Best Notre Dame Stories of 2007
Since this is the last day of the year, the Notre Dame Blog has decided to give you guys what you’ve been waiting all year for: a Year in Review! Just like all of the other news media sites out there, we’re going to go over some of the highlights from the year that was. Join us in a Notre Dame journey through 2007!
Unfortunately the 2007 season for football fans wasn’t the most spectacular ever. The 2007 Irish football team had some good highlights, though, including a few wins to end the season and a stunner versus UCLA. Also, you might remember that it wasn’t but almost exactly one year ago that the Irish were in the Sugar Bowl.
Also… both Notre Dame soccer teams went deep into the NCAA Tournaments. The men’s basketball team went to the NCAA Tournament. The Irish ice hockey team earned a No. 1 ranking at one point in the season, finishing with one of the best years in the history of the program. The Notre Dame men’s cross country team competed in the NCAA Championship meet. The University of Notre Dame ranked No. 22 in the nation in terms of overall athletic strength in 2007.
It was another year of stellar sports stories at Notre Dame, and with the way things are headed, 2008 should be even better. Happy New Years from us at the Notre Dame Blog. We look forward to another great year for getting Notre Dame Fighting Irish football tickets and Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets at StubHub.com.
Preview: Brown vs. Notre Dame
Know your enemy. That’s what they say, at least. So that’s what we’re doing here at the Notre Dame Blog. The Irish men’s basketball team will play the Brown Bears this upcoming Saturday, and if you’re getting tickets or planning on listening to it on the radio or watching it on TV, there are a few things you should know before you get involved. Listen up, because although an Ivy League team might not sound like much of a threat, Brown is actually doing pretty well this year. The Irish should not take this next game lightly, so neither should you.
Brown is mostly a guard-oriented team. It’s no secret that their two best players are their backcourt duo of Mark Mc Andrew and Damon Huffman, the two top scorers and dishers on the Brown team. Notre Dame has some great guards, but probably their best play is around the basket, so we’ll get to see how Notre Dame deals with a team that doesn’t play to their strengths. Brown is leading the Ivy League with a record of 6-4. They’ve lost to Michigan, but beaten New Hampshire and Northwestern, so they are somewhat erratic and hard to predict at this time. That could either spell danger for the Irish, or a nice blowout for the fans to enjoy.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Survives Scare vs. San Francisco
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish survived a scare versus the San Francisco Dons this past Saturday. The Irish men’s basketball team held on to win the game by a score of 84-76. At halftime the Irish led the game 43-29, and even led by a total of 23 points at one point in the second half. Yet the Dons were able to cut the lead to five points with just minutes remaining. This was a good early test for the resolve of the Irish men’s basketball team. If this team wants to get into the national spotlight, they will have to put away the easy teams, and prove that they can battle through runs that their opponents might make during the course of a long game. The win over San Francisco won’t do much to help Notre Dame earn a spot in the Top 25 polls, but it will help for overall team confidence– it’s yet another consecutive win at home.
Notre Dame won’t play again until this Saturday, when they play the Brown Bears. Notre Dame is expected to win this one as well, another game to boost their record before the season starts getting tough and the away games come more frequently. There are lots of great Big East teams doing very well nationally right now. While fans will be anxious to get tickets to see the tougher games, you’ve got to appreciate the solid wins while they last. Make sure to get your tickets to cheer for the Irish this Saturday.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Blog Jealous of Brendan Loy’s Web Presence
Since it’s Friday and the Notre Dame Blog is given to bouts of diversion and silliness on Fridays, we’re going to go searching for something on the internet to make fun of– something that has to do with Notre Dame sports. The first thing that comes to mind is Charlie Weis, but if you are a pursuer of internet opinions about the Irish, you’re sick of Weis jokes by now. The way he wears his pants deserves about fifteen, twenty more years of ridicule post-retirement, but that’s the absolute most Yours Truly can take on the subject.
Instead, try Googling “Notre Dame Blog.” You wont find us for a few pages (the subject of a future Friday blog, for sure) but you will find a site called “Irish Trojan in Tennessee” in the number two spot. That’s some incredible web visibility. The site seems to be the work of just one man, one amazing blogger who happens to be both a fan of Notre Dame and USC, having graduated from both after going to law school. Even though the site claims that it is “best known for its coverage of Hurricane Katrina,” Irish Trojan has some pretty powerful web presence in the Notre Dame sports blogosphere. If you can hear this blog out there, Brendan Loy, put us in your Domershpere file to help us get where you are! We offer an alliance, Loy.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish football tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Preview for the Upcoming Notre Dame Basketball Game
Since it’s Thursday and the Friday editions of the Notre Dame Blogs are typically given to more fun-filled diversions than serious sports analysis, we’ve decided to use today to preview the upcoming Notre Dame men’s basketball game. As you know, the boys have had a lengthy break from their last game, played all the way back on December 8th. The Irish’s next game will be against the University of San Francisco Dons, a WCC team that, believe it or not, has some national championship history under their belts. The Dons used to have Bill Cartwright and Bill Russell back in the day.
