Spreading the Holiday Cheer....Irish Style

Click on the Title and enjoy! Happy Holidays and as always GO IRISH!
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Haywood Update

It now looks like Mike Haywood could be going back home to Texas. With Art Briles leaving for the Baylor job, Houston officials have begun contacting possible candidates, which includes former Texas QB, now Alabama Offensive Coordinator Major Applewhite and Haywood.

Haywood, a Houston native, still has family in the area and has expressed some interest in the Cougars job.

It hasn't been confirmed nor denied from sources in the ND Athletic Department that Kevin White was contacted by both Jim Phillips (AD, NIU) and Dave Maggard (AD, Houston) to speak with Haywood for their coaching vacancies.

If Haywood is on the way out, look for Minnesota Running Backs Coach Thomas Hammock to be one of the first mentioned. Hammock is the older brother of future Irish recruit TyQuann Hammock of Ft. Wayne, IN (Bishop Lures).

More updates on Haywood or other coaching matters will be provided once I hear from my sources.

Boob Davie Back In Coaching?

Say it ain't so, but it is true. Our favorite former head football coach, Boob Davie, is rumored to be one of the leading candidates for the recently vacant SMU job. After Coach Bennett was announced that he would no longer be the head of the Mustangs football program late last month, plenty of names have swirled around to see who can restore this Conference USA cellar dweller.

So far, SMU Athletic Director and ND Alum, Steve Orsini has narrowed down his choices to several former coaches which includes Davie. Former Auburn Coach Terry Bowden, as well as, ex-Texas A&M Coach Dennis Franchione are also rumored to be in the mix. Here is an exerpt from Orsini's blog, Mustang Musings (http://smuad.blogspot.com):

"Just wanted to drop in with a short update on the search - While I can’t go into great detail, I just want to leave you with a couple of notes from the process so far.

We are working to get the best available coach in America and I’m not willing to limit my pool of prospects. As I said at the press conference two weeks ago, we’re looking at a number of different options. We’re going after the best and sometimes that takes time. There is a sense of urgency to this hire, but we’re going to get it right and won’t paint ourselves into a corner by establishing a hard timeline. I entered this process with a plan and am pleased with how it’s being executed and its effectiveness. I am perfectly comfortable with where we are in the process and am confident that we’re on the right track.

Until next time, GO MUSTANGS!"

Davie has been apart of ESPN since 2002 and has taken shots at the Irish ever since. I'm fairly confident the fine folks at SMU will want to have a winning program, so Boobie probably will be in front of the television cameras again. Why can't he just go away?

Carlson Named a Finalist for Draddy Award

Captain John Carlson has been named one of the 15 finalists for the Draddy Award. The Draddy Trophy is one of college football's most sought after and competitive awards, recognizing an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership.

"The Draddy represents excellence in all aspects of one's life," said NFF President & CEO Steven J. Hatchell. "Past recipients have gone on to become lawyers, doctors and some of the best players in the NFL. I have no doubt we can expect the same success from this year's finalists, who have combined to represent the most superior academic class in NFF history."

The announcement will be made during the NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria on Tuesday, December 4.

The centerpiece to the NFF's scholar-athlete program, which has awarded over $8.6 million to 693 top athletes, the Draddy Trophy honors former NFF Chairman Vincent dePaul Draddy, a Manhattan College quarterback who developed the Izod and Lacoste brands. The award, college football's most prestigious academic honor, comes with a 24-inch, 25-pound bronze trophy and increases the winner's scholarship by $7,000 to $25,000.

John Carlson - TE - University of Notre Dame: Finished season with 37 receptions for 343 yards and three touchdowns... Ranks third all- time for the Fighting Irish in receptions by a tight end... 2006 finalist for the John Mackey Award as the nation's best tight end... 2006 Sports Illustrated.com Second Team All-America pick... Reigning Westwood One/State Farm Student-Athlete of the Year... 3.63 GPA... Involved with the Tackle the Arts program.

Other Finalists
Alex Brink (QB) Washington State University
Nick Clark (DE) Texas State University
Brandon Cramer (S) University of Dayton
Dennis Dixon (QB) University of Oregon
Michael Eubanks (LB) Delta State University
Dallas Griffin (C) University of Texas
Mike Klinkenborg (LB) University of Iowa
J Leman (LB) University of Illinois
Brandon Renkart (LB) Rutgers University
Eric Safran (C) Mount Union College
Paul Smith (QB) University of Tulsa
Jacob Tamme (TE) University of Kentucky
Jake Weller (DB) Illinois College
Danny Woodhead (RB) Chadron State College

The 15 Draddy Finalists will head to New York City next week, where each will claim an $18,000 scholarship, and The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) will announce that one of them has become the 16th recipient of the Draddy Trophy, presented by HealthSouth.

Good Luck to Mr. Carlson. You deserve everything you get!

It's a Shame

I felt I had to bring this up one more time, but DAMN! That was a helluva catch from David Grimes. I don't care what that coke bottle wearing replay official said, it was a friggin catch. Big East Officials on the field and Pac 10 in the replay booth, that's a joke. You'd think they would have some uniformity across the board, but I guess not.

Below is an actual account of what transpired after Grimes touchdown catch. Enjoy!

Baseline Bits

Since the football season is officially over for us Irish fans, I now devout my time to Brey's boys. After a rocky start from the Paradise Jam, the Irish are finally getting their shots to fall from behind the arc. Even though I predicted Notre Dame to be 5-1 at this point, I can settle for 4-2 right now as long as they steal a victory next week against #25 Kansas State in Madison Square Garden.

On Monday, Guard Kyle McAlarney scored a career-high 25 points, including 7-10 from 3 pt. range, in the win over Colgate. Forward Rob Kurz added 20 points and 10 rebounds, as the Notre Dame defense held Kyle Roemer, who entered the game averaging 20.2 points a game for the Raiders, to 13 points. Probably one of the more pleasant surprises was Luke Zellar's career high 14 points. Zellar, a former Mr. Indiana, finally got his shots from long range to fall as he finished the night 4-of-5. If this starts to continue, the Irish will be in the thick of things come league play.

The Irish have won 23 straight games at home. The record in the Joyce Center is 24 straight wins, as Notre Dame will try to tie the record Saturday against Eastern Michigan. After the Eastern Michigan game, the Irish go to New York to meet Kansas State (ESPN) in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 4.

Notes
~The team’s top two scorers are Luke Harangody (17.2) and forward Rob Kurz (15.0).

~Harangody made the Big East Honor Roll for averaging 23.5 pts., 55.6 FG pct., 12.0 rebs. in 2-0 week.

