You'll want to read this story about Taylor Leadership Academy's 3rd Grade Class' trip to see Notre Dame take on Stanford...
LINK: "NOW I BELIEVE"
Monday, November 30, 2015
Notre Dame's "Class of 2029" at Stanford...
You'll want to read this story about Taylor Leadership Academy's 3rd Grade Class' trip to see Notre Dame take on Stanford...
LINK: "NOW I BELIEVE"
OT: Greatest Helmet / Uniform Story -- EVER!
I am absolutely jazzed with what Under Armour has come up with for the Naval Academy and their annual game next Saturday with Army...
WOW !!!
You're going to want to read the STORY tied to the helmets and uniform design...
I'm now thinking -- maybe we should do Notre Dame tribute helmets -- these next five Shamrock Series games to our five National Championship coaches and their eleven teams.
What do you think?
Sunday, November 29, 2015
"Tight End U" Became "Tight End FEW" in 2015
As in few catches (17), few yards (204) and ONE TOUCHDOWN for the entire 2015 season.
What happened to the home of; Casper, MacAfee, Bavaro, Mastzak, Hunter, Brown, Holohan, Fasano, Smith, Carlson, Rudolph, Eifert, etc. ???
Notre Dame never sees this type of production -- for the season -- from the Tight End position:
- Alize Jones: 11 catches for 166 yards
- Nic Weishar: 3 catches for 19 yards
- Durham Smythe: 2 catches for 13 yards and 1 TD (fake field goal)
- Chase Hounshell 1 catch for 6 yards
Here's Stanford's production out of their Tight End position (last night) against Notre Dame:
- 9 catches for 174 yards and 2 TD's
If you want to point to a telling stat for the season -- especially when you look at Notre Dame's inability to score TD's in the Red Zone -- it was SIX total points out of the TE position (which came on a fake field goal).
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Are the Fighting Irish Peach Bowl Bound?
Other bowl options:
- Fiesta Bowl vs. Ohio State
- Tax Slayer Bowl vs. Mississippi State
Notre Dame Arrives at Stanford Stadium
Jaylon Smith and the Irish have arrived at Stanford Stadium. We're live at 6 on WNDU with the Irish. pic.twitter.com/e7Ja1QuvwM
— Angelo Di Carlo (@angdicarlowndu) November 28, 2015
A Domer's Son -- Playing QB at Stanford Today
Kevin Hogan, Stanford's QB -- is a son of Notre Dame. His dad, who died this past December from cancer, was a Domer as are dozens of other family members.
Here's a Mercury News story about Kevin and ND...
LINK: A SON OF NOTRE DAME
Friday, November 27, 2015
Thursday, November 26, 2015
Happy Thanksgiving from Notre Dame!
8FOR8 at Notre Dame: We gave 8 incoming Notre Dame students a GoPro camera to capture their first 8 weeks of college...
The Phone Call: A Notre Dame student talks about the "greatest moment" of her life.
This is Home: A freshman student opens up about her life and the home she's found at Notre Dame.
Halfway Around the World: A freshman student from China talks about the gift of his Notre Dame education.
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Take the Test -- Rank the TEAMS in the Playoff
Well, the Notre Dame family has its IRISH UP!
We just saw our Fighting Irish drop from #4 to #6 -- with three teams jumping us this week in the CFB Playoff Rankings. Here's what happened Saturday to precipitate this change:
- #4 Notre Dame beat Boston College (3 - 8) 19 - 16 -- despite five turnovers
- #5 Iowa beat Purdue (2 - 8) 40 - 20 at home
- #7 Oklahoma beat TCU (9 - 1) 30 - 29 -- stopping TCU's two point conversion to win the game
- #9 Michigan State beat Ohio State (10 - 0) 17 - 14 -- last second FG
We keep hearing the term "body of work" -- so, here it is -- the body of work for each of the teams ranked #3 to #6 in the CFB Playoff Rankings. Now it's your turn to sit on the Committee. You rank the teams...
TAKE THE CFB PLAYOFF COMMITTEE TEST!
Rank these four "nameless" teams -- in order of #3 to #6. I'm willing to bet you that if you just use the body of work -- you won't see the Fighting Irish outside the TOP FOUR!
TEAM A 10 - 1
- FBS Opponents' Record: 69 - 59
- FBS Opponents with 8+ wins: 3
TEAM B 11 - 0
- FBS Opponents' Record: 53 - 68
- FBS Opponent's with 8+ wins: 3
TEAM C 10 - 1
- FBS Opponents' Record: 70 - 60
- FBS Opponent's with 8+ wins: 4
TEAM D 10 - 1
- FBS Opponents' Record: 73 - 58
- FBS Opponents with 8+ wins: 5
If you need "tie-breakers" to assist you in determining the rankings of these four teams -- here they are:
- Team D beat Texas 38 - 3
- Team A lost to Texas 24 - 17
- Team D beat Pittsburgh: 42 - 30 @ Pitt
- Team B beat Pittsburgh: 27 - 24 @ Home (on a last second FG)
Cheat Sheet: Team A is Oklahoma, Team B is Iowa, Team C is Michigan State and Team D is Notre Dame.
