Report: Notre Dame paid big for Charlie Weis to go away

Notre Dame paid big bucks to Charlie Weis last season so he would not coach the Fighting Irish.

The amount of money the university paid him to go away after the 2009 season had been a source of great debate. Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune has the numbers and they’re only growing.

According to paperwork Notre Dame must submit to the Internal Revenue Service, Weis has been paid $6,638,403 in termination pay to this point. The number will continue to climb through 2015.

Weis landed with the Kansas City Chiefs last season as offensive coordinator but lasted there only one season. He is now the offensive coordinator at Florida. Weis signed a 10-year contract extension at Notre Dame in October 2005 after a strong start at the school, including two BCS bowl bids. His teams sputtered to a 16-21 record in his final three seasons.

Weis’ payments will be smaller moving forward, but he’ll be on the books in South Bend, Ind., for some time.

Follow me on Twitter: @BradBiggs

Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune