Oregon's Novel Approach to Signaling in Plays

Hey, the Irish aren't playing today, so I've decided to talk a look at what's going on with the top "spread offense" on the planet -- the Oregon Ducks -- and the secret to how they play so fast.  IT'S IN THE SIGNS!.  You've got to hand it to Oregon Football Head Coach, Chip Kelly and his unique approach to signaling in plays to his #1 ranked offense.  Whether it's fake, or it's real -- these signs (see photo) are cool and it shows to recruits that they're having fun at Oregon.  And, he's also winning over the "favor" of some of the talking heads at ESPN -- all -- I'm sure have votes in the BCS ranking system.  Here's the story that ESPN is running on the signaling in of the Oregon offense.

LINK:  OREGON'S SIDELINE SIGNALS

What To Do Today -- Cheer for the Utah Utes!

With the Irish not playing today -- it's time to look ahead at next week's opponent Utah -- and their huge game today against TCU.  The ESPN College Gameday crew is in Salt Lake City for what's being hailed as the most important game in the history of the Mountain West Conference.  The #5 ranked Utes are hosting the #3 ranked Horned Frogs in the game of the day today in college football.  Both teams have their sites set on playing in the BCS Championship game -- and the winner will still have that shot.  The game kicks off at 3:30 PM EST on the CBS College Sports Network -- which means it's not on national TV!  And you wonder why Notre Dame fans don't want the Irish to join a conference!  Here's a link to where you can find the CBS College Sports Network on cable today.  What to watch for in today's game (if you can get it on TV):  the Utah offense (the #3 ranked scoring offense in the country) which averages 450 yards and 45 points per game against the TCU defense (the #1 ranked defense in the country) which gives up on average, 217 yards per game.  Unfortunately for Utah -- TCU also has the #8 ranked offense in the land -- averaging  486 yards and 41 points per game.  On offense, keep an eye on Utah QB Jordan Wynn, the 6'-1" sophomore is ranked in the top 50 in total offense this year in the FBS and their two senior running backs Wide and Assiata -- the Utes are averaging 190 yards a game on the ground.  On defense, Utah is led by a defensive line with plenty of depth (Shelby and Cox lead that unit) and a big time safety in Brandon Burton.  It's so unfortunate that only 30 million households will have access to this game today (as a point of reference ESPN is in 100 million households).  WE NEED THE UTES TO BEAT THE HORNED FROGS TODAY -- SO CHEER FOR UTAH!  Here's a link to the CBS College Sports Network website -- maybe you can watch it on the web?

LINK:  CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK WEBSITE

Fr. Jenkins -- A Letter to the Notre Dame Family

University of Notre Dame President, Rev. John Jenkins -- released this letter this afternoon to the Notre Dame family in the wake of the October 27th accident that took the life of Declan Sullivan -- and the on-going media conversation about what Notre Dame should do.  Here's the letter in its entirety:





Dear Notre Dame students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents and friends,


The tragic accident that took Declan Sullivan's life just over a week ago, the Mass of Remembrance in the Basilica, and his family's faith-filled funeral for him this week have given each of us the chance to grieve, remember and pray. Declan was a bright and energetic young man who lived his life with passion. We will miss him, and we believe that he is in the loving embrace of our Lord. 


Over this past week, I have had the great privilege of meeting with and trying to provide some measure of support to Declan's parents, sister, brother and other members of his family. Many Notre Dame faculty, staff and students also have reached out to offer their assistance. Yet the Sullivan family, through their incredible grace and courage, has given us support and an example of how to respond. They ministered to us as we tried to minister to them. 


There is no greater sadness for a university community than the death of one of its students under any circumstances. Yet this loss is more devastating, for Declan died in a tragic accident while in our care. For that, I am profoundly sorry. We are conducting an investigation and we must be careful not to pre-judge its results, but I will say this: Declan Sullivan was entrusted to our care, and we failed to keep him safe. We at Notre Dame - and ultimately I, as President - are responsible. Words cannot express our sorrow to the Sullivan family and to all involved.