~ND's 23 consecutive game home winning streak is currently the 6th best in the country behind Memphis (36), BYU (34), Ohio State (28), Wisconsin (27), and UCLA (24).

Haywood Leaving?

Who would have thought that Northern Illinois would be brought up again with Notre Dame football? First it was the transfer of quarterback Demetrius Jones (who later chose Cincinnati instead), and now there are rumblings of Irish Offensive Coordinator Mike Haywood as the Huskies new Head Coach.

Monday's annoucement of Joe Novak resigning at the helm of NIU football came somewhat as a shock to the fine folks in DeKalb. He peeled off seven straight winning seasons from 2000-06, after an eight-year streak of losing seasons that occurred mostly on other coaches' watch. During a rough 2-10 year, Novak was feeling the heat and decided to call it quits on his own terms.

This NIU job is a good spot for an up-and-coming assistant who knows the area like Haywood. Another reason why Haywood is mentioned to this vacancy is that the NIU Athletic Director, Dr. Jim Phillips, has ties to Notre Dame. Phillips served as Associate Director of Athletics and Senior Associate Director of Athletics for External Affairs from 2000-2003.

If Haywood does become the Head Coach at NIU, how much will this effect the verbal committments he landed here to South Bend? Hopefully we won't have to worry too much about this because Illinois Offensive Coordinator, Mike Locksley, is also being mentioned for the job as well. Let's keep our fingers crossed, Irish faithful!

No word yet on whether Notre Dame Athletic Director Kevin White has been contacted by Phillips to talk with Haywood.

The Art of Scheduling

NOTE: This article is no way an excuse for Notre Dame's 3-9 record, rather an opinion piece about the media's perception of the Irish's football schedule.

I'm not sure about you, but do you get sick and tired of everyone saying how weak Notre Dame's football schedule is? Yes, Mark May, we won the Commander-in-Chief Trophy, ha ha ha. What Mark and others forget to mention is that the Irish played 7 bowl teams last season; 8 if you include LSU in the Sugar Bowl. As we all know Notre Dame was 5-2 (5-3 with the bowl loss) against those teams.

So let's jump to this season and what the bowl season will look like for the Irish's opponents. During the 3-9 season, Notre Dame will have played 10 bowl teams. Yes, 10 BOWL TEAMS! If anyone wants to complain that our schedule was weak, just look at the facts. Let's take a look at who our opponents played. You'll be amazed at how a schedule filled with some cupcakes can make or break a season. Included in this list are projected bowl game, overall team record, projected bowl teams played, and record vs. projected bowl teams.

Projected Bowl Teams
Georgia Tech (Emerald Bowl), 7-5, 6 bowl teams, 1-5

Penn State (Champs Sports Bowl), 8-4, 7 bowl teams, 3-4

Michigan (Alamo Bowl), 8-4, 7 bowl teams, 4-3

Michigan State (Motor City Bowl), 7-5, 6 bowl teams, 3-3

Purdue (Armed Forces Bowl), 7-5, 6 bowl teams, 1-5

UCLA (Las Vegas Bowl), 6-5 currently, 7 bowl teams, 4-3*

Boston College (Champs Sports Bowl), 10-2, 8 bowl teams^, 6-2 ^^

USC (Rose Bowl), 9-2, 5 bowl teams, 4-1 @

Navy (Poinsettia Bowl), 7-4, 3 bowl teams, 1-2

Air Force (New Mexico Bowl), 9-3, 5 bowl teams, 2-3

Non Bowl Opponents
Duke, 1-11, 7 bowl teams, 0-7

Stanford, 3-8, 7 bowl teams, 1-6 $

That's an average of 5.8 games against non bowl eligible teams! Let me dive a little further into the projected BCS teams. They are pretty similar to the Irish's opponents.

Projected BCS Bowl Teams
Missouri (BCS Championship), 11-1, 7 bowl teams +, 6-1 ++

West Virginia (BCS Championship), 10-1, 6 bowl teams, 5-1

Ohio State (Rose Bowl), 11-1, 5 bowl teams, 4-1

LSU (Sugar Bowl), 10-2, 7 bowl teams, 5-2 &

Georgia (Orange Bowl), 10-2, 7 bowl teams, 6-1

Virginia Tech (Orange Bowl), 10-2, 7 bowl teams, 5-2 ~

Kansas (Fiesta Bowl), 11-1, 5 bowl teams, 4-1

Arizona State (Fiesta Bowl), 10-2, 6 bowl teams, 4-2

Hawaii (Sugar Bowl), 12-0, 2 bowl teams, 2-0

The average for the projected BCS schools is 6.3 games against non bowl eligible teams. So you can see not every team is going to be playing the best opponents week in and week out. I'm not going to call for Notre Dame Athletic Director, Dr. Kevin White to water down the schedule, even though some are going nuts over his decision to play games such as Washington State in San Antonio. At least they are not I-AA or MAC schools like some BIG TEN teams play.

It is what it is, Mark May and ESPN. So deal with it!

KEY
* - projected loss to USC
^ - played Virginia Tech twice
^^ - projected loss to Virginia Tech
@ - projected win against UCLA
$ - projected loss to Cal
+ - played Oklahoma twice
++ - projected win against Oklahoma
& - projected win against Tennessee
~ - projected win against Boston College

IBB Season Awards

As the 2007 season came to end last Saturday, I decided to put my take on this season's highs and lows and dish out much deserved awards. So without further adieu, here they go:

Team MVP
Trevor Laws: 112 tackles, 4 sacks and 3 blocked field goals

The tackle total leads all defensive linemen in the nation, and the 3 blocked field goals is the most by any one player, regardless of position. What else can I say about Trevor, that already hasn't been said. He's a beast and will be sorely missed. If he does not get at least Honorable Mention All-American, then there is no justice in college football.

Perseverance Award
Robert Hughes: 53 carries, 294 yards, 5.5 per carry, and 4 Touchdowns

We all know what happened with Robert's older brother. He could have definitely packed it up for the year, but Hughes' kept along and strung together back-to-back 100+ yards performances to help the Irish close out the season with two wins.

Unsung Hero Award
John Carlson: 40 catches, 372 yards, 9.3 yards per catch, and 3 Touchdowns

It was a shame of how this season turned out, especially for Carlson. A preseason All-American, John had to not only be a leader to this team, but he had to stick it out in the trenches to help the much maligned offensive line. It was a great ending to his ND career in catching that nine yard touchdown against Duke in the home finale.

Most Improved Player
David Bruton: 85 tackles, 1 sack, 2 passes broken up, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 1 blocked kick, and 3 interceptions.

