Brian Kelly Goes Back Home to Danvers, MA

Notre Dame head football coach Brian Kelly was back home Thursday night in Danvers, MA -- speaking at St. John Prep's Alumni Foundation event.  Before the fun -- Coach Kelly met with the media.  Here's some of the coverage:

LINK:  ESPN BLOG

LINK:  BOSTON HERALD

LINK:  SALEM NEWS

Does Anyone Know Why Floyd Picked #15?

ND GO IRISH BLOG regular "Tom Badguy" asked a great question today -- why did former Notre Dame All-American Michael Floyd choose jersey #15 to wear in the NFL?  I can't find anything on Michael Floyd's number selection.  Anyone know?

LINK:  BUY MICHAEL FLOYD'S JERSEY

Michael Floyd Looks Different in a White Helmet

Former Notre Dame All-American Michael Floyd, participated in his inaugural rookie mini-camp yesterday with the Arizona Cardinals -- here's a few links to the media reports.  FYI -- I prefer the GOLD HELMET on Michael and the #3!

LINK:  VIDEO OF FLOYD 

LINK:  HIS FIRST NFL PRACTICE

LINK:  THE REPUBLIC

LINK:  ARIZONA CARDINALS SITE

NCAA Gives Scott Martin a 6th Year With IRISH!

Word broke this evening that Notre Dame senior Scott Martin has been granted a sixth year of eligibility -- making next year's Fighting Irish that much better today!  After teammate Tim Abromaitis got turned down last month on his request for a sixth year -- I wasn't feeling too good about this...

GREAT NEWS for Notre Dame basketball!

LINK:  SCOTT MARTIN TAKES THE SIXTH!

LINK:  SCOTT MARTIN INTERVIEW

LINK:  MIKE BREY INTERVIEW

Notre Dame's Latest "Two Sports" Star

Notre Dame fans are going to enjoy watching this video of Brittany Mallory and the story of her joining the IRISH Women's Lacrosse team after the Final Four.  You'll get a kick out of seeing Mallory "going to the goal" and destroying anything in her path!

LINK:  SHE'S THE FIGHTING IRISH!

Will This Book Be "Ghost" Written?

Former Ohio State University QB Terrelle Pryor, met with the folks at ESPN to talk about his mistakes in Buckeye land -- and he let the world know he'll tell the full story "whenever I write my book..."

Maybe he should have told the NCAA the $20,000 to $40,000 -- he's rumored to have received from signing autographs -- was an "advance" for his book!

LINK:  IN THE BOOK

Sporting News Ranks All 124 FBS Coaches

The Sporting News ranked every single head coach from #1 to #124 in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision.  Notre Dame football fans will be interested in seeing where the following coaches are ranked -- unfortunately, one of these former Irish coaches is ranked dead last...

• Brian Kelly
• Charlie Weis
• Bob Davie
• Charley Molnar

LINK:  RANKINGS OF THE FOOTBALL COACHES

Are You Notre Dame Material? Take a Look!

The good folks at the Notre Dame Alumni Association just published this story about the incoming freshman class -- the CLASS of 2016.  If you've got a son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, niece, nephew or friend -- who's interested in attending the University of Notre Dame -- you should share this link:

LINK:  DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES!

The Top "FREAK" Athletes in College Football

CBS Sports' Bruce Feldman put together his FREAK LIST of the TOP TEN ATHLETES in College Football.  A Notre Dame student-athlete is on the honorable mention list.  Any guesses?

LINK:  TOP TEN FREAK ATHLETES IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Jimmy Clausen in the Middle of "Hair-Gate"

Over the past 24 hours -- former Notre Dame QB Jimmy Clausen has been complaining on TWITTER about a "haircut" he had at SUPERCUTS...

Well, the "tweets" have caught the attention of the national media and competing barber shops in the Charlotte area.  Thought you'd get a kick out of this.

LINK:  BAD HAIR DAY FOR CLAUSEN

Big East Track & Field Championships Video

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame put on quite a show this past weekend in Tampa, FL at the Big East Track & Field Championship.  The Men placed first and the Women finished second -- CONGRATULATIONS!

Here's a link to UND.COM's coverage of the meet:

LINK:  BIG EAST CHAMPS!

Ever Walk Into a Room and Forget Why?

Well, Notre Dame psychology professor Gabriel Radvansky has researched why this happens...

This story has gotten plenty of play over the past six months or so -- unfortunately, "I forgot" to bring it to the attention of the readers of the ND GO IRISH BLOG.  Here you go:

LINK:  WHY YOU FORGET!

Coach Brian Kelly Ranked Among the Best!