I am committed to determining why this accident happened and to ensuring the safety of our students. We have been conducting an internal investigation to examine this accident from every possible perspective and to draw conclusions and formulate recommendations for the future. In order to ensure that our inquiry has been thorough, unbiased and accurate, I have asked Dr. Peter Likins, former President of the University of Arizona, to provide an external review of our inquiry, and he has graciously accepted.


In selecting someone to review our investigation, I sought an individual experienced in higher education, with an impeccable reputation for integrity, intellect and independence. In Dr. Likins, we are fortunate to have just such a man. He brings numerous credentials to this assignment: as a world-renowned engineer; as a university administrator who served as provost at Columbia and president at Lehigh and Arizona; as a highly regarded member of numerous NCAA committees; and as a member of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.


Investigations and external reviews such as this take time, but I assure you that, when complete, we will issue a public report on the outcome, including information on the events of the afternoon of Oct. 27, any institutional ramifications, and recommendations for safety policies in the future. 


Finally, in light of what I believe to be unfounded and unfair commentary and speculation, I want to say something about Coach Brian Kelly. Coach Kelly was hired not only because of his football expertise, but because we believed his character and values accord with the highest standards of Notre Dame. All we have seen since he came to Notre Dame, and everything we have learned in our investigation to date, have confirmed that belief. For those reasons I am confident that Coach Kelly has a bright future leading our football program.


Thank you for your concern, and your prayers. At the darkest moments, the love, and care, and faith of the Notre Dame family shines most brightly.


In Notre Dame,


Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.
President
University of Notre Dame

Rudy Ruettiger -- Still Telling His Story

Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger '76 -- was at Lake Erie College yesterday -- speaking to hundreds of students assembled for their Founder's Day celebration.  One of the local TV channels caught up with Rudy after his presentation -- here's a link:


LINK:  RUDY -- BEING RUDY

Yankee Stadium Becoming ND's Home Field

The first football game in Yankee Stadium -- which is two weeks away -- is a "home" game for the University of Notre Dame.  And, the Yankee Stadium crew is busy at work -- turning their new $1.5 billion stadium into the home of the Fighting Irish football team for their November 20th game against Army.  The images above show them putting up a goal post and an artist's rendering of how they intend to fit a football field inside Yankee Stadium.  Looks like some walls and seats will be removed in the process.  It's going to be quite an event!

Montana & Page Named NFL's Greatest!

Former Notre Dame All-Americans; Joe Montana and Alan Page were named by the NFL Network as one of The Top 100:  NFL's Greatest Players.  Montana was ranked #4 on the list and Page was ranked #43.  Here's a link to the list:

LINK:  THE TOP 100:  NFL'S GREATEST PLAYERS

ESPN'S Fixation With Notre Dame Football...

It's become quite obvious this season that there's college football and then there's NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL.  How else do you describe the amount of coverage ESPN is giving a football team that's 4-5 on the season and has lost it's last two games in a row to the Naval Academy and Tulsa?  I rarely peruse ESPN.COM -- but I did last night -- and I found all of these stories on Notre Dame football.  While they're not positive (ESPN enjoys taking shots at the Irish when they're down) -- it just goes to show you how relevant and important the Notre Dame Football brand is today.  And, by the way -- ESPN, you don't have a clue as to what makes Notre Dame -- Notre Dame for us fans.  Here's the links to the stories:

LINK:  ESPN'S COVERAGE OF NOTRE DAME

Coach Kelly Meets With Media Thursday...

