Notre Dame to Play Ohio State in CCHA Semis

The #12 Fighting Irish of Notre Dame will play the "un-ranked" Ohio State Buckeyes this Friday afternoon at Joe Louis Arena in the semi-finals of the CCHA HOCKEY TOURNAMENT.

Miami of Ohio will play Michigan in the other semi-final.  The winners will play Saturday for the honor of being the last CCHA Champion!

Notre Dame and Ohio State last played back in February in Columbus -- with the Buckeyes winning 6 - 3 the first night and the two teams playing to a 2-2 OT time the next night -- with the IRISH winning the shootout for the extra point.

Should be a good crowd in the Motor City!

LINK:  TO BUY TICKETS -- CLICK HERE!

Know Thy Opponent -- Iowa State Cyclones

Took a quick look around the web to see what I could find out about the Iowa State Cyclones from the Big 12 Conference.  Iowa State lost their last game to Kansas 88 - 73 in their conference tournament.  Photo above of Iowa State's reaction to playing Notre Dame...

It didn't take long for ALL of the talking heads at ESPN to pick Iowa State over ND -- probably the best news we could get!!!

Some quick facts:

• 22 - 11 season record
• The Cyclones are 6 - 4 their last 10 games
• Four starters score in double figures -- led by Will Clyburn at 15.0 pts. per game

Starting line-up:

• Melvin Ejim (F) -- 6'-6"
• George Niang (F) -- 6'-7"
• Chris Babb (G) -- 6'-5"
• Korie Luscious (G) -- 5'-11"
• Will Clyburn (G) -- 6'-7"

LINK:  VIDEO OF IOWA STATE'S REACTION TO PLAYING ND

LINK:  HIGHLIGHTS FROM THEIR LAST GAME

LINK:  POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE

Notre Dame To Play Iowa State in West Region

The Notre Dame men's basketball team will begin NCAA Tournament play next Friday night in Dayton, OH against the Iowa State Cyclones in First Round play in the WEST REGION.  The Irish are a #7 seed.

An omen?  The last team to beat the overall #1 seed in the tournament (Louisville) -- the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame! 

The defending National Champion Kentucky Wildcats -- did not make it into the tournament -- along with schools like Virginia, Maryland, Iowa, Tennessee, Southern Miss an Alabama..

Here's a link to the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Bracket -- along with the reaction from Notre Dame:

LINK:  COACH BREY

LINK:  SELECTION SUNDAY PRESS CONFERENCE

LINK:  PLAYER REACTION

LINK:  NCAA MEN'S TOURNAMENT

Lunardi Has ND a #6 Seed in NCAA Tourney

ESPN's resident "bracketologist" Joe Lunardi -- has the Fightin' Irish of Notre Dame playing in the EAST REGIONAL as a #6 seed -- playing a #11 seed Saint Mary's in the First Round at Auburn Hills, MI. 

"WHEN" the IRISH win -- they would more than likely play Michigan State in the Second Round...

Of course, we'll find out for real tonight -- who the IRISH will play and where.

Here is Lunardi's latest Bracketology:

LINK:  LATEST NCAA BRACKET

NCAA Tournament Bracket Released Tonight!

Notre Dame basketball fans will want to tune-in to THE SELECTION SHOW today at 6 PM ET on CBS.  The NCAA Men's Tournament field will be announced at that time.    

The women's NCAA Tournament field will be announced on Monday...

If you can't get to a TV -- you can click on the link below and watch it live on the web!

LINK:  WATCH THE SELECTION SHOW LIVE -- RIGHT HERE!

ND Glee Club Performs "McNamara's Band"

Happy St. Patrick's Day to the Notre Dame Family!  Enjoy the talented ND Glee Club's performance of "McNamara's Band" -- by clicking the link below.

LINK:  MCNAMARA'S BAND

ND Glee Club Performs "Rocky Road to Dublin"

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

The University of Notre Dame's Glee Club performed "Rocky Road to Dublin" in front of the cameras a couple of weeks ago in the Debartolo Performing Arts Center.  Enjoy!

