definitely the worst loss of the Weis era

by Jay, San Diego, Tuesday, March 17, 2009, 10:33 (6343 days ago) @ Pat
edited by Jay, Tuesday, March 17, 2009, 11:06

and it's not even close. I think you can legitimately rationalize (to some extent) his other losses:

2005: lost to MSU in a hard-fought game; lost to two top 5 teams (USC & OSU)

2006: lost to three ranked teams, including two in the top 5

2007: you could write off the whole slate due to having the youngest team in ND football history, including first time starters at nearly every key position.

2008: MSU (9-4) was pretty tough. UNC (8-5) and Pitt (9-4) came down to the wire. BC (9-5) had a legtimate top-10 defense. USC was USC.

Then there's 2-8 Syracuse. There is no possible way to rationalize that game: not on young talent, not on strength of the opponent, not on fluke plays, not on the refs, not on the weather.