Johnny Lujack Recovering "Well" From Surgery

The man many consider the greatest athlete to ever wear a Notre Dame uniform -- Johnny Lujack '47 -- is at the Mayo Clinic this morning recovering from successful neck surgery.  Here's the story:

LINK:  LUJACK

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE STORY

LINK:  THE LEGEND OF LUJACK

Justin Tuck Leading By Example in Oakland

Former Notre Dame All-American and Super Bowl Champion Justin Tuck is getting used to his new surroundings in Oakland. 

See the story linked below:

LINK:  TUCK

Troy Niklas Finally Hits the Practice Field in AZ

Former Notre Dame student-athlete Troy Niklas has been dealing with a couple of injuries ever since being drafted in the 2nd round of this year's NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals.

Well, he finally hit the field this week -- albeit a little rusty...

As you can see in the photo above -- Troy is wearing a protective soft-cast over his healing broken right hand.

LINK:  NIKLAS PRACTICING

Detroit Lions Are Raving About Golden Tate

They're calling him the "best #2 wide receiver" ever to line-up opposite Calvin "Megatron" Johnson in Detroit...

I was surprised to hear that Golden was such a good "route runner."  It was one of his knocks when he first got to the NFL a few years ago.

LINK:  BIG DAYS FOR GOLDEN?

Nice Story About the Cardinals' Michael Floyd

Is this the year former Notre Dame All-American Michael Floyd becomes a dominant force in the National Football League?  The folks in Arizona think so...

LINK:  MICHAEL FLOYD

Notre Dame Alumna Swims English Channel!

Sara Marley '90, completed the 21 mile swim in 13 hours and 50 minutes!!!

Here's the story!

LINK:  ENGLISH CHANNEL SWIM

LINK:  BLOOMBERG NEWS STORY

Notre Dame Design Element for Under Armour?

If you look closely at the "numbers" and shoulder stripes -- inside the design -- it appears the designers at Under Armour are picking up the ceiling of Notre Dame's Basilica of the Sacred Heart (top photo) in the look they've created for the women's soccer jerseys...

This is just a guess.

We never saw anything like this from Adidas.

Local News Coverage: Field Turf Install Done!

Here's a few of the local news reports from South Bend TV outlets -- as they were let inside Notre Dame Stadium today to see the completed installation of Field Turf.   Only a few "minor" touch-ups before the opening game on August 30th!

It looks fantastic!

LINK:  WNDU-TV STORY

LINK:  WSBT-TV STORY

LINK:  ABC 57 -- STORY

Notre Dame Soccer's New Under Armour Jersey

They will be the "best dressed" team in college soccer!

Take close notice to all of the detail:

• The collar:  God, Country, Notre Dame
• The numbers and shoulder stripes  Looks like they may have picked up a design cue from the ceiling of the Basilica

Click on the photos to enlarge.

Notre Dame Soccer's New Under Armour Shoes

They're getting cooler all the time!

The New View From Notre Dame's Tunnel

Is this awesome or what!!!

Got to Love Mike's Lee's Boxing Trunks!

Found these photos of "undefeated" pro boxer Mike Lee '09 from his Friday night fight in Chicago!  His boxing trunks are off the charts!

LINK:  LEE GOES 13-0!

Jerian Grant Returns "Home" to Notre Dame

Here's a three-part feature on Jerian Grant's return to Notre Dame for his senior season.  Click on the links below:

LINK:  JERIAN -- PART 1

LINK:  JERIAN -- PART 2

LINK:  JERIAN -- PART 3

Skylar Shares Workout Secrets With Oprah!

The former Notre Dame All-American Skylar Diggins offered some tips on working out in the August issue of Oprah Magazine...

The Tulsa Shock announced today that Skylar set their all-time single season scoring record with her 560 points -- with eight games left to play!

LINK:  SKYLAR WITH OPRAH

Football Tickets Tough to Sell in Ann Arbor

Here's what happens when your home schedule looks like this:

• Appalachian State
• Miami of Ohio
• Utah
• Minnesota
• Penn State
• Indiana
• Maryland

Your Athletic Director seeks approval to set off fireworks after the games to entice fans to buy tickets. 

