Outhouse or Castle

Mr. Jones and me staring at the video
When I look at the television,
I want to see me
staring right back at me
We all want to be big stars,
but we don't know why
and we don't know how
But when everybody loves me,
I'm going to be
just about as happy as can be
Mr. Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars...

Speculation about who will start as Notre Dame's quarterback against Georgia Tech on Saturday afternoon has just about reached a fevered pitch. Whispers and rumors right now seem to be coalescing around Demetrius Jones. I have said all along that I thought it would be Evan Sharpley, based upon his time in the system and what we are told is his better command of the offense and better passing in the Spring and in Fall camp. Sharpley would be the safe play. He would be the conservative pick.

But we know there is just a little bit of a riverboat gambler deep inside Charlie Weis. Well, maybe not so deep inside. And the riverboat gambler play is Demetrius Jones. Although the public hasn't been allowed to see it, Jones is by all accounts a charismatic playmaker. Coach Weis has said when you don't have dominant personnel you don't want a "caretaker" at quarterback. You don't want a game manager. When you have inexperienced personnel, or when the talent level isn't going to roll over opponents, you need to have a playmaker at QB if you're going to have a chance to win more than the games you're "supposed to" win.

Jones may be that guy. It would seem unusual for Coach Weis to turn the reins over to a QB who has been erratic in his few public playing opportunities (Blue & Gold Game, Fan Appreciation Day, Student Appreciation Day). His modus operandi until now has been control the ball, move the chains, play field position, don't turn it over. If he turns to Jones, I think we're going become the midwestern equivalent of the Bronx Bombers. We aren't going to be playing station-to-station baseball anymore. We're going to be playing long ball. Coach Weis will be looking to get the ball into the hands of his playmakers and have them make BIG plays.

Which means we're going to see a lot of the young guys very soon. Like Armando Allen and Golden Tate returning kicks. Like Allen and Robert Hughes in the backfield. We'll see Duval Kamara catching passes. I think we'll see Jones on the move in a scheme with a distinct Appalachian flavor. Coach Weis would not have visited West Virginia without a very good reason.

"Outhouse or Castle" was the phrase Coach Weis used in describing his decision to put two freshmen back to receive kicks. As he said, "something big is going to happen." Whether it will be something big in a good way or a bad way remains to be seen. If Weis goes with Jones, the whole season could be "outhouse or castle." We could be a big-play team that wins some huge upsets. Or we could very dramatically implode. Either way, it will be very exciting.