He Loves Notre Dame...

It was 29 years ago this week that Gerry Faust was to embark on what he expected to be one of the great coaching runs in the history of Notre Dame football. Why wouldn' he? He had just left Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati after winning 178 of the 203 games he coached. He led the Crusaders to seven unbeaten seasons, four national prep titles, and five Ohio state titles in his last six seasons at Moeller. Well, if only Gerry could have kept his coaching career to one game at ND -- he would have retired on top. If you recall, Faust's Irish beat LSU in his first game as coach. The 27 - 9 Notre Dame victory over LSU (on September 12, 1981) combined with Minnesota's upset of then top ranked Michigan -- vaulted the Irish to the #1 ranking in the country. Unfortunately, Michigan was next on the schedule and Schembechler's Wolverines beat Notre Dame that week 25 - 7 -- and the honeymoon was over. Gerry did have some moments at Notre Dame in his five-year career; a win over #1 ranked Dan Marino led, Pitt Panthers in 1982, a 52 - 6 win over Purdue to start the 1983 season -- but a five-year career record of 30-26-1 led to his resignation. You can never deny that Gerry Faust loves Notre Dame -- and Notre Dame loves Gerry Faust. In fact, Coach Faust was at the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore this past Saturday (for the umpteenth time) signing copies of his book The Golden Dream. I don't think we'll be seeing Bob Davie, Ty Willingham or Charlie Weis -- anytime soon -- signing copies of their book about their Notre Dame experience, sitting in the stands at Notre Dame games or walking the campus on a football Saturday. These days, Gerry works as a motivational speaker -- click on the link below to see him tell a very funny story at a conference. There's also two links below to a two-part feature that ESPN ran in 2007 on Gerry Faust's career at Notre Dame - A MUST SEE. Coach Faust, will always be a favorite to many Notre Dame fans. To prove my point, here's a photo taken this Saturday morning of an Irish fan on campus, just hours before kick-off of the Brian Kelly era.

LINK: GERRY FAUST -- TELLING A NOTRE DAME STORY

LINK: THE GOLDEN DREAM #1 - ESPN

LINK: THE GOLDEN DREAM #2 - ESPN

PHOTO OF THE DAY: SWIFT & GOMEZ

Looks like Notre Dame Football has a couple of new fans! Singers Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez, are seen here with their "IRISH ON" before yesterday's game at Notre Dame Stadium. Swift was in town to visit her brother Austin, who's a freshman at Notre Dame. Here's a link to a "gossip story" about Swift's visit to Rocco's for dinner last night. Photo courtesy of the South Bend Tribune.

LINK: TAYLOR SWIFT DINES AT ROCCO'S

Notre Dame Players on NFL "Bubble"

The NFL required each of their teams to make their final cuts, yesterday, to reduce their team rosters down to 53 players by the 4 PM EST deadline. Now, you can still get cut this week or picked up by another team -- as teams make their final roster adjustments leading into the NFL's opening weekend. Here's an update on a few of the players who played for Notre Dame this past season that were "on the bubble." Click on their names for story:

SAM YOUNG -- on Dallas Cowboys 53 man roster

ERIC OLSEN -- on Denver Broncos 53 man roster

SERGIO BROWN -- did not make New England Patriots final roster

KYLE MCCARTHY-- did not make Denver Broncos final roster

PAUL DUNCAN -- did not make Denver Broncos final roster

Farley Hall's Mascot!

Took this photo yesterday of "Farley" -- the official mascot of the University of Notre Dame's Farley Hall. Farley's Rector, Sr. Carrine Etheridge, IHM -- had Farley, in full uniform, taking in the scene in South Quad -- prior to yesterday's Notre Dame football game with Purdue. Where's Farley's helmet?

