Irish asst makes new home at Notre Dame
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SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Don't expect Notre Dame defensive line coach Randy Hart to get sentimental Saturday when the Fighting Irish play Washington, the school where he was an assistant the previous 21 seasons.
"You don't go there," Hart told a crowd of reporters after practice. "You're into where you are and what you're doing here and make it go. Next year, next summer, you'll think about it and say it was what it was. I think right now your focus has to be what you're doing."
What Hart is doing now is trying to help a young defensive line get better while also a mentoring graduate assistant Bryant Young, who wants to become a coach after playing 14 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers.
Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis first offered the job to former Cleveland Browns coach Romeo Crennel, who was the defensive coordinator for the New England Patriots while Weis was offensive coordinator. When Crennel turned him down, Weis hired Hart.
"I wanted to go find a veteran defensive line coach that was a fundamental, technique guy with a lot of energy. If you looked under Webster's in the dictionary I think that would come back Randy Hart," Weis said.
Young calls Hart a great teacher.
"He's very knowledgeable about the game," Young said. "He's a guy that has a lot of wisdom. So I pick his brain a lot."
The first thing anyone notices about Hart is how enthusiastic and energetic he is. When moving from field to field during practices, the 61-year-old Hart is frequently out in front of the players leading the way.
"Strike it! Strike it," he yells at players during a hitting drill. "I love it!"
Irish players say his enthusiasm and excitement is contagious.
"Sign me up to have his energy at any time the rest of my life, and he's eight years older than me," Weis said. "He just exudes it, and he expects it from the people around him. I think that the players and coaches and everyone that's around it kind of feeds off that."
Former Huskies coach Don James said that why he first hired Hart, who played at Ohio State under Woody Hayes.
"He's got all the qualities you look for in a coach," James said. "He's loyal. He's a team player. He has all kinds of enthusiasm."
Hart started at Washington under James in 1988, which also is the last season Notre Dame won a national championship. He stayed with the Huskies when Jim Lambright took over in 1993, was retained by Rick Neuheisel in 1999, by Keith Gilbertson in 2003 and by Tyrone Willingham in 2005.
But first-year coach Steve Sarkisian decided to clean house and hire an entirely new staff after the Huskies went 0-12 last season under Willingham.
Hart did everything he could to let everyone know he is happy at Notre Dame.
"Where I am is where I want to be," he said.
