Your Irish QB -- A Great Story!

Dayne Crist is ready for his chance to lead the Fighting Irish! Here's a great story in today's Chicago Tribune on the "fat kid stuck in a skinny kid's body." Enjoy!

DAYNE CRIST -- NOTRE DAME QB!

Big Recruiting Weekend for Irish!

Over the last 24 hours -- Brian Kelly & staff received commitments from four of the top players in the country! The "gold rush" began at 11 AM yesterday morning when Justice Hayes, a running back out of Grand Blanc, MI chose the Irish over Michigan, Michigan State & Tennessee at a news conference at his high school. A couple of hours later; Anthony Rabasa, an OLB out of Miami, FL committed to the Irish. Rabasa chose ND over Florida, Florida State, UCLA and Miami. Then later yesterday -- out of nowhere -- Jalen Brown, a defensive back out of Irving, TX committed to the Irish, even though he's yet to visit the Notre Dame campus! Brown chose ND over Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Nebraska. Then this morning at 11 AM -- on live television in the South Bend area -- Aaron Lynch, the 6'6" 245 lb. defensive end out of Cape Coral, FL "made it four in less than 24" for the Fighting Irish. Lynch, one of the top defensive end prospects in the country - chose Notre Dame over Florida, Florida State and many, many other top programs. Welcome all to the Notre Dame Family! (Photo LtoR: Brown, Hayes, Lynch & Rabasa). The verbal commitments from these four prep stars brings the total to 16 for the Class of 2011 -- and a #6 national ranking for this Notre Dame recruiting class. High school Student-Athletes will make their commitment "official" next February -- though word on the street is Lynch will enroll early (January 2011). Here's a link to Lynch's "live" announcement:

LYNCH COMMITS TO NOTRE DAME

PHOTO OF THE DAY -- Golden Tate's Autograph!

Former University of Notre Dame All-American, Golden Tate, stayed after practice the other day signing autographs for Seahawk fans. One "avid" fan asked Golden to sign his head (see photo).

Grotto -- Five Days After Fire

This photo was taken this morning at the Grotto on the campus of the University of Notre Dame. Five days earlier, a fire broke out inside the Grotto. As you can see, the small fire left its mark on the inside of the Grotto and burned away much of the ivy that draped the shrine. The University is still restricting access to the interior of the Grotto until it completes its inspection.

Think You're Good at Math?

Well, you might want to reconsider after reading this. Notre Dame professor of Mathematics, Sergei Starchenko (pictured) has been asked to speak at the International Congress of Mathematicians. Just like the Olympic Games - this conference is held every four years and next month they will meet in Hyderabad, India -- under the auspices of the International Mathematical Union. Didn't know there was such a group! Starchecnko, along with his colleague Ya′acov Peterzil of the University of Haifa in Israel, will present their research on o-minimality, a model theoretic framework for tame geometry that they use to investigate properties of complex analytic sets. Now, do you think you want to take his math class at Notre Dame? Here's a link to the Conference's website -- just in case you were interested!

INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF MATHEMATICIANS

Notre Dame Couple Gives $5 Million!

James Parsons and Dr. Carrie Quinn, a married couple and Notre Dame graduates -- made a very generous $5 million gift to their alma mater this week. Parsons earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from Notre Dame and a master in business administration degree from Harvard University. He has been a portfolio manager for Viking Global Investors in New York since 2003. Quinn is a graduate of both Notre Dame and Tufts University Medical School. She completed her residency at Boston Children’s Hospital and now is a pediatrician in Forest Hills, N.Y. Parsons & Quinn's gift to the University of Notre Dame will endow a directorship in the University's Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases. Notre Dame is committed to finding a cure for rare diseases that typically carry a "death sentence" for those afflicted. A big THANK YOU to this Notre Dame family!!! Here's a link to a video that promotes Notre Dame's efforts in this area:

FINDING A CURE

Theismann to Replace Haden

In six months, I've yet to make a prediction at THE NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG -- but, I'm going to this time. Joe Theismann will replace Pat Haden in the NBC booth this fall for Notre Dame Football. There you go! It makes all of the sense in the world. He's worked the biggest "weekly" professional stage in football television; 'Monday Night Football, he's an accomplished athlete; Super Bowl Champion, NFL MVP and he just happens to be a "DOMER" who had great success at his alma mater; College Football Hall of Famer, All American QB and Heisman Runner-up. I think that just might make him ready for the "biggest weekly stage in college football television; "NOTRE DAME SATURDAY." Notre Dame needs someone in the booth to tell "our story" -- we need an individual who's passionate about the Irish -- yet, is confident enough to call it like it is when things aren't going so well for the blue and gold. Joe Theismann is that guy. NBC are you listening? Here's a link to story this week from USA Today's "media expert" on what he believes NBC should do -- along with a link to Theismann's Wikipedia entry:

THEISMANN IS THE GUY

THEISMANN'S WIKI

PHOTO OF THE DAY -- Clausen Goes to Camp

Jimmy Clausen, second round draft pick of the Carolina Panthers, is seen here walking from his car into a dorm at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC -- home of the Panthers pre-season training camp. Earlier in the day the former Irish star signed his first NFL contract.

Tate gets $3.26 million -- $1.47 Guaranteed!

Former Notre Dame All-American and Biletnikoff Award Winner, Golden Tate, agreed to terms this morning with the Seattle Seahawks on a four-year contract. Tate's deal, with incentives, can reach $3.26 million over the four year period. The contract includes a $1 million signing bonus -- and an additional $470,000 in guaranteed money for the former Irish star. Rookies report to training camp tomorrow for the Seahawks. Here's a link to the Seattle Seahawks blog below. Congratulations Golden!

GOLDEN TATE SIGNS WITH SEATTLE!

Clausen gets $6.3 million -- $2.5 Guaranteed!

Former Notre Dame quarterback, Jimmy Clausen agreed to terms, early this morning, with the Carolina Panthers. It's a four-year deal with incentives that could total $6.3 million. The contract includes a signing bonus of $2.5 million -- a good negotiation for Clausen who surprisingly dropped to the 48th pick of this year's NFL Draft. The great news for both parties is Clausen won't miss any days of the Panthers training camp -- which starts today. Here's a link to the ESPN video:

CLAUSEN SIGNS NFL CONTRACT

Desert to Dome -- 369 Miles So Far!

University of Notre Dame's Dean of the College of Science, Greg Crawford and his wife Renate are four days into their journey from Tucson, AZ to South Bend, IN -- bringing "home" the relationship between the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation and Notre Dame. Their latest update-- came from Las Cruces, New Mexico -- as they wrote about their encounter with a german shepherd (must have been a USC fan!) and dinner with the Notre Dame Club of El Paso. Here's a picture of them taking a quick break from the bikes -- standing next to the chase van and the entrance to a "ghost town" in New Mexico. You'll enjoy keeping track of the Crawford's 2,200 mile journey on their blog -- here's the link:

DESERT TO DOME -- OFFICIAL BLOG

Domer Leads USA to Gold Medal!

Former Notre Dame All American Lacrosse player, D.J. Driscoll, scored a goal in the USA's 12-10 victory over Canada in the title game of the 2010 Federation of International Lacrosse World Championship in Manchester, England. Driscoll, a defenseman for Team USA is a 2006 graduate of Notre Dame and currently a member of the Chicago Machine of Major League Lacrosse. The victory was the seventh world title for the USA. Congratulations D.J.!

More Photos of Grotto Fire...

Here are two more photos taken of last night's fire at the Grotto on the University of Notre Dame campus. It took four members of the University of Notre Dame's Fire Department -- thirty minutes to extinguish the flames.

LATEST UPDATE FROM GROTTO

A Wonderful Story...

