Poster Of The Day -- Mike Lee's ND Fight!

Here's the official promotional poster for Mike Lee's '09 seventh professional fight -- scheduled for Friday, September 16th at the University of Notre Dame's Purcell Pavillion.  Surprisingly, this will be the first professional fight ever at ND -- and it falls on the Michigan State football weekend.

I just wish Mike's opponent was the Michigan State football player who planted the flag at Notre Dame Stadium a few seasons ago!!!

Should sell-out soon!  I'll let you know when the tickets go on sale!!!

Manti Teo Talks With NBC!

Notre Dame fans will enjoy this interview of Manti Teo!  Click on the link below:

LINK:  WHEN TEO TALKS...

Mike Lee to Fight at ND's Purcell Pavillion

The University of Notre Dame's Purcell Pavillion will be hosting its first professional fight on Friday, September 16th when Mike Lee (Notre Dame's Class of 2009) will take the ring.  The next day, the Fighting Irish will be taking on the Michigan State Spartans at Notre Dame Stadium.  As soon as the tickets go on sale at the Notre Dame Ticket Office -- I'll provide a link here at the ND GO IRISH BLOG!

It's going to be great fun!!!

Domer Picked as a Navy Blue Angels' Pilot!

It's widely considered the highest profile pilot position in the world -- a Navy Blue Angels pilot -- and Navy Lt. John Hintz '02 (University of Notre Dame) was just selected to join this precision flying team!  Hintz joins a select group of pilots who have had the honor of wearing this uniform and flying the Blue Angels trademark blue and gold jet.  Congratulations John!  Here's a link to the story:

LINK:  JOHN HINTZ A BLUE ANGEL! 

LINK:  BLUE ANGELS WEBSITE

LINK:  BLUE ANGELS PRESS RELEASE

Multiple Irish Players Named to Watch Lists

The talent returning to the Notre Dame football team is reflected in the number of Irish players named to the various "watch lists" of the national awards in college football.  The ten Notre Dame football players earning this recognition are as follows; Dayne Crist, Manti Teo, Darius Fleming, Braxston Cave, Harrison Smith, Michael Floyd, Zach Martin, David Ruffer, Cierre Wood and Tyler Eiffert:

LINK:  DAYNE CRIST

LINK:  MANTI TEO & DARIUS FLEMING

LINK:  BRAXSTON CAVE

LINK:  HARRISON SMITH

LINK:  MICHAEL FLOYD

LINK:  ZACH MARTIN

LINK:  LOU GROZA

LINK:  CIERRE WOOD

LINK:  TYLER EIFFERT

Irish Begin 2011 Football Practice -- Aug 6th!

The Fighting Irish will begin what many pundits believe will be one of the more promising football campaigns in South Bend in the last 15 years on August 6th!  Here's three key dates released today by ND:

1. Brian Kelly's Opening Press Conference:  August 5th 
2. First Practice:  August 6th
3. Media Day:  August 16th

ND Hoops Fans -- Check Out This New Website!

The Notre Dame women's basketball team just launched their own website -- thought you'd enjoy this!

I really like this!

LINK:  ND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SITE

ND's Aaron Lynch -- Getting Some Love!

The gang at ESPN.COM just came out with a list of ten incoming freshman stars ready to emerge in college football this fall.  University of Notre Dame freshman DE Aaron Lynch is on that list.  Here's a link to the story:

LINK:  AARON LYNCH -- ONE TO WATCH!

Tom Lemming Talkin' ND Football Recruiting

Football recruiting expert Tom Lemming spent some time with the folks at the South Bend Tribune to give his "two cents" on how Brian Kelly & Company are doing with recruiting.  Here's the link:

LINK:  ND FOOTBALL RECRUITING

Team USA's "Domer" -- World Cup Tomorrow!

Shannon Boxx '99 is a starting "central midfielder" for our Women's National Team in their match tomorrow with Japan for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup championship!  Shannon was a member of Notre Dame's 1995 National Championship team.

Boxx will be wearing #7 for the red, white and blue Sunday as the Americans go for their third world championship in women's soccer!  The fun begins at 2:30 PM ET on ESPN.  Here's a link to a UND.COM story on Shannon, a link to a recent interview and a link to a video profile of Shannon.  GO USA!