Bruton, the Spring game MVP, came out of nowhere to spearhead the defensive secondary. He was instrumental in helping the Irish become one of the worst secondaries in the country to one of the best. Notre Dame is currently 3 in the nation in pass defense.

Newcomer of the Year
Duval Kamara: 32 catches, 357 yards, 11.2 yards per catch, and 4 Touchdowns.

He is going to be something special by the time he leaves South Bend. Second on the team in catches and first in touchdown receptions, Kamara had one of the best season's ever as a freshman receiver in Fighting Irish history. His 4 TD receptions tied the freshmen record.

Best Single Game Performance
Maurice Crum (UCLA game): 7 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries, 2 passes broken up, 2 interceptions, and 1 Touchdown

Crum single handily won the first game of the season for the Irish. His effort got him the NCAA defensive player of the week honors. Mo was all over the field, especially in the second half as he caused havoc for the Bruins. If it wasn't for running into his own teammate, Crum could have had another touchdown. Hey, who's perfect?

Special Teams Player of the Year
David Bruton and Mike Anello

Bruton was everywhere on the field and made some incredible hits during the season. I especially loved the blocked punt against USC. That was the only highlight of that contest.

Anello, a junior walk-on from the Chicagoland area, made his presence felt this season on both kickoff and punt coverage. Alongside Bruton, Anello will be looked upon to help improve the Irish special teams next season.

Defensive MVP
Trevor Laws

That was a no brainer!

Best Hair
Pat Kuntz

The Mohawk never goes out of style

Best Catch
David Grimes 29 yard, was an actual TD, but reversed by a blind replay official vs. Stanford

Golden Tate 43 yarder vs. Purdue

Grimes catch would have been the catch of the year across the country, but the Pac 10replay officials made this one moot. We all know that it was really touchdown.

Tate came onto the scene with his acrobatic catches against the Purdue secondary. His fourth down catch against the Boilers put a scare into the West Lafayette faithful. His 3 catches, 104 yards, and 1 score performance, made other squads aware of his presence on the field.

I would have given an Offensive MVP award, but wasn't sure really who I would have deserved it? The only ones I could see it would be Kamara, Carlson, or Hughes. Yes Travis Thomas lead the team in touchdowns, but he was not our best offensive weapon. Armando Allen definitely had the most all-purpose yards, and will vie for this award next season.

Anyway, here's to the official countdown to the Blue and Gold game!

Wrap it up

What a long strange trip it has been definitely defines the 2007 football season. After closing out the season with back-to-back wins for the first time since 1992, Notre Dame sets it sights to the 2008 campaign and the Sept. 6 season opener against San Diego State.

Last Saturday's contest with Stanford was all in the hands of the officials. What a horribly called game by not only the Big East officiating crew, but the Pac-10 replay officials. It should tell you something when the head replay official has a hard time seeing the monitor by shielding the glare off of his coke bottle glasses. How on earth did he overturn David Grimes amazing catch is beyond me. The ball didn't move whatsoever. The replay official said he he saw the ball move up his arm thus he "THINKS" the ball hit the ground. HE THINKS? Again, you must have visual proof, not "I Think". You can also tell from the video that the ball never once "Moved up his arm". In fact it never even bobbled. David Grimes left hand was completely under the ball the whole time. He had a firm grasp with the ball in his right hand. Thus him showing the ball to the ref after he stopped sliding.

The other wonderful call was the personal foul called on Trevor Laws. After David Bruton intercepted the ball, Trevor knocked down the offensive lineman. What was so wrong with that? Did he hit him with the helmet? Did he kick him in the junk? Who knows. But Weis asked the officiating crew if the personal foul wasn't called, would that still have been a touchdown? They said absolutely! So instead of winning 21-14, the game in all reality should have been 35-14. Oh well, enough of my rant on the game. We won, and that's what really matters right now.

Bright Spots and the Future
Jimmy Clausen played an alright game. His numbers weren't spectacular (19-32 for 196 yards), but was encouraging. Not flattering was not throwing the ball away before running out of bounds and losing yards. Then, finally throwing the ball away to avoid the sack, and getting intercepted. Definitely freshman mistakes, but not during the last game of the season. Jimmy your better than that, and hopefully you can correct this during the off-season.

Robert Hughes is a beast. What can I say about the human wrecking ball? He put together awesome back-to-back performances. His first run was fantastic. He's not going to burn you with blazing speed, but he will run right over you if you don't get out of his way. The only blemish was the fumble.

Duval Kamara is going to be something special by the time he graduates. His six catches for 93 yards, including a circus like catch in the second half, is going to become the norm.

David Bruton and Darrin Walls are the staple of the defensive backfield. Bruton just gets better and better as the season went on. His play during the last Cardinal possession was spectacular and helped seal the win. On third down he knocked the ball loose from the Stanford receiver in the endzone, which, oddly enough was challenged. Hate to break to you Captain Comeback, but he never had possession of the ball. The whole stadium knew it, except for your pompous ass!

Stanford didn't throw too much Darrin Walls' way. But when they did, Darrin showed why he was a HS All-American. Like Bruton, Walls got better as the season progressed. When the whole college football season is said and done, ND's pass defense will be ranked within the Top 5. That is one of the single best turnaround in that category in NCAA history. See what a new defense coordinator can do to a team. It definitely wasn't Bill Lewis' tutelage, that's for sure.

It's so hard to say Goodbye
The three players I definitely hate to see go are John Carlson, Trevor Laws, and Tommy Zbikowski. Those three gave their heart and soul every week when they could have bolted after last season. Carlson opted to comeback instead of head towards what would have been a lucrative NFL contract. He'll still get his shot, because he definitely was one of the best college tight ends in the country.

Trevor Laws played himself into the first day of the NFL draft. Whoever drafts Laws, will be getting a future NFL superstar. Can you say Bryant Young the second? He had the most tackles (112) out of any down lineman in the nation. The next closest in tackles is 83. Trevor definitely gets my vote for Team MVP. As for other postseason accolades, I'm not sure if he'll get any; and that would be a crying shame.

I was hoping that there were no flags during Zbikowski's return before halftime. That would have been the perfect ending to what was a roller coaster career. His first two seasons of action were great. Last season he fell off because of added weight and being injured most of the year. This season he showed glimpses of his return game and timely defensive stops. That last touchdown would have been the capper to a wonderful career. You could see it in his eyes that he wanted to score.

Next year
I truly believe Charlie and Company will turn this around rather quickly. The offensive line problems will be solved as the trio of backs in Hughes, Armando Allen, and James Aldridge will create problems for opposing defenses. Clausen will improve after an extensive off season workout regimen. I'm not saying he'll look like Brady Quinn, but we'll notice the difference from this past season.