Danny Spond (pictured), out of Littleton, Colorado -- is a member of Brian Kelly's first recruiting class. Spond is on campus right now taking a few classes and working out with his teammates and Coach Longo. Irish Sports Daily's Christian McCollum penned this wonderful story about Danny and his journey to Notre Dame. After reading his story -- I believe he'll become one of your favorite players on the Notre Dame roster. It's a "free" story on this subscription site -- enjoy:

DANNY SPOND

Vegas "Over/Under" on Wins for Notre Dame

VegasInsider.com just released its annual "over/under" win totals for the upcoming football season. What this means is you can place a bet with them that a team will either win more (over) or less (under) than the number of wins they've set for the season. The Fighting Irish's number has been placed at 8 wins for the 2010 season. Here's a look at the over/under win totals for a few of Notre Dame's opponents this season -- and a link to the report:
Michigan: 7 wins
Stanford: 7 wins
Pittsburgh: 7.5 wins
Utah: 8 wins
USC: 10 wins

VEGASINSIDER.COM

Notre Dame's Grotto Catches on Fire - Update!

One of the most visited landmarks on the University of Notre Dame campus -- the Grotto -- caught on fire last night. The last time this happened was in 1985. The Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, was completed in 1896 as a replica of the original in Lourdes, France. Construction began in 1895 -- and it was during this period that this little known "miracle" happened: A Notre Dame Priest named Father Maguire nears the end of his letter of correction concerning the 1896 Grotto with this brief description of a little known event that occurred as the Grotto was nearing its completion. "The "spring" actually did appear and old Father Letourneau felt it was a miracle since it appeared almost at the same spot as the one at Lourdes. But wiser people closed it up so as to prevent wild rumors regarding it." This incident at the Notre Dame Grotto paralleled a similar occurrence that happened at the Grotto of Lourdes in France in 1858. When Bernadette scratched a hole in the dirt of the floor of the cave at Lourdes, a spring appeared. It became the origin of the Lourdes water that is still sent all over the world. See the link below titled "Dedication of the Grotto." The cause of the fire is under investigation -- and for now, the entrance into the Grotto is closed until University officials determine the extent of the damage. UPDATE TO ORIGINAL STORY: University of Notre Dame officials report that there were visitors praying at the Grotto when the fire broke out. The latest information is available at the link below to the Chicago Tribune story. The original WNDU-TV news story is also linked below:

GROTTO CATCHES FIRE

CHICAGO TRIBUNE UPDATE FROM NOTRE DAME

DEDICATION OF THE GROTTO

A Great Place To Work -- Notre Dame Honored!

The University of Notre Dame has again earned Honor Roll distinctions in the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Great Colleges to Work For program. The Great Colleges program evaluates universities on the basis of a dozen criteria such as teaching environment, facilities, compensation and benefits, and the faculty and staffs’ sense of respect and appreciation. The program is three years old; Notre Dame has participated in the past two years, earning Honor Roll distinctions both years. The primary factor for awarding the Great Colleges designation is employee feedback on a survey about the workplace environment administered by the Great Colleges program partner, ModernThink L.L.C. The University of Notre Dame was just one of 39 schools to receive this honor. Click on the link below to see the list of schools. Congratulations Notre Dame!

THE GREAT COLLEGES PROGRAM

Here's the Proof -- Can Coach Kelly Sing?

I've seen comments all morning long from those in attendance at the Cub's game that Coach Kelly won't be leaving Notre Dame for America's Got Talent! anytime soon. Here's the link to a video of Coach Kelly's night at Wrigley Field -- you be the judge...enjoy!

COACH KELLY AT WRIGLEY

Nun Takes on USC's John Robinson!