LINK:  ND'S TEAM USA STAR

LINK:  INTERVIEW WITH SHANNON BOXX

LINK:  TEAM USA VIDEO PROFILE OF SHANNON

USC Football Player a TMZ Subject -- Uh Oh!

Surgeon General's Warning:  You may not want your kids to click on this video link.

The folks at TMZ -- television's "gossip rag" equivalent -- caught up with USC running back Marc Tyler, who was out on the town with a couple of his buddies this past week in Los Angeles.  Tyler, who was a high school teammate of Jimmy Clausen's -- was a little "under the influence" during his cameo appearance on TMZ.  It's just a guess, but USC's AD Pat Haden might not be happy about this!

I kept looking for USC Head Coach Lane Kiffin in the background!  :)

It will be interesting to see if anything comes from this...

LINK:  USC RUNNING BACK ON TMZ

Domer's "Spouse" to Call ND's Opener on NBC!

NBC Sports' Dan Hicks -- who's married to Notre Dame alum Hannah Storm '83 (ESPN) -- announced today that he will be handling the "play by play" with Mike Mayock doing the "analysis" in the opener against the University of South Florida.  If you're like me -- a Notre Dame game without Tom Hammond at the microphone is a good thing!  Apparently Hammond has a conflict that weekend.

Golden Tate Taking Some Flap for "Tweet"

Former Notre Dame football star Golden Tate -- "tweeted" during the ESPY's the other night that he wondered why NASCAR's Jimmy Johnson was up for Male Athlete of the Year -- since NASCAR drivers can't be athletes...

Well, it didn't take long for Mr. Tate to take some heat.  Here's a link to the Yahoo! Sports story:

LINK:  TO TWEET OR NOT TO TWEET

Irish Still Looking For a Hockey Conference

Found this article today from the Kalamazoo Gazette -- where Western Michigan University's AD admits that she's been talking with Notre Dame about the changing landscape in college hockey.  Yesterday afternoon the National Collegiate Hockey Conference was unveiled with the announcement of six schools founding this conference:  University of North Dakota, University of Denver, Minnesota-Duluth, University of Nebraska-Omaha, Colorado College and Miami University.

Rumors persist that the Irish are talking with Hockey East and many believe that's where they'll end up.  Maybe with the WMU Broncos as a package deal?  Here's a link to the story:

LINK:  IRISH HOCKEY'S FUTURE HOME

NBC's Keith Arnold Analyzes ND Recruiting

Notre Dame Central's Keith Arnold, posted a story today analyzing the football recruiting since Brian Kelly took over the reigns of the Fighting Irish program.  You'll enjoy his perspective:

LINK:  NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL RECRUITING

Former Blue-Gray Sky Editor's Latest Work!

I just learned of this new annual publication by Maple Street Press called IRISH KICKOFF 2011 -- and it's produced by Pat Misch who authored the popular blog called Blue-Gray Sky.  If this magazine is half as good as Pat's work at BGS -- this is a must buy for Notre Dame fans.  Here's a link to their promotional website:

LINK:  IRISH KICKOFF 2011

Will the NCAA Buy This Domer's Story?

Former Notre Dame football player Gene Smith '77 -- who's best know these days as the embattled Athletic Director at that school in Columbus -- is doing his best these past few days defending the Ohio State University's "self imposed" sanctions in response to pending trouble with the NCAA.

Ohio State offered to "vacate" all of their victories last years and to go on probation for the next two years.  But, they would not give back any of their bowl money from last year's Sugar Bowl.
 
Here's some of the media coverage the past 24 hours on the troubles facing the Buckeyes -- you'll note the different perspectives:

LINK:  HOMETOWN PAPER -- COLUMBUS DISPATCH 

LINK:  HOME STATE PAPER -- CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER 

LINK:  FORBES

Notre Dame Comments on $2 Billion Campaign

The University of Notre Dame put the finishing touches on the seven year campaign entitled THE SPIRIT OF NOTRE DAME this past month.  Well, it can best be summed up that there's plenty of SPIRIT in South Bend these days!

