Do You Know Who's Wearing #9?

It's none other than #10 in your hearts and former Domer; Brady Quinn. There hasn't been much fanfare about Quinn and his new uniform number with the Broncos. Here's hoping the change in number and scenery brings much success to this young man. Go Irish!

SHREK's Last Stand -- a ND Story!

The movie character Shrek will be in theater's for the last time -- beginning tomorrow -- as "Shrek Forever After" begins its run. In an April 29th post on NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG - we identified all of the Notre Dame connections to Shrek - and there are many (click on link below). Shrek has been a huge hit for DreamWorks; over $2.2 billion in Box Office revenue worldwide, 8 Tony nominations for Shrek the Musical, 4 Oscar nominations and one Oscar -- winning the first ever statuette for best animated feature. So, Go SHREK and Go Irish!

SHREK & NOTRE DAME

ND Grad "Space Walking" -- Right Now!

Michael Good, a mission specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis is a "Double Domer." The Atlantis Space Shuttle, which is flying its 32 mission and last, left Kennedy Space Center Monday afternoon. Good holds a Bachelors (Class of 84) and Masters (Class of 86) from the University of Notre Dame in Aerospace Engineering. He can be found -- at this very moment -- "circling the earth" in one of the last shuttle missions for NASA as they deliver an Integrated Cargo Carrier and a Russian-built Mini Research Module to the International Space Station. In his role as mission specialist, Good will perform at least three space walks, during this 12 day mission. A year ago (May 2009) Good made his first journey to space and conducted two successful space walks on that trip to make repairs to the Hubbel Space Telescope. He's one of three Notre Dame grads to fly the Space Shuttle. The links below show Good entering the International Space Station this week -- along with a link to a story about Good's May 2009 mission. God Speed and Go Irish!

THIRD SPACEWALK THIS WEEK -- FOR ND ALUM

MICHAEL GOOD -- FIGHTING IRISH ASTRONAUT

NBC's Brian Williams' Commencement Speech

If you have twenty-five minutes, you'll find it time well spent -- if you click on the link below to the video to Brian Williams' speech to the graduates of the University of Notre Dame's Class of 2010. He has a wonderful sense of humor.

NOTRE DAME'S 2010 COMMENCEMENT SPEEECH

2010 Graduation -- Notre Dame Stadium

This is a great view of what graduation looked like inside Notre Dame Stadium yesterday on the campus of the University of Notre Dame. It was the first time since 1959 that Notre Dame held this ceremony in the stadium. Here's a link to a "screensaver" of this photo for your computer. There is also a link to the University of Notre Dame's website - and a video interview with the Class of 2010 Valedictorian; Katie Washington -- it's very well done.

SCREENSAVER - NOTRE DAME 2010 GRADUATION

INTERVIEW WITH KATIE WASHINTON - ND VALEDICTORIAN

Irish Men's Lacrosse Upsets Princeton!

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame beat #6 seed Princeton (on the Tigers home field) yesterday in First Round play of the NCAA Tournament. Junior midfielder, David Earl (pictured), scored a career high five goals in the 8 - 5 win for the Irish! The win puts Notre Dame into the NCAA Championship Quarterfinals for the fifth time in school history. Next up; the third seeded Maryland Terrapins -- this Saturday, May 22nd -- again on Princeton's field. Game time isn't set yet - but, it will be televised live on ESPNU.

LINK TO STORY AND VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

NBC's Brian Williams ND Commencement Speaker

The University of Notre Dame's Class of 2010 will say farewell to the University this morning from historic Notre Dame Stadium. NBC News Anchor; Brian Williams will the the Commencement Speaker. You can watch the ceremony live this morning beginning at 9:30 AM EST on www.nd.edu. Click on the link below. Congratulations Class of 2010!



WATCH ND'S GRADUATION LIVE ON THE WEB -- CLICK HERE!

Notre Dame's Father Ted -- "Change I'd Make"

I was sitting in a hotel room this morning in Olean, NY -- our daughter is graduating from St. Bonaventure University tomorrow -- and the local Buffalo NBC TV affiliate aired an interview with Notre Dame's Father Hesburgh. Never one to shy away from taking on some of the more controversial issues of the day -- Father Ted discusses the change "he'd make before midnight" if he was the Pope. Click on the WNDU-TV interview below.

A CONVERSATION WITH FATHER TED

New Football Jerseys for Notre Dame?