Former USC Football Coach, John Robinson, was in town last week for his enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame. During his stay in South Bend he granted an interview with WNDU-TV. One of his stories was a classic. He recalls pulling up in their team bus to Notre Dame Stadium for the 1993 game. Robinson is the first guy off the bus, and he sees a nun standing there waiting to greet his team (so he thinks). Having gone to Catholic grammar and high school, Robinson immediately smiled and said "Hi sister, how are you?" The reaction wasn't what the coach expected. "We're going to beat the hell out of you people today," the nun replied. Well, she was right! The Irish beat the Trojans that day 31 - 13. Sounds like Brian Kelly should track this nun down and have her stand at the Visitor's lockerroom door for every home game! Here's a link to the video interview:

USC COACH ROBINSON'S RUN-IN WITH NUN AT ND

Samardzija: 7 - 1 with Iowa Cubs

After watching the Chicago Cubs play last night on ESPN, hoping to see Coach Kelly conduct "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" (I didn't see him on TV) -- I began wondering how a former Notre Dame All-American football player nicknamed "Shark" was doing with baseball? Well, he's doing quite well! Jeff was sent down by the Cubs to their top minor league team (Iowa Cubs) in April. They had him first come out of the bullpen as a closer -- but have since moved him into a starting role. He's 7 - 1 with the Iowa Cubs winning his last three starts. Samardzija has a ERA of 2.76 in 58.2 innings pitched -- striking out 58 while walking 38. His 2.76 ERA is best on the team among pitchers with more than 50 innings of work. Here's a link to the Iowa Cubs team website:

IOWA CUBS OFFICIAL SITE

Paterno - "Notre Dame would not be..."

Joe Paterno, long time coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions sure is bitter about Notre Dame. In a recent interview he let the world know that he would rather see Rutgers join the Big Ten over Notre Dame. His exact words: "Notre Dame would not be one of my top picks." Paterno feels Rutgers would do more for the Big Ten than Notre Dame. EARTH TO JOE! Joe, please know this -- NOTRE DAME DOES THE PICKING! Here's hoping Notre Dame always remains independent -- and never joins the likes of Paterno's Big Ten!

PATERNO -- OUT OF TOUCH!

Zibby Adds Eight Inches to Vertical Leap!

Just checked in on former Notre Dame safety and now Baltimore Raven, Tom Zbikowski. A story in yesterday's Baltimore Sun speaks to what he's been doing this offseason to make himself better. Well, it appears he's been successful! Zibby added 2 1/2" to his neck size and 8" to his vertical leap. Here's a link to the story:

ZIBBY HARD AT WORK

Reminder -- Coach Kelly at Wrigley Tonight!

Coach Kelly is conducting "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" tonight at the Cubs games against the Cardinals. It's the Sunday Night Baseball game -- meaning it will be televised live on ESPN. The game starts at 8 PM EST.

IRISH IDOL Returns!

It's been a few months since THE ND GO IRISH BLOG's talent scouts have searched the global web for the best performers of the greatest college fight song on the planet. Here's Regis Philbin '53 leading The Band of the Fighting Irish at the world famous Carnegie Hall in New York City this past May:

REGIS & THE BAND OF THE FIGHTING IRISH - CARNEGIE HALL

Kelly Cares Foundation Event -- Chicago

The Kelly's were in Chicago Saturday evening, hosting a Kelly Cares Foundation event in the Windy City. A few reporters caught up with Coach Kelly and here's their story -- along with a video interview. Click on the link below:

KELLY CARES FOUNDATION -- WINDY CITY

Clausen & Tate Still Unsigned

Former Notre Dame quarterback and second round draft pick of the Carolina Panthers - Jimmy Clausen - has yet to sign his first NFL contract. Clausen's surprising drop to the second round -- took millions of "guaranteed" dollars off the table in this negotiation. As a point of reference, Sam Bradford, the first QB taken (and #1 pick overall) is looking at $50 million guaranteed -- while Clausen, the second QB taken in the NFL Draft will be looking at probably $1.5 to $2 million tops in guaranteed money. Meanwhile two of Clausen's teammates; Sam Young (four-year deal, terms not disclosed, with a $110,500 signing bonus) and Eric Olsen (four-year deal starting at $395,000 -- don't know what signing bonus was) signed contracts with the Cowboys and Broncos, respectively, in the past week. Meanwhile, Golden Tate is still negotiating with the Seahawks. Earlier this month, the player drafted the spot before Tate -- signed a $3.25 million dollar four-year contract. Of the $3.25 million -- $1,025,000 was guaranteed. Meaning Tate will probably be looking at a contract totaling $3 million over four years with around $1 million guaranteed. The challenge for Clausen, Tate, Young and Olsen, with NFL contracts, is the only money guaranteed is the signing bonus. So, signing a four-year contract, like Young and Olsen did, doesn't mean you'll be employed -- you have to earn your spot, every day. Your NFL team could cut you tomorrow and all you're owed is the signing bonus. Fortunately, these four are more fortunate than most in the "LEAGUE" -- since they'll always have their Notre Dame education to fall back on. Here's hoping that's many years from now!

