A bum knee is just one of Charlie Weis' problems this season.

AP

A little more than a month ago, Charlie Weis probably allowed himself to smile. Sure, his knee was a mess of sinew and scraps, but the Irish were sporting a winning record (4-1) at long last. As his squad prepared to take on newly-relevant UNC, Weis might have fondly viewed his crutches as an accessory to success.

But Notre Dame dropped that one, and then two of the next three (and perhaps most embarrassingly of all, actually allowed the impossibly abysmal Washington Huskies to score a touchdown).

After Saturday's shutout loss to Boston College, Weis announced his intention to reclaim control of Notre Dame's offense. Some Irish fans undoubtedly considered the announcement good news, but columnist Jason Whitlock ripped Weis for publically embarrassing his offensive coordinator.

The scrutiny's nothing new for Weis, whose Notre Dame tenure has been rife with bumps and potholes (indeed, one could argue this season's successful opening stretch was the real bump, and the rest of the Weis Era has been one smooth, steady stream of disappointment).

Even after last season's 3-9 debacle, SIOC contributor Phil Guidry insisted the Notre Dame brass would hang onto Weis (who's singed through 2015) after this season regardless of the team's record for three reasons: They've invested $30 million in his contract, they've seen what an effective recruiter he can be and they've grown sensitive about their "trigger happy" reputation when it comes to firing coaches. 
 
Fair points, all of them. But now, it's as much a question of "should he go?" as "will he go?". A four-year grace period's too long, and it's time for Weis to limp off into the sunlight. Hey, his predecessor just lost another job. Maybe we'll see "Weis Cleans up After Willingham: Redux."

That's our take. Post yours in the comments below.