Notre Dame also needs to close strong with its linebacker recruiting. The Irish are in the mix for the top two linebacker prospects in the country -- Hawaii’s Monti Te’o and Maryland’s Jelani Jenkins. Both are good enough to crack the linebacker rotation next season.

The Irish have to become a better running team, not necessarily a more committed running team. Texas Tech, for example, is ranked 70th nationally in rushing yards per game but only 14 teams have a better per-carry average than the Red Raiders’ 5.23. So when Tech needs to run and wants to run, it can.

The bottom line matters. It’s not that it really matters (other than to whiney sports writers) what Notre Dame’s bowl destination is but the Irish must finish strong or otherwise Weis invites all kinds of negativity to envelope his team heading into the offseason. So instead of spending all of his time tweaking and recruiting and developing, he has to battle powerful perceptions that can bleed into recruiting and into his own current players’ psyche.

The most encouraging sign that Weis gets it was that he didn’t overreact to the loss with some medieval punishment for his players. But he did alter the practice schedule in preparation for this weekend’s Boston College clash after he e-mailed them in the middle of the night, vowing that they’d all get through the latest crisis.

Together.

“What I’m trying to do more than anything else is shock their system, get them out of a rut,” Weis said. “I had to come up with a plan to make sure it wasn’t just business as usual.”

Indeed, the Irish have to get down to the business of laying the groundwork for 2009 and beyond.

More news

Joe Raymond / AP

Who will be the starting QB?

After Notre Dame's Blue and Gold game, it appears to be a three-way race for the starting QB position. Keith Arnold breaks down this race and each area of the offense as he projects the opening day starting lineup.

A Blue and Gold glimpse

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