I watched Coach Kelly's media session after practice yesterday (linked below) and it's quite obvious that he's not his normal self.  The events of these past two weeks have rocked this man's soul -- as it would anyone in his position -- and it's going to take some time for him to get his "Kelly" back.  I'm quite confident the Notre Dame Family continues to pray for the Sullivan family as they grieve over the loss of Declan -- please add Coach Kelly and his family too.  Here's a link to yesterday's media session:

LINK:  COACH KELLY'S MEDIA SESSION

Irish Football Radio Show Tonight at 6 PM EST

AM 1240 in Youngstown, OH has a weekly Notre Dame Radio Show hosted by "Irish Mike" and Marty McCabe that has bumped up against Brian Kelly's Radio Show each week.  Not tonight!  Coach Kelly's Radio Show is not scheduled tonight since the Irish aren't playing Saturday.  So, to get your ND fix -- here's a link to where you'll find Notre Dame on the radio tonight -- beginning at 6 PM EST and running to 8 PM EST:


LINK:  NOTRE DAME SHOW -- AM 1240

Domer NBA Head Coach -- 4-0 Start to Career!

Former Notre Dame basketball player and now Head Coach of the New Orleans Hornets -- Monty Williams -- has his team off to a 4-0 start.  The best start in franchise history!  The youngest head coach in the NBA, Williams (39) only needs to win the next ten -- to surpass Lawrence Frank's 13-0 start (the NBA record for first year head coaches) with the New Jersey Nets in 2004.  Here's an interview that Monty Williams gave to NBA.COM before the season started:

LINK:  MONTY WILLIAMS, NBA HEAD COACH

Notre Dame Recruiting Video

My Notre Dame alum son -- sent me an email last night with a link to this video.  It's a seventeen minute "recruiting" video put together by the Admissions team at the University of Notre Dame.  It's very well done -- and it's the second time in the last ten months that we've highlighted this video on the ND GO IRISH BLOG.  If you love Notre Dame -- you'll love this...  Enjoy!

LINK:  NOWHERE ELSE BUT NOTRE DAME

Muffet's Irish -- Hang 102 on Michigan Tech!

Ouch...  The 12th ranked Fighting Irish women's basketball team tipped off the 2010-2011 season last night with a 102 - 30 exhibition win over Michigan Tech University.  Notre Dame started off the game on a 17 - 0 run and they never looked back -- as every player scored on their roster.  The regular season starts November 12th when the Irish take on New Hampshire at home.  Here's a link to the South Bend Tribune story from last night's game:

LINK:  IRISH ROLL

Irish LAX -- "Alumni Networking Day"

The junior and senior members of the University of Notre Dame Lacrosse team, along with Head Coach Kevin Corrigan, took a day trip to New York City during fall break for their "alumni networking day."  The day started at the New York Stock Exchage  NYSE where they were official guests of Morgan Stanley, followed by a breakfast hosted by Deutsche Bank -- and the ringing of the NYSE's opening bell.  They then moved uptown to meet with Notre Dame lacrosse alums at Black Rock and at MTV.  The day ended with their visit to NASDAQ in Times Square -- see photo -- where they viewed the closing bell ceremonies.  Sounds like a great day!

Congressional Domers -- All Survive...

The four University of Notre Dame alums in the United States Congress -- all survived their re-election bids last night; Peter King (New York), Joe Donnelly (Indiana), Dan Lungren (California) and Peter Visclosky (Indiana).  Incumbents winning wasn't the norm last night as 51 of their colleagues were defeated.  Here are links to stories on each of their victories:

LINK:  PETER KING '68 -- VICTORY

LINK:  JOE DONNELLY '77 & '81 -- VICTORY

LINK:  DAN LUNGREN '68 -- VICTORY

LINK:  PETER VISCLOSKY '73 -- VICTORY

Watch the Lady Irish Basketball Team @ 7 PM

The University of Notre Dame's women's basketball team tips off the 2010-2011 season tonight with an exhibition game against Division II power, Michigan Tech University.  The game starts at 7 PM EST and the gang at UND.COM will be broadcasting it live on the web.  Muffet McGraw's Irish are ranked 12th in the AP pre-season poll -- here's a link to the broadcast:

LINK:  WATCH THE IRISH AT 7 PM EST 

The Streak Ends at 100...

