Tuesday, December 31, 2019

Let's Play the "We Beat Them By More" Game


So, here's how the Notre Dame opponents fared this season -- against teams ranked ahead of the Fighting Irish.  And, how these teams (ranked ahead of the Irish) fared in their bowl games:


USC
  • Beat #11 Utah by 5 points
  • Lost to Notre Dame by 3 points 

Virginia
  • Lost to #9 Florida by 8 points
  • Lost to Notre Dame by 15 points

Georgia
  • Beat Notre Dame by 6 points
  • Beat #9 Florida by 7 points

Iowa State
  • Lost to #16 Iowa by 1 point
  • Lost to #7 Baylor by 2 points
  • Lost to #4 Oklahoma by 1 point
  • Lost to Notre Dame by 24 points


I'm hopeful the 11-2 Fighting Irish will move up in the final rankings -- here's how the teams ahead of us have fared so far in the Bowl Season, that we might overtake:

#4: Oklahoma -- lost to LSU (63 - 28) 
#11 Utah -- lost to Texas (38 - 10)

Muffet Talks First ACC Home Loss in History



Not a happy camper...

Notre Dame "Wired" at Camping World Bowl!


Tuesday, December 17, 2019

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame Y'all !!!


OT: Rich Eisen Says Good-Bye to His Dad...



Yes, he's from that school in Ann Arbor -- but, I thought what he said today was worth sharing to all...

Domer Mark Baldwin Earns Back His Tour Card


The former Fighting Irish golf star -- shot a fifteen under (-15) score over the final four rounds of the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying event in Winter Gardens, FL.  Mark's score was good for a 13th place finish -- earning him starts in eight Korn Ferry Tour events in 2020.

Congrats Mark!!!

Here's a video of Mark making an eagle, earlier this year at the PGA Tour's 3M Open.

LINK:  GREAT SHOT

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 17


Monday, December 16, 2019

The "Un-Talked About" Story on Recruiting...


It's a term called "over-signing" and some college football programs are willing to do more of it, than others...

Remember -- the NCAA limits FBS teams to 85 full scholarships on their football roster.  

Here's a look at the last four signing classes (2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019) for the teams going into this year's College Football Playoff  -- compared to Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and USC.

I've also added in a comparison of total wins over the last three football seasons (including bowls / playoffs):

LSU:
  • 2016:  27 -- 2nd ranked class
  • 2017:  24 -- 7th ranked class
  • 2018:  22 -- 15th ranked class
  • 2019:  25 -- 5th ranked class
  • Total / Avg: 98 signed -- 7.25 average class rank
  • Total wins -- last three seasons:  32

OHIO STATE:
  • 2016:  25 -- 4th ranked class
  • 2017:  21 -- 2nd ranked class
  • 2018:  28 -- 2nd ranked class
  • 2019:  17 -- 14th ranked class
  • Total / Avg:  91 signed -- 5.5 average class rank
  • Total wins -- last three seasons:  38

CLEMSON:
  • 2016:  21 -- 11th ranked class
  • 2017:  14 -- 16th ranked class
  • 2018:  17 -- 7th ranked class
  • 2019:  29 -- 10th ranked class
  • Total / Avg: 81 signed -- 11.0 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  39

OKLAHOMA:
  • 2016:  21 --19th ranked class
  • 2017:  28 -- 8th ranked class
  • 2018:  23 -- 9th ranked class
  • 2019:  24 -- 6th ranked class
  • Total / Avg:  96 signed -- 10.5 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  36

ALABAMA:
  • 2016:  25 -- 1st ranked class
  • 2017:  29 -- 1st ranked class
  • 2018:  22 -- 5th ranked class
  • 2019:  27 -- 1st ranked class
  • Total / Avg: 103 signed -- 2.0 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  37

GEORGIA:
  • 2016:  23 -- 6th ranked class
  • 2017:  26 -- 3rd ranked class
  • 2018:  26 -- 1st ranked class
  • 2019:  25 -- 2nd ranked class
  • Total / Avg: 100 signed -- 3.0 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  35

USC:
  • 2016:  21 -- 10th ranked class
  • 2017:  24 -- 4th ranked class
  • 2018:  18 -- 4th ranked class
  • 2019:  25 -- 20th ranked class
  • Total:  88 signed -- 9.5 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  24

MICHIGAN:
  • 2016:  28 -- 8th ranked class
  • 2017:  30 -- 5th ranked class
  • 2018:  19 -- 22nd ranked class
  • 2019:  26 -- 8th ranked class
  • Total: 103 signed -- 10.75 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons:  27

NOTRE DAME:
  • 2016:  23 -- 15th ranked class
  • 2017:  21 -- 10th ranked class
  • 2018:  27 -- 10th ranked class
  • 2019:  22 -- 16th ranked class
  • Total:  93 signed -- 12.75 average class rank
  • Total games won -- last three seasons: 32


 Sources:  247Sports for Recruiting info and ESPN for season wins



Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 16


A Notre Dame Family's Tribute to Eli Manning


John and Mary Beth Wilcox (Long Island, NY) parents of three Domers; Alex '16, Christopher '20 and Julia '23 -- are lifelong fans of the New York Giants.

They're also big fans of Eli Manning, who likely made his last home start for the Giants.  To show their appreciation for Manning -- the Wilcox's brought their home made signs to MetLife Stadium yesterday for the Giants win over the Dolphins.

That is John and Mary Beth holding up their signs for Eli on the cover of today's New York Daily News.  (John and Mary Beth are furthest left in the image above).

