Manti's Uncle Defends His Nephew

It's been almost thirty hours since the story broke that Manti Te'o's girlfriend did not exist -- that a cruel hoax had been played on the Notre Dame All-American..

This afternoon -- an Uncle of Manti's granted a radio interview -- you'll find this quite enlightening:

LINK:  MANTI TE'O'S UNCLE -- RADIO INTERVIEW

Notre Dame News Conference -- Manti Te'o

The University of Notre Dame's Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick addressed the media this evening over the Manti Te'o situation. 

LINK:  NOTRE DAME PRESS CONFERENCE 

LINK:  MANTI TE'O -- OFFICIAL STATEMENT

Great Story on the Daily Domer: "ND's Brother"

The young man's name is Sam Grewe -- and his special relationship with the Notre Dame football team has not been shared publicly...

Until now. 

You're going to want to know this story!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME'S SPECIAL PLAYER

LINK:  NEWS STORY

11 Year-Old ND Fan a Guest on Ellen Show

Caroline Pla of Doylestown, PA is an 11 year-old young lady who loves to play football -- who is all over the national news because she's been banned from playing CYO football by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia...

Well, today she was a guest on the Ellen Degeneres Show and she received a huge surprise from her favorite college football team -- the FIGHTING IRISH of NOTRE DAME!

LINK:  VIDEO OF CAROLINE'S APPEARANCE ON ELLEN

LINK:  NOTRE DAME FAN ON ELLEN

"Sad Irish Fan" -- Fighting Leukemia for Charity

His name is Dan Tudesco '06 -- a Notre Dame alum who was caught on camera showing his despair on NATIONAL TV during the BCS National Championship game...

He became YOUTUBE LEGEND as "Sad Irish Fan."

You're going to love what Dan and his friends have done to turn his new found celebrity into a FORCE FOR GOOD -- great story!

LINK:  SAD IRISH FAN

LINK:  OFFICIAL WEBSITE -- MUST SEE!

Former ND Football Player Takes Job With Bills

Former Notre Dame football captain and 2nd round NFL Draft pick -- Anthony Weaver '03, was named the new defensive line coach for the Buffalo Bills -- having served as the assistant defensive line coach the past two seasons with the New York Jets.

Congratulations Anthony!

LINK:  ANTHONY WEAVER TO BILLS

The Domer Behind BLEACHER REPORT...

His name is David Finocchio and he's a 2005 graduate of the University of Notre Dame.  Finocchio (third from left in photo) and two pals created BLEACHER REPORT -- a wildly successful sports storytelling site they sold to Turner Sports for $200 million last year!

Here is David's story:

LINK:  A DOMER'S VIEW FROM THE BLEACHERS

Tommy Rees -- "I'm a Notre Dame Guy..."

The folks at WNDU-TV caught up with Notre Dame QB Tommy Rees to ask him about his future playing plans...

You'll have to watch this interview to find out what he had to say:

LINK:  TOMMY REES

Thank You YP Team for Trip to BCS NC Game!

My son Jimmy '08, was a recipient of a ticket to the BCS National Championship game from the gang at YP.  Jimmy used the YP -- Local Search & Gas Prices App for the eleven hour drive from Charlotte, NC to Miami Beach.  He used the local search feature to find the highest rated places to eat in the South Beach area and the gas prices feature to find the cheapest gas along the way -- both proved to be quite handy...

Here's a last look at some photos Jimmy took on his trip to the BCS National Championship.

Golden Tate Scores NFL Playoff TD Today!

Former Notre Dame All-American wide receiver Golden Tate -- scored a TD this afternoon in the Seattle Seahawks' last second loss to the Atlanta Falcons.  Golden caught six balls for 103 yards including the 29 yard TD catch and run.  Here's a link to the video:

LINK:  GOLDEN TATE'S PLAYOFF TD

Coach Kelly's Walter Camp Award Speech...

The University of Notre Dame's Brian Kelly was honored last night at the annual Walter Camp Awards dinner on the campus of Yale University.  Here's a link to ESPN3's coverage of Brian Kelly's Coach of the Year remarks:

LINK:  COACH OF THE YEAR

The Mornin' After News Broke of Kelly's Return

Took a lap around the worldwide web to check on what is being said in the media -- the morning after the University of Notre Dame announced that Brian Kelly would continue as head coach of the Fighting Irish.  Click on the links below:

LINK:  ESPN

LINK:  CHICAGO TRIBUNE

LINK:  YAHOO SPORTS

LINK:  CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

LINK:  FORT WAYNE JOURNAL GAZETTE

LINK:  ESPN'S NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL BLOG

LINK:  COMCAST SPORTS NET PHILADELPHIA

Coach Brian Kelly to Remain at Notre Dame !!!

