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Nineteen of 22 athletics programs at the University of Notre Dame compiled graduation rates of 100 percent, and none were below 93 percent, according to the fifth year of Graduation Success Rate measurements developed by the NCAA and released today. None of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-A) programs in the country had a higher percentage of 100 GSR scores than did Notre Dame with its .863 figure (19 of 22). This marked the fourth time in the five years of the survey that Notre Dame has ranked number one in percentage of teams with 100 scores. Here are the top institutions in that category (these are the only 11 institutions with 50 or more percent of their sports registering 100 marks):
NCAA figures released today showed that all 11 Irish women's programs posted a GSR of 100 percent -- basketball, cross country/track, fencing, golf, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming/diving, tennis and volleyball. Among Notre Dame's men's sports, baseball, basketball, cross country/track, fencing, golf, lacrosse, soccer, and swimming/diving achieved 100 percent GSR scores. Ice hockey scored 96 percent, football scored 96 percent, and tennis was at 93. Overall, that's the exact same number of perfect scores as a year ago (also 19 of 22 sports) for the Irish programs, after Notre Dame recorded 18 100 percent GSR scores (of 22) in 2007. In football, among the FBS programs, Notre Dame and Duke shared the top score at 96, the Naval Academy was at 93, Northwestern 92, and Boston College and Vanderbilt both at 91. 2. Seven Notre Dame staffers and six NBC Sports staff members - including president Ken Schanzer and Rob Hyland (he produces the Notre Dame football games) - spent five hours at Yankee Stadium Tuesday looking at logistics for next November's Notre Dame-Army football game, the first football game ever to be played at the Yankees' new home. The field will run from home plate to center field, with broadcast positions and coaching booths to be located on the suite level. Just a few weeks after the World Series ended, the linescore boards in front of the two bullpens still featured the inning-by-inning results of the Yanks' 7-3 win in Game Six. While touring the clubhouse facilities, the group spied Yankeee pitcher Mariano Rivera seated in front of his locker, signing baseballs. The World Series nameplates still remained above the Yankee lockers. The good news for fans is that the Stadium is an easy D train subway ride from midtown Manhattan to the 161st Street stop. 3. Introduced at timeouts during the Notre Dame-Connecticut game will be the senior student football managers, senior athletic student trainers, football video assistants and football office assistants. The Notre Dame men's lacrosse team also will be recognized at the first timeout for its 15-1 season and other accolades during a record-setting 2009 season. 4. The pep rally Friday night at Irish Green features all 33 senior Irish players in attendance - with senior captains Kyle McCarthy, Scott Smith and Eric Olsen slated to speak. Also on the speaking list is former Irish captain Mike Golic. 5. For the final two home football games of the 1960 Notre Dame season, a new sergeant from the Indiana State Police began delivering the safety message near the end of Irish games. Now in his 50th season in that role, Tim McCarthy has become a legendary figure at home games at Notre Dame Stadium. His quick wit and homespun puns are now eagerly anticipated by young and old alike in his customary time slot in the second half. He'll be honored at the end of the third period Saturday with a framed montage of photos from his years at Notre Dame - and he'll then deliver his message live from the field. 6. Thanks to Ashley Barlow, Notre Dame withstood a tough test on the road. Barlow scored 18 points and hit a tiebreaking free throw with 10 seconds left, lifting the fifth-ranked Fighting Irish to a 68-67 victory over #21 Michigan State on Thursday night. The Spartans had a chance to win after Barlow's late foul shot, but Aisha Jefferson missed a jumper from the lane with 4 seconds to go. Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw wasn't happy with ill-timed turnovers, sketchy shot selection and occasional lapses on defense. But she liked her team's character at crunch time. "I thought we did a pretty good job of keeping our poise down the stretch," McGraw said. Michigan State tied the score at 67 on a free throw by Porsche Poole with 55 seconds left. A foul by Michigan State after a missed free throw by the Irish put Notre Dame in the double bonus. Barlow missed her first free throw with 10 seconds left, but sank her second opportunity to put the Irish in front. Lindsay Schrader had 12 points and 14 rebounds for Notre Dame. 7. Debbie Brown was named the BIG EAST Conference Volleyball Coach of the Year, announced Thursday evening during the league tournament banquet at the Louisville Hyatt Regency. In addition, four Irish players earned all-BIG EAST citations. Brown's honor was her 10th overall and sixth since Notre Dame joined the BIG EAST in 1995. She last won the award in 2005. This season, Brown guided the top-seeded Irish into the BIG EAST Championship after finishing the regular season with a perfect 14-0 league record. Furthermore, No. 23 Notre Dame has won 16 of its last 18 matches while boasting an overall record of 20-4. Notre Dame was also crowned the BIG EAST regular season champion. A trio of Irish seniors - Christina Kaelin, Serinity Phillips and Jamel Nicholas - earned first team all-BIG EAST honors while junior middle blocker Kellie Sciacca was named to the second team. Notre Dame's last first-team selections came in 2006 (Mallorie Croal, Adrianna Stasiuk and Lauren Brewster). Sciacca, Kaelin and Phillips were each second-team choices in 2008. 8. Luke Harangody had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Notre Dame took control with a 13-2 run to open the second half, beating Long Beach State 82-62 Thursday night. Tory Jackson added 13 points and Ben Hansbrough and Tim Abromaitis added 11 points each for the Irish (3-0), who outscored Long Beach State 50-36 inside. Notre Dame outshot the 49ers (2-1) 64 percent to 38 percent in the second half. Hansbrough started the 13-2 run with a layup, had a pass inside for a dunk by Tyrone Nash, then capped the spurt with a 3-pointer to extend the Notre Dame lead to 50-37. The 49ers cut the lead to eight points three times, but couldn't get any closer. 9. Two of the nation's top hockey teams - Notre Dame and Michigan State - got together on Thursday night at Munn Arena and battled to a 1-1 overtime time. The Irish then picked up an extra point in the CCHA standings by winning the shoot out, 2-1, as Ben Ryan and Dan Kissel scored for Notre Dame. Freshman right wing Kyle Palmieri scored the lone goal for the Irish while Derek Grant got the lone goal for the Spartans. Notre Dame freshman goaltender Mike Johnson stopped 23-of-24 shots on the night while Michigan State's Drew Palmisano stopped 25-of-26. In the shoot out, Billy Maday and Palmieri were stopped on the first two shots for the Irish while Johnson stopped Dean Chelios only to see Andrew Rowe beat him with a back-hander from the right side. Ryan kept the Notre Dame hopes alive when he beat Palmisano with a deke to his forehand before sliding a backhander inside the left post. Johnson stopped Nick Sucharski as he lost the puck in his feet before pushing the puck on goal and the shoot out was tied 1-1 after three shots each. In the sudden-death portion Kissel beat Palmisano with a great move. A left-handed shot, Kissel came down the right side, moved toward the middle before spinning to his right, pulling Palmisano down, then tucking the puck inside the right post. Johnson then stopped Corey Tropp to give the Irish the shoot out win. The shoot out was the second in a row for the Irish and their third of the season while Michigan State was playing in its second of the year. Notre Dame, ranked 14th in the nation, is now 5-5-3 overall and 2-2-3-2 in the CCHA, good for 11 points. The sixth-ranked Spartans are 9-2-2 on the year and 6-1-2-0 in the conference, good for 20 points. 10. The #19 Notre Dame men's soccer team captured a 2-1 victory over Green Bay in the first round of the NCAA Championship on Thursday evening at Alumni Stadium. The Fighting Irish used goals from Bright Dike and Jeb Brovsky to post the win and advance to play at Northwestern on Sunday in the second round. The entertaining match went down to the final seconds as Notre Dame senior goalkeeper Andrew Quinn saved a header attempt from Green Bay's Tony Patterson with three seconds left in the contest. "They (Green Bay) kept at us right up until the final seconds of the game," said Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark. "It was an exciting game. This is the great thing with the NCAA (Tournament). If you lose, you go home. It's sad for the team that goes home, but it makes it very exciting. There's no safety net of having another game guaranteed. It's all or nothing." 11. Women's tennis head coach Jay Louderback has announced the signing of three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to continue their careers at Notre Dame. The three signees include Britney Sanders of Ontario, Calif., Jennifer Kellner of Smithtown, N.Y., and Julie Sabacinski of Plantation Fla. Sanders is currently ranked 28th by tennisrecruiting.net and was a 2009 Spring National Doubles Finalist with Sabacinski. Ranked as a high as 17th nationally, Sanders, a senior at Ontario Christian High School, is considered the fourth-best player in California. Kellner, a senior at Hauppaige High School in Smithtown, is currently the 30th-ranked player by tennisrecruiting.net. The 2008 National Open Singles Champion, Kellner is considered the second-best recruit in the state of New York. Currently ranked 53rd by tennisrecruiting.net, Sabacinski was the 2008 National Open Doubles Champion and was a finalist with Sanders at the 2009 Spring National Doubles. A senior at American Heritage High School in Plantation, Sabacinski has been ranked as high as 17th nationally and captured the 2008 high school state championship in Florida. 12 All 33 senior football players will be introduced prior to the Notre Dame-Connecticut football game on Saturday. It's the first time in some years the introductions have happened at the final home game - in recent seasons the players and parents have been introduced at the final Friday night pep rally. 13. Some notes and quotes from the speakers at today's Kickoff Luncheon: -- From defensive line coach Randy Hart: (on what it was like to coach against Notre Dame when he was at Purdue and Washington) "If you think you're going to sneak up on someone at Notre Dame, you're not. You could whisper the game plan but when it's Notre Dame they'll get it." . . . (on Bryant Young) "If you find someone who can saying anything negative about Bryant Young, get away from that person. There's not a negative thing about Bryant Young." -- From offensive tackle Chris Stewart: "My parents are coming to Notre Dame for the first time this weekend to see me play.". . . . (on adjusting to Notre Dame) "The biggest thing I had to do was drop 60 or 70 pounds to get in shape to play." . . . (on traveling to Haiti) "Sixty-five to eighty percent of the country lives below the poverty line, and I used my history background to study why a country that had been so prosperous became so poor. I hope to go back soon." -- From quarterback Evan Sharpley: (on being drafted in 2009 in baseball ) "I was about the 1,593rd pick, but I'm not really counting." . . . (on playing in the minor leagues last summer on a team where 90-95 percent of the players spoke Spanish) "I hadn't taken Spanish since my sophomore year, so I know someone was talking about me, I just don't know what they are saying." . . . (on student teaching at Adams High School in South Bend - where Charlie Weis also student taught) "I come in on Monday, and they say, 'And how was your weekend Mr. Sharpley?'" -- From defensive end John Ryan: (on his relationship with Irish receiver Robby Parris, both of whom attended St. Ignatius in Cleveland) "We've known each other since third grade." . . . . (on Irish line coach Randy Hart's enthusiasm) "He doesn't sleep, he just waits." . . . . (on being a high school tight end) "I was begging (Charlie Weis) for a little goal line action but he wasn't budging." . . . (on playing basketball) "In high school as a freshman that was my true love. We've got some guys like Kyle Rudolph and Michael Floyd and Sergio Briwn who could play. We sometimes wonder how we'd do against the (Notre Dame) men's team." -- From head coach Charlie Weis: "We're disappointed to be sitting here at 6-4. Every week has been a unique situation, but team has shown great intestinal fortitude. . . . We've tried to do a few things different this week so we can get off to a quicker start." 14. Golden Tate needs just five catches against Connecticut to break Jeff Samardzija's single-season Notre Dame record for catches - and only 78 more receiving yards to break Samardzija's mark for receiving yards in a season. 15. The Sports Illustrated college basketball issue lists Luke Harangody as a projected first-team All-American and rates Notre Dame's men 40th among the teams projected for the NCAA Championships. On the women's side, the Irish rated fifth. 16. The Irish offense has totaled at least 20 first downs in each of the first 10 games this year, the first time a Notre Dame offense has accomplished such a feat since 1974. . . . Notre Dame ranks ninth in total offense and is on pace to record its highest ranking in that category since 1992 when the Irish offense ranked third in the nation. . . . Sophomore TE Kyle Rudolph has been named one of the eight semifinalists for the 2009 John Mackey Award. . . . Freshman LB Manti Te'o has recorded 45 tackles this year, tied for seventh-most ever by a Notre Dame freshman. . . . Six fifth-year and 27 more fourth-year seniors will be honored at midfield of Notre Dame Stadium prior to Saturday's kickoff. . . . Junior HB Armando Allen, averaging 5.0 yards per carry, is on pace to record the highest per carry average by the leading Irish rusher since Julius Jones in 2003. . . . Junior WR Golden Tate's 74 receptions this season ranks fourth in Notre Dame single-season history. . . . Junior QB Jimmy Clausen is littered throughout Notre Dame's record book, ranking in the top three in 15 different career passing categories. . . . Sophomore WR Michael Floyd ranks second among FBS active players in career receiving yards per game at 82.8 yards per game. . . . Floyd and Tate each surpassed 100 yards receiving in the last two games and became the first Notre Dame duo to each eclipse 100 receiving yards together in consecutive games. . . . When senior OT Sam Young starts at right tackle this weekend, he will be opening his 49th straight game in the starting lineup. No Irish player has ever donned the blue and gold uniform as many times as Young. 17. No Irish football team has ever been part of eight games (four wins by a combined 17 points, four losses by a combined 18) decided by a touchdown or less (the 1990 team took part in seven, winning four). Interestingly, Connecticut comes to town having played in seven games decided by eight points or less (including all five losses by a combined 15 points). No other team in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision has played in even six games decided by seven points or less.
18. The exploits of Irish senior Golden Tate remain remarkable and record-setting:
The storyline hasn't been much different for Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen: Despite missing five games due to injury, sophomore Michael Floyd is back (he has eight career 100-yard receiving days of his own) and forms with Tate probably the most formidable receiving duo anywhere in the nation. Meanwhile, despite his current injury status, sophomore tight end Kyle Rudolph - with his 62 career catches - has been more productive than any other Notre Dame tight end over his first two seasons. 19. University of Notre Dame athletic programs again rank among the best in the country in graduation rates, based on Graduation Success Rate (GSR) figures released today by the NCAA - including first-place ratings in the sports of football, men's basketball, women's basketball and ice hockey. Among the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions, Notre Dame had the highest percentage of its sports with 100 percent scores (for the fourth time in five years), with a .863 figure (19 of 22).
In football, Notre Dame achieved a 96 GSR rating, tying Duke for the highest figure among FBS schools.
Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 80 or higher in that category: In men's basketball, Notre Dame achieved a perfect 100 GSR rating, with only Bowling Green, BYU, Marshall, Utah State, Wake Forest and Western Kentucky also reaching the top slot.
Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 80 or higher in that category: In women's basketball, Notre Dame also achieved a 100 GSR rating, as one of 29 Division I-A football-playing institutions with a perfect score.
Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 90 or higher in that category: In hockey, Notre Dame achieved a 96 GSR rating, to lead all Division I-A football-playing institutions.
Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 65 or higher in that category:
1. The final pep rally Friday night prior to the Notre Dame-Connecticut game will be held at Irish Green. In recent years the final pep rally has featured introductions of the senior Irish players and their parents - but this year those ceremonies will move to Notre Dame Stadium just prior to kickoff on Saturday. 2. Notre Dame's men's soccer team will play host to a first-round NCAA Championships game at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Alumni Stadium against Wisconsin-Green Bay. The Irish will be making their ninth straight NCAA Championship appearance and the 13th trip overall in program history. Notre Dame will bring a record of 10-7-4 into the match, while Green Bay is 14-2-3. The Irish are coming off a runner-up finish in the BIG EAST Championship. St. John's topped Notre Dame in a penalty kick shootout, 5-3, following a scoreless draw in yesterday's BIG EAST title game. Green Bay, nicknamed the Phoenix, captured the Horizon League Championship by upsetting top-seeded Butler in penalty kicks, 3-2, on Sunday. The match ended as a scoreless tie. The Fighting Irish are 2-1 all-time against Green Bay. The last meeting occurred during the 1994 campaign and Green Bay won that match 2-1 at Notre Dame. Notre Dame won at Green Bay, 3-2 in overtime, in 1985 and captured a 2-1 home victory over the Phoenix in 1988. This will be the first NCAA Championship appearance for Green Bay since 1983. The winner of the Notre Dame-Green Bay match will travel to Evanston, Ill., to face Northwestern on Sunday, Nov. 22, at 1:00 p.m. (CST) in the second round. The Wildcats are the tournament's No. 9 seed. Last season, Notre Dame suffered a 2-1 setback to Northwestern at home in the tournament's second round. Akron is the top seed in the NCAA Championship with a perfect 20-0 record. Virginia is the No. 2 seed, while Wake Forest is the third seed. Only the top 16 teams in the field of 48 are seeded and those squads received a first-round bye. Notre Dame faced eight teams that made this year's tournament. 3. Notre Dame associate athletics director Mike Danch joined University assistant vice president Mike Seamon and security director Phil Johnson in Pittsburgh last weekend for the Notre Dame-Pittsburgh football game. Then, that trio stuck around on Sunday for the NFL Steelers-Bengals contest at Heinz Field to observe the Steelers' home-field security procedures. 4. ESPN announced today that ABC will carry the Notre Dame-Stanford game on Nov. 28 to at least half the country (some areas will see Georgia-Georgia Tech). In areas where the Notre Dame-Stanford contest is not on ABC, it will be mirrored on ESPN2. 5. The Irish men's basketball team moved to 2-0 tonight with a 95-72 homecourt win over St. Francis (Pa.). Luke Harangody had 27 points and nine rebounds and Notre Dame shot 56 percent. The Fighting Irish used a 14-0 run early to take a double-digit lead, but the inexperienced Red Flash (1-1) quickly cut the lead back to five. Notre Dame regained a 15-point lead five minutes into the second half when Harangody made a three-pointer to give the Irish a 60-45 advantage. Ben Hansbrough scored 18 points, Tim Abromaitis scored a career-high 17 points and Tyrone Nash had 11 for Notre Dame. Umar Shannon scored 18 points for the Red Flash, who played the Irish surprisingly tough considering they were picked by coaches to finish last in the Northeast Conference. 6. A half-dozen Notre Dame staffers headed to New York tonight for a full day of meetings on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium for continued planning for next year's Notre Dame-Army football game at that facility. NBC Sports personnel also will be part of the meetings. 7. Notre Dame sophomore tight end Kyle Rudolph has been named one of eight semifinalists for the John Mackey Award, the Nassau County Sports Commission announced today. The Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's top tight end. The 6-6, 260-pounder from Cincinnati, Ohio, has caught 33 passes for 364 yards with three touchdowns. Twice this year he set his career high with six receptions (versus Michigan State and Washington State) and his 95 yards versus Michigan State was his career best. He started each of the first nine games this year before injuring his shoulder against the Midshipmen. Rudolph might miss the rest of the regular season. Rudolph is the only sophomore selected a semifinalist and joins six seniors and one junior on the next ballot. The eight semi-finalists were determined by confidential balloting of the John Mackey Selection Committee. The 2009 John Mackey Award finalists will be announced on Monday, Nov. 23, 2009. The 2009 recipient of "The Mackey" will be announced at the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show live Dec. 10, 2009 on ESPN and presented at the Nassau County Sports Commission "Salute to Champions" Awards Dinner. 8. Junior Jake Walker has earned an individual bid to the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships following his performance Saturday at the Great Lakes Regional meet. Walker finished ninth with a time of 31:21.10 at the Great Lakes meet, earning his second career all-region honor. The senior from Ellwood City, Pa., will make his fourth trip to the NCAA Championships. Last season, Walker finished 66th with a time of 30:53. The Irish women's squad will also represent Notre Dame at the NCAA Championships after automatically qualifying for the national event with a first-place finish at the Great Lakes Regional. Thirty-one teams were selected to participate in each championship. The top two teams automatically qualified from each of the nine regions, for a total of 18 teams. Thirteen additional teams were selected at-large. Thirty-eight individuals were selected to participate in each championship through an automatic qualifier and at-large selection process. All individual qualifiers finished in the top 25 in their region. Indiana State University will host the Championships, November 23, at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course located at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Ind. The men's race will begin at 12:08 p.m. (EST), followed by the women's race at 12:58 p.m. Both championship races will be broadcast live on Versus Network and streamed online at www.NCAA.com.