LINK:  ROCKY ROAD TO DUBLIN

Video of Coach Kelly -- St. Patrick's Day Parade

Notre Dame football coach Brian Kelly was the Grand Marshal today for the St. Patrick's Day Parade in downtown Chicago.  Here's the ABC-7 coverage of the parade -- and Coach Kelly marching down the street...

LINK:  COACH KELLY -- GRAND MARSHAL

It's On to the NCAA Tournament For Our IRISH

Having played a little basketball in my day -- I can tell you I wouldn't want to play against Louisville.  Full court pressure -- for the entire game -- that's not fun for the guys handling the ball.  And, if you watched last night's game -- that relentless defense wore our guys down.

It's time to put that game in the rear view mirror and on to the NCAA...

ND will find out tomorrow night -- who they play and where they play.  Can't wait!

Here's a link to the post game press conference after ND's 69 - 57 loss to #4 Louisville -- and ESPN's coverage:

LINK:  POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE

LINK:  ESPN COVERAGE

Notre Dame Glee Club Performing "Danny Boy"

Happy St. Patrick's Day Weekend!

The University of Notre Dame's world-famous GLEE CLUB recently performed one of my favorites -- DANNY BOY.  Enjoy!

LINK:  DANNY BOY

Domer Kevin Ford '82 -- Back to Earth!

Notre Dame alum Kevin Ford '82, (that's him on the right) -- Captain of the International Space Station (Expedition 34) -- returned safely to earth in the past hour in a Soyuz space capsule in a remote area of Central Asia (Kazakhstan).

You're going to find the "departure" video from the Soyuz capsule -- interesting...

Ford led a 142 day mission at the International Space Station.


LINK:  VIDEO OF FORD LEAVING CAPSULE 

LINK:  CHANGE OF COMMAND CEREMONY

LINK:  STORY CONFIRMING LANDING

ESPN Critiques Notre Dame's Adidas Jersey

Digger and his crew at ESPN had some fun critiquing Notre Dame's new Adidas jersey...

LINK:  FASHION POLICE

Louisville Up Next for the IRISH -- Tonight!

The beat goes on...

The Fightin' Irish will play their third game in three days at the "world's most famous arena" -- Madison Square Garden.  Tonight's Big East Tournament opponent is Louisville -- a team we've split games with this season.

It's going to be tough one -- we stay close the first seven minutes and I think we can win!

The game will probably tip-off around 9:45 PM ET tonight on ESPN.  GO IRISH!!!


LINK:  GAME PREVIEW -- UND

LINK:  ND vs. LOUISVILLE -- GAME PREVIEW

LINK:  MADDUX SPORTS

LINK:  PRE-GAME

Where Are They Now -- Adrian Dantley

I found this story quite enlightening...

Former Notre Dame All-American and NBA Hall of Famer, Adrian Dantley -- has a new job these days -- I believe you'll be quite surprised!

LINK:  WHAT ADRIAN DANTLEY IS DOING...

Brian Kelly on MSNBC's "Morning Joe"

The University of Notre Dame's Brian Kelly was on the "Morning Joe" show this past Wednesday morning -- to talk about the KELLY GANG...

Unfortunately, Joe Scarborough is an Alabama fan.

LINK:  BRIAN KELLY INTERVIEW -- SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE

Big Win for IRISH -- Now It's Louisville!

Folks, if you watched the first half -- of the first half -- you would have never guessed this outcome.

The IRISH missed 15 of their first 17 shots to start the game...

Yet, NOTRE DAME WINS!!!

The Irish beat Marquette 73 - 65 to move on to the Big East Tournament semi-finals tomorrow night against Louisville.  This is ND's fourth straight trip to the semi-finals.

Here's a look at what the media is saying about the Irish's big win!


LINK:  IRISH ICON -- GOOD STUFF!