For the first time ever, an American college or university -- without a medical school -- has raised more than $2 billion in a seven year campaign.

WOW!

The Chicago Tribune reported on the significance of this achievement in the article linked below:

LINK:  $2 BILLION -- THE SPIRIT LIVES!

ND "Verbal" Commit Catches Winning TD!

University of Notre Dame football "verbal" commitment Justin Ferguson caught the game winning TD at THE OPENING a Nike sponsored football showcase in Beaverton, OR this weekend.  In fact, he caught both TD passes in his team's championship win!  Ferguson is rated the 11th best WR in the country by ESPNU.  Here's a link to the ESPN.COM story:

LINK:  FERGUSON CATCHES GAME WINNER!

Darby Leads Off USA's World Record Relay!

Notre Dame football "verbal" commit Ronald Darby ran the lead-off leg this afternoon for the United States of America in the Medley Relay at the 2011 World Youth Track & Field Championships in Lille, France.  The USA team beat the previous youth world record (set back in 2001) by nearly one second!  Here's a link to the video of the race -- ND fans will enjoy this!  The four members of Team USA"s world record setting relay (in the order they ran): Ronald Darby, Aldrich Bailey, Najee Glass and Arman Hall.

LINK:  DARBY LEADS OFF WORLD RECORD!

Darby Finishes Third @ World Championships!

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football "verbal" commit Ronald Darby finished third in the 200 Meters today at the 2011 IAAF World Youth Track & Field Championships in Lille, France!  Darby's time of 21.08 (the same exact time he ran in the Semi-Finals yesterday), though not his personal best, is still one of the fastest times in the world this year for high school sprinters.  As a point of reference, Usain Bolt (current world record holder in the 200 Meters) ran a 20.40 at this same event in 2003.


Darby's "reaction time" of 0.137 was the fastest among the eight sprinters in the Finals -- Coach Kelly will be glad to see this -- and one of the fastest reaction times at the World Championships!

Congratulations Ronald!  Here's a link to the official results along with a link to the PHOTO FINISH photo!

LINK:  DARBY THIRD IN THE WORLD!

LINK:  OFFICIAL PHOTO FINISH

Lee Wins Fight! -- Goes to 6 - 0 with KO!

Notre Dame alum Mike Lee '09 added to his undefeated streak as a professional last night with a KO in the third round of his fight at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.  Lee probably thought the fight was over in the first when he knocked Mike Birthmark to the canvas with an overhand right to the head. Unfortunately for Birthmark, he got up!  It only took Lee two more rounds to finish off his opponent.  See the news coverage below.

Mike Lee's next fight is Friday, September 16th at the University of Notre Dame's Purcell Pavillion.  It will be the first professional fight on campus -- and it falls on the eve of the Irish's game with Michigan State.  Should be great fun!  Look for tickets soon at the Notre Dame Ticket Office.

LINK:  LEE WINS WITH KO!

Rockne's Irish Team Recruited a DE Yesterday

Former Notre Dame All-American Pete Duranko, who battled ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) since 2000, died last night.  A member of Notre Dame's 1966 National Championship team, Duranko later went on to a career in the NFL with the Denver Broncos.  He is survived by his wife of 43 years Janet and their two sons Greg and Nick.  RIP -- Mr. Duranko!

LINK:  PETE DURANKO -- A NOTRE DAME MAN

LINK:  DENVER POST STORY

LINK:  ALL THINGS BRONCOS

Darby Runs 21.08 @ World Championships!

University of Notre Dame football "verbal" commit Ronald Darby ran a 21.08 in his Semi-Final heat this afternoon at the IAAF World Youth Championships in Lille, France.  This places him as the second fastest qualifier going into tomorrow's Final Heat (six hundredths of a second behind the top qualifier from Jamaica).  Darby's Personal Best is 21.05 which he ran last month (fifth fastest among high school juniors in the country).  Here's a link to the results as well a link to the PHOTO FINISH of the race and the USA High School 200 Meter Rankings:

LINK:  WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS -- 200 METER SEMI-FINAL

LINK:  PHOTO FINISH -- 200 METER SEMI-FINAL 

LINK:  USA TRACK -- JUNIOR CLASS RANKINGS 200 METERS

Domer's First MLB Start for Red Sox Sunday!