1. The #5-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's soccer team used an offensive onslaught to blast past the Chippewas of Central Michigan, 6-1, in NCAA Championship second round play today at Alumni Stadium. Sophomore forward Melissa Henderson led the Irish as she scored a first-half hat trick and added a program record fourth goal 15 minutes into the second half. With the win, the Irish (19-3-1) advance to the NCAA Championship round of 16 where they will face Oregon State. As the second seed, Notre Dame will play host to the Beavers at 7:30 p.m. Friday (Nov. 20) at Alumni Stadium. Oregon State downed third-seeded Florida in overtime today to advance to the Round of 16 for the first time in program history. Notre Dame snapped the Chippewas' 18 game unbeaten streak and extended its own unbeaten streak to 17 games (16-0-1), including an active 11-game winning streak. Central Michigan, who was making its first-ever NCAA Championship appearance, concludes the year at 17-4-3. The Irish set the tone early, as they netted their quickest goal of the season at 2:29. Junior forward Taylor Knaack fired a shot from distance that hit the crossbar and dropped to the feet of Melissa Henderson inside the six-yard box. The 2009 second team all-BIG EAST selection calmly tucked the rebound inside the near post to give the Irish a 1-0 lead. 2. No. 14 St. John's topped #25 Notre Dame in a penalty kick shootout, 5-3, in the title game of the men's soccer BIG EAST Championship this afternoon in Morgantown, W. Va. The match was officially a tie following a scoreless draw through regulation and two overtime periods. Notre Dame (10-7-4) was the tournament's second seed from the league's Blue Division, while St. John's (9-2-9) was the No. 2 seed from the Red Division. All three of Notre Dame's 2009 BIG EAST Championship matches went to a penalty kick shootout. The Irish bested USF in penalty kicks, 5-4, in the quarterfinals and then defeated Louisville in a shootout, 4-3, in the semifinals. St. John's hit all five of its penalty kicks, while Notre Dame connected on three of its four attempts. Sending in kicks for the Irish were Matt Armstrong, Dillon Powers and Bright Dike. The NCAA Men's Soccer Championship selection show will take place Monday between 5:30-6:00 p.m. (ET) (approximately) on ESPN News. Immediately following the announcement, the bracket will be available on www.ncaa.com. 3. All cylinders clicked this afternoon for #24 Notre Dame as the Irish finished their volleyball regular season at Purcell Pavilion with a 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-21, 25-19) win over visiting USF. Notre Dame became the second team in league history to win each of its 14 regular-season conference contests as St. John's accomplished the feat in 2006, the first season in which the BIG EAST extended the league slate to 14 games. Now with seven undefeated BIG EAST regular-season efforts under its belt, Notre Dame (20-4 overall, 14-0 BIG EAST) last went unscathed in BIG EAST play in 2001 (12-0). The victory also earned the program its 18th 20-win season in 30 years of varsity competition. Top-seeded Notre Dame will face eighth-seeded Seton Hall in the first round of the BIG EAST Championship hosted by Louisville at the Kentucky International Convention Center. Seton Hall will make its first appearance in the tournament since 1994 after defeating West Virginia earlier today. The match will begin at 3:30 p.m. (ET) Friday. The Irish were honored after the match with the league's regular-season championship trophy, which was clinched after a 3-0 win against Georgetown on Friday. Notre Dame's starting lineup against USF (17-8, 9-5) featured each of its six seniors -- Tara Enzweiler, Megan Fesl, Christina Kaelin, Kim Kristoff, Jamel Nicholas and Serinity Phillips. 4. Becca Bruszewski had 19 points and 10 rebounds and #4 Notre Dame dominated inside, opening the season with a 102-57 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on tonight. Ashley Barlow added 15 points and freshman Skylar Diggins had 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals for the Fighting Irish (1-0), who had eight players in double figures. The Lady Lions (0-2) gave up 100 points for a second straight game. They lost their season opener to Mississippi State 106-48 on Friday. The Irish outscored the smaller Lady Lions 68-26 in the paint. 5. Notre Dame and Northern Michigan battled to a 2-2 overtime tie on this afternoon at the Joyce Center with the Irish picking up the extra point in the CCHA standings by winning the shoot out, 2-1. Junior right wing Billy Maday keyed a Notre Dame comeback from a 2-0 second-period deficit, scoring twice in the game and then added one of two Irish goals in the shoot out. Linemate Calle Ridderwall scored the winning goal in the shoot out victory. The Wildcats got second-period goals from Ray Kaunisto and Jared Brown 42 seconds apart to build the 2-0 lead. Junior goaltender Brad Phillips, making his first start since Oct. 31 versus Ohio State stopped 32 of 34 Northern Michigan shots in the game, including 14 in the third period and then two of three in the shoot out. Brian Stewart finished with 25 saves for the Wildcats on the night. The Notre Dame win snapped a two-game Irish losing streak and left them with a 5-5-2 overall record and a 2-2-2-1 CCHA mark, good for nine points in the league standings. Northern Michigan leaves the weekend with a 3-5-2 record on the year and is now 2-3-1-0 in the conference, good for seven points. Despite scoring just three goals or less for the 12th straight game, the Irish showed signs of breaking out of their season-long scoring slump. The Irish will have a short turnaround in keeping the momentum going as they return to action Thursday with a road game at Michigan State. Notre Dame's 2-1 shootout win marked the fifth time that the Irish have been involved in a shoot out over the last two seasons. The Irish are 1-1 this season and 4-1 all-time. 6. Instead of introducing the football senior players and their parents at the Friday night pep rally, they'll be introduced this year on the field just prior to the start of Notre Dame's final home game Saturday against Connecticut.
1. No reason to give former Irish assistant football coach Bill Lewis a tour in Pittsburgh before the football game here tonight. A Philadelphia native, Lewis played quarterback at East Stroudsburg State and later spent three years (1966-68) as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh. Then he coached the Miami Dolphin defensive backs from 2000-04 under Dave Wannstedt, the current Pittsburgh head coach. Here at the game with Lewis is his wife, Sandy, who's from Pennsburg, Pa. 2. You can help former Notre Damers qualify for the NFL Pro Bowl to be played Jan. 31, 2010, in Dolphin Stadium in South Florida (it's played this year the week prior to the Super Bowl). Go to www.nfl.com/probowl and you can vote. Former Irish on the ballot include RBs Ryan Grant (Green Bay) and Julius Jones (Seattle), TEs John Carlson (Seattle) and Anthony Fasano (Miami), Cs Jeff Faine (Tampa Bay) and John Sullivan (Minnesota), OTs Ryan Harris (Denver) and Mike Gandy (Arizona), DEs Justin Tuck (New York Giants) and Victor Abiamiri (Philadelphia), ILB Corey Mays (Kansas City), K John Carney (New Orleans), P Hunter Smith (Washington), kick returners Allen Rossum (Dallas) and Arnaz Battle (San Francisco), plus special teamers Tom Zbikowski (Baltimore) and Maurice Stovall (Tampa Bay). 3. Think this football game is a big deal in Pittsburgh? Found this afternoon on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette web site: "Leave now. That's our advice to University of Pittsburgh or Notre Dame fans who plan to attend tonight's football game at Heinz Field. By mid-afternoon today, traffic was in gridlock around the stadium and had backed up on roads and highways leading to the North Shore. Parking lots already were filled or filling up, and ticket scalpers were out in abundance, hawking wares at prices 'cheaper than $100.' Students, too, have swarmed to the North Side and have lined the sidewalks leading to the stadium's gates. Some are sleeping on the sidewalks, where they've apparently camped for some time to avoid that last-minute rush." This is Pitt's first sellout since the last time Notre Dame came to town to open the 2005 season. 4. These are two of the best teams around in terms of taking care of the football. In nine games each, both Pitt and Notre Dame have only nine turnovers each (three by the Irish a week ago against Navy). 5. Check out the new Sports Illustrated Presents edition on the 75th anniversary of the Heisman Trophy. With seven previous winners, the Irish are well represented in the publication. 6. Ben Hansbrough scored 19 points in his Notre Dame debut and Luke Harangody added 19 points and seven assists, leading the Fighting Irish to an 86-65 win over North Florida this afternoon. Hansbrough, a transfer Mississippi State, was five of five from three-point range. Tim Abromaitis had 13 points for the Irish (1-0). Jonathan Peoples added 11 and Tory Jackson added nine points and seven assists. Stan Januska had 14 points for North Florida (0-1), an Atlantic Sun member that finished 8-22 last season and is beginning its first year as a full-fledged Division I team. Hansbrough hit back-to-back three-pointers seven minutes into the game to give the Irish a 21-5 lead. The Irish led 35-10 after Harangody, the Big East leader in scoring and rebounding the past two seasons, made his first shot from the field with 5:25 left in the first half. They made it 40-10 when Harangody converted on a three-point play. 7. The Notre Dame women's cross country team won the 2009 Great Lakes Regional Championship today in Bloomington, Ind., as five Irish runners finished in the top 40 individually. The Irish scored 94 points, winning the title for the first time since 2003, and automatically qualified for the NCAA Championships. Three members of the women's squad garnered all-region recognition for their efforts on the course. Senior Lindsey Ferguson led the Irish women with a third-place finish and a time of 20:58.62. Freshman Jessica Rydberg clocked in at 21:23.84 to finish 10th, and sophomore Rachel Velarde finished 15th with a time of 21:32.40. Junior Marissa Treece crossed the line in 21:57.99 to finish 30th, followed by junior Erica Watson in 36th at 22:06.34. Freshman Rebecca Tracy finished 79th with a time of 22:44.84, and senior Beth Tacl was 103rd in 23:04.50. Ohio State finished second with 102 points, followed by Michigan in third with 104. Indiana and Michigan State rounded out the top five. The Irish men finished seventh with 205 total points. Senior Jake Walker earned all-region honors with a ninth-place finish and a time of 31:21.10. Sophomore Joe Miller finished 35th in 32:04.11, just ahead of junior Dan Jackson in 39th with a time of 32:10.75. Sophomore Jordan Carlson clocked in at 32:34.90 to finish 57th, sophomore Johnathan Shawel was 65th in 32:46.31, junior Ryan Jacobs finished 74th with a time of 32:57.92 and junior Paul Springer was 131st in 34:16.88. Wisconsin won the team title with 62 points, followed by Michigan State in second with 128 and Ohio State in third with 144 total points. Indiana and Butler closed out the top five. The top two teams at the regional meets automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships. Thirteen at-large bids will also be awarded. The top four individual regional finishers, whose teams did not qualify for the national meet, will also be selected to compete in the NCAA Championships, which will be held Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Ind. 8. The Irish football team stayed in the same Pittsburgh hotel as the Cincinnati Bengals. In fact, several Irish staffers ran into Bengal QB Carson Palmer at the elevator as they headed to the buses. 9. Notre Dame peppered Northern Michigan goalie Brian Stewart, forcing him into making 36 saves (compared to 15 for Notre Dame's Mike Johnson) - but the Wildcats grabbed a 2-0 first-period lead and made it stand up in a 3-2 victory over the Irish at the Joyce Center in South Bend. Kevin Deeth had a power-play goal in the first period for the Irish and Calle Ridderwall accounted for Notre Dame's only other tally in the final period.
1. The Irish football team traveled late today, conducting a walk-through on campus, then flying late afternoon and arriving at its Pittsburgh hotel just before 6:00 p.m. It's a huge sports weekend in Pittsburgh with, in addition to the Irish-Panther game Saturday night, a Pittsburgh Penguin-Boston Bruin NHL game Saturday night at Mellon Arena (just across the street from the Notre Dame team hotel), followed by the Pittsburgh Steeler-Cincinnati Bengal NFL contest on Sunday. The Notre Dame travel party won't arrive home until 3:00 a.m. Sunday. 2. Based on the late arrival in Pittsburgh, Irish coach Charlie Weis did a conference call on Wednesday with the ABC Sports crew. It figures to be a hectic weekend for Kirk Herbstreit who is currently in Fort Worth, Texas, where ESPN GameDay is at TCU-Utah. Then between noon tomorrow and 8:00 p.m. EST Herbstreit will travel from Fort Worth to Pittsburgh to arrive in time to do the Notre Dame-Pitt contest. The Irish game goes to 83 percent of the country (only Big 12 area sees Oklahoma State-Texas Tech). 3. Notre Dame women's basketball coach Muffet McGraw announced today that three of the country's top high school student-athletes have signed national letters of intent to attend Notre Dame. Natalie Achonwa (last name pronounced uh-CHAWN-wuh), a 6-3 forward from Guelph, Ontario (St. Mary's Catholic Secondary School/National Elite Development Academy), Ariel Braker, a 6-1 forward from Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. (Grosse Pointe North High School) and Kayla McBride, a 5-11 guard from Erie, Pa. (Villa Maria Academy) all made their official commitments to the Fighting Irish. All three student-athletes are rated among the top 50 players in the country by various national recruiting services. As a group, this trio is ranked as the No. 10 recruiting class in the country by All-Star Girls Report (and a consensus top 16 class by other recruiting services), giving Notre Dame a top 25 recruiting class for the 14th consecutive year, a streak only two other schools in the country (Connecticut and Tennessee) can match. It's also the third consecutive top 10 recruiting class for the Fighting Irish. A capsule look at the newest additions to the Fighting Irish women's basketball program follows:
NATALIE ACHONWA, 6-3, Forward (Guelph, Ontario/St. Mary's Catholic Secondary School/National Elite Development Academy) Provincial/Travel Competition: Member of U17 Team Ontario that captured back-to-back Canadian national championships in 2007 (15.3 ppg., 7.1 rpg.) and 2008 (18.2 ppg., 8.0 rpg.) ... also led U15 Team Ontario to 2006 Canadian national title ... played for Guelph CYO All-Stars travel squad, averaging 14.2 ppg., 8.1 rpg., 2.5 apg. and 1.9 spg., helping team to 2006 and 2007 Division I provincial championships (Ontario Basketball Association). International Competition: Three-time Canada Basketball selection and two-time international medalist ... most recently this past summer, became youngest player (age 16) ever named to Canadian Senior Women's National Team for the 2009 FIBA Americas Championship in Cuiaba, Brazil, helping country to bronze medal (third-place finish) and berth in 2010 FIBA World Championships in Czech Republic ... played in all five games for Canada in tournament, averaging 6.6 ppg. and 4.2 rpg., while finishing second on team in steals (1.2 spg.) and blocks (0.6 bpg.) ... earlier in the summer of 2009, suited up for Canadian Junior Women's National Team at FIBA U19 World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, sparking team to its best-ever placement (fourth) -- reached semifinals before losing to USA squad co-captained by her future Notre Dame teammate, Skylar Diggins ... started all nine games in tournament, averaging 10.3 ppg. (second on team) and 6.1 rpg. (third on team), along with a team-high 1.4 spg. ... made international debut at age 15 (youngest player selected) for Canada's junior team at 2008 FIBA U18 Americas Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina, pacing her nation to the silver medal (4-1 record); averaged 7.2 ppg., 5.8 rpg. and 1.0 spg. in the tournament. Awards/Honors: Third-team all-star at 2009 FIBA U19 World Championships ... 2007 Laurentian University Invitational all-tournament team ... MVP of Canadian provincial championship tournaments in 2006 (U15) and 2008 (U17), and first-team all-star in 2007 (U17) ... two-time tournament MVP (2006, 2007) for Ontario Basketball Association Division I provincial championships ... NEDA team captain as junior (2008-09) ... CCVI Female Athlete of the Year in 2006-07 ... as freshman at CCVI, earned city MVP honors in both basketball and soccer, as well as regional MVP laurels in basketball ... lettered and was team all-star in three sports at CCVI (basketball, soccer and volleyball) ... ranked 24th by Collegiate Girls Basketball Report (fifth-highest small forward), 80th by All-Star Girls Report (18th among wing forwards) and 85th by Blue Star Basketball ... not rated by ESPN Hoopgurlz, which does not currently evaluate Canadian players; if she were rated in that service's top 25, that would place Notre Dame in top 10 in ESPN Hoopgurlz class recruiting rankings.
ARIEL BRAKER, 6-1, Forward (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich./Grosse Pointe North High School) Awards/Honors: Detroit News Class A Player of the Year (2008) ... Detroit Free Press Final Four All-Tournament Team (2007) ... two-time Detroit News Dream Team selection (2007, 2008) ... three-time Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan (BCAM) Class A all-state (2006 - third team, 2007 and 2008 - first team when renamed "BCAM's Best") ... three-time all-metro selection (2006, 2007, 2008) ... three-time MAC Red Conference MVP and all-conference pick (2006, 2007, 2008) ... two-time team captain (2008, 2009) ... ranked 41st by All-Star Girls Report (eighth among wing forwards), 42nd by Blue Star Basketball, and 84th by Collegiate Girls Basketball Report (14th among small forwards).
KAYLA McBRIDE, 5-11, Guard (Erie, Pa./Villa Maria Academy) Awards/Honors: Two-time Sporting News preseason honorable mention All-American (2009, 2010) ... 2009 Pennsylvania Class AA Player of the Year ... two-time all-state selection (2008 - third team, 2009 - first team) ... two-time first-team all-region pick (2008, 2009) ... 2007 Western Pennsylvania Freshman of the Year and recipient of the Swintayla Cash Award ... ranked 20th by both ESPN Hoopgurlz (fourth among shooting guards) and Blue Star Basketball ... ranked 22nd by All-Star Girls Report (also fourth among shooting guards) ... ranked 67th by Collegiate Girls Basketball Report (10th among shooting guards). 4. Campus visitors this week included Joe Bowen, radio and TV play-by-play voice of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who was in town Thursday to a speak to a class prior to the Leafs-Chicago BlackHawks NHL game tonight in Chicago. Bowen stopped in briefly at football practice, took in part of hockey practice and updated Irish hockey coach Jeff Jackson on the play of Christian Hanson (he's the leading scorer for the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League). 5. Former Irish standout Greg Meredith was among the Notre Dame hockey alumni in town for the funeral today of Mickey Smith, wife of longtime Notre Dame hockey coach Charles "Lefty" Smith. Current coach Jeff Jackson and the entire current Irish squad attended the visitation Thursday night. 6. Notre Dame won 10 of 12 individual swimming events -- each by different swimmers -- tonight to hand Pittsburgh a 179-121 defeat in BIG EAST Conference swimming and diving action in Pittsburgh. The Irish (4-1 overall, 1-0 BIG EAST) now receive a few weeks of rest until heading to the Ohio State Invite, a three-day event spanning from Dec. 4-6. On the eve before the two school's football program clash on the gridiron, Notre Dame earned its sixth straight win over the Panthers. 7. Notre Dame women's lacrosse coach Tracy Coyne has announced the signing of seven high school lacrosse players to national letters of intent. Signing letters in the early-signing period are: Kaitlyn Brosco (Shoreham, N.Y.), Kristin Cousins (Glen Ridge, N.J.), Grace Dooley (Chicago, Ill.), Lindsay Powell (Honeoye Falls, N.Y.), Molly Shawhan (Fulton, Md.), Margaret Smith (Westminster, Md.) and Lauren Sullivan (Winchester, Mass.). Kaitlyn Brosco is a 5-2 midfielder from Shoreham, N.Y., where she attends Shoreham Wading River High School and plays for the Yellow Jackets lacrosse club. A two-sport standout in lacrosse and field hockey, Brosco will begin her fifth season of varsity lacrosse action in the spring where she has helped Shoreham Wading River High School to three (2007, 2008, 2009) New York Lacrosse Class C championships, including last spring's win over fellow recruit Lindsay Powell's Honeoye Falls-Lima team. A 2009 U.S. Lacrosse All-American, she scored 54 goals with 42 assists for 96 points after a 50-goal, 28-assist season in 2008 that gained her honorable mention All-American honors. Selected the most valuable player in the 2009 New York State championship, Brosco is a three-time all-Suffolk County selection. The talented middie has been selected to Newsday's all-Long Island team #2 in `08 and `09 and has been selected by Inside Lacrosse as a rising senior in 2009. A two-year team captain for the field hockey team, she has been the team's top scorer in each of the last three seasons, helping the team to three consecutive Suffolk County class B championships. Heading into this season, Brosco is a two-time all-New York State, all-Suffolk County and all-Long Island selection. In 2008, she was a member of Newsday's 2008 first team all-Long Island field hockey team. Kristin Cousins joins the Irish as a 5-11 defender from Glen Ridge, New Jersey where she plays for Glen Ridge High School. As a junior she helped Glen Ridge to a 13-5 record and its first appearance in the New Jersey state sectional finals. She had 19 goals and 23 assists from her defensive midfield spot and chipped in 49 ground balls, 43 draw controls and 32 caused turnovers. A member of the STEPS Elite lacrosse program, Cousins was a first team all-Essex County and all-Stripes Division selection. An honorable mention U.S. Lacrosse All-American, she was chosen second team all-state and was selected to the Under Armour All-American Classic New Jersey underclass all-star team. She will bring size and a physical presence to the Irish defense during her career. Grace Dooley is a 5-8 midfielder from Chicago, Illinois who plays for Loyola Academy and the Wildcat Elite club program. A four-year varsity team member at Loyola, Dooley was a key member of Loyola's 2008 Illinois State championship team that went 22-3 on the year. She led Loyola in scoring and was sixth in the state with 47 goals and 23 assists for 70 points on the way to first team all-state and U.S Lacrosse All-American honors. A two-time all-State selection, Dooley also has been selected all-conference in three consecutive years. In 2009 she was a member of the Under Armour All-American Classic Midwest Elite Underclass team and was a member of the Great Lakes national team. Dooley also plays basketball, volleyball and runs cross-country at Loyola Academy. Lindsay Powell is a 5-3 midfielder from Honeoye Falls, New York where she is a two-sport standout in soccer and lacrosse at Honeoye Falls-Lima Senior High School. She also plays club lacrosse for the Lady Roc Club team in Rochester, N.Y. As a junior, she helped lead Honeoye Falls-Lima to a 19-3 record and its first New York state championship game where they lost to incoming Irish recruit Kaitlyn Brosco's Shoreham Wading River team. Powell led the team with 69 goals and 34 assists for 103 points with 56 ground balls and 38 caused turnovers. A three-time all-Monroe County selection (first team in `08 and `09, second team in `07), she also was selected to the all-Greater Rochester team in her junior year. The Time Warner Sport most valuable player for Honeoye Falls-Lima in the Class C final game, Powell also helped lead her club team to the 2009 Star-Spangled Elite Tournament Championship last summer. In soccer, Powell had 12 goals and nine assists this season in helping Honeoye Falls-Lima to the state championship game while taking first team all-Monroe County honors. As a junior, she was a first team all-County choice and third team all-state. Molly Shawhan is a 5-8 midfielder from Fulton, Maryland, who plays field hockey and lacrosse at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Md. During her junior year in 2009 she helped Good Counsel to its sixth Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) title while taking first team all-WCAC honors. A member of two WCAC title teams (2008-09), Shawhan was a member of the Metro D.C. Team 1 that played in the U.S. Women's Lacrosse national tournament. A member of the Hero's Lacrosse Club, she was selected to the Under Armour All-American Classic Washington, D.C., underclass all-star team. A 2009 U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, Shawhan was a 2009 WCAC honorable mention selection in field hockey. She also has played basketball, soccer and ran track during her high school career. Margaret Smith is a 5-7 midfield/defender from Westminster, Maryland and plays soccer and lacrosse at the McDonogh School. One of the top-ranked high school players in the nation she was ranked by Inside Lacrosse.com as the No. 2 rising senior last August. A tough, talented midfielder, she helped lead McDonogh to the 2009 Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A conference state championship with a 13-10 win over Notre Dame Prep. A first team all-Baltimore County selection, she was an all-Baltimore Sun first team all-Metro choice and a U.S. Lacrosse first team high school All-American. A member of the M&D Lacrosse Club, she was selected as the most valuable player at the Vail Tournament in 2009. The soccer team captain in 2009, she will serve as the lacrosse captain this coming year. As a junior in 2009, Smith had 29 goals and 11 assists for 40 points and led the team in ground balls (52), draw controls (52) and caused turnovers (39). Lauren Sullivan is a 5-5 attack player from Winchester, Mass., where she plays ice hockey and lacrosse at Winchester High School and is a member of the Mass. Elite lacrosse Club. The sister of current Irish midfielder, sophomore Megan Sullivan, Lauren is the captain of the hockey and lacrosse teams. She and her sister, Megan, become the ninth set of sisters to play for the Notre Dame women's lacrosse program. A two-time member of LNE team 1 as a sophomore and a junior, she was a Middlesex League all-star and an Eastern Massachusetts all-star in 2009 as she set a school record with 115 points. Sullivan also was selected to the Under Armour All-American Classic as a member of the New England underclass team. In 2008 she was a starter on Winchester's Division 2 state championship team and was an all-Galaxy first team selection. 8. One week after securing the No. 1 seed for the upcoming BIG EAST Conference Championship, the Notre Dame volleyball team powered past Georgetown to clinch the league's regular-season title for the 11th time in program history. It is the first outright title for the Irish since 2004 after tying for first in 2005. Along with the 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) victory tonight at Purcell Pavilion, the Irish improved to 13-0 against BIG EAST opponents and extended the nation's fifth-longest winning streak to 13 matches. Notre Dame (19-4) received 12 kills from junior middle blocker Kellie Sciacca and overcame deficits in each of the three periods to sweep the Hoyas (13-16 overall, 3-10 BIG EAST) for the eighth consecutive time. 9. The #25 Notre Dame men's soccer team won a penalty kick shootout, 4-3, against #7 Louisville in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship tonight at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Morgantown, W.Va. The match ended as a scoreless draw following regulation and two overtime periods. The Fighting Irish (10-7-3), the No. 2 seed from the Blue Division, now will face St. John's, the second seed from the Red Division, in the league title game on Sunday at 12 noon (ET). Louisville (13-2-4) was the top seed from the Red Division. Notre Dame missed its first penalty kick attempt, yet made the next four while the decisive save was made by Irish senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle (Hooksett, N.H./Brewster Academy) in the final try from Louisville. Tuttle came up big for the Irish as he made six saves on the night. 10. The Irish women's soccer team got goals from Melissa Henderson (two), Haley Ford, Rachel VenderGenugten and Ellen Jantsch, taking a 3-0- halftime lead and coasting to a 5-0 NCAA first-round win at Alumni Stadium. Randy Waldrum's crew moves on to play Central Michigan in the second round Sunday after CMU defeated Purdue 2-0. 11. ESPN's Lou Holtz and Mark May made a friendly wager on the outcome of the Notre Dame-Pittsburgh football game, with the loser wearing the other team's gear for some late Saturday night segments. Notre Dame sent a #73 jersey and hat as its part of the bargain.