LINK: FARLEY HALL WEBSITE

Coach Kelly's First Game at Notre Dame

It's a day he'll never forget, September 4th, 2010 -- the day he led his Notre Dame Football team, for the first time, into historic Notre Dame Stadium. Coach Kelly has experienced a number of "firsts" these past 9 months since taking over as the 29th coach in the history of Notre Dame football -- yet, they all pale in comparison to his first victory at Notre Dame. Here's a video -- taken from Section 14 -- of some highlights from the first game in the Brian Kelly era at Notre Dame -- enjoy:

LINK: BRIAN KELLY'S FIRST GAME

A Historic "First" for Notre Dame Stadium

For the first time in the 123-year history or Notre Dame Football -- the Fighting Irish took the field for pre-game via the Notre Dame student section. Notre Dame Head Football Coach, Brian Kelly's Irish entered historic Notre Dame Stadium via Section 31 at approximately 2:40 PM EST. Here's a photo of Irish QB, Dayne Crist entering the Stadium and a link to a video of what it looked like from Section 14 as Notre Dame Football started a new tradition. Here's the link:

LINK: A NEW TRADITION FOR ND FOOTBALL

Video of Coach Kelly's "First" Walk to Stadium

Shot this video yesterday afternoon of Notre Dame Head Football Coach Brian Kelly and his Fighting Irish football team on their walk from the Basilica of the Sacred Heart to Notre Dame Stadium. One of the great traditions in college football. You have to wonder what Coach Kelly is thinking while experiencing this for the very first time as the Head Coach of the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Here's a link to the video:

LINK: THE VERY FIRST TIME

The Four Horsemen -- Ride Again @ ND!

Ran into these four "well dressed" Fighting Irish fans yesterday -- outside Notre Dame Stadium. Unfortunately, I didn't take their picture "Outlined against a blue-gray October sky..." I wonder where they left their horses during the game?

It's NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL -- Today!

Folks, I'm about five minutes away from leaving Motown on my way to Notre Dame and our seats in Section 14. For those of you sitting at home today - here's a few things you might want to do:


1. At 9 AM EST -- click on this link and listen to WSBT 960 AM's Notre Dame Football Show

2. At 11 AM EST -- click on this link and watch Notre Dame Stadium fill up and watch the Irish come out of the Student Section on to the field for pre-game warmups

3. At 2:30 PM EST -- click on this link and watch NBC's online pre-game show

4. And, at 3:41 PM EST -- watch the Brian Kelly Era begin on NBC or online

Go IRISH!!!

15,000 in South Quad for Pep Rally!

Have been following the "tweets" from those in attendance. One "tweeter" had the crowd at 15,000 for the Pep Rally. This photo was "tweeted" forty-five minutes before the Pep Rally started. Coach Kelly announced a brand new tradition for Notre Dame Football -- tomorrow, before warm-ups, the Fighting Irish will enter Notre Dame Stadium from the Students Section onto the field. Keep an eye out for www.und.com -- I would suspect in the next 30 minutes they will post the video from the Pep Rally. Go Irish!

The Most Expensive Ticket in College Football!

I promise you, you will never guess which college football game this season is the "most expensive" in college football! Tickets to this game are going for $583 per seat. It's the Notre Dame vs. Army game at Yankee Stadium in November! CNBC did a story on the ten most expensive tickets to get -- and here's their ranking -- followed by a link to the story:


THE TEN MOST EXPENSIVE TICKETS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
#10: Miami (FL) @ Ohio State: $374 per ticket
#9: Penn State @ Ohio State: $375 per ticket
#8: Alabama @ LSU: $401 per ticket
#7: Florida @ Alabama: $440 per ticket
#6: Florida @ Georgia: $460 per ticket
#5: Auburn @ Alabama: $471 per ticket
#4: Oklahoma @ Texas: $482 per ticket
#3: Michigan @ Ohio State: $519 per ticket
#2: Penn State @ Alabama: $524 per ticket
#1: Notre Dame vs. Army @ Yankeee Stadium: $583 per ticket

TEN MOST EXPENSIVE

One That Got Away...

He's a freshman football player at UCLA, who most thought -- including his Mom -- that he would be wearing the gold helmet of Notre Dame tomorrow against Purdue. You see, Anthony Barr is the son of a former ND football player (Tony Brooks) and St. Mary's grad (Lori Barr) -- yet, he chose to stay close to home and play for the Bruins. The Los Angeles Times ran a story yesterday on Barr's decision to pick UCLA over Notre Dame. Here's the link:

WEARING THE WRONG GOLD HELMET!

