Notre Dame Plays for National Championship!!!

We're less than seven hours away from the biggest men's soccer game in the 171 year history of the University of Notre Dame!

At 3 PM ET on ESPNU -- the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame take on the "turtles" from Maryland for a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!  They played two months ago in South Bend and it took 2 overtime periods for the game to end in a 1 - 1 tie.

It's a match-up of the two top players in the country; Patrick Mullins (Maryland) and Harrison Shipp (Notre Dame).  Mullins scored both goals in their win over Virginia in the semi-finals -- while Shipp assisted on both goals in Notre Dame's win over New Mexico.

IT'S GOING TO BE FUN!

LINK:  WASHINGTON POST

LINK:  ESPN

LINK:  MLS SOCCER SITE

Replay of Notre Dame's Football Celebration

Echoes 2013 -- a celebration of Irish football, was held last night at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Notre Dame.  Here's a link to the full replay.

LINK:  ECHOES 2013

Big Win for Notre Dame Over Indiana Today!

The Fighting Irish were coming off a tough loss earlier in the week to North Dakota State -- and boy did they need a win!

Notre Dame beat Indiana in Indianapolis 79 - 72 in the Crossroads Classic.  Here's a look at the game highlights:

LINK:  GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Mike Brey's IRISH on ESPN Today at 3:15 PM ET

Notre Dame will take on the Indiana Hoosiers this afternoon in the CROSSROADS CLASSIC in Indianapolis.  The game will be televised on ESPN with tip off scheduled for 3:15 PM ET.  Here's a story on the game:

LINK:  INDIANAPOLIS STAR STORY

Irish Play for National Championship Sunday!

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame will play for their first ever NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP in men's soccer tomorrow afternoon at 3 PM ET against Maryland.  Notre Dame beat New Mexico 2 - 0 to earn the opportunity to play a game for the history books.

It's important to note that Notre Dame and Maryland last played on October 8th at Alumni Field -- and it ended in a 1 - 1 (2 OT) tie.

HUGE GAME TOMORROW!

LINK:  HIGHLIGHTS FROM WIN OVER NEW MEXICO

America's Game: ARMY vs. NAVY -- MUST SEE

This is a game I never want to miss on TV -- a game I want to see in person before I die.  Here's a link to the SHOWTIME documentary "A Game of Honor" -- you'll want to watch this.

For the 114th time today, ARMY vs. NAVY -- the game is on CBS at 3 PM ET.

LINK:  GAME OF HONOR

Pinstripe Bowl --- ND Football Practice Update

The Fighting Irish football team got in another practice today as they look forward to fifteen days from now when they play their last game of the 2013 season.  Here's a look at practice along with some comments from Coach Kelly:

LINK:  PINSTRIPE PRACTICE -- UPDATE

Remember This Guy Notre Dame? He's Back!

It's only 291 days until #5 returns to the offensive backfield against the Temple Owls -- and I can't wait!

Here's a link to what our offense missed this season -- though it sounds like he might throw the ball with his hands on the laces next season!

LINK:  GOLSON HIGHLIGHTS

Welcome Home to Notre Dame Everett Golson!

The University of Notre Dame released a statement today that Everett Golson has been readmitted as a student!

WELCOME HOME!

LINK:  GOLSON -- A BETTER QB

Biggest Game in ND Men's Soccer History!!!

The #3 ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame (15-1-6) take on the #7 ranked New Mexico Lobos (14-5-2) today at 5 PM ET in the Semi-Finals of the NCAA Men's National Championship!  The game will be televised LIVE on ESPNU -- beginning at 5 PM ET. 

That's Notre Dame senior forward Harrison Shipp (photo above) -- a finalist for the "Heisman Trophy" of college soccer the HERMANN TROPHY!