The University of Notre Dame's women's soccer team experienced something on Sunday afternoon that they've grown quite unaccustomed to:  a defeat.  The Fighting Irish saw two significant streaks come to an end in their 2-0 loss to UCONN -- a 77 game conference win streak (a NCAA Division 1 record) and a 100 game "home field" conference win streak -- a fifteen year-old record!  The 3rd ranked Irish, now await  the NCAA's announcement of the 64 team field in the Women's 2010 NCAA Soccer Championship on Monday, November 8th at 4:30 PM EST.  Here's a link to Gameday Central for the Women's Soccer team:

LINK:  ND WOMEN'S SOCCER -- GAMEDAY

Notre Dame's Offense -- National Rankings

It's time for our weekly look at where Notre Dame Football ranks in certain statistical categories amongst the 120 teams in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision -- AFTER NINE GAMES OF THE 2010 SEASON. In today's analysis you'll see how Notre Dame's Offense & Special Teams currently stand; on a national basis -- as compared to their final ranking for 2009 -- and the top teams in the country in each category.

OFFENSIVE TEAM STATISTICS

Total First Downs:  2010 Rank - #17 with 194 first downs -- in 2009 we had 293 first downs for the season, ranking us #13 -- TCU leads the country with 235 first downs.  

Third Down Conversions:  2010 Rank - #81 with a 37.19% conversion rate -- in 2009 we had a 39.1% conversion rate for the season, ranking us #48 -- Nevada leads the country converting 59.41% of their third downs.  

Passing Yards Per Attempt:  2010 Rank - #63 with 7.0 yards passing per attempt -- in 2009 we averaged 8.7 yards passing per attempt, ranking us #7 in the country.

Passing Yardage:  2010 Rank - #17 with 289 yards per game  (2,597 yards for the season)  -- in 2009 we passed for 323 yards per game (3,882 yards for the season), ranking us #7 -- Hawaii leads the country with 395 yards passing per game (3,559 yards for the season).  

Rushing Yards Per Attempt:  2010 Rank - #87 with 3.7 yards rushing per attempt -- in 2009 we averaged 3.8 yards rushing per attempt, ranking us #76 in the country.  

Rushing Yardage:  2010 Rank - #99 with 113 yards rushing per game (1,021 yards for the season) -- in 2009 we rushed for 127 yards per game  (1,539 yards for the season), ranking us #88 -- Georgia Tech leads the country with 317 yards rushing per game (2,612 yards for the season). 

Most QB Sacks Given Up:  2010 Rank -- #43 giving up 17 QB sacks -- in 2009 we gave up 25 QB sacks for the season, ranking us #66 -- Marshall leads the country having only given up 2 QB sacks this season.  

Fewest Pass Interceptions Thrown:  2010 Rank -- #108 having thrown 12 pass interceptions this season -- in 2009 we threw 5 interceptions for the season, raking us #5 -- Army leads the country having thrown 0 pass interceptions this season.  

Turnovers Lost:  2010 Rank - #103 with 19 turnovers lost -- in 2009 we had 14 turnovers for the season, ranking us #7 -- Oregon State leads the country with 4 turnovers lost for the season.  

Total Offense:  2010 Rank -- #50 with 402 yards per game of offense -- in 2009 we had 451 yards per game of offense, ranking us #8 -- Oregon leads the country 573 yards per game of offense. 

Points Per Game:  2010 Rank -- #70 with 26 points per game -- in 2009 we averaged 30.1 points per game for the season, ranking us #32 -- Oregon leads the country scoring 54.88 points per game.  

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TEAM STATISTICS

Fewest Penalties:  2010 Rank - #29 with 44 penalties -- in 2009 we had 75 penalties for the season, ranking us #50 -- Penn State leads the country in the fewest penalties with 26.  