A "Sneak Peek" -- A Season With Notre Dame
Go behind-the-scenes as @NDFootball made their home away from home @fenwaypark tonight,10p/9c. #ASeasonWith #NDvsBC
https://t.co/RMUL9071p1
— A Season With (@ASeasonWith) November 25, 2015
On Showtime this evening at 10 PM ET.
Tonight's CFB Playoff Rankings...
Whether we're #3, #4, #5 or #6 tonight -- it really doesn't matter.
WE HAVE TO BEAT STANFORD SATURDAY ON THE ROAD -- we do that and I like our chances of finishing in the TOP FOUR. Here's why:
- The ACC will have one team in the CFB Playoff
- The SEC will have one team in the CFB Playoff
- The Big Ten will have one team in the CFB Playoff
This is a given.
It will come down to who looks better on paper out of these three teams -- for one of those four positions in the Playoff:
- 11 - 1 Notre Dame
- 11 - 1 Oklahoma or an 11 - 1 Oklahoma State
Here's what that "paper" looks like right now:
NOTRE DAME:
- FBS Opponents: 11
- Opponents Records: 73 - 58
- Opponents with 8+ wins: 5
- Common opponent Texas: Notre Dame 38 - Texas 3
OKLAHOMA:
- FBS Opponents: 11
- Opponents Records: 69 - 59
- Opponents with 8+ wins: 3
- Common opponent Texas: Texas 24 - Oklahoma 17
OKLAHOMA STATE:
- FBS Opponents: 9
- Opponents Records: 67 - 60
- Opponents with 8+ wins: 3
- Common opponent Texas: Oklahoma State 30 - Texas 27
We beat Stanford Saturday night -- it will be difficult to keep us out of the Playoff!
Monday, November 23, 2015
Sunday, November 22, 2015
Full Game Replay: ND 19 - BC 16 @ Fenway
Here's a link to the full game replay of Notre Dame's win over Boston College last night at Fenway Park...
LINK: ND 19 - BC 16
Saturday, November 21, 2015
David Ortiz's Request of Notre Dame Football
This is pretty cool.
Notre Dame Football Equipment Manager Ryan Grooms @NDFBEquipment sent out this tweet, acknowledging that Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz requested that Notre Dame wide receiver Torii Hunter, Jr. (son of recently retired baseball star Torii Hunter, Sr.) -- be assigned his locker for tonight's game at Fenway Park.
Classy move.
Photo: Notre Dame Helmet Atop Green Monster
Notre Dame Football's Equipment Manager Ryan Grooms @NDFBEquipment "tweeted" out these two photos yesterday...
Boston's Security Plans for Tonight's Game
Here's a TV report from Boston's ABC affiliate last night about security plans for tonight's Shamrock Series game between Boston College and Notre Dame at Fenway Park.
LINK: BEEFED UP SECURITY
ND at Fenway: Undefeated & Unscored Upon
The Fighting Irish played their first game at Fenway Park back in 1944 -- beating Dartmouth 64 - 0. The coach that year -- Ed McKeever -- was "standing in" for the legendary Frank Leahy, who left Notre Dame to serve our country in the Navy during World War II.
Tonight's game with Boston College will be Notre Dame's second football game at Fenway Park -- 71 years later.
Notre Dame's Team Photo at Fenway Park
The folks at @ndfootball "tweeted" this out last night after the Fighting Irish's walk through at Fenway Park --- note the iconic "Green Monster" in the background...
CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO ENLARGE.
Boston Globe: A Notre Dame Invasion!
Thought you'd enjoy this Boston Globe story where they suggest a name change for Boston to Notre Dame, Massachusetts as more than 30,000 Fighting Irish fans are expected to invade their town this weekend...
LINK: NOTRE DAME INVASION
Friday, November 20, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Video Proof Domer Did Tryout for Barnstormers
I received a number of inquiries over the last few days as to whether my son Jimmy Small '08 -- actually went through with trying out for the Iowa Barnstormers of the Indoor Professional League.
As you'll see in the story linked below --- they're is not a big market in professional football for a 6'-4" thin guy -- who can't run...
Better stick to your day job!
LINK: Burgeoning Iowa Barnstormer
Transforming the "Green Monster" for Football
Thought you'd enjoy all of the changes being made to Fenway Park's iconic Green Monster -- as they get ready to host football for the first time in 47 years -- Saturday night!
Matchup: Nation's #1 Defense vs. #29 Offense
How good is the Boston College defense?
- #1 in Total Defense -- an NCAA FBS ranking
- #1 in fewest yards allowed per game (237 yds)
- #1 in fewest rushing yards allowed per game (71.7 yds) this season
- #3 in fewest points allowed per game (14.1) this season.
They are very good!
Here's BC opponents -- and how they've fared against this defense:
- Maine -- scored 3 pts / 15.8 ppg avg.
- Howard -- scored 0 pts / 13.8 ppg avg.
- Florida State -- scored 14 pts / 30.9 ppg avg.