Kyle Weiland was drafted by the Boston Red Sox out of the University of Notre Dame in 2008.  Three years later, the 24 year-old "Domer" will be getting his first major league start tomorrow against the Baltimore Orioles -- replacing John Lester who was put on the disabled list this week.  Here's a link to a few stories about Kyle's first start!

LINK:  MLB.COM STORY

LINK:  BOSTON GLOBE

LINK:  BOSTON HERALD

Mike Lee '09 Fights Tonight -- Watch it Live!

Notre Dame alum Mike Lee '09, enters the ring tonight for the sixth time as a professional at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.  The fight will be streamed LIVE on the web at TOPRANK.COM @ 9 PM ET tonight!!! 

The Atlantic published a nice story yesterday about Mike Lee and his impact on the boxing world -- as did the Orange County Register -- see the links below.  And, there's a link to Mike's interview in Los Angeles earlier this week -- talking about his fight tonight and his fight September 16th at Notre Dame!

LINK:  THE ATLANTIC -- MIKE LEE STORY

LINK:  ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER -- MIKE LEE STORY

LINK:  MIKE LEE INTERVIEW

LINK:  WATCH THE MIKE LEE FIGHT LIVE HERE AT 9 PM ET

Photo of the Day -- David Perkins' Hair Cut!

Notre Dame "verbal" commit -- David Perkins, let the folks know at Nike's "The Opening" football showcase that his "HEAD IS COMMITTED to the IRISH!"  Click on the photo to enlarge

Irish Verbal Commits -- Making Some Noise!

Five future Fighting Irish football players are putting their athletic talents on display this week in Oregon at Nike's "The Opening" showcase.  David Perkins (IN), Justin Ferguson (FL), Mark Harrell (NC),  Deontay Greenberry (CA) and Tee Shepherd (CA) -- are the five and you'll enjoy ESPN.COM's story about the Irish recruits and you'll see them in the video linked below as well.  (L to R:  Tee Shepherd, David Perkins, Justin Ferguson, Mark Harrell and Deontay Greenberry up front)

LINK:  HERE COME THE IRISH

LINK:  THE OPENING -- THE VIDEO

Darby Finishes Fourth at World Championships

Notre Dame football "verbal" commit, Ronald Darby is in Lille, France this week representing the United States of America at the IAAF World Youth Championships.  Yesterday Ronald ran the 100 Meters, finishing in 4th place in the Championship Final with a time of 10.61 -- see the link to the video below!

This morning, Darby won his heat in the 200 Meters with a time of 21.50 -- which advances him to the Semi-Finals tomorrow -- the Championship FINAL for the 200 Meters is Sunday.

The official results are linked below - as well as the PHOTO FINISH of Darby's 100 Meter Final and 200 Meter heat -- COOL PHOTOS!

LINK:  VIDEO OF 100 METER FINAL

LINK:  DARBY FINISHES FOURTH

LINK:  PHOTO FINISH OF 100 METERS

LINK:  200 METERS PRELIMS

LINK:  PHOTO FINISH OF 200 METERS

Notre Dame Football Ticket Lottery Results

Notre Dame football fans who entered the lottery this year for football tickets can find out if they have tickets by clicking on the link below.  Notre Dame will ask you for your "number" -- which was on your Lottery Ticket application -- to access this information.  If by chance you didn't write down your number (like me) you have two additional options:  look at your Notre Dame Magazine mailing label and take the numbers listed there (use only two of the zeros in front of your number) or, you can contact the Notre Dame Ticket Office at 574.631.7356

LINK:  ND FOOTBALL TICKET LOTTERY

USA Today Article -- Michael Floyd

The USA Today sports staff published a story today about Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd.  Didn't really learn much new, but it's always nice to read someone say nice things about the team's upcoming season.  Here's the link:

LINK:  USA TODAY STORY

90 Year Old Receives Notre Dame Degree!

Augustus Francis "Gus" Stuhldreher, who turned 90 years old last week, received an honorary bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame -- after leaving ND for World War II more than a half-century ago.