"Welcome to Notre Dame..."

The University of Notre Dame introduced its new head baseball coach this week -- Mik Aoki. Aoki is the 20th head baseball coach in the history of Notre Dame baseball. I knew this fact from the press release that Notre Dame sent out to the media. Now, I could have just picked up the phone and called Cappy Gagnon -- who just happens to be the foremost authority on Notre Dame baseball in the world. A 1966 graduate of Notre Dame, Cappy Gagnon returned to his alma mater in March 1996 to assume his current post as coordinator of stadium personnel. In that role, he is responsible for overseeing the 857 ushers who handle crowd management for football games at Notre Dame Stadium. When you hear one of them say "Welcome to Notre Dame" -- that's Cappy's influence. Cappy has had an interesting and distinguished career. Gagnon has previously served as assistant director of training at THE POLICE FOUNDATION, a Washington, D.C.-based police think tank; the executive assistant/director of special programs for the Sheriff of Los Angeles County; and the technical services manager for the Olympia (Wash.) Police Department. While with the L.A. Sheriff's Department, he received the Exemplary Service Award, two commendations from the National Association of Counties, and a commendation from the L.A. Human Rights Commission. Because of his service on the nine-member Los Angeles County "Blue Ribbon Commission on the Homeless," he received a commendation from the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. Gagnon also worked for Gavin de Becker as a security supervisor, providing protective services for more than 30 of the most prominent public figures in the entertainment industry. In that capacity, he supervised security of many of the entertainers who performed at President Ronald Reagan's first inauguration in 1981. Gagnon also was the security escort and provided all the advance work for more than 100 venues for Cher's 1990 world tour. A noted baseball historian, Gagnon served two years (1984-85) as the president of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR), a worldwide group of 7,000 baseball historians. He also wrote Notre Dame Baseball Greats (cover above), published by Arcadia Press (2004) -- a link to buy the book online is below. One of my favorite Cappy Gagnon stories is when Bobby Bowden brought his Seminoles into Notre Dame Stadium to play the Irish (not sure of the season). Now, it was well known that the Seminoles had a "grave yard" outside their football practice field in which they ceremoniously 'buried' a clump of grass from every away football field they were victorious. They called these clumps "scalps." Well Cappy wasn't going to allow that to happen at Notre Dame! So, the game is over, the Seminoles had beaten the Irish that day - and one of the Seminoles' star players had just reached down to take a "scalp" out of Notre Dame Stadium. Only to find someone grabbing his wrist -- telling him "politely" to put that grass down -- he did -- that someone was Mr. Cappy Gagnon. The scene was caught by a photographer who later presented the series of photos to Cappy - which you'll find framed on his office wall. The topper was the next day when this athlete was interviewed about the game and he mentioned that the Irish "weren't that tough, but their ushers sure were!" If you ever have the honor of crossing paths with Cappy Gagnon -- and I hope you do -- you'll quickly learn he's a class act, a wonderful representative of his alma mater and a NOTRE DAME MAN! Buy his book!

AMAZON: NOTRE DAME BASEBALL GREATS

Desert to Dome -- Starts TODAY!