LINK:  MICHIGAN TICKET CHALLENGE

ND's "Left Side" Making a Mark in NFL Camps

Former Notre Dame offensive lineman Chris Watt '13, was taking first team reps at the Chargers' training camp -- there's a link to the story below -- as was his more famous running mate Zack Martin '13, who's turning heads at the Cowboys' camp.

Chris wears #65 for the Chargers.  Zack wears #70 for the Cowboys.

LINK:  CHRIS WATT

LINK:  ZACK MARTIN

LINK:  VIDEO OF PRACTICE -- CHRIS IS #65 / MANTI #50

Interesting Take: Will ND Help or Hurt ACC?

A couple of writers at ESPN tackled the question -- "Will Notre Dame help or hurt the ACC this season?"  It's an interesting read...

LINK:  ND & THE ACC

Notre Dame Talked With Georgia's Dooley...

About coaching the Fighting Irish after Dan Devine stepped down.

Vince Dooley -- the long time coach and AD at Georgia "prayed" for the IRISH as a young boy in Mobile, AL.  Notre Dame fans will enjoy this South Bend Tribune story.

LINK:  DOOLEY & NOTRE DAME

Latest Photo of Notre Dame Stadium Field Turf

It looks magnificent!

The "eighteen" endzone lines are in -- all pointing at the GOLDEN DOME -- with each set at an angle of 42 degrees -- to signify Notre Dame's founding in 1842.

Just click on the photo to enlarge.

Latest Photo of Notre Dame Coaches UA Gear

The Notre Dame football coaches returned to campus today to get ready for the 2014 season -- here's what was awaiting them in their locker room at the Guglielmino Athletics Complex.

Photo courtesy of Ryan Grooms @NDFBEquipment

Is This the Biggest NFL Contract in ND HIstory?

Former Notre Dame student-athlete Kyle Rudolph signed a $36.5 million contract extension yesterday with the Minnesota Vikings.   See the video interview below. 

The amount just might be the biggest ever signed by a former Notre Dame football player in the NFL.  Here's the top three that I've tracked down...

1. Kyle Rudolph:  $36.5 million
2. Golden Tate:  $31 million
3. Justin Tuck:  $30 million

If you know of bigger NFL deals signed by former ND football stars -- send me an email at jim.small@ndgoirish.com

LINK:  RUDOLPH TALKS $36.5 MILLION

Brady Quinn Joins Fox Sports College FB Team

Former Notre Dame All-American Brady Quinn has apparently signed a contract to be a color analyst on Fox Sports' college football telecasts this fall. 

Congrats Brady!

LINK:  BRADY'S BROADCAST BOOT CAMP

End Zone Stripes Are In -- Notre Dame Stadium

Drove by the Rockne Gate at Notre Dame Stadium -- this afternoon -- and took this photo.  I could see the diaganol stripes in the endzone are in place -- unfortunately, this photo does not do it justice.

From outside the tunnel gate -- the field looks awesome!

Here's the latest photo from inside Notre Dame Stadium -- much better!

Here's the story behind the end-zone stripes at Notre Dame Stadium.  There are nine stripes in each endzone -- totaling 18.  They are each set at an angle of 42 degrees -- all pointing towards Notre Dame's iconic Golden Dome.  

They signify the year 1842 -- the year the University of Notre Dame du Lac was founded.

 

SBT's Lesar Talks ND Football Independence

A group called CINESPORT -- never heard of them -- interviewed the South Bend Tribune's Al Lesar about the future of Notre Dame's football independence.  Here's a link to the video interview:

LINK:  INDEPENDENCE

OT: Nike's "Passing of the Baton" to Rory

You've got to hand it to Nike -- they "just do it..."

LINK:  NIKE

Justin Tuck's New Start With Oakland Raiders

The Mercury News caught up with former Notre Dame All-American Justin Tuck as he gets ready for his first Training Camp with the Oakland Raiders...

The photo above is of Tuck's distinctive face mask -- now on the "silver and black" helmet of the Raiders.

LINK:  TUCK

Harrison Smith Predicts How Many Irish Wins!

Former Notre Dame football captain Harrison Smith was interviewed walking into Vikings Training Camp the other day and he was asked a question about how many wins will our Fighting Irish have this season...

