A genuinely good man

who, unfortunately, was in over his head. Like everyone else at the time, the optimism on campus was sky high when Gerry arrived. The Spring before his first season, he visited all of the dorms on campus for a Q/A session. He was an engaging, energetic man who truly loved all things ND. We believed all the hype and that his success at Moeller would carry over to ND. A 180 turn from Devine, who did not engage with the students (at least during my 2 years with him as coach). Sadly, his time at ND didn't live up to what we (or he) wanted. Although I was as upset as everyone at the results on the field during his tenure, it was heartbreaking seeing him leave ND a broken man. I wrote him a long letter after the Miami debacle in his last game and, to his credit, he wrote me an equally long letter about his time at ND, his disappointments, etc., several months later. I still have that special letter.