University of Notre Dame's Dean of the College of Science -- Greg Crawford and his wife Renate -- begin their 2,200 mile bike ride from the Desert (Tucson, AZ) to the Dome (Notre Dame, IN) TODAY! The Crawford's are "bringing home" the relationship between the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation and the University of Notre Dame -- as the two have joined forces to find a cure for Neimann-Pick Type C. A disease that took the lives of three of Coach Ara Parseghian's grandchildren at a young age. The journey will be documented on their blog -- link below -- so please be sure to check in on them over the next four weeks. They expect to ride onto campus on August 23rd. Those of you along their route (the map is on the blog) please make an effort to cheer them on -- either on the side of the road or at one of the Notre Dame Club events scheduled. SAFE TRAVELS!

OFFICIAL DESERT TO DOME BLOG

More Than 10,000 Unique Visitors!

This morning, the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG went over the 10,000 unique visitors mark -- in less than six months! Notre Dame fans from all 50 States and more than 40 countries, around the globe, have made ND GO IRISH BLOG part of their daily "Notre Dame fix." Thank you! In honor of reaching the 10,000 Unique Visitor benchmark -- I've changed the design of the site. I hope you like! Go Irish!

You Have to Watch this Video!

Notre Dame Football players, Michael Floyd and Mike Ragone decided to take their "skills" to Melissa Cook Stadium on the University of Notre Dame campus. Little did they know what they were getting into as they stood at the plate and faced Irish hurler Jody Valdivia (pictured). Valdivia (Anaheim Hills, CA) set a school record this year for most wins in a season (32) while striking out more than 240 batters. You can now add two more to Jody's total -- though it appears Ragone was given a gift at the end! Take a look:

CAN YOU HIT THIS!

Brian Kelly to Sing at Wrigley -- Sunday Night!

University of Notre Dame Head Football Coach, Brian Kelly, will be the guest conductor of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" this Sunday night -- during the seventh inning stretch of the Cubs vs. Cardinals game. The game will be nationally televised by ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball crew (8 PM EST) - don't be surprised if Kelly does an interview with them during the game. He will be interviewed by WGN Radio during the sixth inning. If you get there early, you'll see Coach throwing out the ceremonial first pitch as well. Here's a link to Ozzy Osborne, leading the Cubs fans in this wonderful tradition - let's hope Coach Kelly sounds better than Ozzy!!!!

OZZY SINGS AT WRIGLEY

HERE'S THE VIDEO OF COACH KELLY'S DAY AT WRIGLEY

"Catholics vs. Convicts" -- A Renewal

The University of Miami's Athletic Director, Kirby Hocut, "let the cat out of the bag" yesterday when he announced that they had agreed to a three game series with the Fighting Irish. The schedule calls for a "neutral site" game at Chicago's Soldier Field in 2012 and then a game at Notre Dame in 2016 followed by a game at Miami in 2017. Notre Dame fans will recall that the series was not renewed in 1990 after bad blood between the schools (photo). To set the stage -- here's Rocket Ismail's classic story about his first Miami vs. Notre Dame game at Notre Dame Stadium:

STORY TIME WITH ROCKET ISMAIL

"Domer" Schedules Second Pro Fight

Top Rank Boxing announced this week that former three-time Notre Dame Bengal Bouts champion and 2009 Notre Dame grad -- Mike Lee, will be fighting his second professional bout on August 14th. Lee, who earned a win in his first pro fight -- a unanimous decision over Emmit Woods on May 29th -- will be taking on Keith Debow in a light-heavyweight bout at the Laredo Energy Center in Laredo, TX. Mike is currently in Houston training with Ronnie Shields. Shields is no slouch, he's worked with Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Pernell Whitaker -- to name just a few. Good Luck Mike!

TOP RANK BOXING WEBSITE

Desert to Dome -- Starts Saturday!

Dean Greg Crawford and his wife Renate's bike ride from Tucson to South Bend -- to "bring home" the relationship between the Ara Parseghian Medial Research Foundation and the University of Notre Dame -- begins Saturday, July 24th. Following them on their 2,200 mile journey is a "chase van" (pictured here in front of the Main Building) -- click on photo to enlarge. The ND GO IRISH BLOG will be following the Crawford's on their ride home to Notre Dame -- a ride that is expected to end on August 23rd. If you live along their route -- see the route on the linked site below -- be sure to say hello, honk a horn, YELL GO IRISH! -- even sign the chase van. And, if you're so moved, make a donation to this worthy cause. Safe travels!!!