As for the receiving corps, the sky is the limit. Kamara, Golden Tate, Robby Parris, David Grimes, George West, along with newcomers Michael Floyd and Jonathan Goodman, will give Clausen plenty of targets to throw to. Don't forget Will Yeatman, Mike Ragone, and future superstar Kyle Rudolph, will hold up the stellar reputation of Tight End U.

Defensively, Bruton and Walls will spearhead the charge in the backfield. Kerry Neal and Brian Smith will only get better as they get more coaching under their belts. Ian Williams and Pat Kuntz played surprising well this season on the line and will only get better, especially when Omar Hunter, Ethan Johnson, Hafis Williams, and Bradon Newman, will be pushing for playing time.

I'm not calling for a national championship or BCS run here for next season, but what I am envisioning is the setup for a run towards the 2009 Title. I see a 9-2 or 8-3 season including their first bowl win since 1993. Once again there will be some cheer, cheer, for Old Notre Dame!

The Final Countdown

Saturday concludes what has been a long and tiresome season for many Irish fans. Only two victories and a plethora of problems amongst a team split between the old regime (Ty's guys) and the future (the Weis guys), comes down to this last game against a 3-7 Stanford squad. Looking back in retrospect of season's past and final games, this Saturday's contest reminds me of this day, November 29, 1986:
Notre Dame 38 #17 USC 37

Lou Holtz's first foray into the Notre Dame-USC rivalry was a successful one, as the Irish rallied back from a 20-9 halftime deficit. They trailed 30-12 early in the third quarter before Steve Beuerlein started hitting his stride. He hit Braxston Banks with a 22-yard TD pass, Milt Jackson for 43 yards and Banks for five yards to cut it to 37-35. Tim Brown's 56-yard punt return then put John Carney in position to cap the comeback with a 19-yard field goal with two seconds left. Unfortunately for most of the country who watched the game on Television only got to see the Irish celebrating as CBS didn't cut back to the game on time.

That game paved the way for the future of Notre Dame football under Coach Holtz. I firmly believe this could be the same under Charlie Weis. In his first season, Holtz was 5-6, and then in 1987 he was 8-4 before the 1988 National Championship year. Yes, this is Weis' third year, but he's getting his building blocks in place to start the revival of Fighting Irish football. And it starts this Saturday.

Stanford has only won, one game at home this season (37-0) over San Jose State. Defensively, the Cardinal is going to blitz like crazy against the Irish. In fact, Stanford is 11th in the country with 31, and average 7.9 tackles for losses a game. On the flip side, Stanford is not that great on offense. Yes, they beat USC, and yes they can score points. But look at the last few games the Cardinal of played: L (23-6, Oregon St.), L (27-9, Washington), and L (33-17, Washington St.). That's back-to-back losses to 4-7 teams that give up a lot of points.

Statistically, Stanford is the 106th offense in the country averaging 322 yards per game. Rushing they're 106th (103 p/g), 64th passing (218 p/g), and 104th in scoring (20.1 pts. per contest).

What's good for the Irish is that the secondary has been playing better than previous seasons. So whatever Stanford throws at them, Notre Dame should handle with success. Look for David Bruton and Tommy Zbikowski to have stellar contests. Zbikowski will go out with a bang with at least one interception and a punt return for a touchdown.

Offensively, the Irish have been playing consistently well the past two games behind freshman QB Jimmy Clausen. Look for Clausen to manage an effective game through the air with another strong performance. The offensive line has been building momentum the last few weeks and will hold up well to give the human wrecking ball Robert Hughes to break off a few long runs.

Notre Dame hasn't won two straight to close out the season since 1992. Yes, 1992! Well things are going to change, and change for the better. This will be the day that builds for the future!

Notre Dame 31
Stanford 27

Happy Thanksgiving. I'll be on the road for a couple of days visiting family for the Holiday, so I won't be back on till Monday.

GO IRISH!

A Kick in the Grass

For a couple of days now the big talk around campus was the replacement of the turf at Notre Dame Stadium. Yes there will be field turf that the Irish will use next season. Luckily, it won't be laid in the friendly confines of the stadium, rather it will be used in the practice fields. Instead, Notre Dame will be getting the advice of George Toma, affectionately referred to as the "God of Sod" to oversee the project. The school announced Monday evening that a new grass field is in the works for Notre Dame Stadium, to be installed fully by next week and to be ready for use by spring 2008.

Workmen began tearing up the old field Monday morning, the school said in a statement. The new sod will come from a Colorado turf farm, the same supplier that provided the sod for the new turf at Wrigley Field. Hopefully the Irish don't get the same curse as the Cubbies("Wait till next year!").

During his weekly press conference, Coach Weis indicated that he would prefer the Field Turf, but the decision wasn't up to him. Yes Charlie, this isn't Burger King, you can't have it your way. Don't mess with tradition.

Red, and Cardinal, for that matter, is for Losers!

I felt that this little video would be appropriate for Notre Dame's opponent on Saturday, the Stanford Cardinal.

Go Irish!

A Fresh Perspective

FINALLY! The first and only victory at home of the 2007 season was refreshing and bittersweet. It was great to see the seniors go out with a victory, but more importantly, great to see what the future holds behind Charlie's freshmen and sophomore classes.

For the second week in a row, Jimmy Clausen looked like the real deal with crisp, accurate passes that had some zip to it. Clausen's first touchdown, a 25 yarder to David Grimes, was sick. Anyone who said Jimmy throws like a girl might want to retract that statement. Another 3 touchdown, no interception performance might become the norm once he gets into the weight room to add to his frame and absorb Coach Weis' offense.

Duval Kamara's presence on Saturday, after missing the Air Force game, was much needed, as was, the rushing performance of Robert Hughes. Hughes bowling ball effect of the Duke defense reminded me of another Midwest bruiser, Jerome Bettis. Hopefully it will be up and up for these younger players.

I was happy to see Trevor Laws and Tommy Z. get their time to shine. Trevor is just getting better and better as each game passes by, while Tommy, finally got his wish of playing quarterback. It would have been interesting to see if he threw the ball once.

While sitting in the stands watching the game, I overhead a conversation about freshmen starters. The guy was talking about all these freshmen playing at all these other schools, and that Notre Dame should take note of how successful these other programs are with them playing. Well I hated to break up his conversation, but I told him that Notre Dame was actually second, behind Temple (11), with nine "TRUE" Freshmen starting this season. The guy then rattled off some other schools such as Georgia and Florida and said that they have more freshmen starters. Once again, I had to point out the difference between a TRUE freshmen and a Redshirt freshmen. It was quite amusing once realized the difference and how quickly he shut-up and watched the game.

