‘Tis the season for the continued vilification of one Tyrone Willingham. Every so often, message boards erupt with blame and finger pointing for the beleaguered former coach. Each time Washington lost in recent years, post writers would react with glee over his troubles. On signing day, ND fans contrast Ty’s classes with Charlie’s. Ty has been blamed each time ND came up short on the field. “A lack of depth,” we’ve shouted as the team wore out late in games. “No O-line,” we’ve uttered as Jimmy was sacked again. “ND could have won it all in 2006 if there had been more of a foundation,” we convince ourselves.

Don’t get me wrong, the Ty Willingham experience was a tough one to stomach. I was in the student section during his first year, watching the team rush to an unexpected 8-0 record, only to be disappointed against BC, USC, and NC State. His final two years were nearly impossible to watch. Losing by 30 to Syracuse? Letting Tyler Palko throw for 5 TDs? The team looked lethargic and outmatched in those years; that 8-0 record receded ever further into distant memory. And finally, the deal-breaker: recruiting classes were sub-par. There was no sign of hope in coming years – nothing to build on. The team was going nowhere fast.

I don’t want to spend an article rehashing the pluses and minuses of Ty’s firing. Was it fair? Probably not. If Davie had followed Ty, the situation would likely have been reversed. Have the past two years been sufficiently bad to warrant the firing of Charlie? In many ways, the answer has to be yes. Nonetheless, Ty is gone, and Charlie remains. This is the hand we’ve been dealt, and, at least for the coming season, this is the way things will be. The team has finally moved on, and so should we. No more of Ty’s recruits remain on the roster (if I’m forgetting someone, sorry). This is Charlie’s team and he has to display an ability to take his talented classes and turn them into winners. If he doesn’t, he’ll be fired – but not because of anything Ty did.

Tyrone Willingham is long gone. And yet, traces of resentment persist. After all, none of his 2004 class was drafted!!!! Few of them even spent time as starters! Look how bad of a recruiter he was! I find this ongoing anger unhelpful and a little unnerving. None of ND’s wins or losses in the past 4 years was determined by Mr. Willingham. Sure sure, there were factors going back to his tenure, but games are decided by the players on the field and the coaches on the sideline. It’s time to stop vilifying our former coach and start expecting more out the guys on the field. If we can’t let it go, we can’t expect guys like Pat Forde and Mike Wilbon of ESPN, or Jason Whitlock of Fox Sports to do so either. We (as fans) would all be happier if things had turned out better 5 years ago. Ty Willingham did his best, and, unfortunately, it didn’t work out. It is time to let it go.