LINK:  GAME HIGHLIGHTS 

LINK:  NEW YORK POST

LINK:  MILWAUKEE JOURNAL 

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  ESPN COVERAGE

Brian Kelly -- Grand Marshal Chicago Parade!

The University of Notre Dame's head football coach Brian Kelly is the Grand Marshal of the 2013 St. Patrick's Day Parade in Chicago this Saturday!  The parade kicks off at NOON CT.   The parade route:  Columbus Drive at Balboa going north to Monroe Street.

Turning the CHICAGO RIVER GREEN begins at 10 AM CT -- photo above.

Rumor has it that Notre Dame's Bagpipe Band will march with Coach Kelly.

If you're in Chicago Saturday -- you'll want to JOIN IN THE FUN and yell GO IRISH! to Coach Kelly!!!  If you can't make it to the parade -- ABC-7 Chicago will be broadcasting LIVE beginning at NOON CT.

LINK:  COACH KELLY -- GRAND MARSHAL

Inside Look at Big East Tournament Champs!

The folks at Fighting Irish Digital Media just released an "inside look" at Notre Dame's Big East Tournament Championship -- you'll enjoy this access!

LINK:  IRISH ICON

Irish Win Last Night -- Marquette Tonight !!!

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish trotted out their new Adidas jersey, shorts, sock and shoe combo last night in "grand fashion" -- beating Rutgers 69 - 61 in the world's most famous arena  -- Madison Square Garden in the Big East Tournament.

The IRISH now face #3 tournament seed Marquette at 9 PM ET tonight -- a game that will be televised on ESPN.  Here's the media coverage from last night's win:

LINK:  ESPN COVERAGE

LINK:  UND

LINK:  IRISH ICON

LINK:  NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

LINK:  NEW JERSEY STAR LEDGER

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

The IRISH Play Rutgers Tonight @ 9 PM ET

You can watch Notre Dame's opening game of the Big East Tournament against Rutgers -- tonight on ESPN2 at 9 PM ET.  It's our last time playing in this event...

The IRISH beat Rutgers back in January 69 - 66 at home -- in their only meeting this season.  It's going to be a tough game!  The photo above is of Rutger's Wally Judge -- who went 9 for 9 from the field last night in their win over DePaul...

LINK:  GAME PREVIEW

The Catholic Church Has a New Pope!

The College of Cardinals have completed their Conclave in less than 30 Hours -- just selecting the next Pope.  His name is Jorge Mario Bergoglio from Argentina.  He has taken the name Pope Francis -- the first to take this name -- and the 266th Pope in the Church's history.  He is 76 years old.  Here's the live coverage!

LINK:  FOX NEWS COVERAGE

Notre Dame's Relay For Life Auction -- Bid Now!

The University of Notre Dame's UR Relay For Life Auction just went live today at NOON EST.

Over the next 48 hours -- you can bid on many items -- with all of the proceeds going towards fighting Cancer.

There are 80 UNIQUE ITEMS that Notre Dame fans would love -- so get to the site and BID!

The Auction ends Friday at Noon!

LINK:  RELAY FOR LIFE AUCTION

LIVE -- Conclave Chimney Webcam

Thought the ND GO IRISH BLOG followers might appreciate a LIVE link to a webcam pointed at the Chimney on top of the Sistine Chapel -- where the Conclave is taking place in Vatican City.

Here's the projected voting schedule today:

• 12:30 PM ET
• 2:00 PM ET

LINK:  LIVE WEBCAM

Photo of the Day: ND Students in Rome!

You've got to love this sign made by a number of Notre Dame and Saint Mary's College (Notre Dame, IN) students who are in Rome over Spring Break...

The Mornin' After: Big East Champions!

The #2 ranked Fightin' Irish keep racking up the wins -- we're at 26 IN A ROW and counting -- for a team that wasn't even ranked in the top ten in the preseason rankings.  And last night's win came over arch-rival UCONN -- the third time Notre Dame has beat them this season!

