AP interview: Weis starts recruiting at Kansas

“Hopefully that’s not the one I’m using next year,” he added with a chuckle.

Recruiting was never much of a problem for Weis at Notre Dame. The fact that he has a bunch of Super Bowl rings to flash from his days with the New England Patriots helped the sell, as did the fact that the Fighting Irish have one of the most tradition-rich programs in college football.

That’s not the case at Kansas, which has struggled to put together winning seasons on a regular basis, never mind compete for conference or national championships.

Weis doesn’t see that an excuse, though. He doesn’t see much of anything as an excuse.

“I’d been here before and I remember the facilities being good,” Weis said. “These are as good as anybody’s. These are top-10, top-20 facilities for sure. If you walk in here, it’s not like you’re hurting for facilities. Good school academically, you’re given the resources. What else do you want?”

Weis said he has already contacted a number of prospects that he recruited while he was offensive coordinator at Florida, many of whom were not offered scholarships. He said that was the best way for him to get up to speed quickly, and although NCAA rules prevent him from speaking about specific players, Weis said several have been receptive to his sales pitch.

Weis understands that he’s working in a condensed timeframe.

The dead period, in which coaches must be off the recruiting trail, begins Saturday. That’s when he’ll set about studying his returning players in greater detail.

Weis also will have surgery to replace his hip. He hurt it in a collision several years ago while standing on the sideline at Notre Dame. He’s already had both knees replaced as a result of the fall, and the bone-on-bone grinding makes it difficult for him to move.

The surgery will hardly slow him down, though. Weis knows that there is a long way to go if the Jayhawks want to achieve respectability, and there’s little time to waste.

“I have made a lot of mistakes, but I have learned how to show humility but I have never lost my passion and drive to win,” he said. “I want to win _ I am a bad loser. I am sometimes a bad winner, according to my family, but I am certainly a bad loser. I would expect anyone else to be the same.”

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.