- Northern Illinois -- scored 14 pts / 35.8 ppg avg.
- Duke -- scored 9 pts / 30.8 ppg avg.
- Wake Forest -- scored 3 pts / 17.5 ppg avg.
- Clemson -- scored 34 pts / 38.5 ppg avg.
- Louisville -- scored 17 pts / 27.4 ppg avg.
- Virginia Tech -- scored 26 pts / 29.8 ppg avg.
- North Carolina State -- scored 24 pts / 32.8 ppg avg.
- NOTRE DAME -- scored ?? / 36.2 ppg avg.
National Rankings of Offenses that Boston College has / will play:
- #20 Clemson -- 532 total yards vs. BC
- #21 Northern Illinois -- 153 total yards vs. BC
- #29 NOTRE DAME
- #42 Florida State -- 217 total yards vs. BC
- #44 Duke -- 228 total yards vs. BC
- #61 Louisville -- 365 total yards vs. BC
- #71 North Carolina State -- 351 total yards vs. BC
- #88 Virginia Tech -- 275 total yards vs. BC
- #112 Wake Forest -- 142 total yards vs. BC
- Maine (not FBS) -- 91 total yards vs. BC
- Howard (not FBS) -- 11 total yards vs. BC
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Boston College's Addazio Talks Notre Dame
Here is a link to a video replay of BC's Head Coach Steve Addazio talking about Saturday's game against our Fighting Irish:
LINK: STEVE ADDAZIO
Prayers for Doug Flutie & Family
Doug's parents -- Richard and Joan Flutie, died within an hour of each other this morning... They were married 56 years.
Doug, the former Heisman Trophy winner from Boston College, is NBC's analyst for their broadcasts of Notre Dame Football.
LINK: FLUTIE FAMILY
A 3rd Grade Class Going to ND vs. Stanford!
Best trick ever! Thanks to some wonderful generous people we will be attending the ND vs Stanford game! #waywaywayup pic.twitter.com/TBJvjX9Std
— Ms Silva's 3rd Grade (@alsil23) November 18, 2015
Notre Dame alum Tim Connors '89 -- was gracious enough to treat Ms. Allison Silva's 3rd Grade Class' (Taylor Leadership Academy - Stockton, CA) with a pre-game tailgate lunch and tickets to attend Notre Dame's game next week against Stanford.
The video above captures the moment the 3rd graders find out they're going to see the Fighting Irish in person!!!
Ms. Silva's 3rd Grade Class has adopted Notre Dame as their school -- see the story right here: ND'S CLASS OF 2029
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Ten Teams Still in the Running for CFB Playoff
Folks, there are only TEN TEAMS that still have a realistic chance to be standing in the FINAL FOUR come December 6th -- here they are:
- ACC: Clemson or North Carolina
- SEC: Alabama or Florida
- BIG TEN: Ohio State, Iowa or Michigan State
- INDEPENDENT: Notre Dame
On the outside looking in -- right now:
- BIG XII: Oklahoma State or Oklahoma
Notre Dame #4 Stays Ahead of Iowa and Big XII
We know our friends in Bristol have been lobbying hard for the Big XII to take ND's spot in the FINAL FOUR...
Well, the FIGHTING IRISH remain in the final Playoff position at #4!
It's all about who you play -- who you beat!
NBC's ND Football TV Analyst Models BC's Uni
Here is Doug Flutie, former Heisman Trophy winner and Boston College graduate -- modeling the "throwback" uniforms his Eagles will be wearing this Saturday night against our Fighting Irish.
Four Days From Fenway for the Fighting Irish!
Here's a great aerial view of Notre Dame's "home field" in Boston...
BC vs. ND Not Televised by NBC Saturday Night
Fighting Irish fans -- this Saturday night's Shamrock Series game from Fenway Park between Boston College and Notre Dame is not on NBC.
The game will be televised LIVE beginning at 7:30 PM ET on the NBC Sports Network -- please check with your cable operator to ensure you have this channel.
If not, this is your FOUR DAY WARNING to make different plans to watch this game!
Monday, November 16, 2015
Must See: Rocket Ismail Telling a ND Story!
I never get tired of watching former Notre Dame football star Rocket Ismail tell this story!
Yahoo! Sports' Pat Forde Has ND #3 This Week
Here's what Pat Forde thinks about who should be ranked where -- in the College Football Playoff...
LINK: YAHOO! SPORTS
Aerial View: Notre Dame's Fenway "Home" Park
Here's what the finished field looks like from above -- as Notre Dame "hosts" Boston College at historic Fenway Park this Saturday night...
Both Notre Dame and Boston College will share the same sideline --- with a ten yard gap between the two teams - if you look to the side of the field closest to the Green Monster you'll see a 45 yard space designated for each team to stand.
The Band of the Fighting Irish will be on the field, sitting in front of the Green Monster, during the game.
Muffet McGraw's "HIGH HEELS" for Win #700!
Thought you'd enjoy the photographs taken after Muffet McGraw's 700th win at Notre Dame yesterday afternoon!
That's Muffet walking over to give her Mom a hug after the game -- in the third photo from the top...
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