Here's what the media has to say about ND's first Big East Tournament Championship in basketball!

LINK:  ESPN

LINK:  HARTFORD COURANT

LINK:  HARTFORD COURANT #2

LINK:  NEW YORK TIMES

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE 

LINK:  GAME HIGHLIGHTS

LINK:  BIG EAST SITE

Notre Dame -- BIG EAST TOURNEY CHAMPS!

Folks, they have won 26 straight -- THREE THIS YEAR OVER UCONN -- as the Lady Irish win 61 - 59 and the first BIG EAST TOURNAMENT Championship!!!

And, they win it on the ROAD -- in front of the UCONN home crowd.

The win is the seventh for Notre Dame in the last eight times these two teams have played -- INCREDIBLE!

LINK:  BOX SCORE

The Move to the ACC Becomes Official July 1st

Jack Swarbrick made the announcement this afternoon that Notre Dame would become an official member of the Atlantic Coast Conference on July 1st.  It's going to be fun!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME COACHES' REACTION

The IRISH Take on UCONN Again -- 7 PM ET

How many times can you BEAT one team in the same season?

For the third time this season (second time in eight days) -- of what's expected could be a four-game series once the NCAA Tournament is completed -- the #2 ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame will take on the #3 ranked Huskies of UCONN in the Big East Tournament Championship game.

The game tips off at 7 PM ET TONIGHT -- with TV coverage provided by ESPN.

Here's a preview of the game:  ND vs. UCONN

OT -- Jeff Gordon "Test Drive" -- MUST SEE!

Folks, if this doesn't get your heart racing -- with a few laughs thrown in -- NOTHING WILL!

You must watch this video!

LINK:  JEFF GORDON'S PEPSI MAX TEST DRIVE

Muffet's Irish "One and Done" With New Gear

Well, the new uniforms that Adidas provided the Notre Dame women's basketball team (photo above) are history...

Adidas provided a number of schools with a new uniform combination to wear for their conference tournaments and the NCAA tournaments -- Notre Dame was one of those schools.

The Irish wore the new gear in their opening round game in the Big East Tournament Monday night -- however, the team voted after the game -- not to wear them again.  Notre Dame donned their regular home uniform combination in the win last night over Louisville.

It will be interesting to see what Mike Brey's team does -- will they wear the new uniform combination tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden?


PS:  I have to admit I like the jersey top on its own and I like the shorts -- on their own.  Together, not so much...

LINK:  ONE AND DONE WITH UNIFORM

ND Men's Basketball -- Day #1 in New York City

The Fightin' Irish are in the Big Apple this week to play in the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden.  Notre Dame plays the winner of the Rutgers vs. DePaul game on Wednesday night at 9 PM ET. 

The team flew into NYC last night and today they made a visit to the 9/11 Memorial -- here's a couple of links to the Fighting Irish Digital Media's coverage on Day One:

LINK:  9/11 MEMORIAL

LINK:  TEAM WORKOUT

Muffet's #2 IRISH to Play #13 Louisville Tonight

The #2 ranked Notre Dame women's basketball team will be playing the #13 ranked Louisville Cardinals tonight in the Semi-finals of the Big East Tournament in Hartford, CT.  The game will be televised LIVE on ESPNU beginning at 6 PM ET.

GO IRISH!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME vs. LOUISVILLE PREVIEW

Ian Williams Signs Two Year Deal With 49ers

Irish fans will recall that former Notre Dame defensive tackle Ian Williams went un-drafted in the 2012 NFL Draft -- after being projected to go in the first four rounds or so... 

Ian went on to sign a Free Agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers and made their 53 man roster this past season.  Well, it was just reported that Williams just signed a two-year deal with San Francisco for $3.2 million including a $1 million signing bonus and another $1 million guaranteed.

Congratulations Ian!