Athlon Sports just came out with their ranking of the top-25 head football coaches in college football.  I won't spoil it where Notre Dame's Brian Kelly is ranked -- click on the link below:

LINK:  COACH KELLY -- ONE OF THE BEST!

Another AD Named White from Notre Dame

Danny White a 2002 graduate of the University of Notre Dame and former IRISH student-athlete was named the Athletic Director today at the University at Buffalo.  White, leaves Ole Miss where he was their Chief Fundraiser. 

Danny's Dad -- Kevin White, was Director of Athletics at the University of Notre Dame before moving on to lead the athletic department at Duke University.

Here's a link to the media coverage:

LINK:  WGRZ TV BUFFALO

LINK:  CLARION LEDGER

"The Most Improved Pitcher in Baseball..."

This is the label being placed on one Jeff Samardzija -- the former Notre Dame football All-American -- who's now on a roll as a starter with the Chicago Cubs. 

In his last 23 innings Jeff has an ERA of 0.84 with 23 strikeouts and only 6 walks.  He's now 4 - 1 on the season!

WAY TO GO SHARK!

LINK:  CHICAGO SUN TIMES STORY

LINK:  CHICAGO NOW STORY

Harrison & RJ's First Day in the NFL!

Former Notre Dame teammates Harrison Smith and RJ Blanton have begun their NFL journeys with the Minnesota Vikings -- or as Harrison put it "NOTRE DAME NORTH."  Found this video and story about these Irish stars -- ENJOY!

LINK:  VIDEO -- HARRISON'S FIRST DAY

LINK:  MINNESOTA VIKINGS BLOG

Notre Dame's Football Shoes for Ireland Game

Looks like the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame will be wearing the colors of IRELAND on their feet for their September 1, 2012 game in Dublin against Navy.  What do you think?

Makes you wonder what's in store for Notre Dame's game jersey and helmet for this game...

Notre Dame Lacrosse a #4 NCAA Seed!

The 2012 NCAA Men's Lacrosse National Championship tournament field was announced this evening and the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame were given a #4 seed earning a match-up with Yale next Saturday @ 5:15 PM ET -- here at Arlotta Stadium. 

Here's a link to the ESPN story and list of the sixteen schools that received the invitation!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME A #4 SEED

A Good-Bye Note From Aaron Lynch's Mom

Thought Notre Dame fans should see this post made by Alice Lynch today -- the mother of Aaron Lynch, the former Irish student-athlete who will be transferring to the University of South Florida.  Here's what she had to say:

This time tomorrow I will be picking up Aaron from Notre Dame and yes it's going to be definitely hard for me. Me and my family have met so many wonderful people and have had so many great times. I will cherish the memories for sure. The Notre Dame family will always be apart of us. Thank you to all the Coaches, players and fans for all the love that you guys have shown my son and family. You guys will forever be in my heart. Even though I won't be there in the stands cheering you guys on, I will always be cheering for you guys from a distance. I am so proud of all of you and Momma Lynch will miss you all. Stay focused in school and kick some *** on that football field. Go Irish!!!!! —

Kelly Needs to get a Gold Helmet on Giesting!

Notre Dame freshman track standout -- Chris Giesting (Batesville, IN) won the 200 Meters (21.15) and 400 Meters (46.03) today at the Big East Track & Field Championship -- earning "MOST OUTSTANDING PERFORMER" honors.  Giesting's coming off of a National Championship in a relay at the 2012 NCAA Indoor Men's Track & Field Championships -- not a bad start to a college career!

Notre Dame football player Josh Atkinson, took fifth in the 200 Meters with a time of 21.52

I looked up Giesting's bio on the Notre Dame Athletics site and noted he did not play football in high school -- but, he was a decent point guard in basketball -- so he must have some hands!

Maybe Coach Kelly can get him to walk on to the Irish football team!

LINK:  BIG EAST TRACK & FIELD RESULTS

Josh Atkinson Runs a 10.388 100 Meters!

And, they say Notre Dame doesn't have any speed...

In the last 24 hours -- two Notre Dame football players who share the same birthday and last name -- ran a 10.36 and a 10.388 in the 100 Meters at the Big East Track & Field Championships.  That is fast!

Just a couple of minutes ago, Josh Atkinson ran a 10.388 in the 100 Meter Finals to place 4th at the Big East Championships.  Twin brother George, who ran a 10.36 on Saturday -- had a lousy start and finished in 5th place with a time of 10.46 -- see final times below.

HAS THERE EVER BEEN A FASTER SET OF TWINS IN AMERICAN TRACK HISTORY?

The Irish Men's & Women's Track & Field teams were both in first place -- after the 100 Meters.

