that doesn't make 89swine's statement legitimate. He wasn't saying that he was a nice guy, he was saying that he loved Our Lady's University and her lads more than any other coach in Our Lady's University's history.

last couple years.

One who never played a snap at ND because he was badly injured by Faust improper weight lifting program. The other that was a 3 year starter and 4 year letter winner. Then many of the 1985 recruits - who as you know I had to talk many into staying at ND before Faust resigned. He was a nice person at his core but JT is right. A lot of the team was struggling to stick with him through his final year. They nearly all knew he was incapable of doing the job. They wanted to win - but also wanted Faust gone.

Faust did give me tickets to the Penn state away game disaster that year - so I have that to thank him for. I did get to see how other colleges react to seeing a football player in person that trip. My 6’6” DL roommate was with me. To say there were 100’s of women that absolutely flooded the lobby of a dorm we were in when he confirmed he was on the ND team is possibly an under count. I still have high school friends that talk about meeting him. 100 of 118 people I graduated with went to Penn state. At most one of them saw one PSU player for maybe seconds their entire 4 years. They spent 2 full days with my roommate.

once Lou arrived. My brother still recalls my call right after the infamous first team meeting with Lou, assuring him that we were going to win the National Championship and soon.

My roommates and I road-tripped to PSU for that game. We stayed in a dorm with one of my friends from high school and I volunteered to work that game. We were standing in inches of water in that monsoon and I remember burning my fingers holding footballs in front of those jet heaters, trying in vain to get the footballs to be less waterlogged. They’d be saturated again within seconds after going back in. 36-6. That night, after the team left, my roommates and I hit the town in State College along with a bunch of my friends from home who came out from NJ for the game. I probably never drank more in my life. I’ll leave it at that. The ride back to ND was not pleasant.

One of the better parts of that trip was when Milt Jackson came to the team hotel and surprised the team at a meeting there. He had been away from the team for a while and the outpouring of love for him by the team was a sight to behold. He was one of the best guys I met at ND. May he Rest In Peace.

Next time you see those two roommates, thank them for me for going easy on me in Grace section basketball. I was tasked with going up against them at center and they went easy on me. Both real good guys as you know.

PS. This Blue Gold weekend I had the chance to hang out with a couple players who lived in my section my freshman year. They were both 5th years then so true experts on the Faust years. One played at a rival high school to Moeller back in Gerry’s days there. Even in our old age, we kept the party going and managed to close down one of the local watering holes, reliving Grace Hall memories from 84-85 living in the infamous section 6D, also home of UR’s brother that year as well. I didn’t have to play center back then as we had a regular student who was 6-7, 300 pounds. Good times.

To NFL scouts because they asked him to resign. True. I have no great regard for Gerry

It's been a long time but I do recall hearing from some people close to the program that team was completely dysfunctional towards the end of his tenure and some players had bad experiences with him, one story in particular I recall.

But Lou showed up and fixed everything!

That doesn't make him particularly unique, but it certainly doesn't earn him a (Madonna) blue ribbon in the "best example of sacrificial love" category.

I've heard too many stories from too many people over too many years to argue that he isn't a fundamentally good man.

But the only way I can reconcile too many stories of him throwing players and assistants under the bus with those stories of acts of charity and decency is that the job broke him -- temporarily, at least.

but I would also not listen long to someone who told me that "no coach loved Notre Dame more" as 89swine says above.

First of all, how would we prove that? Is there a love thee Notre Dame litmus test? Secondly, I would argue that there were certainly coaches, especially in the early years when ND wasn't necessarily the prestigious school that it is now who certainly loved the place a great deal; Frank Leahy is an example that comes to mind, and he had the benefit of actually being a really good coach (and an excellent recruiter as well).

to rank Gerry above Lou, Ara, Leahy, Rockne or others in that department either.

Getting back to the original post, I think Freeman has very little in common with Faust, and I think a bunch of guys who played for Faust and Holtz would say, and have said, the same thing.

ACross... goes to show all of us can find common ground somewhere. : )