LINK:  TWO YEAR DEAL

Notre Dame Adidas Tourney Gear In Bookstore

Took these photos last night -- at the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore at Eddy Street Commons -- of the "home" jersey the Irish men's team will wear during the Big East Tournament -- and the "away" shorts...

I will admit they look pretty good in person...

ND Freshman QB Training in Arizona This Week

Malik Zaire, one of the top HS QB's in the country, enrolled early this past January as a student-athlete at the University of Notre Dame.  This week he's in Arizona (SPRING BREAK) with Irish teammates; Louis Nix, Kendall Moore and Davonte Neal getting some training in for ND's upcoming Spring Football...

He caught up with a reporter from Rivals yesterday -- you'll be impressed...

LINK:  MALIK ZAIRE

Notre Dame Glee Club's Spring Tour This Week

If you live close to one of the communities listed below this week -- you will have the opportunity to see the Notre Dame Glee Club perform!

They are wonderful! 

The Glee Club is on the road performing in seven states during Notre Dame's Spring Break.  Friday night they performed in Chicago, Saturday in Madison, WI and here's where you can find them today and for the balance of the tour:

• TODAY -- Minneapolis, MN
• Monday -- Fargo, ND
• Tuesday -- Bismarck, ND
• Wednesday -- Great Falls, MT
• Thursday --  Billings, MT
• Friday --  Denver, CO
• Saturday -- Omaha, NE

LINK:  NOTRE DAME GLEE CLUB TOUR DATES

Regis Philbin '53 Has New Gig With Fox Sports

The man is amazing...

He's 81 years YOUNG and he's taking on a new broadcasting job.  Notre Dame alum Regis Philbin will be debuting a new sports talk show on Fox's new sports network called Fox Sports 1 -- August 19, 2013.  Fox Sports 1 will replace the Speed Channel on cable.

Here's a clip of Regis talking about his new gig:

LINK:  REGIS IS BACK!

Coach Kelly Talks With the South Bend Tribune

University of Notre Dame head football coach Brian Kelly sat down for an interview with South Bend Tribune beat writer Eric Hansen.  It was the first one-on-one interview Coach Kelly has given since the Alabama game...

LINK:  COACH KELLY TALKS

Notre Dame Student's Book For Sale at Amazon

Katie Mattie '14 -- a student at the University of Notre Dame -- can now add AUTHOR to her resume!  Her book "M.A.J.I.C. and the Oracle at Delphi" is available for sale on Amazon and the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore.


I first wrote about Katie on the ND GO IRISH BLOG back in July 2011 -- after learning about her valedictory speech at Ypsilanti High School -- click here for that story.

You'll love to learn about Katie's work ethic and determination -- over a five year period -- to get her first book published!  You'll see the story on her website linked below.

Katie -- I'm a huge fan! 

(The bottom photo is of Katie and her proud Mom Barb -- at a book signing for bookstores in her hometown)


LINK:  KATIE'S WEBSITE

LINK:  BUY KATIE'S BOOK

The #1 Sign Back Atop Notre Dame's Grace Hall

I was driving through campus Thursday night and I noticed the #1 sign was lit atop Grace Hall -- signifying that, once again, a Notre Dame team was ranked #1 in the nation...

The Women's Fencing team moved to #1 in the country with their win this past weekend at the Midwest Fencing Conference championships.  Congratulations!

LINK:  ND WINS CHAMPIONSHIP

LINK:  NATIONAL RANKINGS

Irish Play Louisville Today at 4 PM ET on CBS

Rumor has it that CBS has alerted their affiliates that their Saturday "prime time" programming could be in jeopardy...

The #24 ranked Fighting Irish travel to Louisville this afternoon to play the #8 ranked Cardinals in a game that just might extend beyond the normal 40 minutes for a college basketball game.

FIVE OF THE LAST SIX GAMES BETWEEN THESE TWO TEAMS HAVE GONE INTO OVERTIME.  You can't make that up!