1. The Notre Dame Monogram Club presented 108 Notre Dame student-athletes with their Monogram jackets last night in the Joyce Center Monogram Room in the club's annual Letter Jacket Ceremony for winter and spring sports. Speakers included current Monogram Club president Joe Restic, athletics director Jack Swarbrick, University president Father John Jenkins and former Irish soccer player and Olympic gold medalist Kate Sobrero Markgraf. Tricia Bellia, chair of the Faculty Board on Athletics, made the monogram presentations. 2. Irish men's tennis head coach Bobby Bayliss has announced the signing of four student-athletes to national letters of intent. The four signees include Greg Andrews of Richland, Mich., Ryan Bandy of Cincinnati, Ohio, Matt Dooley of New Braunfels, Texas and Billy Pecor of Scottsdale, Ariz. Andrews, a senior at Gull Lake High School in Richland, signs with the Irish after having recently captured the 2009 high school state championship in Michigan. He made it through the entire scholastic season without dropping a set. He also played No. 3 singles for the Midwest team that won the USTA Boys National Team Championships in August. He was joined on that national championship team by current Irish freshman Michael Moore. Andrews comes to the Irish as the highest ranked player from the Midwest Region and the 15th-ranked prospect in the nation according to tennisrecruting.net (he had been ranked as high as eighth overall as recently as last week). He carries an overall 2009 junior circuit record of 59-17, including a 25-17 mark versus fellow Blue Chip and five star recruits. Bandy, a senior at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, is the third-ranked prospect in the state of Ohio according to tennisrecruiting.net, and he has been ranked consistently in the nation's top-100, reaching as high as 67th in 2009. He placed third in last spring's state high school championships. He carries a 2009 junior circuit record of 26-16. Dooley, a senior at New Braunfels High School in New Braunfels, joins the Irish as the eighth-ranked prospect from the state of Texas according to tennisrecruiting.net. He went undefeated at No. 1 singles for New Braunfels, leading the team to an undefeated record in 2009 and their third consecutive state championship. Another fixture in the top-100, Dooley has been ranked as high as 73rd overall in 2009. He carries an overall 2009 junior circuit record of 53-30. Pecor, a senior at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, is the top-ranked player from Arizona, the eighth ranked player from the Southwest Region and the 22nd-ranked player in the nation according to tennisrecruiting.net. He carries an overall 2009 junior circuit record of 75-15, including a 27-12 mark versus blue chip and five star recruits. On Sept. 21, Pecor captured the Boys' 18 singles title at Mike Agassi's No Quit Championships. 3. Women's golf head coach Susan Holt has announced the signing of two student-athletes to national letters of intent. The two signees include Nicole Zhang of Calgary, Alberta, and Kristina Nhim of Buena Park, Calif. Zhang, who currently attends Bishop Carroll in Calgary, joins the Irish as the 10th-ranked recruit for the class of 2010 according to Golfweek. She is also ranked 13th by the National Junior Golf Scoreboard. She has had a series of impressive results over the past two years on the junior golf circuit, including a sixth place finish at the American Junior Golf Association's Emerson Junior Golf Classic, which concluded on Aug. 20, 2009. She shot a 219 (71-73-75) at the event. She also finished 31st at the United States Golf Association's Girls Junior Amateur Championship on July 25, 2009. Zhang earned another AJGA top-10 finish on July 4, 2009 when she wrapped up play at the Rolex Tournament of Champions in seventh. She fired a 69 in the first round of the event and followed with a 70-75-75 to finish at 289 for the four-round tournament. She has also had great success on the Futures Collegians World Tour, where she has finished in the top-three in each of her last three FCWT starts. Most recently, she finished third at the Terra Lago Open on April 4-5, 2009. She is the younger sister of current Irish men's golf team member Dustin Zhang. Nhim, who currently attends Cypress High School in Cypress, Calif., is the 43rd-ranked recruit for the class of 2010 according to Golfweek. She has had several impressive finishes on the junior golf circuit in the past year alone. At the American Junior Golf Association's Junior at Wenatchee, which concluded on Aug. 13, 2009, she posted a ninth-place finish. She also had top-10 finishes at two other AJGA events in 2009, namely the Trader Joe's Junior Championship (eighth) and the West Junior Open (eighth). She also competed on the Southern California Junior PGA Tour (SCPGA). In her three SCPGA events of the 2009 season, she finished 18th, second and eighth, respectively, with her second place finish coming at the Toyota Tour Cup event at Warner Springs on April 18-19. 4. Guards Eric Atkins (Columbia, Md.), Alex Dragicevich (Northbrook, Ill.) and Jerian Grant (Bowie, Md.) have signed national letter of intent, it was announced by 10th-year men's basketball head coach Mike Brey. Atkins, a 6-1, 170-pound point guard, averaged 23.4 points, 6.0 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 3.2 steals en route to earning Baltimore Catholic League (BCL) player-of-the-year honorees and leading Mount St. Joseph High School to a final 21-12 overall record and fourth-place conference finish in 2008-09. A three-year starter, he was a first-team all-Baltimore Metro selection by the Baltimore Sun, in addition to all-BCL and all-Maryland Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) honors. Atkins also was named to the Gonzaga DC Classic, Benedictine Holiday Tournament and BCL all-tournament teams. As a sophomore, he netted 15.2 points, dished off 7.4 assists, grabbed 3.2 rebounds and made 5.0 steals per game as his team finished with a final 31-6 ledger and captured the BCL regular-season championship and the Leon Brogden tournament crown. Atkins earned a spot on the Baltimore Sun's all-Baltimore Metro second team while also garnering first team all-BCL and all-MIAA accolades. As a freshman, he helped guide his prep squad to a 26-9 mark while averaging 6.2 points and 5.4 assists. Atkins is member of the DC Assault AAU team and in 2009 helped his squad capture the adidas Take 5 championship and the Teak Breakdown Tournament title, while also making the final four at the adidas Super 64 in Las Vegas after winning the crown in 2008. He was named to the all-tournament teams at the Bob Gibbons Memorial Day Tournament and at adidas Take 5. In addition to winning the adidas Super 64 title in '08, DC Assault also captured crowns at the Pittsburgh Jam Fest, the Bob Gibbons Memorial Day Tournament in Raleigh, N.C., the Harley Davidson Tournament in Morgantown, W. Va., and the Playaz Spring Fling in Piscataway, N.J. Dragicevich, a 6-6, 210-pound shooting guard led his Glenbrook North High School prep team to a 23-5 record in '08-'09 as his squad captured the Central Suburban League North (CSLN) regular-season and tournament crowns. Glenbrook also won regional and sectional titles and reached the Elite Eight of the Illinois state tournament. After averaging 20.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his junior season, he was named the CSLN Player of the Year. An all-area selection by the Chicago Sun Times, he garnered first-team all-league honors and was a second team all-state selection. Dragicevich was an all-tournament team honoree at the Proviso West Holiday Tournament and earned MVP honors at the Niles West Thanksgiving Tournament. He has helped Glenbrook North to a combined 61-19 record over three seasons and three CSLN championships. A three-year member of the varsity team, Dragicevich copped first-team all-CSLN honors while averaging 16.3 points per game and earned all-area honorable mention honors. He plays for the Full Package Elite AAU team and led that squad reach the Elite Eight of the gold bracket at the adidas Super 64. Grant, a 6-5, 180-pound guard out of DeMatha High School, will be one of three members of the Notre Dame basketball family in 2009-10 with DeMatha connections as it also is the alma mater of Brey and assistant coach Rod Balanis. In two seasons as a member of the varsity team, he helped DeMatha to a 52-14 record. As a junior, he averaged 7.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists while garnering first-team all-Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) honors and second all-Met accolades from the Washington Post. He helped DeMatha to a final 32-4 mark and led his squad to the WCAC regular-season crown as well as WCAC tournament title. His team won the Washington, DC city crown and was ranked second in the DC Metro Area by the Washington Post in addition to earning a No. 7 ranking in the USA Today poll. As a sophomore, DeMatha finished with a 20-10 record and finished third in the WCAC as Grant averaged 4.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.8 assists. The son of former Harvey Grant and the nephew of former Chicago Bulls standout Horace Grant, he also is a member of Nike Team Takeover. In 2009, he was named MVP of the Nike Super Showcase championship game in Orlando, Fla., after leading his team to the tournament crown. Grant also helped Team Nike reach the semifinals of the Nike Peach Jam in Augusta, Ga., was named to the all-tournament team at the King James Classic in Akron, Ohio.
5. The Notre Dame senior volleyball class was featured yesterday on ESPN.com, as writer Dave Reed highlighted the six-person class that has Notre Dame ranked 24th in the nation with a perfect 12-0 BIG EAST Conference record. The feature can be viewed at the following link: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=4644167
6. Kyle McCarthy (72 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 5 interceptions, 4 passes broken up)
tidbits include:
7. Golden Tate by the numbers . . .
8. Jimmy Clausen by the numbers . . . 9. Notre Dame senior forward Bright Dike was named the 2009 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year tonight at the annual BIG EAST men's soccer awards banquet. In all, six Fighting Irish players garnered league accolades on the night. Joining Dike on the all-BIG EAST first team was Irish senior midfielder Michael Thomas. Fellow senior Justin Morrow, a defender, was a second-team pick. Junior forward Jeb Brovsky and sophomore defender Aaron Maund were selected to the third team. Freshman midfielder Dillon Powers was named to the BIG EAST All-Rookie Team. 10. According to today's South Bend Tribune, Walter Waller is hoping to solve the mystery of how a junior fencing championship medal from the University of Notre Dame ended up buried in his London garden. And he'd like to reunite the medal with its proper owner. The medallion is a small square piece of metal bearing the words "1979 Junior World Fencing Championships," an image of the Golden Dome and the words "University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, U.S.A." Waller said he found the medal several years ago while he was digging in his front garden in Blackheath, an area in southeast London, England. The medal was encrusted with dirt and what appeared to be rust. He stored it away in a box, but recently came across it and decided to clean it up. He used an old English cleaning remedy. Waller soaked the medallion in HP Sauce, a popular brand of brown sauce made of malt vinegar blended with fruit and spices. The sauce is a well-known and often used condiment in Great Britain. Waller said he's discussed the medal with a few friends in the local pub. They speculated that perhaps each athlete who competed in the 1979 Junior World Fencing Championships at the university received a medal for participating. But how did it end up buried in his garden? Waller, 64, and his wife have lived in their home for 14 years. Before that, an unmarried elderly woman lived there for many years, he said. "I'd just like to find out more," he said. And he'd like to return the medal to its rightful owner.
1. Jimmy Clausen arguably had the most prolific passing half in the history of Notre Dame football on Saturday against Navy, with 340 second-half yards. The effort will be lost to some extent because of the final score - but consider what Clausen did in just two periods of football in Notre Dame Stadium:
1. complete to Golden Tate for 13 yards and a first down (FD)
Clausen's second-half totals: 2. Over the weekend three Notre Dame athletes won gold medals during the United States Fencing Association North America Cup Continental International event for the junior age category in Kansas City. This event involved participation of the best fencers from the USA, Canada and Mexico. Courtney Hurley (women's epee), Gerek Meinhardt (men's foil) and Lian Osier (women's sabre) won gold medals. In men's foil Enzo Castellani took bronze, losing only the final bout against his teammate Meinhardt -- and Rada Sarkisova finished seventh in women's foil. 3. Notre Dame's current 12-game win streak in volleyball has produced these items:
4. Notre Dame's Golden Tate has 10 receiving TDs this year - and only Houston's James Cleveland has more (11). Cleveland has caught 74 balls compared to 65 for Tate. Throw in Tate's two rushing TDs and he has 12 total TDs - and no receiver in the country can top that, making him the highest-scoring wide receiver in the nation. Tate is one of five receivers in the country currently over the 1,000-yard mark in receiving yards - 1,176 yards for Bowling Green's Freddie Barnes (107 catches), 1,164 for Hawai'i's Greg Salas (69 catches) and 1,059 for Tate. 5. Irish senior forward Luke Harangody has been tabbed as one of 60 men's and women's basketball candidates (30 men, 30 women) for the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athletes must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence -- classroom, character, community and competition. This marks the ninth year that the award has been presented in basketball.
1. Charlie Weis' comments from his media briefing today included:
2. The #4 Notre Dame women's soccer team earned a defiant 2-1 victory over Marquette to claim the 2009 BIG EAST Championship in a physical matchup of #1 seeds this afternoon at Connecticut's Morrone Stadium. The Irish had taken a 1-0 lead early in the first half only to see the Golden Eagles tie the game late in the first half before senior midfielder Amanda Clark scored what proved to be the game-winning goal at 70:13. The win marked the 11th BIG EAST title in program history and Notre Dame's fourth conference crown in the past five seasons. The Irish will now wait for the selection committee to announce the 64-team field for the 2009 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship to learn when and where they play next. The field will be announced tomorrow at approximately 8:00 pm (EST) on ESPNews and first-round games will be played Nov. 13 at campus sites around the country. For their roles in Notre Dame's march to the 2009 title, Clark, Jessica Schuveiller, Lauren Fowlkes, Courtney Barg and Nikki Weiss were named to the 2009 BIG EAST All-Tournament team. Schuveiller was also named the tournament's Most Outstanding Defensive Player, while Fowlkes was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Offensive Player. 3. Following a 2-2 draw, the Notre Dame men's soccer team topped #8 USF in a penalty kick shootout 5-4, in BIG EAST Championship quarterfinal action this afternoon at Alumni Stadium. The Fighting Irish now will face Louisville in the league semifinals Friday in Morgantown, W.Va. Notre Dame is the second seed from the league's Blue Division, while USF was the Red Division's third seed. Notre Dame (10-7-2) hit its first five penalty kicks and USF's Sebastian Thuriere sent the Bulls' final attempt off the crossbar. Connecting on the kicks for the Irish were Michael Thomas, Matt Armstrong, Dillon Powers, Bright Dike and Jeb Brovsky. Kicking in the first four rounds for USF were Javed Mohammed, Bernardo Anor, Hasani Sinclair and Zak Boggs. Notre Dame senior Philip Tuttle was in goal for the Irish, while Jeff Attinella manned the frame for the Bulls. USF (13-3-3) took a 1-0 lead in the third minute as Jorge Mora sent a shot in from 18 yards out. The Bulls claimed a two-goal advantage in the 23rd minute when Thuriere headed in a cross from Kevin Olali. The Irish converted on a chance in the 43rd minute when Dike, a senior forward, put home his team-leading 10th goal of the season. Thomas, a senior midfielder, sent the pass to Dike to collect his team-best sixth assist of the campaign. The Fighting Irish did get the equalizer in the 83rd minute as sophomore defender Aaron Maund headed a Powers corner kick off the near post and into the back of the net. That was the first career goal for Maund. Notre Dame and Louisville, the top seed from the Red Division, will meet in the BIG EAST Championship semifinals at 5:30 p.m. (ET) Friday in Morgantown, W.Va. The match will be aired live on CBS College Sports. The Irish topped the Cardinals 4-0 at Notre Dame on Sept. 25. St. John's (Red Division #1 seed) and Providence (Blue Division #5 seed) will meet in the first semifinal at 3:00 p.m. 4. Syracuse recorded eight blocks and held Notre Dame to a season-low 15 points in the opening frame of today's BIG EAST Conference volleyball match at Manley Field House, but the Irish rallied back to sweep the remaining sets -- snapping the Orange's 10-match winning streak and extending its own win streak to 12. 5. For the first 40 minutes of Saturday night's game at the Carlson Center, the Irish controlled play against Alaska, outshooting the Nanooks by a 20-13 edge. The final 20 minutes were another matter as Alaska scored three times to wipe out a 1-0 Notre Dame lead to give the Nanooks a 3-1 hockey win over the Irish. Two third-period goals by Derek Klassen and a game winner from Andy Taranto offset Notre Dame's second-period goal by Ben Ryan to give the Nanooks a split on the weekend after dropping Friday's game 3-2. Sophomore goaltender Scott Greenham stopped 26 of 27 Irish shots in the game while Irish freshman Mike Johnson, making the first back-to-back starts of his career, had 21 saves in the loss. The loss dropped ninth-ranked Notre Dame to 5-4-1 overall and 2-1-1-0 in the CCHA, good for seven points in the standings. Alaska, ranked 14th in the nation, improved to 6-1-1 on the year and 3-1-0-0 in conference play for nine points in the league standings. The loss also ended the 11-game Irish unbeaten streak (10-0-1) against Alaska that started Dec. 2, 2006. The last time the Nanooks beat Notre Dame was on March 4, 2006, a 1-0 win in game two of the first round of the CCHA playoffs. 5. Senior Kali Krisik won the singles title today at the Western Michigan Invitational after compiling a 3-0 record during the weekend. Krisik topped Louisville's Mandy Brown, 6-3, 6-4, to claim the singles crown. Krisik is now 4-1 in singles action this season. 6. Here's the list of top football teams in the country in terms of least amount of offensive three and outs:
Team Per Game Totals (number/games) Idaho 1.00 10/10 Notre Dame 1.22 11/9 Florida 1.33 12/9 Nevada 1.38 11/8 Arizona 1.38 11/8 7. The Notre Dame men's tennis team closed out its fall season today with the final day of play at the fourth-annual Tribe Invitational at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center. After three days of play, the Irish posted a 21-4 mark in singles play versus opponents from William & Mary, Maryland and the College of Charleston and a 8-4 mark in doubles. Junior David Anderson as well as sophomore Niall Fitzgerald and freshman Blas Moros all ran their singles records to 4-0 with wins on day three of play. Notre Dame led the way with four singles players on the all-tournament squad as Anderson, Michael Moore, Moros and Sam Keeton earned all-tournament honors for the Fighting Irish. In doubles, Notre Dame's Daniel Stahl and Fitzgerald made the all-tournament team as well. 8. Notre Dame heads to Pittsburgh ranked fifth nationally in passing offense (325.56 yards per game), sixth in total offense (463.67), 14th in turnover margin (tied with Pitt) at plus-.89, and fifth in passing efficiency (161.16), Individually, Jimmy Clausen is third in passing efficiency (162.88), and eighth in total offense (300.89). Golden Tate is third in receiving yards per game (117.67) and 10th in receptions per game (7.22). 9. Pittsburgh comes in rated 16th in scoring (34.56 points), 19th in scoring defense (17.11), 21st in total defense (310.89), sixth in passing efficiency (161.02) and first in sacks (4.33 per game). 10. This will be a battle of two of the top five most efficient passers in the country this season - Jimmy Clausen third at 162.88 and Pitt's Bill Stull fifth at 161.61. Meanwhile, Pitt's Dion Lewis ranks seventh nationally in rushing at 126.56 yards per game. 11. In the NCAA toughest schedule ratings Notre Dame is 34th at 53-44 (.546), while Pitt is 17th at 45-33 (.576). In terms of future opposition, Pitt is fourth at 20-5, while Notre Dame is 21st at 16-9. 12. Pittsburgh's 8-1 start is the best for a Panther team since 8-1 in 1982 (the Irish dented that Dan Marino-led team when Pitt was #1 with a win in Pittsburgh). 13. Pitt ranks best in the BIG EAST in total defense, second in both scoring offense and scoring defense and third in total offense. Dion Lewis leads the BIG EAST in rushing (1,139 yards and 12 TDs) and scoring, while Bill Stull leads the BIG EAST in passing (208.8 yards and 161.6 in efficiency). 14. Pittsburgh has rushed for at least 214 yards in each of its last four games. The best other BIG EAST units have done is two Saturdays in a row (by Rutgers, South Florida and West Virginia. 15. With 65 receptions already, Golden Tate needs to average four catches per game in his last four contests (assuming a bowl game) to beat the Notre Dame single-season record of 78 catches from 2006 by Jeff Samardzija. Tate already has 1,059 receiving yards this year and needs only 191 the rest of the season to beat Samardzija'a all-time best single-season total of 1,249 from 2005. 16. Jimmy Clausen threw for 340 yards Saturday in the second half against Navy.