Got to love devoted fans like this!

Notre Dame's Recruiting Class -- Hype Video



The early signing period for Notre Dame Football begins this Wednesday, December 18th!

Friday, December 13, 2019

Keep An Eye Out For This Before Christmas...


Had some fun last night with seven Notre Dame student-athletes and the Notre Dame Leprechaun -- filming a Christmas message for the Rockne Athletics Fund.

Left to right in photo above:  Mikayla Vaughn (basketball), Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa (football), Marist Liufau (football), Abby Sweet (softball), Sam Jackson (Leprechaun), Hannah Thompson (volleyball), Liam Eichenberg (football) and Jemma Yeadon (volleyball).

Click on photo to enlarge.

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 13


Know Thy Bowl Opponent: Iowa State vs KSU


Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Notre Dame Continues to Buck National Trends


The total number of donors to the University of Notre Dame continues to rise -- this is not the norm (see Against The Odds linked below).

And, If you don't think every gift matters -- think about this for a second...

Gifts of less than $200 (taken in during the last academic year) have paid for the full cost of attendance for 43 students to attend the University of Notre Dame this year.


LINK:  AGAINST THE ODDS


LINK:  MAKE A GIFT TO NOTRE DAME

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 10


Know Thy Bowl Opponent: Iowa State vs Iowa


Monday, December 9, 2019

Iowa State's Coach & Players Talk Notre Dame



This will be Iowa State's first ever football game against Notre Dame...

A Notre Dame Family Receives Game Ball...


 
The York family owns the San Francisco 49ers...

John York (Dad), Jed York (Son) are Notre Dame grads. Mom (Denise Debartolo York) is a Saint Mary's College grad...

John and Denise's son Tony, committed suicide a year ago.  Tony attended Tulane University -- which is located in New Orleans...

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 9


Know Thy Bowl Opponent: ISU vs. Baylor


Saturday, December 7, 2019

How Many of These Two & Three Loss Teams...


Will be ranked ahead of our Fighting Irish tomorrow when they release the final College Football Playoff Rankings?:

Here's a look at the resumes of each of these teams (two or more losses) that are currently ranked ahead of Notre Dame:


#3 GEORGIA:  11 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  3
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  3
  • Biggest win of the season:  #9 Florida

#5 UTAH: 11 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  0
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  0
  • Biggest win of the season:  Washington

#7 BAYLOR:  11 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  1
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins: 2
  • Biggest win of the season:  #25 Oklahoma State

#8 WISCONSIN:  10 -3
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  3
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  3
  • Biggest win of the season:  #14 Michigan

#9 FLORIDA:  10 - 2 
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  1
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  1
  • Biggest win of the season:  #11 Auburn

#10 PENN STATE:  10 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  2
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  2
  • Biggest win of the season:  #14 Michigan

#11 AUBURN:  9 - 3
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  2
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins: 2
  • Biggest win of the season:  #12 Alabama

#12 ALABAMA:  10 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  0
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  0
  • Biggest win of the season:  Texas A&M

#13 OREGON:  11 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  2
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins: 2
  • Biggest win of the season:  #5 Utah

#14 MICHIGAN:  9 - 3
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  2
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  2
  • Biggest win of the season:  #15 Notre Dame

#15 NOTRE DAME:  10 - 2
  • Wins over teams currently ranked:  3
  • Wins over teams with 8 or more wins:  4
  • Biggest win of the season:  #22 USC

BOLD indicates this team leads in this area.


LINK:  COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS



OT: Ferris State's on to NCAA Div II Semi's



For the third time in the last four seasons -- the Ferris State Bulldogs (my alma mater) have made it to the Final Four in the NCAA Division II National Championship Playoffs...

The Bulldogs are 72 - 7 over the last six seasons -- the winningest program in all of college football.

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 7


Friday, December 6, 2019

OT: A Must Read Story About "The Game" in NJ



Wow -- this is the first I've heard of this story, this game...

A special shout out to Notre Dame alum Pat Scanlon for alerting me to this story!


LINK:  MUST READ

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 6


Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Domer Counsell Named Manager of the Year!


Baseball America just announced this evening that Notre Dame alum Craig Counsell -- manager of the Milwaukee Brewers -- is their Manager of the Year in Major League Baseball for 2019!

Congrats Craig!


LINK:  MANAGER OF THE YEAR

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 4


Tuesday, December 3, 2019

Notre Dame Behind Teams With < Resumes


Well, I guess it doesn't matter who you have beaten -- or, who you have played.  The latest College Football Playoff Rankings were just released and the Fighting Irish have been parked in a spot as low as they could possibly be ranked...

Oh, well -- go win a bowl game.

LINK:  RANKINGS

Hawaii TV Station Reporting That Manti Te'o...


Has signed a contract with his former team -- the New Orleans Saints!

LINK:  STORY

Notre Dame's Advent Series: December 3


Replay: Muffet McGraw's Radio Show Monday


Sunday, December 1, 2019

Notre Dame's Advent Series -- December 1


Chase Claypool's Ride Home to Notre Dame...



Have to admit -- this would have been the perfect way for Chase Claypool to have traveled home to Notre Dame last night after the way the Canadian star played on the Pacific Coast last night.

The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train passed through South Bend just after midnight...

Notre Dame Players Talk Win Over Stanford


Fighting Irish Bounce Back and Beat #21 USF



Muffet's Fighting Irish bounce back after losing two games in two days -- to beat the #21 ranked team in the country.