Notre Dame football fans will recognize the last name as one of the legendary "Four Horsemen" -- Gus wasn't one of the famous four -- that was first cousin Harry Stuhldreher.  This is a wonderful story written by the Akron Beacon Journal -- you'll want to read it!

LINK:  STUHLDREHER FINALLY GETS HIS DEGREE!

Mike Lee Fights Saturday Night @ 9 PM ET!

To get you ready for Notre Dame alum Mike Lee's sixth professional fight I've found two videos Irish fans will enjoy watching.  Video #1 is how Mike is introduced in the ring.  Video #2 is Mike's third round TKO -- both took place in the Dallas Cowboy's billion home in Texas.

Mike's fight Saturday will be streamed LIVE for FREE at TOPRANK.COM -- beginning at 9 PM ET.  See the link below to the site:

LINK:  MIKE LEE'S FIGHT INTRODUCTION

LINK:  MIKE LEE'S THIRD ROUND TKO!


LINK:  WATCH MIKE'S FIGHT -- LIVE -- 9 PM ET ON SATURDAY!

ND Football Tickets Go On Sale -- July 27th!

I've received some emails from Notre Dame fans asking me when the un-sold football tickets go on sale for the upcoming season -- well the date is Wednesday July 27th @ 8:30 AM ET.  To buy tickets you'll need to call the Notre Dame Ticket Office at this number:  574-631-7356

News broke this afternoon that the USC game and Michigan away game ticket requests rank among the 25 best of all time.  Here's a link to the story:

LINK:  LOTTERY TICKET RESULTS ONLINE!

Parseghian, Holtz & Kelly -- Great Video!

The good folks at UND.COM caught up with Notre Dame football coaches Parseghian, Holtz and Kelly -- who were interviewed by ESPN's Mark May and Reece Davis during the Irish Legends event.  Great stuff!

LINK:  IRISH LEGENDS -- VIDEO

Crist & Floyd on Maxwell Award "Watch List"

Two Notre Dame football players were among the sixty-six players named yesterday to the Maxwell Award's "Watch List."  Notre Dame QB Dayne Crist or WR Michael Floyd will hope to become the sixth former Irish football star to receive this honor as College Player of the Year:

2006:  Brady Quinn
1977:  Ross Browner
1966:  Jim Lynch
1953:  John Lattner
1952:  John Lattner
1949:  Leon Hart

LINK:  MAXWELL AWARD -- WATCH LIST

A Wonderful Story -- Katie Mattie ND '14

I just learned of this YouTube video this afternoon -- of Katie Mattie at her graduation from Ypsilanti High School last year.  As Katie tells it -- it was her life-long dream to attend the University of Notre Dame.  Well, as the story goes, Katie "rolled the dice" and applied to only one school.  The Ypsilanti HS Valedictorian / Class President was "wait listed" on two occasions (December 09' and April '10) by her "dream school" only to learn the day before her high school graduation that she had been finally accepted into the University of Notre Dame.

Well, Katie didn't tell anyone (not even Mom or Dad) when she got the news -- she decided to let everyone know the next night during the graduation ceremony.

If you listen closely to the video -- Katie's parents don't believe the principal is right when he introduces Katie and lets everyone know she'll be attending Notre Dame in the fall...  Great stuff!  There's a second link to an Ann Arbor News story about Katie...

LINK:  A NOTRE DAME STORY

LINK:  ANN ARBOR NEWS STORY

Notre Dame Super Fan -- Mark May?

Yeah, he's finally left the dark side...

ESPN's resident "Notre Dame skeptic" Mark May has finally come to his senses.  Here's a link to a video from yesterday's COLLEGE FOOTBALL LIVE on ESPN:

LINK:  MARK MAY -- ND SUPER FAN

Mike Lee's Press Conference -- Tomorrow

Notre Dame boxing champion, Mike Lee -- will be at the Wilshire Grand in downtown Los Angeles tomorrow at Noon PST for the final news conference leading up to his fight this Saturday night.  Lee, who's undefeated as a professional will be the featured undercard attraction in the Brandon Rios vs. Urbano Antillon World Lightweight Championship at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.  The fight will be televised on SHOWTIME.  If you'd like to watch tomorrow's press conference live -- click on the link below.  The photo above is Mike Lee with fellow Notre Dame alum "Rudy" Ruettiger.