LINK:  HARRISON SMITH

Story on the Pittsburgh Steelers' Stephon Tuitt

Former Notre Dame student-athlete Stephon Tuitt is featured in this article about the Steelers' defensive line...

LINK:  TUITT

Coach Kelly Hosts FB Camp in Washington D.C.

Notre Dame head football coach Brian Kelly was in Washington D.C. this week hosting a football camp at St. Johns College High School.

The folks at the Washington Times caught up with Coach Kelly for a quick interview...

LINK:  COACH KELLY

Photo of Kona Schwenke at KC Chiefs Practice

Here's a photo of Kona Schwenke (#93) today at the Kansas City Chiefs practice today...

Michael Floyd "One of the Top 25 Players..."

Under the age of 25 in the NFL...

So says the gang at ESPN -- click on the link below:

LINK:  MICHAEL FLOYD

Field Turf's Notre Dame Promotion Video

I'm going to take a guess that they don't do this often for their Field Turf installations...

LINK:  FIELD TURF PROMO VIDEO

The Five Best End Zone Paint Schemes...

You'll be surprised who's number #1 in this list of the "five most creative end zone paint schemes."

Now, you also must consider the source...

LINK:  END ZONE PAINT SCHEMES

ND Player Updates -- First Day of Training Camp

A number of Notre Dame football players suited up for the first day of NFL Training Camp with their respective teams today.  Here's what I could find on a number of former Fighting Irish football stars -- as you'll see, an alarming number of them were placed on the NFL's "PUP List."

That Notre Dame degree is so, so important!

LINK:  CHRIS WATT -- SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

LINK:  KYLE RUDOLPH -- MINNESOTA VIKINGS

LINK:  LOUIS NIX -- HOUSTON TEXANS

LINK:  STEPHON TUITT -- PITTSBURGH STEELERS

LINK:  GOLDEN TATE & T.J. JONES -- DETROIT LIONS

LINK:  PRINCE SHEMBO -- ATLANTA FALCONS

LINK:  ZEKE MOTTA -- ATLANTA FALCONS

LINK:  HARRISON SMITH -- MINNESOTA VIKINGS

LINK:  JIMMY CLAUSEN -- CHICAGO BEARS

LINK:  THEO RIDDICK -- DETROIT LIONS

LINK:  JOHN CARLSON & TROY NIKLAS -- ARIZONA CARDINALS

LINK:  KAPRON LEWIS-MOORE -- BALTIMORE RAVENS

LINK:  SERGIO BROWN -- INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

LINK:  ZACK MARTIN -- DALLAS COWBOYS

LINK:  DAVID BRUTON -- DENVER BRONCOS

LINK:  BENNETT JACKSON -- NEW YORK GIANTS

LINK:  ROBERT HUGHES -- ARIZONA CARDINALS

LINK:  IAN WILLIAMS -- SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

LINK:  MANTI TEO -- SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

LINK:  ANTHONY FASANO -- KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

Aerial Photo of Notre Dame Stadium Field Turf

My understanding is these were taken by Joe Raymond -- South Bend Tribune free-lance photographer

Notre Dame Coaches' Under Armour Gear

The Fighting Irish football staff will return to the Guglielmino Athletics Complex next Monday as they gear up for the start of fall training camp on August 3rd -- the day players report.

Here's a photo of their new gear from Under Armour -- awaiting their arrival.

The photo was "tweeted" today by Ryan Grooms @NDFBEquipment

The "PRIME TIME" Fighting Irish of Notre Dame

Folks, it looks like seven of Notre Dame's football games this season will be televised in "prime time" on Saturday nights this fall.  I don't think any team has ever had this much prime time TV coverage in one season before...

Only Notre Dame!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME vs. NAVY IN PRIME TIME

The ND Monogram is in Place at the Stadium!

Here's the latest photos from the installation of Field Turf at Notre Dame Stadium.

They are moving fast!

Coach Kelly & Staff Visits Under Armour Today

The Notre Dame Football staff made the trek to Maryland today to visit the folks at Under Armour.  Here's a couple of photos "tweeted" by Coach Kelly...

The Field Turf is Down at Notre Dame Stadium

Here's the photo from today!  Next up -- the sidelines!!!