To gain a little insight into how the IRISH score goals -- the Lobos have have yet to give up a goal in the NCAA Tournament -- click on the first link below:

LINK:  ND'S DYNAMIC DUO

LINK:  GAME PREVIEW 

LINK:  WNDU-TV

Watch the ND Football Award Show Live: 8 PM

The Notre Dame Football Awards Show will be broadcast LIVE tonight beginning at 8 PM ET by the gang at Fighting Irish Digital Media.  Here's the link below!

LINK:  ND FOOTBALL AWARDS SHOW

Charlie Weis '78 Releases KU Recruiting Pitch

Former Notre Dame football coach Charlie Weis '78,  released a video about his recruiting pitch at Kansas.  Take a look...

LINK:  RECRUITING CHARLIE'S WAY!

Watch Coach Diaco's UCONN Press Conference

Former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco, was introduced as the 30th head football coach in the history of UCONN Huskies at a press conference that took place this afternoon.

You can watch the replay right here at the link below:

LINK:  COACH DIACO'S PRESS CONFERENCE

ND Men's Soccer Arrives at NCAA College Cup!

The #3 ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish are in Philadelphia, PA this weekend for the "final four" of the NCAA Men's Division I National Championship!  It's called the COLLEGE CUP.  Here's a photo just "tweeted" by Adam Horvath @ndsportsblogger of the team in the locker room of the MLS' Philadelphia Union.

Domer -- President of Iowa Motor Speedway

Jimmy Small '08, was formally introduced today at a news conference as the President of Iowa Motor Speedway.  Small, a former Irish Guard, is now the youngest executive running a major racing facility in the country.

This past year, Small was named by the Ivy Sports Symposium and SportsPro magazine as one of the "TEN NEXT" stars in the world, under the age of 30, in the sports industry...

Here's a few links to the various TV, newspaper and radio interviews Jimmy has given over the past 24 hours in the Des Moines market:

In the spirit of full-disclosure, Jimmy is our oldest son -- a proud day for our family.

LINK:  KCWI-TV GREAT DAY SHOW

LINK:  KCCI-TV MORNING SHOW 

LINK:  LAZER 103.3 -- MORNING MOOSE RADIO SHOW

LINK:  WHO-TV DES MOINES -- LIVE INTERVIEW

LINK:  NEWTON DAILY NEWS 

LINK:  NEWS RADIO 1040 -- VAN AND BONNIE SHOW

LINK:  NASACAR.COM INTERVIEW

LINK:  ABC-5 DES MOINES 

LINK:  TRANSCRIPT FROM NEWS CONFERENCE

LINK:  DES MOINES REGISTER

LINK:  KCCI-TV -- DES MOINES

BYU Fan Reflects on Her Trip to Notre Dame

This 'reflection' was posted today at Deseret News and it was written by a BYU fan who made the pilgrimage to the University of Notre Dame last month.  Thought you'd enjoy this...

LINK:  WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM NOTRE DAME

Bob Diaco Accepts UCONN Coaching Gig

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco will be introduced tomorrow as the next head football coach for the UCONN Huskies.  Diaco will sign a five-year contract.

LINK:  DIACO TO UCONN

OT: Christmas Flash Mob Video -- Must See!

You're going to want to watch this Christmas flash mob held at a mall in Redondo Beach, CA.  This was sent to me by ND GO IRISH BLOG regular Rich Marino.  Thanks Rich!

LINK:  CHRISTMAS FLASH MOB

Coach Kelly at Yankee Stadium Presser Today

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame was well represented today at the kick-off press conference for the 4th Annual New Era Pinstripe Bowl.  Frankly, I felt sorry for the representatives there from Rutgers -- it had to be tough to hear the Pinstripe Bowl reps gush over ND...