Fortunately, the IRISH are 3 - 2 in those games, including the historic FIVE OT win last month.

Tip-off is scheduled for 4 PM ET and the game will be televised nationally by CBS.


LINK:  GAME PREVIEW

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  COURIER JOURNAL -- LOUISVILLE

Plenty of Speculation on ND's Next Move...

With the news this week that the Catholic 7 had reached agreement with the BIG EAST -- to take their ball elsewhere and the conference's name too...

The focus turned to how quickly would Notre Dame depart to the ACC.  Here's the latest media speculation:

LINK:  ESPN

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  NBC SPORTS

LINK:  THE SPORTING NEWS

IRISH Sweep All Three Major Big East Honors!

The Notre Dame's women's basketball team swept the three major awards given out by the Big East Conference today:

• Player of the Year:  Skylar Diggins
• Freshman of the Year:  Jewell Loyd
• Coach of the Year:  Muffet McGraw

Congratulations!!!

LINK:  UND.COM VIDEO 

LINK:  PRESS CONFERENCE

LINK:  NOTRE DAME SWEEPS!

Notre Dame #1 College for Graduating Students

Money Magazine just released a ranking of all of the colleges and universities in America -- as to their proficiency in graduating its students in a four year period...

And, the #1 school in the country for graduating its students in four years is -- THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME!

Here's a ranking of the top ten schools:

1. UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME
2. Georgetown University
3. University of Pennsylvania
4. Boston College
5. Harvard
6. Duke
7. Northwestern
8. Cornell
9. Washington University
10. Vanderbilt

LINK:  RANKINGS OF ALL SCHOOLS

Cardinal Dolan -- Commencement Speaker !!!

The New York media affectionately calls him the "Holy Bulldozer..."

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops was announced today as the principal speaker and recipient of an honorary degree at the University of Notre Dame's 168th Commencement Ceremony. 

Here's the link to the official news release -- along with a second link to a CBS 60 Minutes interview of Cardinal Dolan:

LINK:  OFFICIAL RELEASE

LINK:  60 MINUTES INTERVIEW

84th Annual Blue Gold Game Tickets On Sale!

The Fighting Irish football team will take the field again on April 20, 2013 at Notre Dame Stadium in the 84th Annual Blue Gold Game.   And, tickets went on sale today.  Here's the link for more information:

LINK:  BLUE GOLD GAME TICKETS

Belichick Leads Impressive List to Speak at ND!

Looks like Coach Kelly's three days on the golf course in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am -- in a group with New England Patriot's head coach Bill Belichick -- has paid some dividends...

Notre Dame just announced that the Super Bowl Champion coach will headline a list of impressive coaches who will be presenters at the Notre Dame Football Coaches Clinic -- April 11- 13.  Here's the scheduled speakers beyond Coach Kelly and his staff:

• Bill Belichick -- New England Patriots head coach
• Marv Lewis -- Cincinnati Bengals head coach
• Marc Trestman -- Chicago Bears head coach
• Chris Ault -- former University of Nevada head coach
• Saw Wyche -- former Cincinnati Bengals head coach
• Andy Heck -- Kansas City Chiefs offensive line coach

If you're interested in attending the Notre Dame Football Coaches Clinic -- click on the link below!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL COACHES CLINIC

The Mornin' After Notre Dame's 3 OT Win!

It's the best rivalry in women's college sports -- Notre Dame vs. UCONN...

And, last night's 3 OT game was just another in a long line of great games between these two powers.

Took a lap around the web this morning to see what the media had to say about the IRISH's big win last night to earn a second straight Big East Regular Season Championship -- just click on the links below:

LINK:  HARTFORD COURANT #1

LINK:  HARTFORD COURANT #2 
 
LINK:  ESPN'S GRAHAM HAYS 

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  THE DAY -- CONNECTICUT

LINK:  NEW HAMPSHIRE REGISTER

LINK:  BIG EAST WEBSITE