Fewest Penalty Yards:  2010 Rank -- #49 with 401 total yards in penalties -- in 2009 we had 666 yards in penalties, ranking us #60 -- Penn State leads the country in fewest penalty yards with 191. 

Net Punting Yards:  2010 Rank -- #65 with an average net of 36.19 yards per punt -- in 2009 we averaged 32.1 yards per punt, ranking us #112 -- Florida leads the country with 43.82 net yards per punt.  

Field Goals -- 2010 Rank -- #16 with 13 field goals made this season.  The Irish are 13 for 13 (100%) -- one of three teams in the FBS who have not missed a field goal this season.  In 2009 we made 19 field goals, ranking us #22 -- while going 19 for 22 in the process.  Texas and Southern Miss have made 18 field goals this season,  ranking them #1 in the country.   

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS ON OFFENSE -- Ranked in top 100

Dayne Crist:

-Ranked #29 in the country with 2,033 yards passing

-Ranked #25 in the country with 15 TD passes

-Ranked #66 in the country with a 59.2% pass completion percentage

-Ranked #34 in the country for most pass interceptions thrown with 7

-Ranked #3 in the country with a 95 yard pass completion / his 80 yard pass completion to Floyd would be ranked #21 in the country

David Ruffer:

-Ranked #13 in the country in most field goals made with 13

-Ranked #2 in the country with most field goals made without a miss (13)

-Ranked #19 in the country for longest field goal made - 50 yarder

Armando Allen:

-Ranked #81 in the country with 514 yards rushing

Michael Floyd:

-Ranked #16 in the country with 72 yards receiving

-Ranked #15 in the country with 55 catches

-Ranked #12 in the country with 8 TD catches

-Ranked #21 in the country with an 80 yard catch

Kyle Rudolph:

-Ranked #3 in the country with a 95 yard catch

Theo Riddick:

-Ranked #65 in the country with 38 catches

Domer Joanna Philbin -- Releases 2nd Book

Joanna Philbin the daughter of "Live with Regis and Kelly" host, Regis Philbin released her second book today; Daughters Break the Rules.  Joanna, like her famous father -- attended Notre Dame -- earning an MFA in Creative Writing. She wrote feature and television scripts before becoming a full-time novelist - signing a three-book deal with Hachette.  Her first book; The Daughters was released in May of this year. -- she is currently working on her third title in The Daughters series, due out May 2011.  Here's a link to where you can buy the book:

LINK:  DAUGHTERS BREAK THE RULES

Notre Dame MBA's Win Competition!

The University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business yesterday announced the winners of its fourth annual Mergers & Acquisitions Competition, held October 28-29. The event, organized by Smith's MBA Finance Association, challenged 10 teams of MBA students from leading business schools to craft and present M&A pitches to a panel of executive and faculty judges. The student team from the University of Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business won the $5,000 first prize. Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business MBA students took the $2,500 second prize, and students from the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business came away with the $1,000 third prize.   Congratulations Irish!  Here's a link to the University of Maryland release:

LINK:  NOTRE DAME MBA TEAM WINS $5,000 PRIZE

Brey's "Bombers" Win Exhibition Game

The Irish started four guys 6'-8" tall in last night's exhibition game against Marian University -- a Catholic university in the Indianapolis area.  And, quite often -- this starting line-up had the largest "point forward" in America -- Tyrone Nash (6'8" - 232 lbs.) up top handling the ball -- dishing to teammates who enjoy taking advantage of their height by shooting from behind the 3 point line. (I'm trying to be funny...)  Notre Dame made 63% of their three point attempts in the first half -- in their 85-52 victory at Purcell Pavillion last night.  Coach Brey and some of the players met with the media after the game - here's a link to those conversations along with the South Bend Tribune's story on the game:

LINK:  IRISH WIN EXHIBITION GAME LAST NIGHT

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE STORY