The above photos of a Brian Kelly autographed Notre Dame Footbal jersey were taken at an "on-campus" raffle during Blue-Gold Weekend at Notre Dame. It's obviously not last year's jersey, nor any jersey we've ever seen worn before at Notre Dame. Are these the new football jerseys for Brian Kelly's Irish? The obvious changes; gone are the numbers on the sleeves - they have been replaced by the interlocking ND. I love that! You'll remember that Holtz made this design change to his team's uniforms. A second noticeable change is the interlocking ND behind the neck -- which appear a "little out of place" on this jersey since it looks like this jersey was designed to carry a nameplate. (Note the large space between the ND and the number) Will the Irish have names on their jerseys for the Purdue game? If they do, which I'm guessing they will -- I believe this will look pretty cool with the ND over top of the last name of the player, reminding them who they play for! The last change is the front neckline. Besides the prominent Adidas logo - ND Fans won't like this - you'll note the typical jersey neckline is replaced by more of a "plunging" design. Now, it's been rumored that the Irish will probably we wearing some type of "undershirt" as part of this uniform design and that this may carry a prominent ND or shamrock that will sit "above" the Adidas logo. THIS ALSO MEANS WE'LL HAVE TO BUY THE UNDERSHIRT TO HAVE THE FULL UNIFORM EXPERIENCE! Expect an official announcement from Notre Dame on the uniform in the next few weeks -- so they can begin selling them before the first game. All in all, I will love this uniform design -- if they add the player's last name. What do you think? That's the poll question this week -- "Would you like this jersey design for the Irish?

Sunday's ND Graduation -- Live on the Web!

The University of Notre Dame will celebrate its 164th graduation ceremony from a new campus location this year -- historic Notre Dame Stadium. It's the first time ND has held a graduation in the Stadium since 1959. And, you can watch this event live on the web -- beginning at 9:30 AM this Sunday, May 16th. Here's the link to the webcast:

WATCH NOTRE DAME'S GRADUATION CEREMONY LIVE

ND Football Player -- "All Internet Irish" Honors!

The decision on which University of Notre Dame athlete would be awarded "All Internet Irish" honors for 2010 -- was quite simple. This Irish linebacker was one of the "early adapters" to Twitter and he's become quite a prolific "tweeter" -- with 463 tweets and counting. And he has attracted more than 1,700 followers! Brian Smith is the 2010 recipient of the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG'S "All Internet Irish" honors for Notre Dame Varsity Athletes. You can find Brian on Twitter with the name; BCSmith58. I'm sure Coach Kelly would rather you find Smith in the "backfield on top of a QB" -- but, it's May -- so give him a follow. Congratulations Brian!

ND Soccer Coach -- "All Internet Irish" Honors!

One would have thought that the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG would have made the safe choice in awarding Notre Dame Head Football Coach Brian Kelly with "All Internet Irish" honors for 2010 with his 15,695 followers on Twitter and his 1,300 fans on Facebook. But, his 48 "tweets" fell short of this year's honoree -- Notre Dame Women's Soccer Head Coach; Randy Waldrum. Coach Waldrum has tweeted 182 times in the last few months and has displayed an acumen for this social media channel -- that exceeds his peers at Notre Dame. Thus, he's the recipient of the 2010 "All Internet Irish" award for Notre Dame Coaches. Now, we're guessing this honor won't match the excitement of winning the National Championship in 2004 -- or being named the Soccer America National Coach of the Year in 2009 -- but, it might make him smile today! Congratulations Coach Waldrum!

Eleven Receive -- "All Internet Irish" Honors!

In honor of the eleven National Championships in Notre Dame's Football history -- eleven "web stars" of Notre Dame athletics were selected to receive the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG'S first annual "All Internet Irish" honors for 2010. They were awarded in the following categories: Subscription Sites, Free Web Sites, Blogs, Reporters, YouTube, Fan and Overall. Tomorrow, NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG will announce its winners of the "All Internet Irish" award to a Notre Dame Athlete and a Notre Dame Coach. We're already scouting for the 2011 "All Internet Irish" award winners -- so bring your best game to the web! Next year we're going to add a Facebook and Twitter category, so get going! Here are the 2010 winners by category:

SUBSCRIPTION WEBSITES
-Irish Sports Daily
-Irish Illustrated

FREE WEBSITES
-NDNATION.com
-DOMERDOMAIN.com
-GOLDHELMET.com

BLOGS
-Her Loyal Sons
-Subway Domer

REPORTERS
-Eric Hansen, South Bend Tribune
-Brian Hamilton, Chicago Tribune

YOUTUBE & FAN
-Jerry Kennedy, AKA "DAMEFAN"

OVERALL
-The Subway Alumni Show

Two ND Subscriber Sites -- "All Internet Irish"

The NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG is honoring two of the many subscription based websites that follow Notre Dame athletics with "All Internet Irish" honors for 2010 -- they are; Irish Sports Daily and Irish Illustrated. Mike Frank and his team at Irish Sports Daily have attracted a subscriber base in excess of 10,000 avid ND fans -- in this ESPN partnered venture. The Irish Illustrated team is led by Publisher; Jack Freeman and Editor; Pete Sampson -- they have thousands of subscribers as well. Both sites provide daily reporting on ND Sports -- and keep all of us "crazy about recruiting information," begging for more. Their daily coverage of Notre Dame Football is "flat out" the best you will find on the web. I personally subscribe to both of these sites and encourage those who haven't yet -- to join me. Here's a link to the two subscription based ND sites who've earned "All Internet Irish" honors this year:

IRISH SPORTS DAILY

IRISH ILLUSTRATED

Three Free ND Sites Named -- "All Internet Irish"

Three websites developed by fans and for fans of Notre Dame athletics; NDNATION.com, DOMERDOMAIN.com and GOLDHELMET.com have been awarded "All Internet Irish" honors for 2010 from NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG. All three of these sites offer "free" forums for Notre Dame fans, from all over the world, to participate in. Now, the conversation may not always positive about ND -- but's it's definitely passionate! I encourage everyone to get involved with these sites and join the discussion about Notre Dame! Here are the links to these three "All Internet Irish" sites:

NDNATION.com

DOMERDOMAIN.com

GOLDHELMET.com

Two Writers Receive -- "All Internet Irish" Honors!

Two Notre Dame beat reporters; the Chicago Tribune's Brian Hamilton and the South Bend Tribune's Eric Hansen are being recognized for their fair (but not always friendly) coverage of the Fighting Irish via the web. Both have embraced technology; Hamilton and Hansen have active Twitter accounts, both are "blogging" about Notre Dame (Hamilton with the Chicago Breaking Sports blog and Hansen blogs with ESPN Chicago and South Bend Tribune) -- and can be found on their respective newspaper's websites. In addition, Hansen hosts a weekly podcast interview on the South Bend Tribune's website called SportsBeat and the GameDay SportsBeat show on WSBT-960 AM. It's the quality and quantity of reporting of these two Notre Dame beat writers -- on the web -- that has earned them the "ALL INTERNET IRISH" honors for Notre Dame Beat Reporters! Congratulations!

BRIAN HAMILTON'S BLOG

ERIC HANSEN'S TWITTER PAGE

Two Blogs Receive "All Internet Irish" Honors!

Two Notre Dame blogs; Her Loyal Sons and Subway Domer each received "ALL INTERNET IRISH" honors today! They represent the first two bloggers to receive this "prestigious" award from the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG - for their excellent coverage and commentary on Notre Dame sports. If you haven't been to their respective sites or haven't been following them on Twitter -- you're missing out! Here's a link to each of their blogs. Congratulations!

HER LOYAL SONS

SUBWAY DOMER

14 ND Sports Teams Earn Academic Honors!

This should come as no surprise to Notre Dame fans! The University of Notre Dame again ranks among the national leaders among all 120 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions as the NCAA today honored Division I sports teams with 2010 public recognition awards for their latest multi-year Academic Progress Rate scores. These teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. The public recognition awards are part of the broad Division I academic reform effort. These awards are based on the most recent APR numbers that represent the combination of scores from the 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years. Notre Dame had 14 of its programs honored this year for the multi-year achievement -- men's basketball, men's cross country, men’s football, men's golf, men's ice hockey, men’s lacrosse, men's soccer, men’s tennis, men's indoor track and field, men's outdoor track and field, women's rowing, women's soccer, women's softball and women's tennis. Congratulations Irish!

The Subway Alumni Show - "All Internet Irish"

They are known as "Sprout and Eric" to their loyal Notre Dame fans (photo) and each week during the Irish Football season these two broadcast The Subway Alumni Show on the web. As they like to say, "it is for those who believe in sacred Saturdays of Notre Dame Football and beer. Lots of beer." Neither of them attended Notre Dame -- thus they named their "webishow" THE SUBWAY ALUMNI SHOW, for the millions of fans of Notre Dame who never attended the University. With fifty shows under their belt, Sprout and Eric have gotten better and better each week, in their coverage of Notre Dame Football. And, they're "still undefeated" as the unofficial coaches of Notre Dame football. It's their devotion and passion for Notre Dame Football that has earned them the NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG: "ALL INTERNET IRISH" honors for 2010. It's well earned! Make sure you visit their website and take a look at a few of their archived shows and be sure to tun in this fall. Here's a link:

THE SUBWAY ALUMNI SHOW

ND GO IRISH BLOG - Passed 4,000 Yesterday!

The NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG is only 14 weeks old -- and in that time period more than 4,000 unique Fighting Irish fans have visited this site at least once! Most have visited the site, many, many times. THANKS for making NOTRE DAME GO IRISH BLOG one of your "ND homes" on the internet. Go IRISH!