1. The #9 Notre Dame hockey team got a stellar performance from freshman goaltender Mike Johnson and just enough offense to hand #13 Alaska its first loss of the season last night at the Carlson Center. Johnson, making just his third career start, stopped 35 of 37 Nanook shots in the game and got goals from Christiaan Minella, Ryan Thang and Kyle Lawson in the win. For Notre Dame, the win improved the Irish to 5-3-1 overall and 2-0-1-0 in the CCHA, good for seven points in the conference standings. Alaska suffers its first loss of the season and is now 5-1-1 for the season and 2-1-0 in the CCHA with six points in the standings. The win gives the Irish an 11-game unbeaten streak (10-0-1) against the Nanooks since Dec. 2, 2006. The two teams will close out the weekend series on tonight, with the opening face-off set for 7:05 Alaska time (11:05 p.m. Eastern time). In three starts this season, freshman goaltender Mike Johnson has given up just three goals on 94 shots. He is 3-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .968 save percentage with one shutout to start his Notre Dame career. 2. The No. 4 Notre Dame women's soccer team advanced to the BIG EAST championship match with a 2-1 overtime win over St. John's last night in Storrs, Conn., on the strength of a Jessica Schuveiller golden goal scored with just over a minute remaining in the first overtime stanza. For the game winner, Schuveiller rose above the St. John's defense to head home a Rose Augustin corner kick after making a run through the center of the Red Storm box. It marked Schuveiller's second goal of the year and third of her Irish career. All three goals have proved to be game winners. Lauren Fowlkes scored early in the first half to give the Irish a 1-0 lead, with the assist also going to Augustin, but the Red Storm answered with a second-half goal to send the game into overtime. With the win, the Irish advance to the BIG EAST Championship game for the sixth consecutive year where they on Sunday will face Marquette (noon ET, CBS College Sports, Comcast SportsNet Chicago), who will be making its first ever appearance in the BIG EAST title match. 3. Four Irish players scored in double figures and preseason first-team All-American Luke Harangody notched a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds as Notre Dame topped Quincy, 75-54, in exhibition play inside Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center Friday night. Ben Hansbrough finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and six assists, and Jonathan Peoples also assisted on six scores. Tim Abromaitis finished with seven rebounds, while Tory Jackson finished with 11 points, four rebounds, five assists, and two steals. Tyrone Nash also recorded 11 points while knocking down a game-high five free throws. 4. In the midst of all these athletics, we'll provide a bit of culture this morning. The famous British author G. K. Chesterton wrote a poem about Notre Dame Stadium, called "The Arena" (attached below). It begins with a reflection upon a golden statue of the roman emperor and Nero and the death of the gladiators ("those about to die salute thee!"), but moves under the civilizing gaze of the golden image of the Mother of God ("the mother of the master of the masterers of the world") on the Dome to a reflection on "boys at play" in the modern arena ("those about to live salute thee!"). It may actually have been written on the occasion of the dedication of the stadium in 1930 and the Navy game that year, when Chesterton was visiting Notre Dame. (http://archives.nd.edu/hope/hope29.htm)
Causa Nostrae Laetitiae (Dedicated to the University of Notre Dame, Indiana)
There uprose a golden giant --G.K. Chesterton (1930) 5. Ryan Steenberge is the top-ranked senior student at Annapolis and has the honor of leading the non-football Midshipmen as they march onto the field prior to the football game today at Notre Dame Stadium. Ryan is the nephew of former Irish quarterback Patrick Steenberge. 6. Thirty ties and 13 lead changes marked the Notre Dame volleyball team's 3-1 (21-25, 25-18, 26-24, 25-13) victory Friday night against Marquette at the Al McGuire Center. Notre Dame was aided by 15.0 blocks -- including eight apiece from freshman middle blocker Hilary Eppink and senior outside hitter Serinity Phillips -- to keep its BIG EAST Conference record flawless at 11-0. Notre Dame (17-4), the only undefeated team in the league, now travels to Syracuse for a Sunday contest set to begin at 2:00 p.m. The Irish dropped the first set and came back to win for the second time this season, doing so once prior against Wisconsin on Sept. 11. Notre Dame has won 11 straight BIG EAST matches for the seventh time since joining the league in 1995. 7. Covering the football game today is a sportswriter by the name of Sakakibara from Japan's Asahi newspaper. He has been in the United States since the Presidents Cup golf event and is preparing a story about college sports business and interviewed several Irish athletic officials yesterday. Asahi is Japan's second largest paper, with circulation of six million. Also covering the game is photographer Thomas Savoja representing a French Web site that covers American football. 8. Six races were won by the Notre Dame women's swimming and diving team Friday at the Boilermaker Aquatic Center -- but the Irish were ousted by host Purdue 121-179. Both Samantha Maxwell and Katie Casey shelved a pair of individual victories for Notre Dame. John Lytle and Petar Petrovic both earned a pair of first-place finishes but the Notre Dame men's swimming and diving team fell by a 105-195 margin to Purdue on Friday. 9. The tragedy at Fort Hood has prompted the Governor of the State of Indiana to order all flags to be flown at half mast on Federal buildings - and so that will observed today at the Notre Dame-Navy football game. In addition, a moment of silence will be observed just prior to the flag presentation. The moment of silence will not change any pre-game timings. 10. Attendance at the pep rally Friday night at Irish Green was 6,671 - and 6,413 more fans on Friday entered Notre Dame Stadium and walked down the tunnel to the field (in and around the Navy team's hour-long walk-through). 11. One of the pilots involved in the flyover today is 2001 USNA graduate Lt. Mark Huber from Hillsboro, Ill. He has a brother David who is a Notre Dame grad (2004), as well as a father-in-law, two brothers-in-law and a sister-in-law who are Notre Dame grads, plus a sister-in-law who is a Saint Mary's graduate.
1. Notre Dame football is the subject of a one-page piece in this week's Sports Illustrated in the Inside College Football section (page 34). The title is, "The Jury's Out - Notre Dame is piling up points and victories, but are the Irish worthy of a BCS bid?" The story calls Jimmy Clausen "a bona fide Heisman contender - and arguably the best quarterback in the game." 2. Luke Harangody, who earlier this week was named the leading vote-getter on the Associated Press Preseason All-America Team, was one of 50 players today named to the 2009-10 Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List, as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Harangody is one of 19 seniors on the list, followed by 14 juniors, 12 sophomores and five freshmen. The BIG EAST and Atlantic Coast Conferences had the most representatives on the list with nine apiece, while the Big XII and Southeastern Conferences each had eight. 3. Notre Dame senior volleyball setter Jamel Nicholas today was named ESPN The Magazine second-team Academic All-District V. The Gibsonia, Pa., native has guided the Irish to a 10-match winning streak heading into this weekend's action at Marquette (Nov. 6) and Syracuse (Nov. 8). Nicholas is 22nd nationally with 11.14 assists/set and fourth among BIG EAST Conference setters with 11.37 assists/set in league play. Nicholas has a 3.34 grade-point average and is pursuing majors in sociology and film, television and theater. She plans on enrolling in Notre Dame's ACE program after graduation. 4. Nan Tulchinsky and her late husband Mark tonight were inducted into the South Bend Community Hall of Fame at Century Center in South Bend at its 23rd annual banquet. Both Nan and Mark worked the scorer's table at Notre Dame men's and women's basketball games for many years - and Nan continues as the official scorer for both the Irish men's and women's games. Both Mark and Nan were career educators in the South Bend Community School Corporation. Also inducted was Rev. David Link, a former longtime member of the Notre Dame Law School faculty. 5. Notre Dame football senior special teams stalwart Mike Anello and senior offensive guard Chris Stewart were each named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District Team for District 5 today. Anello and Stewart, each of whom graduated in 3.5 years and currently take graduate level courses, now get placed on the national ballot for the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-America Team. Anello, who was named Academic All-America second team last year, earned a degree from Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business in finance. He finished his undergraduate work with a 3.93 cumulative grade point average (GPA). Anello earned dean's list recognition in each of his seven semesters at Notre Dame. He registered a perfect 4.0 GPA in his major courses and was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, the business honors society. Anello was also named one of 10 finalists for the Awards and Recognition Association (ARA) Sportsmanship Award. The ARA Sportsmanship Award is presented annually to an NCAA Division I college football player who exemplifies sportsmanship both on and off the field. The selection of the winner is made by a blue-ribbon panel comprised of retired coaches, ARA executives and members of the media who cover college sports. Stewart earned a degree from the College of Arts and Letters in history. He finished his undergraduate studies with a 3.536 cumulative GPA. Stewart registered a 3.834 GPA in his final semester (`09 spring). Stewart has started 18 career games for Notre Dame on the offensive line, including all eight games this season at left guard. During his undergraduate coursework, Stewart had the opportunity to learn about Haiti and the diseases that affect it. Over the '09 spring break, he was given the chance to visit the country and see firsthand Notre Dame's Haiti Program. During his weeklong visit, Stewart conducted research, learned the logistics of the program and toured facilities geared toward eradicating lymphatic filariasis - a parasitic disease caused by microscopic, thread-like worms. The disease, which is transmitted by mosquitoes, can cause swelling and decreased function of the lymph system, making it difficult for the body to fight germs and infections.
1. The start time for the Notre Dame - Northern Michigan hockey game on Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Joyce Center rink has been moved up to 5:05 p.m. (EST). The game originally was scheduled to start at 7:05 p.m. (EST) and now avoids Notre Dame's 8:00 p.m. football kickoff at Pittsburgh on ABC Sports that was announced earlier this week. Game two between the Irish and the Wildcats is on Sunday, Nov. 15 with that starting time still set for 4:05 p.m. 2. One last leftover from San Antonio - smart move by the Notre Dame band to play "Deep in the Heart of Texas" as part of its halftime show, with a Texas flag displayed on the field. The number prompted huge audience participation in terms of singing alone and clapping. 3. You can make a great case for Notre Dame's football offense being one of the best in the country. The Irish are second in the nation in fewest three-and-outs on offense with only 11 (Arizona also has 11, but in one less game) for 1.38 per game. Florida is #1 at 1.13 per game with nine in eight games. 4. Alabama's Mark Ingram held on to a healthy lead in the latest edition of the HeismanPundit.com Heisman Poll released today. The sophomore running back collected six of 13 first-place votes by the panel, comprised of Heisman voters from around the country. His 48 total points put him comfortably ahead of Florida's Tim Tebow (27 points, three first-place votes). Three other quarterbacks were bunched closely together behind Tebow: Colt McCoy of Texas (26 points), Case Keenum of Houston (26 points, one first-place vote) and Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame (25 points, one first-place vote). "I think Clausen has had a Heisman-type season for Notre Dame and that's why he's No. 1 on my ballot right now," said one voter. "His stats are excellent and, more importantly, the Irish would be a mess without him. With him, they might make a BCS bowl. I think Jacquizz Rodgers is the best all-purpose back in the nation, while Keenum has been consistently dominant for Houston." The HeismanPundit.com Heisman Poll appears every Wednesday in the Orlando Sentinel and in various Tribune Company media outlets. 5. If you are following the postseason hopes of Notre Dame's fall Olympic sports teams, here are dates you need to know:
Women's Soccer
Men's Soccer
Women's Volleyball
Men's and Women's Cross Country 6. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Notre Dame Bengal Bouts. The Bengal Bouts is an intramural boxing tournament put on annually by the Notre Dame men's boxing team for the benefit of the Holy Cross Missions in Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the world. The program was founded in 1929 by boxing coach Dominic "Nappy" Napolitano and legendary football coach Knute Rockne. Nappy's words to the team that year would forever serve as the motto of the Bengal Bouts: "Strong bodies fight, that weak bodies may be nourished." Since then, the Bengal Bouts has grown into one of the most special and unique athletic traditions at Notre Dame, developing hundreds of young men in body and mind while raising more than $50,000 a year for development projects in Bangladesh. Bengal Bouts alumni from the classes of 1949 through 2009, as well as missionary Father Shankar Rozario, who traveled all the way from Bangladesh, will be honored on the field at the Notre Dame-Navy football game. This weekend, more than 200 former boxers are kicking off the 80th year by gathering for a reunion and for the premiere of a new documentary film on the Bengal Bouts. The film, Strong Bodies Fight, tells the inspiring story of the Notre Dame boxing team and its unique partnership with the people of Bangladesh. The film will be shown at 9:30 p.m. EST Friday at the Browning Cinema in the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $6 for the public, $5 for Notre Dame faculty and staff, $4 for seniors and $3 for students. Bill Donaruma (associate professional specialist in Notre Dame's Department of Film, Television and Theatre) and Mark Weber produced the 97-minute documentary. 7. The next time you visit Purcell Pavilion, check out all the new theming on the upper concourse. The area that used to be nothing but the back end of bleacher sections now contains huge walls featuring photos, graphics and lots of facts and figures. Here are the titles for the various sections (some are still being completed):
The areas above these massive walls show the evolution of the interlocking ND logo - and there also are real pennants with those same logos hanging at various spots around the concourse. There's also lots more way-finding signage, all in a nifty Celtic font. 8. The Maxwell Football Club announced its 16 semifinalists today for its national player of the year award and Notre Dame had two - QB Jimmy Clausen and WR Golden Tate (Texas was the only other school with two players on the list). Clausen is second in the country in passing efficiency this week - while no receiver in the country has scored more TDs this year than Tate (he has 11). 9. Irish defensive back Mike Anello is one of 10 finalists for the fifth annual ARA (Awards and Recognition Association) Sportsmanship Award.
1. Below are charts indicating this week's BCS football rankings -- along with a re-ranking of those 25 teams based on their cumulative schedule strength and their future schedule strength. The cumulative schedule strength used is both past and future opposition records tabulated by the NCAA, while the future schedule strength is simply the cumulative record of remaining opponents. The first number listed is the NCAA's schedule strength ranking, followed by the school and then this week's BCS ranking of that team:
2. The coin being used in the pre-game coin toss for the Notre Dame-Navy game is a Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar. This beautiful and unique commemorative coin is the first in U.S. history with readable Braille embossed on it, and was issued this year by the U.S. Mint to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille. Proceeds from sales of the coin will help the National Federation of the Blind to reverse the high rate of illiteracy among blind children in America. The coin was brought to campus for use in the toss by distinguished Notre Dame alumnus Marc Maurer, president of the National Federation of the Blind. More information on the coin and the Braille literacy crisis is available on the Web at www.Braille.org 3. The national colors will be presented at the Notre Dame-Navy football game by Brig. Gen. Michael Brogan, a 1980 graduate of Notre Dame and commander of the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command. He is this year's recipient of the Notre Dame Alumni Association's Rev. William Corby, C.S.C., Award for distinguished military service and will be honored during halftime ceremonies. Gen. Brogan will be accompanied by Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. A 1968 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Adm. Mullen is the 17th chairman of the joint chiefs and serves as the principal military advisor to the president, secretary of defense, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council. Adm. Mullen also will be part of the coin toss. 4. The pregame flyover for the Notre Dame-Navy game will be by four China Lake, Calif.-based VX-9 F/A-18 Super Hornets, all piloted by U.S. Naval Academy graduates. NBC Sports has revamped its pregame timings and will show the National Anthem live (with both teams on the field) as well as the flyover. 5. A few tickets still remain for the Notre Dame home football games against Navy (Nov. 7) and Connecticut (Nov. 21). They are available to the public. 6. Golden Tate has nine touchdown receptions in 2009 - and the only player in the country with more is Oklahoma's Ryan Broyles with 10. The Notre Dame season record is 15 by Jeff Samardzija in 2005 and Rhema McKnight in 2006. 7. This week's ESPN Experts' Poll of Heisman votes lists Alabama's Mark Ingram #1 with 56 points, Florida's Tim Tebow #2 with 47 points and Notre Dame's Jimmy Clausen #3 with 35 points. Golden Tate is #8 with five points (he received one third-place votes and two fifth-place votes). In terms of first-place votes, Ingram received six, Clausen four, Tebow three and Boise State's Kellen Moore two. 8. Honored at the Notre Dame-Navy game will be the Irish men's swimming, rowing and men's outdoor track teams - all BIG EAST champions in 2009. The Presidential Team Irish Award goes to the Email Transition Team, and the Notre Dame faculty recognition goes to Law School professor A.J. Bellia (his wife Tricia is the University's Faculty Athletic Representative). 9. After missing five games with a broken collarbone, Michael Floyd will be back in action this week against Navy. Floyd was cleared on Monday after doctors evaluated the healing in his shoulder. Said Charlie Weis, "He's back and ready to go. There was some hooting and hollering when he went down the steps last night. I let Michael make the call on whether this was the week or not. I think number seven (Jimmy Clausen) was just as happy as number three (Floyd). We have a plan -- he won't play every down. He'll see what happens when he gets tackled in a game." 10. Meanwhile, backup quarterback Dayne Crist has a torn ACL (knee) and will have season-ending surgery Friday. He'll be out of action for four to six months. Charlie Weis says he doesn't know if Crist will be available for spring ball in 2010 - "We will definitely be conservative. We want him full-go in August." Receiver John Goodman becomes the #3 quarterback. 11. Notre Dame will play host to 10 individuals at the Navy home football game Saturday as part of the Wounded Warriors Project. The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) honors men and women of the United States armed forces who have been severely injured during conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and other locations around the world. It serves to raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women, to help severely injured service members aid and assist each other and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet their needs. 12. Dr. Ronald Zamber, a 1983 graduate and co-founder of International Vision Quest (IVQ), will receive the Harvey G. Foster Award on Nov. 5 for distinguished involvement in civic and University initiatives. He also will be honored at the end of the first period of the Notre Dame-Navy football game. In 2001, Zamber and his wife, Suzan, founded the non-profit organization that provides free eye care to people in developing countries, and provides financial resources to entities that care for children living in poverty. The Zambers also funded, organized and participated in medical and surgical mission trips to Ecuador, Nepal, Malawi and Costa Rica, and during these trips Zamber performed free sight-restoring surgeries and sight-preserving medical care on thousands of impoverished adults and children. These experiences inspired the founding of IVQ, which helped fund the Rotary Netra Rural Eye Hospital in Vizag, India; supported the Malawi Children's Village in Africa; and has provided donations for more than 100,000 meals for destitute children through the Feed My Starving Children Organization. in addition, IVQ has contributed funds to the O'Hana Heritage Foundation to aid construction of a respite home for medically fragile children in South Bend, Ind. Zamber was voted a member of the "Best Doctors in America" for 2009-10 and was featured in Ophthalmology Management Magazine for his humanitarian work. 13. More from Charlie Weis at his Tuesday media briefing: On Navy: "They are very good and very consistent at what they do. This is by far the best Navy defense since I've been here - it's not even close. All their linebackers are seniors and all their DBs are juniors and seniors. One thing you know abut Navy - the easiest part of their day is football practice." On the future schedule: "Since USC we've talked about taking steps. Navy is step number three." 14. Former Notre Dame All-America and Academic All-America center Mike Oriard has a new book out - "Bowled Over: Big-Time College Football From the Sixties to the BCS Era." It will be published next month by the University of North Carolina Press -- and it was excerpted last week in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Oriard is a professor of English and associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Oregon State University. 15. Jimmy Clausen has throw only two interceptions this season - and the only FBS quarterback with fewer is Diondre Borel of Utah State (with one). 16. In the last two football games, Notre Dame's defense has allowed zero or negative yards on 20 of 48 first-down plays. 17. It will be a comparatively quiet weekend on campus in terms of other athletic events if you are coming to Notre Dame for the football game against Navy. There's a men's basketball preseason game at 7:30 p.m. Friday night against Quincy College - and then at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday there's a BIG EAST Championship quarterfinal men's soccer game between Notre Dame and either South Florida or Marquette (they play each other on Thursday). 18. Former QB Steve Beuerlein took a quick tour of campus today with his wife and some old friends. They went through Notre Dame Stadium, stopped at practice for a chat with Charlie Weis and also visited the Gug. 19. The Notre Dame women's basketball team posted a 97-53 victory over Indianapolis tonight in its preseason home opener. Erica Solomon led the Irish (off the bench) with 17 points and six rebounds -- Natalie Novosel had 13 points and six rebounds. Rookie Skylar Diggins made her Purcell Pavilion debut and came off the bench for 17 points, four rebounds and three steals in 20 minutes.
1. Also seen in San Antonio - former Irish captain Chuck Lanza on the sidelines at the Alamodome. 2. Former Irish QB Steve Beuerlein is headed to South Bend Tuesday for an afternoon visit to campus. Beuerlein and his wife are spending a few days in Chicago and are taking the South Shore to town. 3. Florida Panthers general manager Randy Sexton announced Saturday that the club recalled forward Victor Oreskovich. Oreskovich, 23, received his first-ever NHL promotion (and made his NHL debut Saturday at St. Louis) after registering four points and two penalty minutes in five American Hockey League contests with the Amerks. The former Notre Dame product picked up his second multi-point game of the season with a pair of assists Friday to help Rochester win in its eighth straight game, a 4-2 decision over the Binghamton Senators. A native of Oakville, Ontario, the 6-3, 225-pound forward signed a two-year deal with Florida as a free agent on Oct. 8. 4. With Notre Dame's first off-site football venture now in the books, Irish officials head to New York Nov. 17 to make more arrangements for Yankee Stadium in 2010. 5. The Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award® (The O'Brien) continues its On-the-Road Campaign as it stops at four more semifinalists' campuses Nov. 7, including Notre Dame. College football enthusiasts and fans alike are encouraged to stop by The O'Brien display (in the Joyce Center fieldhouse) and vote for their favorite semifinalist. Fans who vote at The O'Brien display will automatically be entered into the "Defend Your Pride. Vote O'Brien Sweepstakes," for a chance to win a trip for two to the 2010 O'Brien Awards Dinner at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas. The O'Brien displays will be open pre-game through kickoff. Fans not able to cast a vote in person can register and vote at www.VoteOBrien.org. Online fan voting will close at noon CST on Nov. 22 and finalists will be announced on Nov. 23. Finalists will be selected by The O'Brien Selection Committee, comprised of journalists, broadcasters, commentators and former winners, with the Fan Vote accounting for five percent of the total vote.