LINK:  LIVE FEED TO PRESS CONFERENCE

LINK:  MIKE LEE'S BIO

Band of the Fighting Irish -- National Anthem

Here's a link to a YouTube video I found today from a game in Notre Dame Stadium this past September against Purdue - where the Band of the Fighting Irish played God Bless America and our National Anthem before kick-off.  Thought you'd enjoy this!

LINK:  PRE-GAME AT NOTRE DAME STADIUM

God, Country & Notre Dame -- Happy 4th!

This photo is of an archway on the east side of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on the University of Notre Dame campus.  I found this story about the "Dodd Twins" -- who attended Notre Dame in the late 90's on an ROTC scholarship.  Thought you'd enjoy this story on INDEPENDENCE DAY 2011-- here in America!

LINK:  GOD, COUNTRY & NOTRE DAME

He Never Misses the Opportunity to Hate on ND

Folks his name is David Haugh and he's a sports columnist with the Chicago Tribune.  His column today was "typical Haugh" when it comes to Notre Dame.  Haugh worked at the South Bend Tribune earlier in his career -- spending ten years covering Notre Dame.  In 2003 he moved on to the Chicago Tribune -- where he's been ever since.

It must have been a slow news day for Mr. Haugh -- so he went to his HATE ON NOTRE DAME file to fill some space.  He pulled out four-letter words like "sham" and "punk" to refer to the University of Notre Dame today...

LINK:  THIS STORY'S BEEN TOLD 

Photos of the Day -- Manti Teo at Notre Dame

Manti Teo spent Friday at Notre Dame Stadium having his picture taken for the Irish Sports Report -- thought you'd enjoy of couple of the photos taken by the South Bend Tribune photo staff.

Toughest Job in America -- ND Football Coach

I'm quite sure Brian Kelly would confirm the headline of this story -- it's not a job for the meek of heart.  South Bend Tribune's Eric Hansen caught up with Coach Kelly to take a look back at his first year on campus.  You'll enjoy this story:

LINK:  BRIAN KELLY

It's Good To Be Skylar Diggins!

Has their ever been a more famous female athlete at the University of Notre Dame than Skylar Diggins?

I don't think so...

The good folks at the South Bend Tribune published a wonderful story today about ND's next superstar.  You'll enjoy the story:

LINK:  SKYLAR DIGGINS

Is Oregon the Next to Fall?

The media, not BANK NCAA is doing the investigative work these days policing college athletic programs.  Most recently, a Sports Illustrated writer (who's a Notre Dame grad) put the heat on Ohio State which led to Jim Tressel's forced resignation.  Eighteen months ago a Yahoo Sports story forced BANK NCAA to do something about the USC Trojans football program -- and Oregon might just be next!

Here's a link to Yahoo Sports interview with a "scouting service" in the Houston area -- who was paid $25,000 by the Oregon athletic program to secure the recruitment of top high school football players.  This isn't good for Chip Kelly and company...

LINK:  WILL CHIP KELLY BE LOOKING FOR A JOB SOON?

Photo of the Day -- The Middle of ND's D!

This photo was "tweeted" today by Notre Dame linebacker Manti Teo of the men in the middle of the Notre Dame defense.  Here are their names from left to right in the photo:  Darius Flemming, Manti Teo, Carlo Calabrese, Justin Utopo and Prince Shembo.

Domer Wins USA Track National Championship!

Former Notre Dame All-American Molly Huddle (don't you love her name!) won the 5000 Meters at the USA National Track & Field Championship -- for her first ever National Championship!  The victory, for the nine-time IRISH All-American and the current American record holder in the event, qualifies Molly to represent the United States at the IAAF World Championships in South Korea in late August.  Congratulations Molly!

Here's a link to Molly's interview after her big win!

LINK:  NOTRE DAME'S NATIONAL CHAMPION!

One Time ND Running Back -- Documentary

Dorsey Levens -- who's college football career began at the University of Notre Dame before his transfer to Georgia Tech -- has produced a documentary film about brain concussions called "Bell Rung."  Here's a link to the CNN.COM story:

LINK:  BELL RUNG -- THE DOCUMENTARY