GO IRISH!

LINK:  LIVE WEBCAST OF CHAMPIONSHIPS

LINK:  RESULTS -- 100 METER MEN'S FINAL

Life After Football -- Duerson's Brain Injuries

Boston University's Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy released information this week on their findings of their study of Dave Duerson's brain.  IRISH fans will remember the former Notre Dame All-American took his own life a year ago February -- leaving behind a note requesting his brain be sent to the NFL Brain Bank.

Here's a link to the press conference -- along to a link to a recent interview former Duerson teammate Jim McMahon gave to ESPN concerning the troubles he's having...

LINK:  DAVE DUERSON'S BRAIN INJURIES

LINK:  JIM MCMAHON -- ESPN INTERVIEW

Best Looking Uniform in College Baseball!

The Notre Dame pinstripe baseball uniform is a classic.

Here's a photo of former Notre Dame football All-American Golden Tate in the pinstripes and "GOLD HELMET."  

I believe the gold helmet is not in use this season -- we need to bring it back!

George Atkinson III Runs 10.36 100 Meters!

The 2012 Big East Outdoor Track & Field Championships are this weekend in Tampa, FL -- and the Atkinson twins are doing just fine! 

Notre Dame freshman football star George Atkinson III ran his fastest 100 Meters of the season in yesterday's Semi-Finals going 10.36.  George's time is the 2nd fastest going into this afternoon's finals. 

Twin brother Josh ran a 10.50 which is the 7th fastest -- also qualifying him for today's championship heat.  Josh also qualified for today's 200 Meter Final with a 21.20 -- which is seventh fastest and just behind Irish teammate Patrick Feeney who went 21.19.

Here's a link to the LIVE RESULTS feed from the Championship -- along with a LIVE BROADCAST feed from Sunday's finals -- here's the schedule:

• 100 Meter Finals:  12:30 PM ET
• 200 Meter Finals:  1:15 PM ET

LINK:  LIVE BROADCAST -- WATCH THE RACES LIVE

LINK:  LIVE RESULTS FROM BIG EAST TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Notre Dame Alum & "Remember The Titans"

Virginia's Governor, Bob McDonnell (Notre Dame Class of 1976) -- was in the news this week with talk that he might be the VP pick for Mitt Romney in his run for the Presidency.  While that alone is a story worthy of the ND GO IRISH BLOG -- what caught my attention about Governor McDonnell was this little ditty:

McDonnell, a Catholic, played football in high school and even boasts of scoring his school's lone touchdown against the legendary 1971 T.C. Williams Titans featured in the film "Remember the Titans."

Here's the story:

LINK:  McDONNELL A VP CANDIDATE

Domer Makes Starting Debut for Yankees!

Former Notre Dame pitcher, David Phelps '08, made his major league "starting" debut last night for the New York Yankees in a game against the Kansas City Royals.  Phelps, who grew up nearby in the St. Louis, MO suburbs -- pitched four innings giving up 2 runs on six hits -- while striking out five.

His start was overshadowed by the news that Mariano Rivera -- probably the greatest relief pitcher of all time -- tore an ACL while jogging in the outfield before the game's start.  This might be a career ending injury -- see below.  Sad.

LINK:  PHELPS DEBUT

LINK:  BOX SCORE

LINK:  PHELPS THRILLED TO BE MAKING FIRST START

LINK:  LATEST ON RIVERA INJURY

Just Passed the 350,000 Unique Visitor Mark!

At approximately 11:31 PM ET last night -- a Notre Dame fan from Wayne, Pennsylvania became unique visitor number 350,000 at the ND GO IRISH BLOG!

As I like to do when the blog reaches a milestone visitor number -- I'll compare the size of this community to others around the country.  So, with an online community of 350,079 -- the ND GO IRISH BLOG would be the 52nd largest city in AMERICA!

Arlington, Texas is the 51st largest city in the U.S. with a population of 365,438 and Wichita is the 50th largest at 382,368 citizens.

Thanks for making the ND GO IRISH BLOG part of your Notre Dame life!

Will the Irish Have a New Starting QB in Ireland?

The start of the 2012 Notre Dame football season is just 122 DAYS away and the race for the starting QB position may have gotten clearer or muddier (depending on your perspective) -- around 12:30 AM this morning...

Do Tommy's troubles open the door for Hendrix or Golson to assume leadership of this team?

It's going to be an interesting summer.

Notre Dame's O.S.C.A.R.S. Night!