In what can be best described as a "frustrating few days" for the Notre Dame Family -- an official statement was just released that said Coach Kelly would continue coaching the Fighting Irish -- bypassing a potential opportunity to coach in the NFL.

Most should find Jack Swarbrick's comments about the process -- surprising -- based on all of the speculation these past 72 hours or so...

I trust Notre Dame fans will be relieved with this news.

LINK:  COACH KELLY TO REMAIN AT NOTRE DAME

LINK:  SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE

LINK:  CBS SPORTS' -- JACK SWARBRICK COMMENTS

LINK:  NBC SPORTS' -- NOTRE DAME CENTRAL 

LINK:  WNDU-TV BREAKING NEWS

Walter Camp Awards Dinner Tonight...

University of Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and Manti Te'o will be receiving their Walter Camp Awards this evening at Yale University Commons in New Haven, CT.

The event begins at 5 PM and I suspect with all of the speculation surrounding Coach Kelly --- the ESPN gang will be covering this...

WATCH IT LIVE RIGHT NOW!

LINK:  WALTER CAMP AWARDS DINNER -- LIVE!

Notre Dame Athletic Success -- Impressive !!!

It's been quite a Fall Semester for the University of Notre Dame's student-athletes.  Take a look at the rankings of the Fighting Irish teams that were in action:

• Football -- as high as #1 / finished #3
• Hockey -- currently #2
• Women's Basketball -- currently #2
• Men's Soccer -- as high as #3 / finished #8
• Women's Soccer -- finished #13
• Women's Golf -- finished #14
• Men's Basketball -- currently #16
• Men's Swimming -- currently #18
• Women's Swimming -- currently #20
• Women's Volleyball -- as high as #25 

Why Notre Dame Has a Seat At the BCS Table

There was an ESPN writer who at one time worked for Sports Illustrated -- who took the University of Notre Dame to task early last fall for their influence over the college football industry...

Well, here's some "fun facts" that the NCAA and BCS Committee are staring at that might just answer those critics who wonder why Notre Dame has earned the respect it has...

BOWL ATTENDANCE:

• For the first time, since they started tracking this in 2005 -- average bowl game attendance dipped below 50,000 
• Yet, the last three bowl games that Notre Dame has played in -- the IRISH have set attendance records in all three:  Hyundai Sun Bowl, Champs Sports Bowl and Sun Life Stadium

TV VIEWERSHIP: 

• No other school played in more of the Top 25 televised football games this season than Notre Dame.

 
 

The Skylar Diggins Interview -- A MUST SEE!

Kate Sullivan '02, interviewed Skylar Diggins for the Notre Dame Athletic Department -- the All-American has evolved into an "iconic" figure in the college sports landscape.  You'll enjoy this candid conversation.

LINK:  SKYLAR DIGGINS

Riddick & Motta to Play in Shrine Game

Notre Dame senior football players Theo Riddick and Zeke Motta have accepted invitations to play in the 88th Annual East West Shrine Game -- an All-Star game for college seniors played next Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL

They will be playing on the WEST Team.

The game will be held Saturday, January 19th -- 4 PM ET -- with television coverage coming from the NFL Network.

LINK:  EAST WEST SHRINE GAME

Notre Dame Finishes #1 in Colley Matrix Poll

The Fighting Irish finished #1 in the season's final computer poll from Colley Matrix -- because of their strength of schedule over Alabama.

Kind of puts a damper on the validity of the computer polls -- doesn't it...

Ironically, the creator of this poll is employed at the University of Alabama -- Huntsville.  His name is Wes Colley (photo), Senior Research Scientist at The Center for Modeling, Simulation and Analysis.

LINK:  NOTRE DAME #1

LINK:  WES COLLEY BIO

"Kelly the Talking Robot" -- Autism Research

The University of Notre Dame's research in Autism was profiled last night on the PBS NewsHour -- good work going on here!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME'S AUTISM RESEARCH