That conversation brought up a good point. I did a little research here yesterday and compiled ND's opponents this season and looked at how many TRUE Freshmen started so far this season, their record, their opponents record, strength of schedule, and how many bowl eligible teams they have faced. These numbers are pretty interesting if you ask me. So here it goes:

Notre Dame
9 True Freshmen starters,(2-9), (71-55), 13th Strength of Schedule, 9 bowl eligible teams

Georgia Tech
1 True Freshmen (Special Teams), (7-4), (67-65), 68th SOS, 5 bowl eligible teams

Michigan
2 True Freshmen, (8-4), (81-59), 34th SOS, 7 bowl eligible teams

Penn State
0 True Freshmen, (8-4), (74-62), 56th SOS, 7 bowl eligible teams

Michigan State
3 True Freshmen (1 ST's starter included), (7-5), (77-62), 49th SOS, 6 bowl eligible teams

Purdue
0 True Freshmen, (7-5), (75-65), 70th SOS, 5 bowl eligible teams

UCLA
1 True Freshmen, (5-5), (72-55), 8th SOS, 6 bowl eligible teams

Boston College
3 True Freshmen (1 ST's starter included), (9-2), (72-64), 35th SOS, 5 bowl eligible teams

USC
3 True Freshmen (2 ST's starters included), (8-2), (54-63), 40th SOS, 3 bowl eligible teams

NAVY
2 True Freshmen, (7-4), (53-67), 97th SOS, 3 bowl eligible teams

Air Force
0 True Freshmen, (9-3), (61-69), 85th SOS, 4 bowl eligible teams

Duke
1 True Freshmen (Special Teams starter), (1-10), (79-54), 11th SOS, 8 bowl eligible teams

Stanford
4 True Freshmen (1 ST's starter included), (3-7), (68-60), 3rd SOS, 4 bowl eligible teams

I also dug a little deeper and decided to look at the teams in the current BCS Top Ten. Here are the results:

#1 LSU
3 True Freshmen (1 ST starter), 10-1, 73-59, 27th SOS, 5 bowl teams

#2 Kansas
1 True Freshmen, 11-0, 57-76, 101st SOS, 1 bowl team

#3 West Virginia
1 True Freshmen, 9-1, 66-65, 42nd SOS, 4 bowl teams

#4 Missouri
1 True Freshmen, 10-1, 72-63, 47th SOS, 4 bowl teams

# 5 Ohio State
1 True Freshmen, 11-1, 73-67, 53rd SOS, 6 bowl teams

#6 Arizona State
0 True Freshmen, 9-1, 63-64, 26th SOS, 3 bowl teams

#7 Georgia
2 True Freshmen, 9-2, 71-60, 24th SOS, 6 bowl teams

#8 Virginia Tech
1 True Freshmen, 9-2, 74-58, 46th SOS, 6 bowl teams

#9 Oregon
3 True Freshmen (1 ST starter included), 8-2, 72-56, 14th SOS, 5 bowl teams

#10 Oklahoma
0 True Freshmen, 9-2, 65-65, 69th SOS, 4 bowl teams

This piece is not to give an excuse to why the Irish are 2-9, because there are plenty of reasons that I'll save for another day.

The Power of Lou!

If that doesn't get you pumped up, then I don't know what to tell ya! Does anyone have a helmet? Hey if worked for Navy, it has to work for Notre Dame, right? Cheer, Cheer for Old Notre Dame and Lou Holtz!

GO Irish!

The Roof is on Fire

Senior Day at Notre Dame is upon us and the last home game to what has been a nightmarish season will be put to an end. The 1-9 Duke Blue Devils have been a consistently bad program, while the Irish have just been plain awful this season. Both squads have faced and lost to Georgia Tech and Navy; which doesn't give me any reason why to pick Notre Dame. But I do have one bright spot to look at when I predict the game: Duke Head Coach Ted Roof!

In his fourth full season as the head coach at Duke, Roof is a whooping 4-40 (.100%), which includes wins over I-AA opponents Virginia Military Institute (2005) and the Citadel (2004). So basically, Ted has two wins over I-A opponents: Northwestern (2007) and Clemson (2004).

If we Irish fans can take any solace in this last home game is the fact that no one wants to go out as the team to lose all their home games. The only other times that has happened were in 1887 (0-1), 1918 (0-0-1) and 1933 (0-3-1). I firmly believe that the tension, or as some of the local media have put it "the cancer", on the team will be put aside so the seniors (Ty's guys) will come out victorious. Clausen will make it two weeks in a row of showing why he is our quarterback for the future with a few scores through the air.

The offensive line will dominate for the first time this season, as James Aldridge, Armando Allen, and Robert Hughes will wreak havoc on the Duke defense. The Seniors will do their ceremonial lap around Notre Dame Stadium. I don't expect, however, a chant of beat Stanford. By the way, Notre Dame's all-time Senior Day record is 90-23-4 (.786).

Final Score

Notre Dame 34
Duke 20

Odds & Ends

In December of 2001, Ted Roof, then the defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech, was set to join newly hired head coach George O’Leary on the Notre Dame coaching staff. However, O’Leary resigned five days following his appointment to the head job with the Irish and Roof, electing not to return to Georgia Tech, would be named the defensive coordinator at Duke the following month. By George, you should have had someone proof read your resume, maybe you would still be in South Bend then!

Roof and Notre Dame aide Rob Ianello were graduate assistants together at Alabama in 1987 when the Tide fell to the Fighting Irish, 37-6. Roof was on the Georgia Tech staff when the Yellow Jackets defeated Notre Dame in the 1999 Gator Bowl, 35-28.

Duke offensive coordinator Peter Vaas will have some familiarity with this week’s opponent after spending the 2005 and 2006 seasons on the Notre Dame coaching staff under Charlie Weis. During those two seasons, the Irish went 19-6 with two BCS bowl game appearances — Fiesta and Sugar. Vaas also was a member of the Notre Dame staff in 1990 and 1991 under Lou Holtz. Vaas’ connections with Notre Dame continue as daughter Katelyn is currently a senior at Notre Dame while daughter Kelly is a sophomore at nearby Saint Mary’s. I wonder if Vaas still gets the faculty/staff discount for his daughter's education?