Week 10: The O'Brien On-the-Road Campaign Locations: The 2009 O'Brien Winner will be announced live on The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show airing Dec. 10 on ESPN and will be honored at the 33rd Annual Davey O'Brien Awards Dinner held at The Fort Worth Club on Feb. 15, 2010, in Fort Worth, Texas. 6. The holiday season is upon us, and it kicks off with National College Football Day on Saturday, Nov. 7... an event that honors the birth of college football while increasing awareness and raising money for The V Foundation for Cancer Research. The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), the National Association of Collegiate Football Officials (NACFO), the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), the Athletic Equipment Managers Association (AEMA) and the College Sports Information Directors Association of America (CoSIDA) have teamed up with the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic and The V Foundation for Cancer Research as official partners of the Sixth Annual National College Football Day. National College Football Day, observed on the first Saturday of November, was created by the AT&T Cotton Bowl six years ago as a way to pay tribute to a significant moment in our nation's history. On Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers defeated Princeton, 6-4. More importantly, those college athletes left a lasting legacy that would evolve into the great spectacle of football. In 2006, the holiday took on added significance when the Classic teamed up with The V Foundation for Cancer Research. ESPN and legendary coach and commentator Jim Valvano founded the V Foundation, based in Cary, N.C., in 1993. The Foundation has raised more than $90 million to fund essential cancer research nationwide. To honor college football's 140th birthday, the AT&T Cotton Bowl has produced limited edition lapel pins. Over 4,000 pins will be distributed to coaches, athletic directors, university presidents, sports publicists, game officials, equipment managers and media throughout the United States in hopes that everyone will wear their pin on National College Football Day. The AFCA has asked each Football Bowl Subdivision head coach to donate a minimum of $140, one dollar for each year of college football. NACFO has requested that each game official donate a portion of their stipend on NCFD in support of The V Foundation. The FWAA has made a donation to The V Foundation and will work to solicit other donations from within its membership. CoSIDA and AEMA are the newest additions to NCFD's partners. Both organizations lent their support to NCFD for the first time this year and have pledged to help spread the word about this great cause. 7. Luke Harangody should get used to being on top of lists. The senior forward from Notre Dame was the leading vote-getter today on The Associated Press' preseason All-America team, and if he has the type of season he usually does, he will become the leader for his school and conference in scoring and rebounding. The 6-8 Harangody received 57 votes from the 65-member national media panel and was followed in the balloting by Kansas teammates Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins. Harangody averaged 23.3 points and 11.8 rebounds last season, the only player to rank in the top 10 nationally in both categories. He was a preseason All-American in 2008-09 and was selected to the second team after the season. He enters this season with 1,823 points -- 738 away from Austin Carr as Notre Dame's career leader. He needs 370 rebounds to pass Tom Hawkins as the Fighting Irish's career rebound leader, and averaging 20.6 points and 9.0 rebounds this season would make him the Big East's career leader in both categories, passing Syracuse's Lawrence Moten and Derrick Coleman, respectively. Harangody decided to return to Notre Dame for his senior season after exploring his options for entering the NBA draft. "It was a good experience for Luke to go through the process he did last summer," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. "He's even more confident at moving around to different spots on the floor. We're going to have him open up in transition much like he did at the end of last season and run him off a screen for 15- and 18-foot jump shots. He'll be our main threat in the low post because that is his bread and butter, but we're going to have him step out along the perimeter which should add another dimension to his game." 8. A 68-page, soft-cover, full-color book of text and photos chronicling the Notre Dame football alumni trip to Japan in July and titled "Inside the Legends" is now in print. It includes a DVD created by Ted Mandell. 9. Former Notre Dame All-America defenseman D.J. Driscoll has been named to the 23-man United States national team roster that will compete in the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship in Manchester, England from July 14-24, 2010. Driscoll, a 2006 Notre Dame graduate, is currently playing with the Chicago Machine of Major League Lacrosse (MLL). During his senior season with the Fighting Irish, he earned second-team All-America honors from the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA). 10. The start time for the Notre Dame men's basketball season opener against North Florida at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center on Nov. 14 has been moved to 2:00 p.m. (EST). The game originally was scheduled to tip off at 7:00 p.m. (EST) and now avoids Notre Dame's 8:00 p.m. football kickoff at Pittsburgh on ABC Sports that was announced earlier today. 11. The hottest Notre Dame athletic team right now? It has to be Debbie Brown's volleyball squad. Notre Dame's home win Sunday vs. Rutgers made the Irish 100-7 (.935) in their home confine against conference foes. The victory gave Notre Dame (16-4) another feather in its cap as the Irish have now registered 10 or more BIG EAST regular-season wins for the 11th time since joining the league in 1995. Notre Dame has won each of its 10 BIG EAST matches in 2009. The team's last loss came Sept. 20 at Florida State. The Irish now hit the road with upcoming matches at Marquette Friday and Syracuse Sunday. 12. Sophomore epeeist Courtney Hurley took home the women's epee gold medal at a Junior World Cup event that concluded yesterday. It marks her second consecutive gold medal finish at the Montreal event, having won the gold last year as well. 13. Notre Dame fencer Abigail Nichols made it to the championship sabre bout of the 30th annual Temple University Open this past weekend. Nichols was joined by freshman teammates Kathryn Palazzoto and Danielle Guilfoyle as participants in the 73-player women's sabre field. The tournament featured student-athletes from over 25 schools, including participants from Penn State, Penn, NYU, Rutgers, Cornell and Johns Hopkins. Nichols met Penn's Danielle Kamis in the championship bout. Kamis, a junior, edged Nichols, a freshman, in the dramatic final by a narrow 15-13 margin.
1. It's been a busy weekend for athletic events at Notre Dame - with 10 home Irish contests taking place between Friday night and Sunday night. There was a hockey game on Friday - then hockey, rowing, men's soccer, men's swimming and volleyball on Saturday - followed by rowing, volleyball, women's soccer and men's basketball on Sunday. And that didn't count the "home" football game Notre Dame played host to in San Antonio. 2. It was a tough weekend for Irish football opponents, so Notre Dame's strength of schedule stands at 33rd (48-40 for .545). Navy is 80th on 38-44 (.463). When it comes to future opposition, Notre Dame stands 17th at .645 (20-11). The toughest future schedules belong to Ohio State (19-5), Stanford (24-7) and Auburn (12-4). 3. Notre Dame as a team stands fourth in turnover margin (plus-1.38), fifth in passing efficiency (162.01 rating points), fifth in total offense (457.63) and eighth in passing offense (309.75). Individually Jimmy Clausen is second in passing efficiency (164.25), Golden Tate is fourth in receiving yards per game (115.88), Kyle McCarthy is fifth in interceptions (.62), Nick Tausch 10th in field goals (1.75), Darius Fleming eight in tackles for loss (1.64). 4. Jimmy Clausen had a 189.3 passing rating vs. Washington State (22 of 27 for 268 and two TDs). That leaves him at 164.25, behind only Boise State's Kellen Moore at 171.02. Florida's Tim Tebow is eighth at 153.68 and Texas' Colt McCoy is 25th at 144.57.
5. Check out the cumulative comparative stats of three of the nation's top quarterbacks: 6. Navy comes in this weekend ranked third nationally in rushing (279.78 per game), compared to 118th in passing (71.67). The Middies rank 23rd in pass defense at 178.11 yards per game. Navy's Ricky Dobbs leads the country in scoring at 12.0 points per game (on 18 TDs). 7. Notre Dame is now fifth nationally in time of possession at 33:19 - behind only Georgia Tech, Navy, Kansas State and Bowling Green. 8. Notre Dame trails only Rutgers, Air Force and Cincinnati in turnover margin. 9. Notre Dame in total offense trails only Houston (563.25), Nevada (504.38), Texas A&M and Texas Tech. In passing efficiency, the Irish trail only Cincinnati, Boise State, Georgia Tech and TCU. 10. Speaking at the Notre Dame football kickoff luncheon on Friday will be running backs coach Tony Alford plus players Golden Tate and Kerry Neal. 11. Other sightings in San Antonio over the weekend included actress Lara Flynn Boyle and New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson (he watched the game from a suite and was on the field pregame). 12. The Irish women's soccer squad easily moved into the BIG EAST semifinals, taking a 5-0 halftime lead and finishing with that same score to defeat South Florida today at Alumni Stadium. Notre Dame now moves into a 7:30 p.m. game Friday against St. John's in Storrs, Conn. Volleyball recorded a 3-0 home victory over Rutgers. The men's golf team finished second of 11 teams at The Match Play at Southern Pines, N.C. 13. Former North Carolina star and current Indiana Pacer Tyler Hansbrough came to watch his brother Ben play at Purcell Pavilion tonight. Ben scored 12 points, added seven rebounds and three assists as Notre Dame defeated Lewis 70-54 tonight in the team's first preseason game. Luke Harangody had 33 points and nine rebounds, as the Irish made it work down the stretch after trailing 44-42 with 14 minutes to go. 14. Notre Dame's football team today rated 19th by AP, 20th by Harris, 21st by USA Today and 22 by the BCS. 15. Here are some of Charlie Weis' comments from his media session tonight: On QB Dayne Crist: "He's going to get an MRI tomorrow. We're cautiously optimistic it's not as bad as we originally thought. We're keeping our fingers crossed." On OG Trevor Robinson: "He got a low ankle sprain. As of tonight I'd list him as doubtful." On the Irish defense: "When the first guys were in there, they gave up 109 yards. That's pretty impressive. I thought it was a complete performance. I thought both lines really controlled the game." On the future: "If you keep on winning and teams ahead of you keep on losing, you're going to keep on moving up. That's just a fact. We've got to take care of business. We can't worry about what everyone else is doing." On Crist's play: "He got off to a slow start. But the seam he threw to Goody (John Goodman) was as good a throw as anyone could make." 16. The Notre Dame rowing team concluded the its fall season of competition today by playing host to Iowa, Michigan State and Indiana in a quad meet held on the St. Joseph River in South Bend. The four teams competed in two separate flights of eights, fours and novice eights. The Notre Dame B crew of coxswain Jacqueline Gilhooly, Stephanie O'Neill, Stephanie Boggs, Joanna Poinsatte and Meghan Solomon won fours flight two race nearly 17 seconds better than the second-place boat as the Irish posted a time of 14.39.2. Notre Dame's C boat of coxswain Lauren Peartree, Sarah Thompson, Kate Monahan, Alyce Kanabrocki and Kathleen Bracke were fourth in the heat with a time of 15:12.0. In the first flight of the fours, Notre Dame A crew of coxswain Alicia Elliott, Paige White, Stephanie Figg, Andrea Archer and Brianna Krafcik took fourth in the five-boat race with a time of 14:59.2. In the first flight of novice eight the Notre Dame A crew of coxswain Danielle Schneider, Catherine Hermann, Kelsey Murphy, Alisa Blumenthaler, Analisa LaMair-Orosco, Jennifer Lee, Sarah McShane, Paige Aiello and Kim Dunbar was fourth in 14:31.4. In the second flight of the novice eight the Notre Dame B crew of coxswain Abby Meyers, Maura Newell, Caitlyn Kalsheur, Caitlin Connelly, Anne Hart, Meg Vertovec, Camille Sharrow, Theresa Blumenstein and Kelly Brakora finished third in the four-boat heat with a time of 15:14.9. In the first flight of the varsity eight, the Notre Dame B crew of coxswain Rachel Louie, Emily Backer, Braegan Padley, Casey Robinson, Maria Lang, Valerie Brencher, Katherine Suyo, Colleen McKenna and Ching-Ting Hwang was third in 13:20.8. In the final race of the day, the Notre Dame A varsity eight crew of coxswain Sarah Keithley, Christina Buckley, Stephanie Gretsch, Carol Ann Michel, Brittney Kelly, Katherine Linnemanstons, Genevieve Malone, Morgan Kelley and Megan Keegan also took third in its heat as they posted a time of 13:05.9. 17. The season is two-thirds finished and Irish rookie kicker Nick Tausch's 14 field goals put him two-thirds of the way to John Carney's Notre Dame single-season record of 21 from 1986.
1. The Notre Dame cheerleaders spent an hour and a half Friday afternoon visiting with wounded soldiers at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. One hundred of those soldiers will attend the game tonight courtesy of Notre Dame. 2. Check out und.com for the video tour of the new Purcell Pavilion. That facility saw its first real action this afternoon when the Irish defeated Seton Hall 3-1 in volleyball. 3. Some 7,500 fans jammed Alamo Plaza last night for the football pep rally on a perfect night - with the nearly-full moon rising over the Alamo as darkness fell. 4. The best view for the rally was at a Notre Dame reception on top of the three-story building right across the street from the Alamo. 5. A San Antonio mariachi band entertained the crowd for a half-hour before the rally began - though one member, Poncho, arrived late because he was in a car accident on the way. The band played the "Victory March" - and also coaxed fans to join a sing-along on "My Girl" by the Temptations. 6. Notre Dame radio play-by-play veteran Don Criqui, who spoke at the rally, is no stranger to San Antonio. He played basketball at Lackland Air Force Base while in basic training with the National Guard. Another member of his unit was current Los Angeles Dodger manager Joe Torre. 7. Seen waiting at least an hour and a half for the rally in the front row was a 12-year-old boy (with his father) wearing a blue jersey and a gold helmet. 8. Notre Dame band director Ken Dye had little problem soliciting a crowd reaction at the rally when he noted head drum major Aaron Hernandez from El Paso. Assistant band director Sam Sanchez is also a Texas native - and one of the Irish cheerleaders comes from Houston. 9. The Notre Dame band arrived in San Antonio yesterday on six different commercial flights. 10. At the rally, San Antonio mayor Julian Castro said, "You can't find a better place to celebrate the fighting spirit than in front of the Alamo." 11. Said Irish athletics director Jack Swarbrick, "Taking a home game on the road like this is a little bit of an experiment and when you do that you better have a good partner. We couldn't have asked for a better partner than San Antonio." 12. Criqui referenced all the nerve-wracking finishes by the Irish and said after the win over Washington, 92-year-old Notre Dame president emeritus Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., said, "I'm getting too old for this." 13. Rally speaker Allen Pinkett, who played a half-dozen years for the NFL Houston Oilers said, "You know I'm old when the team I played for doesn't even exist any more." 14. Also on hand this weekend are a couple of former Irish basketball players - recent Monogram Club president Marc Kelly and San Antonio native Gilbert Salinas. 15. Big win by Notre Dame hockey last night. The Fighting Irish got stellar goaltending from freshman netminder Mike Johnson and goals from Calle Ridderwall, Dan Kissel and Billy Maday as they opened the defense of their CCHA regular-season title with a 3-1 win over Ohio State in front of a sellout crowd at the Joyce Center. Johnson, making just his second career start, stopped a career-high 27 Buckeye shots while the Notre Dame power play converted twice -- goals by Ridderwall and Kissel -- with Maday scoring into an open net with 18 seconds left to seal the Irish win. Ohio State got a power-play goal from John Albert in the first period for its only goal of the night. 16. Even bigger win for Irish men's soccer this afternoon. Senior forward Bright Dike came up with a golden goal 53 seconds into OT to give Notre Dame a 2-1 win over #5 Connecticut in Storrs, Conn. That makes the Irish 10-7-1 overall and 8-3 in the BIG EAST. 17. The Notre Dame men and women both finished sixth today in the BIG EAST cross country championships in Kenosha, Wis. Senior Lindsey Ferguson earned her third all-BIG EAST honor with a 10th-place finish, clocking in at 21:40. The Villanova women won the team crown with 30 total points. Notre Dame finished sixth with 160 total points. Senior Jake Walker was the first Irish men's runner to cross the line, clocking in at 25:57 to finish 28th. Junior Dan Jackson was 30th with a time of 25:58. Syracuse won the men's team crown with 55 points, while Notre Dame was sixth with 178 points. 18. The Irish women's soccer team begins pursuit of a BG EAST title Sunday with a 1:00 p.m. quarterfinal game against South Florida at Alumni Stadium. 19. Notre Dame's men's swim team this afternoon defeated Cleveland State 178-120 and Miami 232.5-67.5.
1. The 400-strong Band of the Fighting Irish is headed to San Antonio. The band will play at the pep rally tonight in front of the Alamo, will play a pregame concert at 3:00 p.m. Saturday at the San Fernando Cathedral Plaza in downtown San Antonio, then will march down Market Street to the Alamodome. The band will have pregame Mass and a pre-game meal inside the Alamodome before the game begins. The band will sit in the stands in the northeast corner of he stadium. 2. There's all kinds of history in San Antonio, from the Alamo itself to the old-school Menger Hotel right next door. The very-old-school Menger Bar has been around since 1859, has a black-and-white photo of Teddy Roosevelt above the bar itself and supposedly was the site where Roosevelt mustered his Rough Riders. 3. Spotted on the streets of San Antonio - Irish '64 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte, former Irish captain and halfback Phil Carter (in from Tacoma, Wash.) and former South Bend mayor and Indiana governor Joe Kernan (and his wife Maggie). 4. A half-dozen Notre Dame athletic staffers headed to the Alamodome this morning for the game production meeting, with more than 30 stadium and other officials in attendance. Also along was former Irish football player John Mosley, who now works for the New York Yankees and is in town making notes for next year's off-site game. Ironically, Mosley last night managed to wander into one Riverwalk establishment loaded with Phillies fans watching the World Series. 5. Although kickoff isn't until 6:41 p.m. local time, Alamodome officials will open the parking lots at 10 a.m. and say they expect record amounts of tailgating. One fan bought up 40 parking passes in order to set up his pregame party. All reserved parking was sold out long ago. 6. Washington State's football team was slated for a 4:45 p.m. walk-through today at the Alamodome, while Notre Dame will travel late and go directly to its team hotel, expecting to arrive about 7:45 p.m. today. 7. Allen Pinkett will speak at the pep rally tonight, with Tim Brown unable to arrive now until late tonight. 8. The coin toss Saturday will take place with the same coin used at Notre Dame home football game coin flips in 2006. It contains images of all seven Irish Heisman Trophy winners. 9. Alamodome officials say they expect all kinds of Halloween costumes at the game on Saturday, but they won't permit masks as fans enter the building. 10. The Alamodome has brand new LED ribbon boards between the two decks and all around the stadium. Look for some nifty Notre Dame graphics throughout the game. 11. Other former Irish players expected at the game Saturday include native San Antonian Carlyle Holiday, Leon Wallace, Anthony Denman, Tim O'Neill and Casey Cullen. Also now living and working in San Antonio is former Irish LB Tyreo Harrison. 12. The weather on the Riverwalk was close to perfect today - and there were fans from both schools trading chants of "Go Irish" and "Go Cougs." It may not have been exactly like a bowl game, but it was close. 13. The Irish men's basketball team ranks 28th (based on votes received) in the preseason Associated Press poll. Other BIG EAST teams listed were Villanova (#5), West Virginia (#8), Connecticut (#12), Louisville (#19) and Georgetown (#20). 14. Three Notre Dame soccer players and Kansas City-area natives -- senior midfielder Michael Thomas, junior forward Lauren Fowlkes and sophomore defender Molly Campbell -- have been named ESPN The Magazine first-team Academic All-District V selections. All three student-athletes are first-time academic all-district honorees and now will advance to the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration. 15. Notre Dame head softball coach Deanna Gumpf recently announced the program's 2010 schedule, which features trips to 10 different states and includes 16 home dates. Notre Dame begins the season at the Kajikawa Classic hosted by Arizona State. The Irish will face Creighton (Feb. 12), Oregon (Feb. 12), Auburn (Feb. 13), Oregon State (Feb. 13) and Washington (Feb. 14) in Tempe, Ariz. In fact, the matchup against the Huskies will mark the eighth time in the last 10 seasons the Irish have been slated to face the defending national champion (Notre Dame was scheduled to play Arizona in 2008 but the game was called off due to rain). From Feb. 20-21, Notre Dame will take part in the Southern Miss Mizuno Classic in Hattiesburg, Miss., where the Irish will square off with Louisiana Tech, Stephen F. Austin, Alcorn State and the host Golden Eagles. The University of Virginia Invitational in Charlottesville, Va., will feature matchups against Lehigh (Feb. 26, Feb. 28), Ohio (Feb. 26), George Washington (Feb. 27) and the host Cavaliers (Feb. 27). Nine days in California will feature nine contests against teams from around the nation. The UC Riverside Aten Construction Tournament (March 6-7) and the Long Beach State Invitational (March 12-14) will sandwich a non-conference meeting at Cal State Northridge. The home portion of the schedule begins March 23 against Eastern Michigan with a doubleheader versus Toledo one day later. 16. Notre Dame head baseball coach Dave Schrage has announced the dates for the 2009-10 Irish Winter Baseball Camps, which will feature two separate sessions for aspiring baseball players (Dec. 6 and Jan. 16-17). The High School Skills Camp will take place on Jan. 16-17 (Sat.-Sun.). This camp is open to all players who are freshmen, sophomores, juniors or seniors in high school. The two-day camp will cover multiple aspects of the game, including: pitching, hitting, catching, fielding and base running. This camp serves as an opportunity for aspiring collegiate players to be recruited and evaluated by the Notre Dame staff and other collegiate coaches. Additionally, Notre Dame will be holding a one-day hitting clinic on Sunday, Dec. 6. This clinic will be an in-depth look at the foundations of hitting through lecture, drills and video analysis.
1. The Dish took to the road today, as several Notre Dame athletics administrators headed to San Antonio to confirm arrangements for the Irish-Washington State football game and surrounding events on Friday and Saturday. The Notre Dame group spent several hours at the Alamodome today, rehearsing a complete run-through of gameday events, including several video features that will run on the arena video boards. The weather in San Antonio today? Not a cloud in the sky and 85 degrees. 2. If you're headed to San Antonio, try County Line BBQ for lunch - then select from Boudro's or Acenar or Little Rhein Steakhouse for dinner. 3. The most familiar name from San Antonio to play football at Notre Dame is quarterback/receiver Carlyle Holiday - and he'll be attending the football game Saturday. 4. The Irish rowing squad doesn't often compete at home, so take advantage of your opportunity to see Notre Dame row this weekend on the St. Joseph's River. At 3:30 p.m. Saturday, the Irish will race Iowa and Indiana. At 12:20 p.m. Sunday, the Irish race Indiana, Iowa and Michigan State. 5. Notre Dame senior John Lytle was named the BIG EAST Conference Swimming Athlete of the Week. Lytle won a pair of individual races while helping Notre Dame to two relay victories in a dual meet with Oakland at the Rolfs Aquatic Center on Oct. 23. The Clearfield, Pa., native won the 50 free with a time of 20.81 and the 100 free with a 45.97 mark. Lytle also had a hand in the first-place 200 medley relay (fourth leg, 20.04 split) and the 400 free relay (first leg, 46.44 split). 6. The Notre Dame baseball team's 2010 schedule will include early-season trips to Mississippi, Florida and Texas along with BIG EAST road series at USF, Georgetown, Seton Hall, West Virginia and Villanova. The slate also features the second annual Big Ten-BIG EAST Baseball Challenge, hosted by the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Sports Commission. Notre Dame's four BIG EAST home series will include games versus Rutgers, Cincinnati, St. John's and Louisville. The Irish will also play host to Michigan State for a three-game set and play a home-and-home series with Michigan, while the midweek games at Frank Eck Stadium will feature some of Notre Dame's traditional non-conference rivals, most notably Ball State, UIC, Western Michigan and Central Michigan. In all, Notre Dame will play six games (Louisville, Ohio State, Gonzaga and Kansas State) against teams that reached the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
1. There will be a media tour of the new Purcell Pavilion Thursday afternoon - so watch your local television stations (and right here at UND.com) for a visual preview of the new facility. 2. Rivals.com provides weekly power ratings of the best players in the country - and this week Irish QB Jimmy Clausen ranks #1 among college quarterbacks and Golden Tate is #1 among receivers. Irish TE Kyle Rudolph ranks #9 at that slot, and safety Kyle McCarthy is #24 among defensive backs. 3. The first official event in the new Purcell Pavilion happens at 2:00 p.m. Saturday when the Irish volleyball team plays host to Seton Hall. 4. The Irish men's soccer team dropped a 2-1 match this afternoon at Michigan State. 5. Courtesy of Irish coach Charlie Weis, Notre Dame provided 100 tickets to the Notre Dame-Washington State football game to wounded soldiers stationed at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. Also sent along were 100 of "The Shirt" as well as adidas drawstring bags.
6. Notre Dame has announced special ticket designation home football games for the 2010 season: Notre Dame contributing alumni who graduated 35 or more years ago receive priority status on their alumni ticket application for the designated Senior Alumni game (Sept. 25 vs. Stanford). In the event that demand from senior alumni again exceeds supply, as in recent years, tickets will be allotted in descending order to the most senior alumni. For example, tickets will be assigned first to those in the 50-year club and then descending in years since graduation. It is a priority of the University to make as many tickets as possible available to the Senior Alumni population. For 2010, parents of returning Notre Dame undergraduate students may apply for up to four tickets to each of three home football games (Oct. 16 vs. Western Michigan, Oct. 30 vs. Tulsa and Nov. 13 vs. Utah). Parents will be guaranteed to receive tickets to at least one game. If you choose to apply for two or more of the parent game offerings, one (or two) of your games, based on demand, will be subject to the general lottery. The parent games for incoming (first-year and transfer) students will be determined at a later date, based on demand and availability. Those games will be announced in June 2010. For the designated Alumni Family games (Oct. 16 vs. Western Michigan, Oct. 30 vs. Tulsa and Nov. 13 vs. Utah), contributing alumni have the option to apply for up to four tickets on their lottery application for those games only.