More than 750 Notre Dame student-athletes were honored Wednesday night at the Athletic Department's 11th annual O.S.C.A.R.S. Outstanding Students Celebrating Achievements & Recognitions Showcase.  You'll enjoy the link below to the TV commercial spoofs created by the Irish athletes:

LINK:  TV COMMERCIAL SPOOFS

LINK:  O.S.C.A.R.S. AWARDS LIST

Nick Buoniconti -- Hometown Hall of Famer!

Former Notre Dame All-American, two-time Super Bowl Champion and NFL Hall of Famer, Nick Buoniconti -- was honored yesterday at his high school (Cathedral High School) in Springfield, MA -- as a Hometown Hall of Famer by Allstate Insurance Company.  The photo above is of Nick and his Hall of Fame plaque.

Samardzija Gives Cubs Fans a Win Tonight!

Former Notre Dame All-America wide receiver -- Jeff Samardzija is finally showing why he made a great decision to pursue professional baseball over the NFL...

The "Shark" went 7 2/3 innings, striking out seven while giving up one run on three hits -- in the Cub's 3 - 1 win over the Reds. It's his third "quality start" in the first five weeks of the young season.  He's 3 -1 on the season with an ERA of 3.71 going into tonight's start...

LINK:  CHICAGO TRIBUNE STORY

LINK:  CHICAGO CUBS WEBSITE

LINK:  SEASON STATS FOR SAMARDZIJA

Domer Eric Olsen's Junior Seau Story

Word broke this afternoon that NFL all-time great Junior Seau committed suicide today at his California home.  Within minutes the stories of this man's life began to fill the social media channels.  One, which was shared by former Notre Dame offensive lineman Eric Olsen -- is linked below.  A pretty school story:

LINK:  ERIC OLSEN'S JUNIOR SEAU STORY

Muffet's Biggest Recruit Yet -- Just Might Be!

The story broke last night that former Irish hoops great, Beth Cunningham -- is returning "home" to the University of Notre Dame. 


Cunningham, the most successful HEAD COACH in the history of women's basketball at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) leaves with a record of 167 - 115 -- to join Muffet's staff.  Quite a catch for the IRISH!

You'll enjoy learning why Beth is coming home -- click on the link below:

LINK:  BETH CUNNINGHAM "BACK" TO THE IRISH! 

LINK:  NOTRE DAME ANNOUNCEMENT

Sports Illustrated Weighs In on ND Football

There's been plenty said in the past few weeks, in the media, about the discussions going on right now about a potential four team playoff and what it might mean for Notre Dame.  Well, Andy Staples from Sports Illustrated weighed in on all of the scenarios that could play out for the IRISH.  Click on the link below:

LINK:  INDEPENDENT NOTRE DAME

ONLY NOTRE DAME: One in a Billion!

Colin Littlefield, Law School student at the University of Notre Dame -- discovered a rare type of star this past summer.

Now, this story is a little over my head (pun intended) from this point forward -- so I'm going to quickly get you to the article linked below:

LINK:  THIS IS QUITE A FIND!

If HE Doesn't Get a Sixth Year -- Who Does?

The NCAA turned down Notre Dame's request for a sixth year of eligibility for Tim Abromaitis -- who only played two games of his senior season (his fifth year) after a season ending knee injury.

Abromaitis, who's the three-time defending Big East Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year (the first "three-peat" winner ever) is the epitome of what it means to be a student-athlete. 

I was honestly shocked to learn that Abromaitis was denied his request to get a sixth year of eligibility -- after learning the NCAA gave Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe a sixth-year on March 26th after his knee injury.  In fact, Mbakwe played in SEVEN games this past season before his injury -- FIVE more games that Abromaitis.

FACT:  Mr. Mbakwe played his freshman season at Marquette -- he then transferred to a junior college in Miami to play his sophomore season -- then he transfers to Minnesota and sits out that season with a "knee sprain."  Mbakwe then plays the next season for Minnesota and this past season (his fifth year of eligibility) he plays the first seven games before the knee injury.  Key fact -- Mbakwe doesn't have a degree after five years in college (Major:  Recreation, Parks & Leisure Studies).

NOW'S THE TIME WHERE I MUST CLEARLY STATE -- THESE VIEWS ARE MY OWN AND NOT THE UNIVERSITY THAT EMPLOYS ME.

Yet, the "student-athlete" who already has an undergraduate degree and a graduate degree -- who plays FIVE LESS GAMES in his fifth year  -- is not granted a sixth year by an institution that supposedly places value in the term STUDENT-ATHLETE.

It's not right.

LINK:  ABRO DENIED BY NCAA

LINK:  TIM ABROMAITIS -- SCHOLAR ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

LINK:  MINNESOTA PLAYER GETS SIXTH YEAR