Duke quarterback Thaddeus Lewis and Notre Dame halfback Armando Allen were teammates at Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School. In 2005, Lewis threw for 1,237 yards and 12 touchdowns while Allen rushed for 1,095 yards and 12 scores as Hialeah-Miami Lakes went 6-3 and advanced to the state playoffs. Lewis enrolled at Duke in the fall of 2006 while Allen enrolled at Notre Dame in January of 2007.

WeisGipper's Pic of the Week

Here's a picture of my two biggest fans of my blog: Memoirs of Zeus and Dillon63. You can also see them trolling around numerous ND message boards such as Blue & Gold.com, Irish Illustrated, and Domer Domain. These two posters are considered dumb and idiotic. I repeat, these posters are not worth your time. Just proceed with caution to not get caught in their trap of reading their verbal diarrhea.

So here's to you Zeus and Dillon63, real men of genius.....NOT!

Heck of a Line Coach

With the inevitable of giving up the most sacks in NCAA history, everyone, including myself, is looking for solutions along the offensive line. Obviously changes won't be made anytime soon, but there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Charlie will most likely give Coach Latina his walking papers. There hasn't been any improvement whatsoever in his three seasons as offensive line coach.

There is only one answer to this problem: Andy Heck. Heck is in his second season as offensive line coach and fourth season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Weis needs to get on the phone immediately and contact Andy to come back home. Heck should be the offensive line coach and hold the title of assistant offensive coordinator. Just look at what Heck has done during his tenure with Jacksonville: In Heck’s first season as offensive line coach, the line paved the way to a single-season franchise-record for rushing yards (2,541) and allowed only 30 sacks, the second-fewest in team history. The Jaguars set a franchise-record with a 5.0 rushing average and 5.5 average per play.

The Jaguars rushed for a franchise-record 375 yards against Indianapolis on December 10. The Jaguars outgained their opponents in 12 of 16 games in 2006. Heck was also an assistant at the University of Virginia. He tutored All-America tight end Heath Miller, who set numerous Atlantic Coast Conference records for a tight end in receiving and scoring. An outstanding blocker, Miller was a first round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2005.

The timing is right for this move to be made. Who says you can't come back home?

No Mocking Brey, Irish Will Make Some Noise This Season

As I turn my attention to basketball, Mike Brey's 2007-08 team is still not getting the respect they deserve. After finishing in the Top 4 of the Big East with an 11-5 league mark and a 24-8 overall record, the Irish were picked to finish 9th by the Coaches and Media. Yes the loss of Russel Carter and Colin Falls does hurt, but Notre Dame does have a solid nucleus coming back behind a mix of youth and experience.

Senior captain Rob Kurz leads a formidable frontcourt with Luke Harangody (All Big East Rookie), Luke Zellar, Zach Hillesland, and swing man Ryan Ayers. The backcourt tandem of Tory Jackson (All Big East Rookie) and Kyle McAlarney could be one of the best in the mighty Big East. Add Johnathan Peoples and freshmen Tim Abromaitis and Ty Nash off the bench for some support and the Irish should make it back to the NCAA Tournament again. In a recent online chat with ESPN analyst Doug Gottlieb about ND's changes to make the NCAA Tournament again he said, "Yes, I do believe they will make it. They have a really dynamic backcourt. They have some bigs that can step out and shoot. But are they athletic enough to compete in the Big East. I think the answer is yes. They'll have a chance every night with that backcourt."

Notre Dame should break the consecutive home winning streak of 24 with contests against Youngstown State, Colgate, Eastern Michigan, and Northern Illinois. Early season road blocks will come in from Kansas State (Jimmy V Classic) and possible matchup with Georgia Tech or Winthrop in the U.S. Virgin Island Paradise Jam.

An 18 game conference schedule will be daunting, as the Irish face UConn, Marquette, and DePaul twice, and have road contests against national power Georgetown and Louisville.

Another 20 win season and first round bye in the conference tournament is not impossible. Here is a breakdown of this year's predicted wins and losses:

Wins
Long Island (H)
Monmouth (H)
Baylor/Wichita State (N)
Youngstown State (H)
Colgate (H)
Eastern Michigan (H)
Northern Illinois (H)
San Francisco (H)
Brown (H)
North Florida (H)
West Virginia (H)
Cincinnati (H)
Villanova (A)
Providence (H)
DePaul (H)
Seton Hall (A)
Marquette (H)
Rutgers (A)
Pittsburgh (H)
DePaul (A)
St. John's (H)
South Florida (A)

Loses
Georgia Tech (N)
Kansas State (N)
UConn (H)
Marquette (A)
Georgetown (A)
UConn (A)
Louisville (A)
Syracuse (H)

Overall 22-8, (12-6 conference mark)

With this type of season, the Irish surely will be looking at a 5-8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Even though it is early November, March Madness will be rampant behind Brey's Boys!

Heir Apparent

Freshman Jimmy Clausen had his best showing this past Saturday in Notre Dame's 41-24 loss to Air Force. Despite being hurried, and running for his life, Clausen put up some impressive numbers: 22-40, 246 yards, and 3 Touchdowns. That includes many dropped balls from his receivers.

Before Saturday's contest with the Falcons, Clausen's numbers weren't too far off from his predecessor's first six starts. Here is the breakdown of both Clausen's and Brady Quinn's freshmen seasons:

Quinn
86 Completions
176 Attempts
48.9% Completion percentage
5 Touchdown passes
7 Passes intercepted
985 yards
2 wins (Pittsburgh and Navy)

Clausen
70 Completions
115 Attempts
60.1% Completion percentage
1 Touchdown pass
5 Passes intercepted
306 yards
1 win (UCLA)

And here are the numbers after their seventh start:

Quinn
101 Completions
206 Attempts
49% Completion percentage
5 Touchdown passes
8 Passes intercepted
1,141 yards
3 wins (Pitt, Navy, BYU)

Clausen
92 Completions
155 Attempts
59.4% Completion percentage
4 Touchdown passes
5 Passes intercepted
552 yards
1 win (UCLA)

This is an opportunity to look at the glass as half full with Clausen. Despite having a porous offensive line that can not pass block or run block and several receivers having the case of the dropsies, Clausen is finally getting some forward progress. Maybe Clausen's final numbers at the end of the season might get closer and closer to Brady's with games against Duke (1-9) and Stanford (3-7).

Saturday showed a glimpse of what the future holds with Clausen. Now if the line can give him time to throw and the receivers can hold on to the ball; a win might be in store!

Pictures Speak Louder!

This was the only exciting news that came out of this past weekend. Omar Hunter enjoyed his visit despite the game's outcome and solidified his verbal commitment to the Irish. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the other 20 commitments will do the same.

GO IRISH!