1. The official capacity for the new Purcell Pavilion for basketball is 9,149. 2. Former Notre Dame all-star Tim Brown, the `87 Heisman Trophy winner and 2009 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, will speak at the pep rally Friday in San Antonio and will take part in the coin flip at the game on Saturday.
3. Charlie Weis comments from his press conference today included: 4. Thirty-five current Irish players have played at the Alamodome in the U.S. Army All-America high school all-star game. 5. Notre Dame sophomore Kristy Frilling lost 6-1, 6-3 today in the ITA Midwest Regional singles final (in Evanston, Ill.) to Northwestern's Maria Mosolova, the top-ranked singles player in the country. 6. Even with the time change this weekend, the Irish football traveling party won't return to campus from San Antonio until 4:30 a.m. Sunday. 7. The Notre Dame men's basketball program will hold a reunion of its former players, managers and coaches on Nov. 6-7. Planned are a pre-game reception Friday night before the team's exhibition game against Quincy University - then a pre-game tailgate Saturday before the Notre Dame-Navy football game. 8. A 12-game unbeaten string and six-game win streak have handed the Irish women's soccer team its 12th BIG EAST title in 15 years. 9. The Irish men's basketball team is holding tryouts Thursday night for potential walk-ons. 10. The Notre Dame women's basketball program held auditions for a public-address announcer Monday night and had more than 40 entrants during a three-hour session in Purcell Pavilion. 11. Biggest change in the new Purcell Pavilion is courtside seating. The old configuration included a length-of-the floor media table on the north side of the arena - but most of the media have been relocated to the area behind the east basketball (all except television, radio and official stats). Also, there are now seats right up to the floor (including behind the benches) as opposed to the wide-open areas that previously existed behind the benches and behind the long media table. That up-close-and-personal seating was the particular request of major benefactor Phil Purcell. There are several dozen courtside seats available across from the team benches (the men's versions are sold on a season-ticket basis - the women are using theirs for promotional purposes). 12. The men's basketball team is having its meet-the-team promotional event tonight after a similar event for the women's program last week. 13. Irish hockey goaltender Brad Phillips was named the CCHA Goaltender of the Week thanks to his career-high 34 saves and 3-0 road shutout of defending NCAA champion Boston University last week. 14. Notre Dame junior defender Julie Scheidler has been selected as the BIG EAST Conference Defensive Player of the Week and also earned a spot on the Soccer America National Team of the Week. Last weekend, Scheidler played an important role in a pair of 2-0 wins for Notre Dame over conference foes Villanova and #22 Georgetown at Alumni Stadium. 15. The HeismanPundit.com Heisman Poll is made up of 13 Heisman voters from across the country. They vote for five players each week. Tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with five points awarded for a first-place vote, four points for a second-place vote and so on. Last year's final Heismanpundit poll was the most accurate in the country, picking five of the top six finishers in the Heisman vote, including the winner. Members of the panel include: Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel, Teddy Greenstein and Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune, Olin Buchanan and Tom Dienhart of Rivals.com, Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman, Bruce Feldman of ESPN.com, J.B. Morris of ESPN The Magazine, Austin Murphy, B.J. Schecter and Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated, plus Dick Weiss of the New York Daily News. Chris Huston of HeismanPundit.com coordinates and also votes in the poll. Here are this week's results:
Oct. 27 HeismanPundit.com Heisman Poll Results 16. On 25 first-down plays last week by Boston College, Notre Dame's defense held the Eagles to two yards or less on 19 of them. 17. The New York Historical Society is holding a public program entitled "Yankee Stadium Forever: College Football" at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 11 (sponsored in collaboration with the New York Yankees). Speakers include Regis Philbin (moderator), New York Times columnist Dave Anderson, Army Heisman Trophy winner Pete Dawkins and former Notre Dame receiver Tom Gatewood. Call 212-868-4444 (SmartTix) for tickets. 18. Will Notre Dame defeat Washington State on Saturday in San Antonio? In 14 previous football games played on Oct. 31 the Irish have never lost. 19. The ESPN Heisman Watch this week lists Alabama's Mark Ingram first (57 points, seven first-place votes), Jimmy Clausen second (43 points, four first-place votes) and Florida's Tim Tebow third (41 points, three first-place votes).
20. If you consider Mark Ingram (Alabama) and Jimmy Clausen (Notre Dame) two of the Heisman front-runners, consider this: 21. Annie Brophy tied for first with a 70 and Notre Dame's women's golf team finished tied for second overall (at 292) today at the rain-shortened Alamo Invitational in San Antonio.
2. There will be a definite Notre Dame Stadium touch to the Irish game in San Antonio this weekend. Notre Dame Stadium PA announcer Mike Collins will travel to San Antonio to handle those chores for the game against Washington State, and the game will included a taped safety message from former Indiana State Police sergeant Tim McCarthy. The Band of the Fighting Irish also will be present. 3. Who's left on the Notre Dame football schedule? There's Washington State (1-6), Navy (6-2), #14 Pittsburgh (7-1), Connecticut (4-3) and Stanford (5-3) for a combined 23-15 mark. Before it's over, look for as many as nine teams on Notre Dame's schedule to be bowl eligible.
4. Here's an update on Irish Olympic sports teams and their play in the last week: 5. Halftime ceremonies at the New Canaan (Conn.) High School homecoming football game had an historic feel Saturday, as the #23 worn by the late Peter Demmerle was officially retired. Demmerle, an All-America wide receiver at Notre Dame under Ara Parseghian, helped the Irish win the 1973 national championship when they went 11-0 and beat top-ranked Alabama 24-23 in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Eve. Demmerle passed away in May 2007 after an eight-year battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. 6. The computers were kind to Notre Dame as the Irish this week made their first appearance in the BCS rankings. Part of Notre Dame's overall #23 standing came because in the computer rankings the Irish were rated 14th by Anderson & Hester, 15th by Massey, 18th by Colley Matrix and 23rd by Sagarin. 7. Golden Tate has been named one of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award that goes to the best wide receiver in the country - and Jimmy Clausen is one of 15 semifinalists for the O'Brien Award that goes to the best quarterback.
1. Before the Notre Dame-Boston College football game yesterday, Notre Dame recognized BC linebacker Mark Herzlich, the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference defensive player of the year who last May was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. While undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatments, Herzlich returned to classes in August and has been helping the Eagles football team as a student coach. Irish head football coach Charlie Weis and his wife Maura made a personal contribution of $5,000 to Uplifting Athletes, a national nonprofit group formed by college football players to fund research for rare diseases. Notre Dame's Student-Athlete Advisory Council presented a check for $5,094 in Herzlich's name to Irish men's basketball coach Mike Brey and his Coaches vs. Cancer program. On the field representing SAAC was president Erika Williamson from women's basketball. And, finally, Boston native and Irish wide receiver Barry Gallup, Jr., on behalf of the entire Notre Dame football program, presented Herzlich with a framed #94 Notre Dame jersey. Gallup is the son of Barry Gallup, Sr., Boston College's director of football operations. 2. Retiring Notre Dame athletics administrator and former longtime football and softball coach Brian Boulac was honored both at halftime of the Notre Dame-Boston College game and also with a postgame Mass and reception in the Joyce Center. At halftime, Boulac was presented with a framed #86 jersey representing his number from his Irish playing days. Joining the on-field presentation were current athletics director Jack Swarbrick and former AD Dick Rosenthal. Among speakers at the reception were former players Kevin Hart, Dan Novakov, Mike Kovaleski and Vagas Ferguson. Former coach Ara Parseghian was among guests at the event. Swarbrick opened the proceedings by presenting Boulac with framed photos of old and new Yankee Stadium in recognition of the trip presented to Brian and Micki to New York for next November's Notre Dame-Army game.
3. Nuggets from Charlie Weis' Sunday media conference included: 4. Remember Jay Mills? He was a three-year graduate assistant at Notre Dame (1984-86), became passing game coordinator at both Harvard and Boise State and now has been head coach at Charleston Southern for seven years (Big South title in 2005, record nine wins in '06). 5. Notre Dame now ranks 11th nationally in passing offense (305.86 yards), 15th in total offense (438.43), fourth in turnover margin (plus-1.43), eighth in passing efficiency (158.47 rating). 6. Individually Jimmy Clausen is second in passing efficiency (161.30 points), 11th in total offense (286.0); Golden Tate is 10th in receptions per game (7.43) fourth in receiving yards per game (121.0, with leader Freddie Barnes from Bowling Green at 131.75), 17th in all-purpose running (150.0 per game); Kyle McCarthy third in interceptions (.71 per game); Nick Tausch 10th in fields goals (1.71 per game); Darius Fleming 11th in tackles for loss (1.58 per game). 7. Notre Dame this week is 23rd in the toughest-schedule rankings at .575 (opponents are 46-34 combined). 8. Golden Tate is 20th among active players in career TD receptions at 20 (SMU's Emmanuel Sanders and Oklahoma State's Dez Bryant are #1 with 29 each). 9. Notre Dame moved back into both the AP and USA Today polls today at 25th. 10. Another turnover-less game for the Irish against BC means Notre Dame remains at five turnovers for the entire season. The only team in the country with fewer is Cincinnati with four. 11. Never in Notre Dame history have the Irish played six straight games within a single season, all decided by seven or fewer points (it also happened in last four games of '83 and first two of '84). 12. Notre Dame already has set a record by coming from behind four times in the final period to win. 13. Jimmy Clausen's 26 completions vs. BC were a season high - while Golden Tate's 11 receptions marked a career high. Tate had his third straight 100-yard receiving games - something no Notre Dame player had done since Derrick Mayes in 1995. 14. Nick Tausch now has connected on 12 straight field goals, one short of the Notre Dame record of 13 by Mike Johnston in 1982. 15. Notre Dame's first preseason men's basketball game next Sunday night against Lewis College will be televised in the Chicago market by Lakeshore Public Television. 16. Notre Dame is 12-4 in the state of Texas in football games. Notre Dame's two most recent trips to Texas produced a 27-24 win over Texas in 1996 in Austin - followed by a 24-3 loss to Texas A&M in College Station in 2003. 17. The Texas legacy at Notre Dame includes 95 football players (all played at last one second): Steve Alaniz, Bill (Tex) Allison, Bert Berry (currently with NFL Arizona Cardinals), Garron Bible, Jordan Black (currently with NFL Jacksonville Jaguars), James Bobb, Tim Brown (College Football Hall of Fame, '87 Heisman Trophy winner, '86 All-American, '87 consensus All-American), Stafford Campbell, Cikai Champion, Linc Coleman, Larry Cooke, Casey Cullen, Derek Curry, John Dampeer ('72 captain and All-American), Anthony Denman (2000 captain and All-American), Vontez Duff ('02 All-American, '03 captain), Jarvis Edison, Randy Ellis, Robbie Finnegan, Christy Flanagan (1926-27 All-American), Jimmy Friday, David Fuentes, Mike Gandy (2000 All-American, currently with NFL Arizona Cardinals), David Givens ('01 captain), Dennis Grindinger, Wayne Gunn, Joe Haggar, Justin Hall, Tyreo Harrison, Mike Haywood (head coach at Miami of Ohio), Johnathan Hebert, Joseph Hepburn, Cedric Hilliard, Carlyle Holiday ('04 captain), Barry Holton, Dave Huffman ('78 consensus All-American), Steve Huffman, Tim Huffman, Grant Irons (2000-01 captain), Clifford Jefferson, Wally Kleine ('86 All-American), Jeff Kramer, Greg Lane, Travis Leitko, Bobby Leopold, Kapron Lewis-Moore, Alton Maiden, Drew Marsh, Rob Martinovich, Angus McDonald, Coy McGee, Ted McNamara, Matt McNew, Michael Miller, Leo Mixon, Alfred Morales (San Antonio), Gerald Morgan, Ronnie Nicks, Dan Novakov, James Odem, Bob Paine, Van Pearcy, Robert Phelps, Bill Pierce, Paul Porter, Geoff Price, Charles Renaud, Bobby Renkes, Allen Rossum ('97 captain, currently with NFL Dallas Cowboys), A'Jani Sanders, Gerome Sapp ('02 captain), Bumper Schiro, Herb Scholtz, Martin Scruggs, Hunter Smith (currently with NFL Washington Redskins), Pete (Red) Smith, Scott Smith, Wade Smith, Shannon Stephens, Chris Stewart, George Strohmeyer, Mark Swenson (San Antonio), Nick Tausch, Bobby Taylor ('93 All-American, '94 consensus All-American), Joe Thomas, Stuart Tyner, Joe Unis, Tom Unis, Dave Vinson ('77 Academic All-American), Mike Viracola, Leon Wallace, Kevin Washington, Robin Weber, John (Tex) Young. 18. Kyle McCarthy already have five interceptions - most since five by Tom Zbikowski in 2005. The only time since 1990 an Irish player has topped that figure was seven by Shane Walton in 2002. 19. How do those five current turnovers rank for Notre Dame? The Irish in 2000 tied an NCAA record for fewest in a season with eight (also by Clemson in 1940 and Miami of Ohio in 1966).
1. The Warren Golf Course at the University of Notre Dame has been chosen as one of three host sites for regional play in the 2011 NCAA Women's Golf Championships. The 54-hole tournament will take place over three days from May 5-7, 2011, with a practice round scheduled for May 4. It will be the first time the Warren has played host to a women's NCAA Regional. The eight lowest scoring teams, as well as the two lowest scoring individuals not on an advancing team, from each of three regional championships will qualify for the 2011 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship. The championship will be held May 17-20 at the Traditions Golf Club in College Station, Texas. Though 2011 will mark the first NCAA women's regional played in Notre Dame, Ind., the Warren Golf Course is no stranger to championship competition. The Warren has played host to the NCAA men's golf regional in 2005 and will again serve as a men's regional site in 2010. Since the course opened on May 1, 2000, it also has played host to four U.S. Amateur Championship qualifiers, three Western Amateur Championship qualifiers and eight BIG EAST Championships (five men, three women). 2. Seen around campus today - former Irish hockey coach and player Dave Poulin, now general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Poulin is in town for tonight's Notre Dame-Boston College hockey game since Eagles sophomore winger Jimmy Hayes (he's 6-5, 220 pounds) was a second-round Toronto pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. 3. Also in town -- current Delaware athletics director and former Notre Dame athletics administrator Bernard Muir. 4. Watch for a special presentation just prior to the Notre Dame-Boston College coin toss tomorrow to Eagle linebacker Mark Herzlich who is battling a rare form of cancer. 5. It looked like the weather might play havoc with the football pep rally tonight, but the rally went off as scheduled, with quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus, receiver Golden Tate and defensive lineman Ian Williams speaking.
1. Head coach Muffet McGraw and fifth-year senior guard/tri-captain Lindsay Schrader represented Notre Dame at this year's BIG EAST Women's Basketball Media Day, which was held today at the ESPN Zone in New York's Times Square for the fifth consecutive year. 2. Prior to leaving the hotel (the Grand Hyatt in Manhattan) for the ESPN Zone, Schrader and several other BIG EAST players spent a few minutes each taping portions of a public service announcement for the conference that will air during the various televised BIG EAST women's basketball games this season. 3. New BIG EAST associate commissioner for women's basketball Danielle Donahew had a chance to chat with Irish coach Muffet McGraw for a few minutes in the hotel lobby this morning before heading off for Thursday's media day activities. 4. Two BIG EAST coaches - DePaul's Doug Bruno and Rutgers' C. Vivian Stringer - were unable to attend this year's BIG EAST Media Day due to deaths in their respective families. Bruno, the president of the BIG EAST coaches' group, originally had been asked to speak on behalf of his conference colleagues at Media Day, but Pittsburgh's Agnus Berenato pinch-hit for the longtime Blue Demons' skipper. Both DePaul and Rutgers sent their top assistant coaches (Nicci Hays-Fort and Carlene Mitchell, respectively) in place of their bosses at the event. 5. Former Notre Dame All-America point guard Megan Duffy ('06) quietly slipped in and out of Thursday's media day event. In her new role as an assistant coach at nearby St. John's, Duffy was asked to drive three Red Storm players down to the ESPN Zone to meet the media. 6. On Wednesday night, Duffy caught up with her former coach and teammate, having dinner with McGraw and Schrader at a hole-in-the-wall BBQ restaurant near Times Square. 7. The Notre Dame women's basketball team has been selected to finish second in the BIG EAST Conference in 2009-10, according to a preseason vote of the league's 16 head coaches released Thursday morning. The Fighting Irish picked up 210 points and one first-place vote in the balloting (coaches may not vote for their own teams), placing behind only defending national champion Connecticut, which was a unanimous choice to win the conference title with 225 points. DePaul and reigning NCAA runner-up Louisville shared the third spot in the BIG EAST preseason poll with 171 points, while Pittsburgh rounded out the top five with 167 points. The conference coaches also voted fifth-year senior guard/tri-captain Lindsay Schrader and senior guard/tri-captain Ashley Barlow to the 12-player Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Rookie guard Skylar Diggins was a unanimous choice as the BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year, according to the league's head coaches. 8. The Notre Dame men's lacrosse team will take part in the 2010 Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic on March 6, 2010, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md. The Fighting Irish will face the Loyola Greyhounds in the third and final game of the day. The fourth annual Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic is the traditional start of the lacrosse season for the game's growing fan base. This year, for the first time, the game lineup features a tripleheader. Maryland and Duke will get things underway at 11:00 a.m. (ET). Princeton and Johns Hopkins will follow at 1:30 p.m. The Irish and Greyhounds will play the final game of the day at 4:00 p.m. 9. Seen around the football offices today was former Irish safety David Bruton, now a rookie with the NFL Denver Broncos. His smile befitted his team's current 6-0 record.
1. The Irish men's basketball team practiced at Purcell Pavilion yesterday afternoon, then coach Mike Brey, Luke Harangody, Tory Jackson, Jon Peoples, athletics director Jack Swarbrick and associate athletics director Jim Fraleigh flew to New York for the BIG EAST Men's Basketball Media Day. The Irish delegation stayed at the Grand Hyatt on 42nd Street, then headed to Madison Square Garden this morning for several hours of interviews. The Notre Dame group spent the first hour with the electronic media, doing interviews with 20 different outlets, from ESPN's Andy Katz to SNY, Sirius Radio, Phoenix Communications, ESPN Regional, Cox Sports, Inside the BIG EAST, plus affiliates from Syracuse, Providence and New Haven. 2. First-year BIG EAST commissioner John Marinatto began the proceedings by expressing condolences and support for the University of Connecticut and the family of Huskie cornerback Jasper Howard who was killed early Sunday morning in Storrs, Conn. Marinatto then talked about following in the footsteps of his two BIG EAST predecessors, Dave Gavitt and Michael Tranghese, both longtime Providence athletics administrators. The three go back three decades in terms of working relationships. Now 100 days into his role as commissioner, Marinatto told the story of receiving a letter last summer from Tranghese congratulating him on the new assignment and passing along best wishes. Then, Tranghese related a story he said Gavitt had passed along to him 19 years earlier. Said Marinatto, in the event of an embarrassing situation, you'll find three letters in your top desk drawer. He opened the first one and it read, "Blame the previous administration." The second time there was a scandal, he opened the second letter and it said, "Form a blue-ribbon commission." The third time it happened, he opened the third letter and it read, "Prepare three envelopes." 3. Media day provided Marinatto a chance to remind those in attendance of some of the BIG EAST highlights from 2009 - two teams in the NCAA Final Four, Louisville's first BIG EAST Tournament championship, the epic six-overtime game between Syracuse and Connecticut. 4. Marinatto announced an extension of the BIG EAST agreement to play its postseason tournament at Madison Square Garden, with that event now slated for MSG through 2016. That will ensure that BIG EAST players have the chance to play in the new Garden that will open in 2013. Marinatto said the new MSG would be "like a new building." 5. Marinatto said ESPN would televise all 16 games of the BIG EAST Tournament in 2010. Last year the two first-day sessions were not televised. This time the early games will be on ESPN2 and the late session on ESPNU. All 144 regular-season league games will be televised this year, 139 by ESPN and five on CBS. 6. Said Marinatto, "There's no question the league is younger but it will be more balanced." 7. Notre Dame's Luke Harangody, with a chance to become the league's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, is the preseason pick as the BIG EAST Player of the Year (he won the award in 2008). 8. In the preseason league poll (voting by the coaches), Notre Dame was listed eighth, with Villanova, West Virginia, Connecticut and Louisville holding down the top four spots. 9. Among those seen at BIG EAST media day were Notre Dame ISP football play-by-play voice Don Criqui, CBS Final Four producer Bob Dekas, ESPN's Bill Raftery, CBS Sports executive Mike Aresco and ESPN analyst Doris Burke. 10. Another visitor to the BIG EAST media day was former Irish football player John Mosley, who now works for the New York Yankees and handles non-baseball events. He is headed to San Antonio next week to see preparations for Notre Dame's first-off-site game in advance of Notre Dame's trip to Yankee Stadium in 2010. 11. The women's version of BIG EAST Media Day happens tomorrow at the ESPN Zone in Times Square. 12. Huge road win by the Irish hockey team last night - 3-0 over defending NCAA champion Boston University. 13. The Irish men's soccer team defeated Georgetown 2-1 in OT this afternoon.
1. Another sideline guest last week for Notre Dame-USC was longtime major-league pitcher Don Sutton who said he always dreamed of a being a kicker for Notre Dame. 2. Former Irish all-stars Andy Heck and Ryan Harris will be in for the Notre Dame-Boston College football game. Heck is offensive line coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars (they are off this weekend), while Harris starts at offensive tackle for the 6-0 Denver Broncos (they are off this weekend as well). 3. More than 5,800 fans wandered down the tunnel of Notre Dame Stadium on the Friday before the Notre Dame-USC game and that number could go up since there is no visiting team workout scheduled this Friday by the Eagles. Another 700 people visited the Lou Holtz and Ara Parseghian sculptures at Gate D. Both those options again will be available on Friday. 4. NBC utilized a camera on a jib on the west end of the south goal-line for the Notre Dame-USC game and will utilize that option again this week when Boston College comes to town as well as in San Antonio the following Saturday. 5. Recently-retired Irish football coach and administrator Brian Boulac will be honored at halftime of the Notre Dame-Boston College contest. 6. The Irish softball team will be honored during the Notre Dame-Boston College game, as will the 100th year of the campus Knights of Columbus chapter. 7. When Notre Dame's Federal graduation rates and NCAA Graduation Success Rate figures are announced next month - expect the Notre Dame numbers to be better than ever before.
