We've all heard of "Coachspeak," of course. As in, "We play 'em one at a time," "It was really a team effort," "You can throw out the records when we play Team X" and a hundred thousand more.

But now emerging, live, from the Notre Dame locker room — ta-dahhhh — Tyronese.

When he signed on with the Fighting Irish Dec. 10, 2001, Ty Willingham promised one major changeover in how the large number of Irish beat reporters would find their sources of information.

They found out the hard way Ty Willingham would never be known as Mr. Goodquote. Not that he clammed up, but there would be several pet expressions the longer-term writers and electronic media would grow to expect.

And so came No. 24 Notre Dame's totally-unexpected 17-13 upset of Tennessee in the decibel wind tunnel that is Colonel Neyland Memorial Stadium in Knoxville.

Not that the media was exactly expecting, say, Tennessee Williams, but...

"Every win against a top team is big," saith Mr. Willingham after the Irish defense befuddled the 7-2 Volunteers, who fell from ninth to No. 15 in The Associated Press poll, 11 to 18 in the coaches' poll. "I wouldn't know where to rank this one, but it's right there with Michigan and Florida State (in 2002)," he told South Bend Tribune beat man Terrance Harris.

Not, of course, to mention the 28-20 shocker over a Michigan team that since has climbed to No. 9.

This 6-3 season is, one is growing to suspect, typical Willingham. So is the input from the inscrutable, irrepressible former Michigan State defensive back who pledged things would be different at Notre Dame press conferences.

"Everybody likes to be challenged," he'd told the media during the week, responding to a Southeastern Conference beat guy's question as certain writers rolled their eyes knowingly. "This is a challenge."

He won about 60% of his games in his first head-coaching stint at Stanford, and this season has been the year of the unexpected -- losses to Brigham Young and Boston College...and wins over the Wolverines and Vols.

If Stanford was a series of ups and downs, flirting with the Top 10 one year, going 3-8 another, Willingham's run at Notre Dame has confounded even the most seasoned Irish alumnus.

There is no logic that can adequately explain how the Irish turned two weeks of angst after that heartburning come-from-ahead loss to B.C., Notre Dame's fourth straight loss to the usually under-personneled Eagles.

Willingham, of course, wears his stoicism like, you should pardon the expression, a press credential. But as his staff toiled desperately to quiet the alumni/blogger rebellion, he quietly liked the feeling wafting through the locker room, on the practice field and among the staff.

"There is no better time than right now," he told Harris, reflecting on how the Irish approached and applied the Tennessee gameplan. "We felt a sense of urgency. We had to get it done right now."

But Notre Dame has compiled a most-recent 24-2 record when coming off a week's break. And defensive coordinator must have spent 300 of the available 330 or so hours reviewing every Tennessee tape since Condredge Holloway and Reggie White ran around Neyland Stadium.

Because N.D. held the offense-happy Volunteers to just over 300 total yards' offense and knocked out standout freshman quarterback Erik Ainge just before halftime when the U.T. leader was hit on an all-out blitz by linebacker Brandon Hoyte.

It came with Tennessee up 10-7 just before halftime, but it altered the game's course 180 degrees, having countered an early Brady Quinn to Anthony Fasano 8-yard touchdown pass that put N.D. up 7-3 with a 56-yard Cedric Houston T.d. reception from Ainge.

It was a decision by Vols' coach Philip Fulmer that brought pain to his face ... and a separated shoulder to Ainge that may sideline him for the year.

"We thought we'd take a shot down the field," Fulmer told South Bend Tribune correspondent Pat Leonard. "So in the end, it was my responsibility."

But Notre Dame's pass rush had been fairly consistent all half and Hoyte, combining with defensive end Justin Tuck, put a major up-the-middle push on Ainge, who landed awkwardly.

The Vols never recovered, and backup Tennessee Q.B. Rick Clausen forced a third-quarter pass when rushed hard by noseguard Derek Landri, linebacker Mike Goolsby easily picked it off and raced 26 yards for a score that put the Irish ahead for good. although he got a good old-fashioned dressing down from Mr. Willingham and friends for holding the ball aloft seven yards from the end zone, tempting a Volunteer pursuer to swat it away for a touchback.

Followed by a coachly hug. Typical Willingham. A life's lesson, then an "Attaboy!"

"I got yelled at," Goolsby told South Bend Tribune columnist Jason Kelly. "...I knew I was going to get in this time, so I was really happy. Then I had to come back and catch my breath real quick because we had to go back out there."

But all the reprises of "Rocky Top," the thunderous banshee screaming of the Big Orange faithful, didn't faze the Irish. In the end, it was the "Notre Dame Victory March" resounding through the huge stadium, with the cheers of several thousand Irish revelers delighting in this unexpected upturn.

Then there was WIllingham, again, with yet another explanation uniquely his, while discussing the mad cap running back shuttle that made for an inconsistent Irish offense. "We've always tried to get a mixture in there and we believe there are things a guy does better than another guy," he told Harris.

"But in this case, if we look back at it, we probably say we want to stay more with Ryan (Grant) and Darius (Walker)."

Notre Dame's two best running backs. Nine games into the season, makes perfect sense, doesn't it?

Notable | Tennessee is one of only a handful of teams with a winning record vs. the Irish (4-3)...Notre Dame hosts Pitt at 2:30 New York time (1:30 Chicago) Saturday ... A win against the struggling Panthers (5-4) may bring a major mindset upswing that could make the Irish a formidable season-closing opponent for host U.S.C. Nov. 27.