LINK:  PRESS CONFERENCE

Graduation Success Rates 2013-14 Bowl Teams

As has become tradition here at the ND GO IRISH BLOG -- here's a look at the Graduation Success Rates (GSR) of each of the seventy schools in the FBS who have been selected to play in the 35 bowl games -- these next few weeks:


December 21:  NEW MEXICO BOWL

• Colorado:  70 GSR
• Washington State:  57 GSR

December 21:  LAS VEGAS BOWL

• Fresno State:  76 GSR
• USC:  53 GSR

December 21:  FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL

• Buffalo:  59 GSR
• San Diego State:  68 GSR

December 21:  NEW ORLEANS BOWL

• Louisiana-Lafayette:  65 GSR
• Tulane:  82 GSR

December 23:  BEEF O'BRADY'S BOWL

• East Carolina:  66 GSR
• Ohio University:   72 GSR

December 24:  HAWAII BOWL

• Boise State:  91 GSR
• Oregon State: 66 GSR

December 26:  LITTLE CAESAR'S  PIZZA BOWL

• Bowling Green:  70 GSR
• Pittsburgh:  68 GSR

December 26:  POINSETTIA BOWL

• Northern Illinois:  85 GSR
• Utah State:  84 GSR

December 27:  MILITARY BOWL

• Marshall:  66 GSR
• Maryland:  73 GSR 

December 27:  TEXAS BOWL

• Minnesota:  75 GSR
• Syracuse:   77 GSR

 December 27:  FIGHT HUNGER BOWL

• BYU:  57 GSR
• Washington:  74 GSR

December 28:  NEW ERA PINSTRIPE BOWL

• NOTRE DAME:  94 GSR
• Rutgers:  85 GSR

December 28:  BELK BOWL

• Cincinnati:  65 GSR
• North Carolina:  65 GSR

December 28:  RUSSELL ATHLETIC BOWL

• Miami:  86 GSR
• Louisville:  67 GSR

December 28:  BUFFALO-WILD WINGS BOWL

• Michigan:  66 GSR
• Kansas State:  59 GSR

December 30:  ARMED FORCES BOWL

• Middle Tennessee:  73 GSR
• Naval Academy:  84 GSR

December 30:  MUSIC CITY BOWL

• Ole Miss:  55 GSR
• Georgia Tech:  63 GSR

December 30:  ALAMO BOWL

• Oregon:  72 GSR
• Texas:  56 GSR

December 30:  HOLIDAY BOWL

• Arizona State:  67 GSR
• Texas Tech:  72 GSR

December 31:  ADVOCARE  V100 BOWL

• Arizona:  60 GSR
• Boston College:  94 GSR

December 31:  HYUNDAI SUN BOWL

• UCLA:  82 GSR
• Virginia Tech:   78 GSR

December 31:  AUTOZONE LIBERTY BOWL

• Rice:  96 GSR
• Mississippi State:  59 GSR

December 31:  CHIK-FIL-A BOWL

• Duke:  92 GSR
• Texas A&M:  74 GSR

January 1:  GATOR BOWL:

• Georgia:  82 GSR
• Nebraska:   76 GSR

January 1:  HEART OF DALLAS BOWL

• UNLV:  64 GSR
• North Texas:  65 GSR

January 1:  CAPITAL ONE BOWL

• Wisconsin:  72 GSR
• South Carolina:  65 GSR

January 1:  OUTBACK BOWL

• Iowa:  81 GSR
• LSU: 74 GSR

January 1:  ROSE BOWL

• Michigan State:  70 GSR
• Stanford  93 GSR

January 1:  FIESTA BOWL

• UCF:  83 GSR
• Baylor:  67 GSR

January 2:  SUGAR BOWL

• Alabama:  73 GSR
• Oklahoma:  51 GSR

January 3:  COTTON BOWL

• Missouri:  74 GSR
• Oklahoma State:  56 GSR

January 3:  ORANGE BOWL

• Clemson:  77 GSR
• Ohio State: 75 GSR

January 4:  BBVA COMPASS BOWL

• Vanderbilt:  82 GSR
• Houston:  57 GSR

January 5:  GO DADDY.COM BOWL

• Ball State:  60 GSR
• Arkansas State:  68 GSR

January 6:  BCS CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

• Florida State:  58 GSR
• Auburn:   70 GSR