Wild Blue Yonder

After what seemed to be a long week of hearing every media outlet celebrate the Naval Academy's win over the Irish, the Falcons of Air Force come flying into South Bend. Despite having an overall record of 7-3, Air Force is 2-3 on the road, which includes losses to BYU (31-6), New Mexico (34-31), and Navy (31-20).

Keys to the Game

The Irish will face another top rushing attack, as the Falcons rank 4th nationally. Notre Dame is 95th nationally in the stopping the run (199 yards per game) and 7th in passing defense (169.9 yards per game). Air Force will pound it out mostly on the ground, but they do have a better Aeriel attack than Navy, which will cause major problems for the Irish.

ND's defense has to allow minimal yards on first and second downs, as Navy was looking at third and short most of the day. If the Irish can contain the Falcon rushing attack, the confidence level of both sides of the ball will show. Here's a Key Fact-Air Force is 7-0 when it has a player rush for over 100 yards and 6-1 when they out-rush their opponents. The Falcons are 0-3 when they don't have a player run for over 100 yards this season. It's possible since the Irish didn't allow an individual 100-yard rusher against the Midshipmen last week and did finally put together a rushing attack behind James Aldridge and Armando Allen.

Notre Dame defensive line coach Jappy Oliver coached at Air Force for eight years from 1995-2002. He was on the sidelines for the Falcons for four of the AFA-Notre Dame games, including the last time the teams played in 2002. He's seen the wishbone up close, so hopefully he can stop it with the Irish.

We'll see what a couple of weeks rest does to Freshman Jimmy Clausen. If Notre Dame starts out with a successfully scoring drive, Clausen and the Irish will get the added confidence to finally get their first home win of the season. Even though Air Force is 27th in pass efficiency defense, they have not faced the likes of rangy receivers. Duval Kamara will have another stellar game, and Golden Tate will finally get some balls thrown his way.

I don't expect to see this contest come down to who has the ball last, but rather who can control the clock and take care of the football.

ND 31
AFA 23

Facts and Figures

Air Force is one of seven teams in the last 25 years to win three or more games in Notre Dame Stadium. The Falcons posted wins in 1983, 1984 and 1996. The Falcons trail only Michigan State with seven, Boston College with five and USC with four in wins in Notre Dame Stadium. Air Force's three wins are tied with Michigan, Pittsburgh, Penn. State, and Southern California. Air Force defeated Notre Dame, 24-22, in 1983, 21-7 in 1984 and 20-17 in overtime in 1996. The Falcons had a near miss in 2000, falling 34-31 in overtime.


Most Wins in Notre Dame Stadium -- Last 25 Years
1. Michigan State 7 (83, 97, 99, 01, 03, 05, 07)
2. Boston College 5 (93, 99, 02, 04, 07)
3. USC 4 (97, 03, 05, 07)
4. Air Force 3 (83, 84, 96)
Michigan 3 (84, 94, 06)
Pittsburgh 3 (83, 86, 04)
Penn State 3 (86, 90, 91)


Air Force's Troy Calhoun and Notre Dame's Charlie Weis were both NFL offensive coordinators prior to their head coaching jobs. Calhoun was the offensive coordinator for the Houston Texas last year. Weis was the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots from 2000-05 and the New York Jets from 1998-1999.

Calhoun and Weis are two of the four head coaches in Div. I football that do not have the title of offensive coordinator but calls the plays on game day. Thre are 14 head coaches in Div. I football that call the offensive plays on game day.

Listed below are the head coaches that also call the offensive plays on gameday.


Head Coaches (School)
Art Briles (Houston)
Troy Calhoun (Air Force)*
Bill Callahan (Nebraska)*
Bill Cubit (Western Michigan)
Todd Dodge (North Texas)
Ralph Friedgen (Maryland)
Turner Gill (Buffalo)*
Paul Johnson (Navy)
June Jones (Hawaii)
Hal Mumme (New Mexico State)
Steve Spurrier (South Carolina State)
Jeff Tedford (California)
Bob Toledo (Tulane)
Charlie Weis (Notre Dame)*
*Does not have title of offensive coordinator, but calls the plays on game day.

Family Affair

Here's a little tidbit on another Irish verbal commit, Mike Golic, Jr., son of former player and ESPN radio personality Mike Golic, Sr. Mike Jr. is continuing the string of Golic's playing for the Irish as his uncle's Bob and Greg played for the Irish along side Mike Sr. in the 70's and 80's. Younger brother, Jake Golic, is currently being sought after as a Tight End as well. Tops on Jake's list is, surprise, surprise, Notre Dame.

The Golic boys will be making dad very proud in the near future!

Odds and Ends

I felt that the above segment would be very appropriate for Charlie's third season and beyond. I know I had a empty feeling in my gut after Saturday's loss to Navy, but Chuckles is getting the necessary recruits in here. If another season ends like this one next year, who knows? Maybe he was right in saying that everyone should get their laughs in now, because they do get knocked down, and then up again. Are they ever gonna keep them down? Hopefully not!

But this is what should take place in the future.

Coaching Changes

During Charlie's weekly press conference on Tuesday he mentioned that both the players and assistant coaches are not going to do any interviews before the Air Force game. Only Coordinators Mike Haywood and Corwin Brown will field questions from the media. Maybe I'm grasping at straws here, but I get the feeling that several of his assistants will be getting their pink slips at the end of season.

Latina (offensive line), Polian (special teams and linebackers), Lewis (defensive backs), and Mendoza (strength and conditioning) will be your likely candidates.

Coach Weis will find excellent assistants that will not only know how to coach, but develop their players at a normal pace. This is one of the major setbacks to this year's squad.

Damage Control

So far so good on the recruiting trail. No one has decommitted as of yet, and from the sounds of it, there probably won't be any major 11th hour defectors. Dayne Crist has received calls from several Pac 10 schools, especially Oregon, but has stood firm in his allegiance to Coach Weis and the Irish. Omar Hunter has dispelled rumors of him visiting USC, while Ethan Johnson's injury has shut the door on several poachers.

Coach Weis gives all of his verbal commits a weekly update on what's going on with the team and still hasn't lost any of them. As for future commits, Deion Walker's visit went smoothly despite reports of him not liking South Bend. That article was taken from a Southern Cal paper (go figure). Kenneth Page (OL), and the Robinson's, Gerrell (WR) and Trevor (OL) are very well in the mix and I believe we will get at least two of them.

The off season will help solidify the current verbals we have, as well as, get a head start for next season's recruiting trail.

