Irish fans, it's time to get wish list going

By Ralph Russo - The Associated Press

If Notre Dame makes the move that seems inevitable now — the one so many Fighting Irish fans want and commentators endorse — and fires Charlie Weis, who will replace him?

If Weis is fired, who will be the next Notre Dame coach? It's a question that has been pondered plenty over the last couple of years by disgruntled Fighting Irish fans.

Here's a look at the field of possible candidates, names that have come up in speculation and guys who often appear on Notre Dame fans' wish lists (in alphabetical order).

North Carolina's Butch Davis: Davis built some of the best teams in recent memory at Miami and has the Tar Heels on the rise in the ACC.

Northwestern's Pat Fitzgerald: Young, fiery and winning at a school that — like Notre Dame — can't get just anybody through admissions.

Stanford's Jim Harbaugh: Stanford was a dead program when he took over. Three seasons later, he had the Cardinal in Rose Bowl contention.

Cincinnati's Brian Kelly: He's the new Urban Meyer, an offensive whiz who turned a so-so program into a national power.

Florida's Urban Meyer: He was an assistant at Notre Dame under Lou Holtz and had a stipulation in his Utah contract that would have let him leave for South Bend without a buyout. The challenge of returning Notre Dame to glory is alluring.

Boise State's Chris Peterson: His winning percentage in four seasons in Boise is .920. All those wins and Boise State has never even sniffed the Bowl Championship Series title game.

Oklahoma's Bob Stoops: He rescued Oklahoma from mediocrity and returned the Sooners to elite status — and that's pretty much the job description at Notre Dame. Maybe after 11 seasons in Norman, he's ready for a change.

Leader of the PAC

The Sagarin computer ratings have the Pac-10 slightly ahead of the Southeastern Conference. That sounds about right, but choosing between the two is a matter of taste.

The Pac-10 always suffers from lack of exposure and a perception that the league is soft and doesn't play defense.

While it's still a league where offenses rule, there's plenty of power to go with all that speed, as anyone who has watched Stanford's Toby Gerhart or Oregon's Jeremiah Masoli mow over defenders can attest.

The Pac-10 can't match the SEC's super heavyweights — Florida and Alabama — but the top six teams in the league are all capable of playing at a very high level.

Big Red return

Nebraska has reclaimed the Big 12 North, not exactly a tough hill to conquer, but it was an important step for second-year coach Bo Pelini toward getting the Cornhuskers relevant on the national scene.

Nebraska is the only school in the division built to sustain high-level success, as proved by Missouri and Kansas sliding back to mediocrity after a few heady seasons. If Pelini can recruit at all, Nebraska should own the North and consistently play in the Big 12 title game.

The next step is being able to go toe-to-toe with Oklahoma and Texas, but first things first for the Huskers.

The hurry-up

Nevada lost its first three games, but quarterback Colin Kaepernick and the Wolf Pack will take an eight-game winning streak into Boise State on Friday night to decide the WAC title.

Temple could be without freshman running back Bernard Pierce, 11th in the country in rushing, when it plays Ohio for the MAC East title. He has a shoulder injury.

Virginia Tech linebacker Cody Grimm, son of former Redskins offensive lineman Russ Grimm, is being touted by defensive coordinator Bud Foster for ACC defensive player of the year.