8. Comments from the Charlie Weis Tuesday press conference: On Kyle Rudolph's three receptions vs. USC: "He spent most of the day in protection. It was more what we did than what they did." On Boston College's use of the wildcat offense: "They hopped on board and they had a big day (versus North Carolina State last week)." On the Eagle pass defense: "They play zone defense and you have to be patient and throw the ball underneath. If you throw it downfield it's gonna be their ball. They make you play that game." On his team: "The thing I like most is their heart. It's evident this is a fighting group of guys with intestinal fortitude. When we were down 20 in the fourth period Saturday there was no one on the sideline who didn't think we were going to win. That's how the program has changed. You couldn't have said that before but you can say it now." On Boston College linebacker Mark Herzlich: "He's a winner. I contacted Barry Gallup Sr., and he was able to get me in touch with him and we've traded texts and phone calls. He's friends with Golden Tate. He told me people would disown him if they knew a Boston College player was friends with the Notre Dame head coach." On the Irish defense: "It's getting better against the run, but we gave up way too many chunks in the passing game against USC. We've made significant progress against the run and it comes at the right time." On what he texted to Bill Belichick after the Patriots' 59-0 win Sunday: "Wow."
1. It's a big week for Notre Dame hockey as the Irish play the last two NCAA champions in a four-day span. First, tomorrow in Boston, it's 2009 champion Boston University. Then, on Friday at the Joyce Center, it's 2008 champion Boston College (a winner over the Irish in the title game). Boston University is 0-1 after a 3-2 loss Friday night at Massachusetts and was ranked #2 last week. Boston College is 0-1 after a 4-1 loss at Vermont last night and was ranked #12 last week. 2. Notre Dame this week will have to defend the player who has posted the best single-game rushing effort in the country in 2009, after Boston College's Montel Harris ran for 264 yards and five TDs Saturday against North Carolina State (27 carries). Harris had a 179-yard effort earlier this year against Florida State (Oct. 3). 3. Notre Dame's schedule is now ranked as the 23rd-most difficult schedule in the country based on NCAA numbers (among FBS teams). The Irish previous opposition stands 18-14 (.562), while future foes are 22-15 (.594), for an overall mark 40-29 (.579). Boston College's schedule rates 66th at 28-28 (.500). Notre Dame's remaining opponents are Boston College (5-2), Washington State (1-5), Navy (5-2), Pittsburgh (6-1), Connecticut (4-2) and Stanford (4-3). 4. Notre Dame leads the nation in time of possession, averaging 37:08 in possession time per game - for a huge lead over #2 Kansas State at 34:41 and #3 Navy at 34:11. 5. All five Boston College wins have come at home - both Eagle losses have come on the road. 6. It's fall break at Notre Dame this week - no classes until Monday, Oct. 26. 7. Tight end Kyle Rudolph and safety Sergio Brown will be guests at the Friday kickoff luncheon at the Joyce Center. 8. Boston College comes to South Bend having defeated the Irish six straight times. Short of USC's current eight-game win streak against the Irish, that's the best current streak of success against Notre Dame. The Irish haven't been successful against Boston College since a 28-16 Notre Dame Stadium win in 2000 (Bob Davie's fourth season at Notre Dame). The Irish are 9-9 overall against Boston College, including 5-5 at Notre Dame Stadium. The Eagles have defeated Notre Dame when the Irish have been ranked #1 (1993 in South Bend), #8 (1994 in Boston), #4 (2002 in South Bend) and #24 (2004 in South Bend).
9. Here's the Notre Dame Olympic sport weekend update: 10. If you are headed for South Bend this weekend for the Notre Dame-Boston College football game, here's what else you can see in terms of Irish athletic events:
FRIDAY--
SUNDAY -- 11. Jimmy Clausen is second in the country this week in passing efficiency at 166.35 and Notre Dame as a team is fourth in that category at 162.61. Clausen is seventh nationally in passing offense at 315.83 yards per game. 12. Through six games, Notre Dame has committed only five turnovers. The only schools with fewer are Air Force, Cincinnati and Oregon State with four each. 13. If you still collect football cards, the 2009 Topps Pro Football set includes former Irish players Justin Tuck (#23), Anthony Fasano (#237), Julius Jones (#216), John Carlson (#268), Ryan Grant (#27) and Brady Quinn (#150). 14. Top NCAA team stat rankings for Boston College this week are 20th in punt returns (13.9 each), 27th in tackles for loss (7.14 per game), 34th in scoring (30.86 points per game), 37th in scoring defense (20.71) and 39th in rushing defense (117.14). 15. Here's an amazing stat for you: Boston College ranks 106th (of 120 teams) in the country in passing offense at 171.0 yards per game - but the Eagles and Irish have the exact same number of TD passes (15). 16. Notre Dame coaches Mike Brey and Muffet McGraw and their top players head to New York this week for BIG EAST Basketball Media Days Wednesday (men) and Thursday (women). 17. Sideline visitors at the Notre Dame-USC football included director Spike Lee, actors Will Ferrell and Jim Caviezel and former Minnesota Viking coach Bud Grant. 18. Five straight football games in a single season decided by seven or fewer points? It hasn't happened at Notre Dame since 1939 when the Irish started the season in that fashion (W 3-0 vs. Purdue, W 17-14 vs. Georgia Tech, W 20-19 vs. SMU, W 14-7 vs. Navy, W 7-6 vs. Carnegie Tech). Six straight would be an all-time high. 19. Former Irish standout and current Milwaukee Brewer infielder Craig Counsell will attend the Notre Dame-Boston College football game. Counsell earned World Series championships rings with both the Florida Marlins and Arizona Diamondbacks. 20. The espn.com Heisman Watch lists Florida's Tim Tebow #1 (74 points), Jimmy Clausen #2 (45), Texas' Colt McCoy #3 (43) and Cincinnati's Tony Pike #4 (18). 21. The CBSSports.com weekly poll of its five college football experts has Alabama's Mark Ingram #1 (39 points), Tim Tebow #2 (31), Clausen #3 (23), Houston's Case Keenum #4 (18).
1. A new book, Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football's Greatest Traditions, Games and Stars by Steven Travers, lists Notre Dame prominently: 2. The Irish men's basketball squad wasted no time making use of the brand-new Purcell Pavilion, taking the floor this morning for a 6:00 a.m. workout. 3. Two-day ticket packages for the second annual Shillelagh Hockey Tournament to be held Jan. 2-3, 2010, at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill., will go on sale to the public at 10:00 a.m., Monday (Oct. 19). The tickets can be purchased through the Sears Centre Arena website at searscentre.com and then clicking on tickets, the Sears Centre Arena Box Office, Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster locations or charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000. Parking for the Shillelagh Tournament at the Sears Centre Arena lots will be free. The Shillelagh Tournament will be hosted by seventh-ranked Notre Dame and will feature Colgate, Niagara and fourth-ranked North Dakota. On Saturday, Jan. 2, Niagara will face North Dakota in the opening game at 3:05 p.m. (CT). Notre Dame will then play Colgate in the nightcap beginning at 6:05 p.m. (CT). On Sunday, Jan. 3, Colgate will play in the first game at 3:05 p.m. against either Niagara or North Dakota with Notre Dame facing one of those two teams at 6:05 p.m. (CT).
4. The best of quotation leftovers from Notre Dame's basketball media days: *** Irish men's coach Mike Brey --
On Purcell Pavilion...
On the experience of the team...
On Luke Harangody...
On how the team changes due to the loss of Scott Martin...
On Tory Jackson's progress...
On Ben Hansbrough...
On the effect of the new arena... *** Luke Harangody • Senior • Forward --
On why he came back to Notre Dame and the things he wants to achieve this year...
On if he thinks the team is underestimated at all this year...
On what he learned and how he grew up over the couple of weeks he was away at NBA tryouts... *** Tory Jackson • Senior • Guard --
How do you picture your big-picture development from a freshmen until now and then also the UCLA game last season, your struggles, and you turned it around at that point. First of all, though, big picture, what's been your development to make that happen? *** Irish women's coach Muffet McGraw --
On high expectations in regards to the players...
On how good the team can be...
On the excitement of Skylar Diggins making her debut... *** Becca Bruszewski · Senior · Forward --
On having too much offense...
On freshman Skylar Diggins...
On motivation after last year's disappointing loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at home... *** Melissa Lechlitner · Senior · Guard --
On preseason expectations... *** Skylar Diggins · Freshman · Guard --
On her initial thoughts on the upcoming season...
On the pressure of the upcoming season, and what she has to prove... *** Lindsay Schrader · Senior · Guard --
On being here five years...
On expectations... *** Erica Williamson · Senior · Center --
On returning from injury and looking forward to the BIG EAST season... 5. The Irish women's golf team shot an opening round 306 (+18) today to tie for 10th through one round of play at the 2009 Mercedes Benz Championship, which is being played at the Fox Den Country Club in Knoxville, Tenn. On a day that saw only two players not from the host institution of Tennessee break par, sophomore Becca Huffer led the Irish with a three-over par 75. 6. The Irish men's lacrosse team baptized the brand-new Arlotta Stadium with a 14-8 victory over the Iroquois National Team. Notre Dame overcame an early 3-1 deficit and broke out of an 8-8 tie at the end of three periods. Nicholas Beattie and David Earl had three goals each - while Neal Hicks, Grant Krebs, Sean Rogers and freshman Steve Murphy had two apiece. 7. NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer detailed all the early conversations and meetings that led to the contract with Notre Dame today at the Notre Dame football kickoff luncheon at the Joyce Center. Then former Irish star Raghib Ismail delivered an impassioned plea both to the Irish players and fans to take advantage of the opportunity on Saturday versus USC. Ismail and current Irish tackle Sam Young spent most of lunch talking nutrition and training and warm-up regimens.
1. What's the best way to measure the strength of a rivalry? How about the number of times the teams played when both squads were ranked? In terms of Notre Dame, that's been the case 31 times against USC, 21 vs. Michigan, 12 vs. Purdue and Michigan State, nine vs. Army and Navy, eight vs. Pittsburgh and Miami, seven vs. Texas and Penn State. Cut it back to when both teams were in the top 10, and you've got 18 Notre Dame games vs. USC, eight vs. Michigan, six vs. Army, five vs. Navy and Texas, four vs. Alabama, Miami, Oklahoma and Purdue. 2. While the Notre Dame-USC game in South Bend is now a mid-October tradition, the game at Notre Dame used to be played in late November similar to the games in Los Angeles. But it's been 50 years since that happened. The last time the Trojans came to South Bend that late? November 28, 1959. The 4-5 Irish defeated seventh-rated and once-beaten USC 16-6 in Joe Kuharich's first season as Notre Dame head coach. In all the Trojans made a dozen trips in November to play in South Bend (Notre Dame won nine times, including the last seven in a row). 3. Speakers at the Notre Dame-USC football pep rally Friday will include current Irish captains Eric Olsen, Kyle McCarthy, Scott Smith and Jimmy Clausen, head coach Charlie Weis and former Irish All-Americans Joe Theismann and Raghib "Rocket" Ismail. 4. Fans in town for the Notre Dame-USC football weekend have several ways of accessing Notre Dame Stadium attractions on Friday. For the first time, fans will be permitted inside Gate D from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. EDT to view and photograph sculptures of former Irish football coaches Ara Parseghian and Lou Holtz. Similar to previous home weekends, the north tunnel of Notre Dame Stadium down to the field will be available to fans from 10:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. EDT Friday. As many as 5,000 fans took advantage of that opportunity Oct. 2 prior to the Notre Dame-Washington game. On the east side of Notre Dame Stadium, fans can view sculptures of former Irish coaches Knute Rockne (only two weeks old following its Oct. 2 dedication) and Frank Leahy and former athletics director Moose Krause. 5. Thursday is media day for both Notre Dame basketball teams. Then the Irish men will practice in the new Purcell Pavilion for the first time Friday afternoon.
1. Today's comments from Charlie Weis about the possibility of injured receiver Michael Floyd returning to the field in November were such a hot scoop that they aired as the lead item on ESPN Radio SportsCenter at 1:00 p.m. EDT, less than an hour after Weis made his remarks live at his weekly media briefing.
2. Other events happening this week on campus include: 3. Hannah and Friends will hand out 10,000 rally towels to students attending the Notre Dame-USC football game on Saturday. 4. Fred Leahy, the son of former Irish head football coach Frank Leahy, will be in town this weekend and will tour the expanded Notre Dame Stadium for the first time. 5. The dedication for Arlotta Stadium this weekend includes the men's lacrosse game at 4:00 p.m. Friday against the Iroquois National Team, dedication ceremonies at 10:00 a.m. Saturday in the Stadium (the public is welcome to view from the stands) followed by a private reception, then a private dinner after the football game. 6. It'll be a hectic weekend on campus - with the Board of Trustees in town for meetings, plus the weekend dedication of Ryan Hall, a new women's residence hall. 7. Plans for the pep rally Friday at Irish Green include use of an eight-by-eight-foot LED video board. 8. There was a definite national flair to Charlie Weis' usual Tuesday media update - with ESPN's George Smith and CBSsports.com`s Dennis Dodd here in person - and questions by telephone coming from espn.com's Pac-10 expert Ted Miller and espn.com national college writer Ivan Maisel. Meanwhile, Sports Illustrated is sending two photographers to the game on Saturday, and the New York Daily News and New York Post are both covering.
9. Some nuggets from Charlie Weis' press conference today: 10. The si.com Heisman Watch this week puts Notre Dame's Jimmy Clausen first, Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh second, Texas' Jordan Shipley third, Cincinnati's Tony Pike fourth, Florida's Tim Tebow fifth, Virginia Tech's Ryan Williams sixth, Alabama's Mark Ingram seventh, Houston's Case Keenum eighth, Texas' Colt McCoy ninth and Kansas' Todd Reesing 10th. Meanwhile, the espn.com Heisman Watch has Tebow #1 (74 points), Clausen #2 (45), McCoy #3 (43), Pike #4 (18), Suh #5 (13).
11. As Charlie Weis noted, here's the difference in NCAA total defense rankings for Notre Dame first six opponents: That means the Trojans, on average, give up 100 yards less per game than any defense the Irish have played to date. 12. Notre Dame men's golf finished 11th today at The Prestige at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif., with an 895 team score. Max Scodro was tied for 26th individually at 72-77-72-221. 13. Conference honors for two Irish golfers: Senior Josh Sandman has been named the BIG EAST Golfer of the Month. Sandman announced his return to the Irish lineup - after missing all of last season while recovering from injury - by recording a 71.00 stroke average in his first three tournaments of the 2009-10 season. Becca Huffer also has been named BIG EAST Golfer of the Month. Huffer, the conference's 2008-09 Rookie of the Year, recently turned in her best career finish with a fifth-place showing at the Windy City Collegiate. Through Notre Dame's three rounds of the 2009 fall season, Huffer carries a team-best 73.50 stroke average.
1. The latest edition of the cbssports.com Heisman Trophy ballot (even after a week off for the Irish) still has Jimmy Clausen first (three of five first-place votes and 36 points), leading Florida's Tim Tebow (29 points) and Cincinnati's Tony Pike (14) and Kansas' Todd Reesing (14). 2. Here are the latest NCAA stat rankings for Notre Dame and USC, coming off open dates for both squads: Notre Dame is 1st in passing efficiency (172.51), 8th in passing offense (322.0 per game), 10th in total offense (470.0). Jimmy Clausen is 1st in passing efficiency (179.25) and 11th in total offense (299.8). Golden Tate is 4th in receiving yards per game (120.4). Kyle McCarthy is tied for 10th in interceptions (.6 per game). Nick Tausch is tied for 6th in field goals (2.0 per game). Darius Fleming is tied for 12th in tackles for loss (1.75 per game). USC is 1st in sacks (4.2 per game), 2nd in tackles for loss (9.8), 4th in scoring defense (8.6 points per game), 5th in rushing defense (64.8 per game), 6th in total defense (238.6 per game), 8th in pass efficiency defense (90.01), 12th in punt returns (16.62 each). USC's Nick Perry tied for 5th in sacks (1.2 pr game), Michael Morgan tied for 7th in tackles for loss (1.9), Damian Williams tied for 8th in punt returns (16.5 each). 3. Notre Dame stands 44th in the NCAA toughest schedule rankings this week - its past opponents 11-12 (.478), its future opponents 22-15 (.594) for a grand total of 33-27 (.550). Compared to the 33 combined victories by Notre Dame's remaining opponents, the only schools with more are Washington (37) Ohio State (36), Oklahoma (34), Arizona (34) and Arkansas (34). USC this week is 23rd overall in the ratings (.589 on 33-23). Ranked by future opposition only, Notre Dame is 27th this week.
4. The weekend update for the Irish Olympic sports: 5. The scene was set. The Joyce Center was packed and rocking (Notre Dame hockey's 10th straight sellout). A line of students had to be turned away because the student ticket allotment was exhausted 10 minutes before the start of the game and there were no other tickets left. The student section was outfitted in "Gold Standard" t-shirts. Even two Notre Dame rookies, freshmen Riley Sheahan and Kyle Palmieri, got into the act, scoring their first career goals to give the Irish leads of 1-0 and 2-1. But Alabama-Huntsville refused to cooperate, scoring the game-winner with five second left Friday in a 3-2 win (the same Alabama-Huntsville team that extended the Irish into OT in the '07 NCAA Championships). The Irish returned the favor with a 3-1 win Saturday on goals from Kyle Lawson, Brett Blatchford and Sheahan, while goalie Brad Philips earned the win. 6. Former Notre Dame men's swimming team captain Brian Casey was recently featured in two New York Times articles. Casey, who was named president of DePauw University in July 2008, was highlighted in the Times for the impact he has made on the DePauw student body, faculty and Greencastle, Ind., community: Oct. 7, 2009: "A House as a Symbol of Openness," and Oct. 9, 2009: "A University Where the President Knows Everyone's Name." Casey was born and raised in New Jersey. As an undergraduate at Notre Dame, he earned degrees in philosophy and economics, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude, receiving the Economics Award for his class. Casey was also captain of Notre Dame's varsity swim team and was the University's "Scholar-Athlete of the Year" in 1985.
1. Check out the latest issue of Sports Illustrated (Oct. 12) and you'll find a two-page spread with a photo of Notre Dame's Golden Tate upside down after his overtime reception last Saturday against Washington. The shot (pages six and seven in the "Leading Off" section) is by Matt Cashore, the University's official staff photographer. 2. Notre Dame senior captain Ryan Thang has been selected as a candidate for the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the men's Division I hockey program. Thang joins 19 other Division I players who have combined excellence in athletics, academics and community service. The award is presented annually to an NCAA Division I student-athlete in nine sports based on achievement's in the "Four Cs" of classroom, character, community and competition. CLASS is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School. Selected by his teammates as team captain for the coming season, Thang goes into his final year on the verge of breaking into Notre Dame's "Century Club" with 100 career points. The left wing opens the new campaign this weekend with 48 goals and 44 assists for 92 career points. He will be looking to join 43 former Notre Dame players that have scored 100 or more points during their careers. Thang owns 21 career power-play goals to rank 11th on the all-time list and 13 game-winning goals, tying him for first on that all-time list with three other players. Off the ice, Thang has a 3.241 grade-point average in finance in the Mendoza College of Business. The Edina, Minn., native has been involved in all aspects of the team's community service efforts throughout his career. For three years, he has participated in the annual Buddy Walk for kids with Down's syndrome and the University's Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Christmas Party with Memorial Hospital. During the 2007-08 season, the team was involved with South Bend's Robinson Center in an after-school program to teach kids how to play hockey. Thang has been a part of the team's IYHL Mite Skates, working with the community's youth hockey program, and he has participated in the CCHA's annual Hockey is Fun Clinic for two years. This is the fourth year that Lowe's has sponsored an award for hockey. In 2006-07, former Irish goaltender David Brown `07 won the Senior CLASS Award while in 2007-08, forward Mark Van Guilder `08 and in 2008-09, goaltender Jordan Pearce `09 and forward Erik Condra `09 were among the top 10 finalists. From the list of 20 nominees, a national media committee will select 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award by early February 2009. Those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote that will include coaches, media and fans. The award winner will be announced and recognized at the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four in Detroit, Mich. 3. Notre Dame junior wide receiver Golden Tate has been named the AT&T All-America Player of the Week award following the fifth week of college football action, AT&T announced Thursday. In the only major college football award chosen exclusively by fans, more than 50 percent of ballots cast went to Tate. He is the second Notre Dame player to be honored this season, joining junior quarterback Jimmy Clausen who was selected following the first week of the season. Tate helped the Irish rally past Washington, 37-30, in overtime last week. He hauled in nine receptions for 244 yards and one touchdown. 4. Sophomore Kristy Frilling opened Notre Dame's fall schedule in grand fashion, knocking off Duke's 13th-ranked Reka Zsilinska Thursday in the first round of the Riviera/ITA All-American Championship. Frilling, the 20th-ranked singles player in ITA preseason poll, cruised to a 6-1 win in the first set, before battling to a 7-5 loss in the second set. The Sidney, Ohio, native rallied to win the third set 6-3 and advance to the second round. Frilling took on Georgia Tech's No. 8 Irina Falconi in the second round today. Frilling teamed up with senior Kali Krisik, the country's 15th-ranked doubles duo, for the first round of the doubles championship. The Irish tandem lost Thursday to seventh-ranked Natalie Pluskota and Caitlin Whorisky of Tennessee 8-2. Frilling and Krisik faced Virginia's 20th-ranked Emily Fraser and Jennifer Stevens this morning. 5. The Notre Dame-USC pep rally next Friday will be held at Irish Green, the new football hospitality area just south of the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. Irish Green will open at 3:00 p.m. EDT that day -- with pep rally activities beginning at 6:00 p.m., and the Notre Dame football squad scheduled to arrive at 6:30 p.m. EDT. The Whistle Pigs band will play at Irish Green until 5:45 p.m. EDT. The location is the same as previous pep rallies for the Michigan State and Washington home games. There is no charge for admission to Irish Green or the rally - and no tickets are required. Parking is limited but available in the Joyce, Stadium, Library, Bookstore and DeBartolo lots. Please be aware that other events scheduled for Friday night and affecting parking include a men's lacrosse game (4:00 p.m. EDT at Arlotta Stadium vs. Iroquois National Team), women's soccer (7:30 p.m. EDT at Alumni Stadium vs. Connecticut) and hockey (7:30 p.m. EDT at Joyce Center vs. Providence). 6. The current edition of ESPN The Magazine lists former Notre Dame All-American Troy Murphy 26th on its list of top 100 NBA fantasy basketball players for 2009-10. 7. NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer will be a guest at the Friday Kickoff Luncheon Oct. 16 prior to the Notre Dame-USC football game. 8. In case you've lost count, this is the 50th season that Tim McCarthy has been making his safety announcements at Notre Dame home football games.