Light at the end of the Tunnel

It took an article from Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports that woke up the echoes for me. Not matter what happens, Charlie will always be a Notre Dame man and is OUR COACH! Notre Dame football is religion to me and many other Irish fans. I haven't jumped ship, but I did put on my life preserver after Saturday, but have since taken it off and look to the future.

God, Country, Notre Dame!

Calling Bill Cowher

This was definitely the straw that broke the camels back. How can a team with supposed superior talent give up four sacks to the worst defense in the nation? Is it coaching or is it lack of talent? I tend to go on the side of coaching, or lack thereof. I've stuck up for Chuckles till my face turned blue, but man, this is it. I'm so done with all of his excuses.

Yesterday he tries to give some positives about the return game, not punting to Navy, the running game, and the defense giving up only three offensive touchdowns in regulation. Well, boy goooooollllllyyyyyy, Charlie, we should excel in those categories against Navy! You got out coached, out schemed, and outclassed by Paul Johnson and the Midshipmen.

The Board of Directors were on campus this weekend, and let me say, they are not happy. I would have loved to been a fly on the wall in their luxury box during the game. In fact a few left in disgust after Evan Sharpley got sacked on 4th and 8. Great call there Chuckles! His excuse of not kicking the field goal was bush league. For those at the game, there wasn't a gusting wind that would have affected Brandon Walker's 41 yard attempt. Give the boy a chance. Shit, give the team a chance. If he misses or gets blocked so be it. At least your giving your team a fighting chance. They are called the Fighting Irish for crying out loud!

ND President Father Jenkins needs to make a list of candidates for not only the head coaching position, but for the athletic director as well. Kevin White has made terrible decisions like extending contracts to Bob Davie and now Weis. Secondly he needs to start seeking out replacements for Charlie now. I don't believe he'll give Weis his walking papers after this season, but I don't see the bleeding to stop next season either.

Weis hasn't developed his players in a natural progression that will excel in today's college football. There are plenty of coaches that are playing with true freshmen and are doing well (i.e.; Georgia's Mark Richt with two true freshmen offensive linemen). Weis' arrogance is also getting old and tiresome. During his post game interview, he said that he isn't going anywhere. Wake up and smell the roses Charlie, if you have another wonderful season like 2007, you're going to be looking for a new zip code. What gives anyone optimism that this will change for next season? Yes he's recruited the bejesus out the nation to land what is now the #1 recruiting class. But will all of these recruits stay? Will more players leave the squad between now and next season? Who knows.

Weis has been given a pass for this year, but, and only but, if he can't turn this ship around to a high level of competition, then he has to go. Make no bones about it, he has to leave. There is too much at stake to waste another few years of mediocrity under Weis. Notre Dame prides itself on putting out the best in everything it does from Academics to Athletics. If it doesn't change in an instant, Notre Dame will only be traditions of the past!

Any good administrator has a list of replacements, whether they are doing well or not. Everyone has to prepare for the future, and I believe Fr. Jenkins needs to look ahead and make a master list of who can succeed here at Notre Dame, both as an Athletic Director and Head Coach of Football. All the good ones do it, so why not Notre Dame? We strive to be the best, so why not act like it.

Here is a list of replacements for both AD and Head Coach:

Athletic Director Candidates
Gene Smith (Ohio State) - He's the only choice in my opinion, but the rest will be consider because of university ties.
Barry Alvarez (Wisconsin)
Joel Maturi (Minnesota)
Steve Orsini (Southern Methodist)
Mike Bobinski (Xavier)
Bubba Cunningham (Tulsa)
Larry Williams (Portland)

Head Coaching Candidates
This is not in preferred order, but are suitable replacements nonetheless.
Bill Cowher (ex-Pittsburgh, NFL)
Urban Meyer (Florida)
Chris Peterson (Boise State)
Mark Richt (Georgia)
Mike Bellotti (Oregon)
Brian Kelly (Cincinnati)
Dan Hawkins (Colorado)
Jon Gruden (Tampa Bay, NFL)
Norm Chow (Tennessee, NFL)
Bo Pelini (LSU, Defensive Coordinator)
Dan Mullen (Florida, Offensive Coordinator)

Keep the Streak Alive

ESPN analyst and former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz has been delivering pep talks to teams during halftime segments of Thursday night telecasts. Holtz has delivered five pep talks this season, and four of the teams he “pepped” have lost. This sounds more potent than the SI cover jinx. Well it will get more interesting tonight according to ESPN's Rece Davis.

This was just taken today from the ESPN Live chat with Rece:

Rich B (Lancaster, OH): Who is Lou giving the Pep Talk to tonight? His Pep Talk has to rank right up there with the Madden Cover Curse and the SI Cover Jinx!

Rece Davis: (5:06 PM ET ) If he breaks a jinx with his pep talk tonight...it will be an all timer. That's a hint. Here's another...you judge whether his heart is really in the pep talk. You might be surprised.

So Sweet Lou is giving Navy the pep talk. Hopefully he keeps the streak alive!

Poacher Alert

The usual suspects are at it again. USC's Pete Carroll, Oregon's Mike Bellotti, and Florida's Urban Meyer are trying to sway Notre Dame's verbal commitments to their respective teams. After reading an article in the South Bend Tribune, Dayne Crist's comments about the possibility of looking elsewhere made me think twice about the highly touted Quarterback from California. He said it's unlikely, but probable didn't sit well, as several Pac 10 coaches are looking for their next signal caller. Oregon is in desparate need of one since Dennis Dixon will be leaving Eugene in the near future. But Dayne so far is on board and will hopefully fulfill his commitment to the Irish.

Despite some Internet reports that stated Notre Dame pledge Omar Hunter might travel to Los Angeles this weekend, his mother told ESPN's Craig Haubert that her son has postponed his visit with USC until after the season. Haubert went on to say on an ESPN chat board, "I spoke to Hunter's parents -- he is not visiting USC this weekend - and is set to visit ND next weekend. A USC trip is still possible. It was put to me that it could be done after the season. With that in mind you have to consider USC a factor -- in the end though I think Omar stays at ND and I truly do not think Irish fans have too much to worry about." Additionally, the Under Armour All-American is slated to make his official visit to Notre Dame next weekend.

As for incoming recruits coming in, Under Armour All-American wide receiver Deion Walker and ESPN 150 talent Cyrus Gray (Dallas/DeSoto) are both scheduled to make an official visit to South Bend, Ind. for this weekend's contest against Navy, writes the South Bend Tribune.

The only solace I can take from such a miserable season is that once the season is over, Charlie and company can put all their attention on their solid verbal commits, not that they haven't done so last week. Yes, recruits want to play at a winning school and compete for championships, but it will come as long as these KIDS stick to their word.