Football Weekend @ Notre Dame: To Do List!

There's plenty to do Football Weekend at Notre Dame -- the fun begins today and runs through Sunday. Today's South Bend Tribune provides a "calendar" for ND Football fans -- see link below. And, don't forget to visit Notre Dame's GAME DAY SITE -- that link is below as well:

FOOTBALL WEEKEND CALENDAR

NOTRE DAME'S GAME DAY SITE

Take a Live Look at Notre Dame!

The University of Notre Dame's official website: www.nd.edu -- has a number of LIVE webcams on campus that allows you to take a look "24/7" at Notre Dame. Webcams are pointed at the Main Building (Golden Dome) and Basilica, South Quad, Clarke Memorial Fountain and a couple of the computer labs on campus. Maybe we can convince someone at ND to point the South Quad webcam at today's Pep Rally! Here's a link:

LIVE WEBCAMS AT NOTRE DAME

Ara's Thoughts On Brian Kelly

Former Notre Dame coaching great, Ara Parseghian, was a guest this week on WSBT 960 AM's Weekday SportsBeat. Here's a link to the Parseghian interview:

ARA ON THE IRISH

Replay of The Brian Kelly Radio Show

In case you missed it last night, here's a link to a replay of Notre Dame Head Football Coach, Brian Kelly's first radio show from Legends. As you plan your future "Thursday evenings" during the Notre Dame football season, please note that The Brian Kelly Radio Show will air every Thursday night at 7 PM EST. If you'd like to attend in person, you'll want to get to Legends by 5:30 PM to get a seat. Here' the link:

THE BRIAN KELLY RADIO SHOW

It's Here: Football Weekend @ Notre Dame!

The 2010 Season kicks off tomorrow and I can't wait!!! For those of you fortunate enough to be on the Notre Dame campus today, here's a few of the activities you might want to take in: Walk Down The Tunnel at Notre Dame Stadium (10 AM to 3 PM) -- Trumpets in the Dome before The Band of the Fighting Irish's March Out (4 PM) in the Main Building -- Dillon Hall Pep Rally (6 PM) join the thousands (photo) in South Quad and Drummer's Circle -- Midnight, in front of the Main Building (Golden Dome). To get a look at all of the activities planned for Football Weekend at Notre Dame click on the link below to the ND Game Day site - it's good!:

NOTRE DAME GAME DAY WEBSITE

Former Irish Star -- Pitching for Twins

Former Notre Dame All-American pitcher, Jeff Manship, threw four strong innings last night for the Minnesota Twins in their extra-inning loss to the Detroit Tigers (YEAH!). Manship entered the game in the 3rd after Twins starter Scott Baker complained of elbow pain. Jeff came in and gave up one run and struck out three in his four inning stint for Minnesota. On the year, Manship has a 2.38 ERA -- striking out 14 in his 22 innings pitched. Here's a link to his statistics:

JEFF MANSHIP -- MINNESOTA TWINS

ND Prof on Mideast Peace Talks in D.C.

University of Notre Dame Associate Professor of History and Peace Studies, Asher Kaufman says "very few believe" the talks in Washington D.C. yesterday between Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas will lead to peace. Yet, Kaufman does see some positives that could come from these talks -- and he should know. A member of the Notre Dame faculty since 2005, Kaufman previously taught at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and served as a research fellow at the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, leading its Middle East Unit. Here's a link to some comments Kaufman made yesterday:

PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST?

Only @ Notre Dame -- Seven of Them!

If you want to see seven Heisman Trophies -- the only place in the world where you'll see that many -- you'll now have to take a walk to the lobby of the Guglielmino Athletics Complex this weekend on the University of Notre Dame campus. Coach Kelly had the "Heismans" moved from the Monogram Room in Joyce to the "Gug." Football fans -- the GUG's main lobby will be open Friday and Saturday to see the Heismans. Chicago Tribune Notre Dame beatwriter, Brian Hamilton was kind enough to take this picture in the past hour and post it on Twitter. Thanks Brian!