1. Since there's no Irish football this Saturday, if you're looking for something to do in South Bend, here are the Notre Dame weekend athletic options: 2. The current issue of Sporting News includes its annual ratings of 399 best sports cities. South Bend is #76. In terms of other Midwest college towns, East Lansing is #44, Iowa City #70, West Lafayette #73, Madison #75, Lexington #78, Champaign-Urbana #84. The top four are Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Boston and Chicago. 3. Also in Sporting News, five former coaches were asked to pick the former national football champion closest to returning to power - Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Tennessee or Miami. R.C. Slocum took Miami. Vince Dooley took Nebraska. John Cooper took Notre Dame. Bill Mallory took Michigan. Frank Broyles took Tennessee. 4. The fall portion of the Notre Dame women's tennis schedule gets underway this week as the Irish compete at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships and the Wildcat Fall Invitational at Northwestern. Sophomore Kristy Frilling was one of 22 collegiate players selected for the All-American main singles draw, while Frilling and senior Kali Krisik will team up in the main doubles draw. Frilling ended her stellar freshman campaign with a 30-11 overall singles record and a 40-6 mark in doubles play. The 2009 ITA National Player to Watch advanced to the second round of the both the NCAA singles and doubles tournaments. Krisik, who will be making her second straight appearance at the All-American tournament, was a mainstay in the middle of the Irish lineup a year ago. The all-BIG EAST selection notched a 29-10 singles record and a 34-12 doubles mark during her junior campaign. Frilling and Krisik teamed up for one doubles match last season, defeating Marquette's Kylie Moore and Paola Calderon, 8-0, in April. The Riviera/ITA All-American Championships main events begin Thursday and are hosted by the Riviera Tennis Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. The tournament includes six rounds of pre-qualifying and qualifying matches that began Oct. 3. Frilling and Krisik are automatic entrants. Last season, Krisik and Kelcy Tefft advanced to the All-American main doubles draw after going 3-0 in the qualifying rounds, but fell in the first round of the main event. Other members of the Irish squad will travel to Evanston, Ill., for the Wildcat Fall Invitational hosted by Northwestern. Akron, DePaul, Michigan State, Minnesota, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Wisconsin will join the Irish in the three-day tournament. Matches are set to begin Friday at noon (CDT).
1. A story on golfweek.com suggests that the top candidate for the LPGA commissioner job is 1993 magna cum laude Notre Dame graduate Pete Bevacqua. Also a Georgetown law grad, Bevacqua worked for the New York law firm of Davis, Polk & Wardwell and has been with the USGA since 2003. He was named the USGA chief business officer in July 2007. 2. Notre Dame's football game with Washington drew a 3.3 overnight rating on NBC. 3. The Notre Dame football record for consecutive wins by seven points or less is five, the first five games of the 1939 season (Sept. 30-Oct. 28) under head coach Elmer Layden. The current Irish football streak marks just the fifth time Notre Dame has won three straight games by seven points or less. The others are the streak in 2002, the last three games of 1941, the first five games of 1939 and the last three games of the 1937 season (Nov. 13-27). The Notre Dame football record for wins by seven points or less in a season is six, set in 1939 when that club had a 6-1 record in games decided by seven or less. The 1937 team was 5-1-1 and the 2002 club was 5-1-0 in games decided by seven or less, while the 1929 (4-0), 1940 (4-1), 1974 (4-0), 1990 (4-3), 1997 (4-2) and 1998 (4-1) teams all had four wins by seven or less over the course of the season. As for winning percentage in games decided by seven points or less, the 1929 and 1974 teams were both 4-0, while the 1926, 1928, 1954 and 1957 teams have finished 3-0. 4. The new ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia says Notre Dame has the #12 most successful program of all time, as computed by Jeff Sagarin and ESPN's stats and information staff. On a decade basis, the Irish finished #4 in the 1940s, #17 in the `50s, #8 in the `70s, #30 in the `80s, #28 in the 2000s. The list of 50 greatest players has Austin Carr #24. 5. The weekly espn.com Heisman Watch (based on voting by 15 ESPN staffers) has Florida's Tim Tebow #1 (72 points), Texas' Colt McCoy #2 (58) and Notre Dame's Jimmy Clausen #3 (40). Clausen merited three second-place votes, seven for third, three for fourth, one for fifth. 6. Now that Jimmy Clausen is filling expectations at the University of Notre Dame and climbing his way up the list of Heisman hopefuls, former Irish legend Joe Theismann is a believer. But Theismann doesn't want Clausen thinking about leaving school early for the NFL. "I would tackle him if he tried to leave the university and come out this year," Theismann said today on the "Waddle & Silvy" show on ESPN 1000 in Chicago. "Jimmy Clausen, I hope, has proven to a lot of people that he's one heck of a young quarterback. I mean, Jimmy is like Jay Cutler to me. They both have grown up and come to understand that you don't always have to make all the plays, but when your moment comes and that opportunity presents itself for you to have to step up, you can get it done. He's learned how to be a leader. He's certainly handled all kinds of pressure well. [But Clausen] has work to do. I'm not happy with the way he throws the fades. I think he needs to be able to be able to throw the ball down the field more efficiently. His delivery is a little bit unorthodox, but we have a lot of guys in this game with unorthodox deliveries that have done well. If you look at the Notre Dame football team, they have a chance to really be able to do something special a part of this year and I believe all of next year. You get [Michael Floyd] and [Golden Tate] and Jimmy together, and how about [Kyle] Rudolph at tight end, I mean you're talking about an offense that has been quite prolific. That really can be so much better next year. Plus why would Jimmy Clausen want to come out when he's faced with Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow. You've got Colt McCoy, you've got all these guys coming out this year. Stay in [school]." 7. The Notre Dame men's golf team won the fourth annual Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic today by turning in a final round 292 (+12), holding off Ohio State and Arkansas down the stretch. Senior Josh Sandman carded a four-over par 74 at the soggy Warren Golf Course to claim his first individual title as a collegiate golfer. Notre Dame ended up finishing at +30 for the three-round tournament (870). Ohio State (+34/874), Arkansas (+38/878), Texas Arlington (+43/883) and Lamar (+44/884) rounded out the top five. Kevin Hesbois of Lamar, David Lingmerth of Arkansas and Dan Charen of Ohio State all finished two strokes behind Sandman (214) to share second-place honors. Sandman totaled a two-over par 212 (70-68-74) for the tournament to earn the win. He birdied the 14th and 17th and made an important par put on 18 to become Notre Dame's first medalist since Max Scodro claimed UNCG Bridgestone Collegiate Championship last season. 8. The Notre Dame women's golf team shot a final round 301 (+13) today at Northwestern's Windy City Collegiate to, along with the host Wildcats, earn a share of fourth place in a field that included several top 25 teams. Sophomore Becca Huffer led the Irish by firing an even-par 72 in the final round of play at The Glen Club. For the tournament, Huffer carded an even-par 216 to finish fifth. It marked her best career finish with the Irish as well as her best three-round total (even par). She had three birdies on the day, giving her 11 birdies for the tournament.
1. Here's more on Jimmy Clausen's current best-in-the-nation 179.25 passing efficiency number: 2. Projecting toward next week, Notre Dame is 61-15-2 overall after a bye week (since 1900), 29-5 since 1984 and 3-2 under Charlie Weis. 3. This marks the fourth time in five years that the Irish have stood 4-1 after five games in the Weis era. Other recent 4-1 starts came in 1998 (eventually 9-3), 1996 (8-3), 1994 (6-5-1), 1991 (10-3), 1990 (9-3) and 1987 (8-4). Maybe the best 4-1 start came in 1977 when the Irish ended up consensus national champs after a second-game loss at Ole Miss. 4. Former Irish fencer Mariel Zagunis captured the 2009 women's sabre world championship Saturday, capping a dominant run through the final table of 64 to retain her place atop the women's sabre world. With the win, the Beaverton, Ore., native adds to her growing list of accomplishments, having already captured gold medals at the 2004 and 2008 Olympic games. With the 2009 world championship, Zagunis became the first American to medal at the event. Several other fencers with Irish ties joined Zagunis at the World Championships, including Kelley and Courtney Hurley. The sisters, natives of San Antonio, Texas, are representing the USA in women's epee, while fellow Irish epeeist Ewa Nelip is representing her native Poland in epee. On the men's side, former Irish foilist Ozren Debic fenced for Croatia, while current sophomore Gerek Meinhardt also competed for the USA in foil. Zagunis was the top seed in the final table of 64, having earned a high enough rank entering the event to skip the qualifying pool play stages. She proceeded to defeat Hye Lim Kim (15-12), Sevil Bunyatova (15-2) and countrywoman Daria Schneider (15-5) to advance to the final eight. In the final table of eight, Zagunis knocked off Olena Khomrova of the Ukraine 15-8 to advance to the semifinals. In the semis, Zagunis defeated fifth-seeded Carole Vergne of France 15-12. In the championship bout, Zagunis rolled to a 15-6 win over second-seeded Olga Kharlan of Ukraine to remain atop the women's sabre field. Zagunis enrolled at Notre Dame in the fall of 2004 and helped lead the Irish to the 2005 NCAA title. She competed with the Fighting Irish for two seasons and compiled an impressive resume that included the 2006 NCAA sabre crown and the 2005 national runner-up spot. Zagunis registered a 75-3 regular-season record with the Irish. Meinhardt also had a high enough rank to advance directly to the final 64 as the 11th seed. In his first bout, he downed Gregory Koening of France 15-12. Then, the 2008 NCAA Championship foil runner-up defeated Virgil Saliscan 15-13. But in the round of 16, Meinhardt fell to sixth-seeded Andrea Baldini of Italy 15-7. Ewa Nelip and Courtney Hurley both advanced out of pool play in women's epee to earn the 56th and 57th seeds, respectively, in the final 64. They bout next today. 5. The Notre Dame volleyball win yesterday means the program is off to its best start since 2005 when that squad was 12-1 through the first 13 matches of the campaign. It also marked head coach Debbie Brown's 800th career match and her 600th at Notre Dame. Brown, who is in her 24th season as a head coach, is 433-167 (.721) since taking over the reins of the Irish program in 1991. 6. The United States Under-20 Men's National Team was eliminated from the U-20 World Cup following Saturday's final matches of group play. Notre Dame's Aaron Maund and Dillon Powers were members of the U.S. squad. The U.S. finished the tournament with a 1-2 record. The U.S. finished the tournament in 17th place (out of 24 teams) and one slot shy of the Round of 16. The U.S. suffered a 3-0 loss to Korea Republic Friday in its final group match. 7. There's a story in the business section of today's Chicago Tribune about Stan Bowman, the Chicago Blackhawks general manager (and Notre Dame graduate), and his fight with lymphoma that involved chemotherapy, radiation and a stem cell transplant. 8. Another big event on campus the weekend of the Notre Dame-USC game will be the dedication of Arlotta Stadium for lacrosse. 9. Notre Dame WR Golden Tate has been named one of four nominees for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week award. Tate along with UTEP running back Donald Buckram, Maryland linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield and Toledo quarterback Aaron Opelt have been selected by a panel of analysts from ESPN as this week's top candidates. Fans can text message** VOTE to 345345 on their wireless phone to opt in for the chance to vote. Fans have until 11:59 p.m. EDT Wednesday to submit their votes. The winner will be announced during Thursday's ESPN College Football Primetime Presented by Applebee's. Standard text messaging rates apply. 10. Notre Dame ranks among the top five NCAA Division I institutions in the country in combining athletic and academic achievement, according to the annual rankings released today by the National Collegiate Scouting Association in Chicago. Notre Dame ranked fourth (in a tie with Harvard) among NCAA Division I universities and 12th overall in the annual NCSA Collegiate Power Rankings, trailing only Stanford, Princeton and Duke in the Division I standings. The NCSA Collegiate Power Rankings assess the academic and athletics standards of all NCAA and NAIA athletic programs across the country. Rankings are calculated for each college and university at the NCAA Division I, II and III levels by averaging the academic rankings from U.S. News & World Report, the strength of the athletic departments by the NACDA U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup ranking, plus each school's student-athlete graduation rate. In the 2009 ratings, Notre Dame finished 21st in athletics, 18th in academic rank and 31st in NCAA graduation rank, for an average 23.33 power ranking. This marks the sixth straight year Notre Dame has finished fifth or better in the NCSA rankings. Here are standings from those six years: 2009: 1. Stanford 8.66, 2. Princeton 15.0, 3. Duke 20.33, 4. (tie) Notre Dame and Harvard 23.33; 2008: 1. Stanford 10.66, 2. Duke 14.66, 3. Princeton 21.33, 4. Harvard 21.66, 5. Notre Dame 23.66; 2007: 1. Duke 11.66, 2. Notre Dame 18.33, 3. Stanford 20.66, 4. Northwestern 21.66, 5. Harvard 26.33; 2006: 1. Duke 11.33, 2. Stanford 13.0, 3. Notre Dame 15.0, 4. Princeton 16.66, 5. Harvard 24.0; 2005: 1. Duke 8.66, 2. Stanford 13.0, 3. Princeton 15.0, 4. Harvard 15.33, 5. Notre Dame 22.33. 11. Is Notre Dame QB Jimmy Clausen a Heisman Trophy candidate? CBSSports.com says he is. Each week five CBSSports.com experts rank their top five contenders on a 10-7-5-3-1-point basis. Three of the five this week put Clausen #1 - and here are the point totals: 1. Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame (40), 2. Tim Tebow, Florida (35), 3. Tony Pike, Cincinnati (19). 4. Colt McCoy, Texas (10), 5. Jacory Harris, Miami (7). 12. The Davey O'Brien Foundation today named Jimmy Clausen the O'Brien Quarterback of the Week for week five. Clausen, a returning O'Brien Watch List candidate, threw for a career-high 422 yards, which included a 67-yard TD pass to wide receiver Golden Tate. Clausen's performance in Saturday's victory over Washington propelled him to the top of the QB rankings with a rating of 179.3.
1. Jimmy Clausen now ranks #1 in the country in passing efficiency at 179.25. His 1,544 passing yards (100 completions) are topped only by Texas Tech's Taylor Potts (1,817 on 159 completions), Toledo's Aaron Opeit (1,704 on 126) and Houston's Case Keenum (1,696 on 144). 2. Golden Tate's 244 receiving yards against Washington mark the highest single-game total this season in the NCAA FBS and one of only four 200-plus totals so far this year. Those 244 receiving yards were the most ever given up to a single player by any Washington team (old mark 242 by Tony Hartley of Oregon in 1998). Tate ranks sixth nationally in receiving yards per game at 120.4. 3. The last time the Irish won three straight games by a TD or less came in 2002 in Tyrone Willingham's first season: 24-17 vs. Purdue; 25-23 vs. #7 Michigan; 21-17 at Michigan State. Before that you have to go back to 1941 (Frank Leahy's first season) to find it: 20-13 vs. #6 Navy in Baltimore; 7-6 at Northwestern; 20-18 vs. USC (last three games of 8-0-1 season). 4. Let the hype begin for the Notre Dame-USC game in two weeks - based as much as anything on the matchup between the Irish offense and the Trojan defense. Notre Dame ranks eighth in passing (322.20 yards per game), 29th in scoring (32.6 per game), second in passing efficiency, and 10th in total offense (470.0). Meanwhile, the Trojan defense ranks fifth in total defense (238.6), third in scoring defense (8.6), fifth in rushing defense (64.8), second in sacks (4.2) and third in pass efficiency defense. 5. A half-page ad in the Friday edition of Notre Dame's student newspaper, The Observer, read, "Dear Golden Tate, We'll be sure to catch you anytime you score a touchdown! Love, The Band of the Fighting Irish."
6. Here's a quick roundup of weekend action for the Irish Olympic sports: 7. Notre Dame ranks 38th in NCAA schedule strength at 28-21 overall for .571 (future opposition 20-11 for .645). USC is 22nd at 28-18 for .608 (future foes are 20-9 for .689).
8. Here's what Charlie Weis had to say today in his Sunday wrap-up: 9. Among former Irish players in for the weekend was 1988-89 linebacker and captain Ned Bolcar. 10. The Knute Rockne sculpture dedication on Friday led to a halftime presentation Saturday in which athletics director Jack Swarbrick presented Rockne miniatures to benefactors Joe and Barbara Mendelson and to grandson Knute Rockne III.
1. Notre Dame junior men's basketball guard Scott Martin suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee during a preseason team workout Oct. 1 and will be out for the 2009-10 season. Martin underwent an MRI this morning and tests revealed the damage. Martin, who sat out the 2008-09 campaign after transferring to Notre Dame from Purdue in June of 2008, is expected to have surgery sometime during the week of Oct. 19. A full recovery by Martin is expected in time for the 2010-11 season. Martin, a standout at Valparaiso (Ind.) High School, played in 32 games for the Boilermakers during the 2007-08 campaign and averaged 8.5 points and 3.8 rebounds.
2. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish hockey team will appear on television 11 times during the 2009-10 season with five telecasts scheduled for Comcast, three national appearances on CBS College Sports and one appearance each on Fox Sports Detroit, ESPNU and the Big 10 Network:
3. Notes and quotes from the Knute Rockne sculpture dedication ceremonies this afternoon:
1. For the first time in four years, the coaches and media agree on who should hold down the #1 position in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association's annual preseason polls. In two close races, Michigan received enough points from the conference's 12 head coaches and 66 media members to be named the preseason favorite in both polls. In the coaches' poll, the Wolverines took five of a possible 11 first-place votes, five seconds, and one third-place vote. Notre Dame received four first-place votes as well as four seconds and three thirds. Miami took third, receiving two first-place votes, while Ohio State came in fourth. Northern Michigan captured the lone remaining first-place vote and finished fifth in the coaches' poll. The media also voted in favor of Michigan, with the Irish coming in a close second and Miami rounding out the top three just five points farther back. The Wolverines picked up 24 of a possible 66 first-place votes -- while the RedHawks and Irish received 20 first-place votes each. The Buckeyes and Wildcats finished fourth and fifth in the media poll as well. 2. Check out the current (Oct. 5) issue of Sports Illustrated. In the "Who's Hot, Who's Not" section, the "Exciting Irish" are listed on the hot side with the following comments: "Notre Dame is 3-1, and the thrill is in the details. Three straight games have been decided in the final minute, including last Saturday's win at Purdue on a TD pass by hobbled QB (Jimmy Clausen is pictured). Now the fun part: Washington, USC and BC the next three weeks at home." 3. Also check out the Yahoo! Sports 2009-10 College Basketball Preview magazine. Notre Dame's Luke Harangody is picked as a first-team preseason All-American (one of five) and is rated #1 among power forwards. Harangody also is the pick as the BIG EAST player of the year. He's on the cover with Kansas' Sherron Collins and Michigan State's Kalin Lucas. 4. The student sale of Irish men's basketball tickets begins next Thursday and that will go a long way toward determining whether or not there are any tickets available to the public on a single-game basis. 5. A bronze sculpture of former Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne, a charter member of the College Football Hall of Fame, will be dedicated tomorrow at Notre Dame Stadium. The dedication and blessing, slated for 4:45 p.m. EDT, will take place on the east side of Notre Dame Stadium. Speaking at the dedication will be Notre Dame president Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., Notre Dame athletics director Jack Swarbrick, benefactor Joe Mendelson, and Nils Rockne (grandson of Knute Rockne). Assisting with the sculpture unveiling will be four Rockne grandchildren -- Anne, Erik, Knute and Nils. Notre Dame associate athletics director Jim Fraleigh will serve as master of ceremonies for the event. The Rockne sculpture shows the former Irish coach in his coaching sweatshirt and baseball pants, with his hands on his hips. 6. This was an actual letter to the editor printed earlier this week in The Observer, the Notre Dame student newspaper: "Dear beloved football team, My healthcare insurance provider has considered heart attacks a pre-existing condition for the past few seasons and will not cover them. Thank you for your consideration." It was signed Russell Montgomery, Notre Dame class of 2003. 7. Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen told media Wednesday his turf toe injury is something he'll have to deal with the rest of the season. "It's just a nagging injury," Clausen said. "I don't think I'll be 100 percent healthy until the end of the season or after the season. Next week is going to be big for me just getting my rest and resting my toe as much as I can. When you're out there playing you've got to run around, throw the ball. Obviously for me I've got to plant off my back foot when I'm throwing the ball, which I had a little difficulty last week and Saturday doing, but it's getting better day by day, and that's just how it is right now." 8. Check the USA Today web site for a Mike Lopresti (he was in West Lafayette for the Notre Dame-Purdue game) column on Notre Dame football. Here's the lead: "This is for the many Notre Dame haters out there, and the news is not good. The evidence is growing. The dark ages in South Bend might be over. More anti-domers out there, probably, than even lawyers, and no doubt they've enjoyed the anguish, the hand-wringing, the defeats. When the Irish lost last year to 2-8 Syracuse, it must have felt like Christmas morning. But the latest signs are ominous. Notre Dame carries a 3-1 record into Saturday's Washington game, and won't play in a hostile stadium until Nov. 14. The victory total is bound to swell, perhaps rapidly." The headline reads: "Warning to Notre Dame haters: Irish on the way back." 9. Check out the Jack Swarbrick Radio Show on Saturday mornings - guests this week are Dennis Dodd from CBSSportsline.com and Notre Dame hockey coach Jeff Jackson. 10. Other football luncheon guests Friday will be Rockne historian Bernie Kish (former executive director of the College Football Hall of Fame), along with Mike Seamon, who heads up the Notre Dame football gameday operations. 11. Speaking of sculptures, as of this time tomorrow there will be full-size Knute Rockne sculptures in Voss, Norway; in Rockne Texas; plus two in South Bend (one near the College Football Hall of Fame downtown and now one next to Notre Dame Stadium). How many people (in any line of work) can you name that are the subject of four sculptures? 12. Check your local newsstand for the Sporting News College Basketball annual. Notre Dame's Luke Harangody makes the cover of the regional edition, along with Illinois' Demetri McCamey and Ohio State's Evan Turner. Notre Dame is ranked #22 nationally. Harangody is a first-team All-America selection (one of five). Notre Dame is projected as a #5 NCAA seed (as are Ohio State, Clemson and Wake Forest). In the BIG EAST, the Irish are picked fifth, behind West Virginia, Villanova, Georgetown and Connecticut. Harangody is picked to the all-BIG EAST team and also is rated the league's best leader and best rebounder. The women's preview lists Notre Dame #6 nationally, says the Irish "may be one of the deepest teams in the country" and says Skylar Diggins comes in with "the most fanfare since Ruth Riley." Senior Ashley Barlow is a projected third-team All-American (10 per team).
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