way the Irish have. And they may eventually wind up releasing him when the thing cools off, like many schools also do.

I guess you hold the letter of intent to a higher meaning than I do. The bottom line here is that you have a young man being punished after he did the best thing for himself at the expense of the instituion. It is a spiteful action by a coach and administration that has been less than honorable in the past. I don't have any great hate for ND, but they are the ones who are being petty in this situation.