DESERT TO DOME

The Home of the Most Heisman Trophies!

In light of USC's decision yesterday to return Reggie Bush's Heisman Trophy -- leaving USC with six Heisman Trophies -- does that now mean that Notre Dame is the only school with seven Heisman Trophy "winners?" The Heisman Trust is rumored to be meeting next week to decide just that. At the very least -- Notre Dame is, once again, the only college campus in America where you'll find seven Heisman trophies! I'd like to believe that USC's actions make it that much easier for the Heisman Trust to follow suit and rescind Bush's Heisman Trophy. Makes you wonder now if Bush and his family feel that the home and the other perks they received, was worth it. Here's a link to the story concerning USC removing the trophy as well as a second story discussing the Heisman Trust's plans:

USC RETURNS HEISMAN TROPHY

HEISMAN TRUST TO MEET

Who Takes Haden's Spot in the Booth?

With the news yesterday that Pat Haden, NBC color analyst, will be named the next Athletic Director at USC -- effective August 3rd -- there is an opening in the Notre Dame telecast booth. It's going to be interesting to see who NBC will select for this position. I would like to see a "pro Notre Dame" voice sitting alongside Tom Hammond. My top choices: Joe Theismann, Rocket Ismail, Jerome Bettis or Steve Beurlein. Here's a link to an article that lists many more prospects for the position:

WHO IS NEXT?

"I'm Done With Coaching"

These were the words of one Tyrone Willingham, who was recently interviewed by a Jacksonville newspaper. Many thought that was the case after his second season with the Irish. The 56 year-old former Notre Dame Head Coach hasn't been seen much since his firing from Washington. Ty says he "is retired" -- I'm guessing he's just playing a little more golf these days! Here's a link to the article:

WILLINGHAM DONE WITH COACHING?

ND Priest Named Holy Cross Superior General!

The Rev. Richard V. Warner, a 1962 grad of Notre Dame, has been named the 12th superior general of the Congregation of Holy Cross. Warner will lead the worldwide ministries of Holy Cross from its headquarters in Rome. He takes on these duties this week. Congratulations Father Warner! Here's a link to a photo and news release on this apointment:

REV. RICHARD V. WARNER

Irish -- 66 to 1 Odds to Win BCS Championship

The "experts" in Las Vegas have spoken -- and they've placed the odds of Notre Dame winning the BCS Championship in 2011 at 66 to 1. This is according to the oddsmakers at online sportsbook Sports Interaction. Here is a link to their analysis of the Fighting Irish:

THE SPREAD

Theismann Finishes 16th -- Tolliver Wins

The American Century Championship -- a golf tournament played on the shores of Lake Tahoe -- annually brings together stars from the entertainment and sport communities. This made for TV event, had five "Notre Damers" in the field -- with Joe Theismann, Steve Beurlein, Jerome Bettis (pictured), Digger Phelps and Lou Holtz teeing it up. Theismann had the best finish, winding up 16th, while Beurlein finished 51st, Bettis 56th, Digger 72nd and Lou pulled out of the last round. Billy Joe Tolliver ran away from the field, setting a Stabelford Scoring record for the event and winning for the third time.

Theismann Tied for 13th!

Joe Theismann is the "low Notre Damer" at this week's American Century Golf Championship in Lake Tahoe. Theismann (pictured), in 13th place, is one of five athletes/coaches, playing in the tournament who have ties to the University of Notre Dame. Steve Beurlein, Jerome Bettis, Digger Phelps and Lou Holtz are the others. Beurlein is currently 51st, Bettis is 55th, Phelps (recovering from prostate cancer surgery) is 70th and Lou is in 78th place going into today's final round. You can watch the tournament live on NBC today from 3 PM to 6 PM EST.

LIVE LEADERBOARD