The Dons aren’t as scary nowadays, though. San Francisco is currently 4-7 and coming off of two straight losses. The Irish, by comparison, are 7-2 and have won their last five in a row. The best player for SF is 6-7 forward Dior Lawhorn. He’s averaging over 20 points per game, and he can play well both around the basket and along the perimeter. He’s a tough assignment, but the Irish should be able to throw a couple of different defensive combinations at him to keep him at bay. San Fran doesn’t get a lot of points in the paint, so as long as the shooters get covered, the Irish should continue their winning streak at home, and make their streak an even six games.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Recruits Stick with It
Notre Dame football had a tough year. There’s no denying that many people considered the 2007 season remarkably miserable enough to scare away future recruits that might want to come to Notre Dame. There was also the consideration that some of the recruits whom Charlie Weis and the Notre Dame coaching staff already put a lot of time into recruiting would want to bail on the Notre Dame future. However, it appears that nobody is jumping ship yet, as most all of the top recruits that were slated to join the Irish next season will indeed be in South Bend in the fall.
There’s a good article about this subject at ChicagoSports.com that mentions the already famous, soon to be Irish QB recruit Dayne Crist, among a few others. The basic gist of the story is that the players who have committed are sticking with it, not deterred by one freakishly under performing season. In fact, if you’re a recruit set to play for Notre Dame, you ought to look at this as a great opportunity to get some recognition for turning the program in the right direction. The national spotlight has not turned from Notre Dame, but the need to succeed right away is there, and there will be even more people saying “They’re back!” in the next few years than were saying “They’re through” this year.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish football tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Weis Signs Autographs
The Notre Dame Blog is a little late at getting you guys in the blogosphere this story, but it’s one that needs to be posted about in a forum like this. Apparently head football coach Charlie Weis had an autograph session the other day where he signed up to two items for over 550 people. The weather was awful outside, but hundreds of fans from the school came out to see Coach Weis anyways. There was hot chocolate, coffee, bagels and coach Weis even ordered 50 pizzas for everyone who was outside. Instead of doing everything in a sort of assembly line signing operation, Weis made conversation with the fans as he signed their memorabilia.
So what’s the Notre Dame Blog analysis about this whole thing? Well, it certainly seems that every story coming out about Charlie Weis suggests that he is a caring, charismatic person whose great to meet in person. Being the head coach of the Irish is one thing, but it’s hard to imagine people braving the freezing weather to meet a coach who is notoriously surly. Imagine the same scene for snarly coach Norman Dale of Hickory High, pre-Indiana state championship.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish football tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Athletics: Good News and Bad News on Monday Morning
Notre Dame’s athletic department has some good news and some bad news to impart upon you this Monday morning. I’ll give you the bad news first. It has been reported that Frank Eck died on the 13th of last week from complications associated with a heart surgery procedure he recently underwent. Eck will be missed by his family and friends, and by everyone in the Notre Dame community. He loved Notre Dame sports very much. In fact, he was one of the biggest contributors to Notre Dame athletics, giving over $35 million dollars to the University over the course of many years. You can see what he has accomplished fist-hand if you ever watch a baseball game or visit the tennis facility at UND.
The good news is that the Irish have two All-Americans on their men’s soccer team. Joseph Lapira was named to the NCAA All-American first team, and Ryan Miller was named to the second team. Both men are seniors, so their future in soccer, either with the MLS or in other professional ranks looks very bright. This is the second time that Lapira has been an All-American- he was on the second team last season. Congrats to these two amazing athletes!
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Football Year In Review
If you search the internet for Notre Dame sports news as much as this blogger, you might have come across a report detailing the past season for the Irish football team. There will be all sorts of year-in-review articles to find in the next few months, and this being close to the New Year, you’re going to have to get used to some looking back, in general. Well, CBSSportsline.com has a very brief review of the season for Notre Dame fans to check out. They note what and who they believe to be the “Game of the Year” and “Player of the Year.” They also give a very brief synopsis of the expectations for next season.
The article isn’t the most exhaustive summary of the season for Notre Dame football fans, but it does bring up some good questions. Who do you think was the player of the year for the Irish? What was the best game to watch? What should the expectations for next season be? There are all kinds of opinions out there and all the time in the world to formulate your own while the Irish are in the offseason. You can rest assured that the Notre Dame Blog will be giving you its opinion on these things and more in the coming months.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish football tickets, go to StubHub.com.
Notre Dame Basketball: The Big Guys
The time has come to give you guys out there in the blogosphere the inside scoop on the University of Notre Dame men’s basketball team’s big men. Let’s talk forwards and centers for a bit, shall we? The Big East is going to be plenty big up front, so the Irish are going to need some solid guys down low to carry them through the second half of the season. The first guy we ought to take a good long look at is the leading scorer so far, Luke Harangody. Luke’s a sophomore, 6-8, 250. He’s a real presence down low, almost like a center. He leads the team in rebounds and is probably the guy who will match up with any opposing team’s best big guy on defense, since it’s hard to push him around. Harangody will carry this team on his huge back all the way to the tourney for the next three years- if all goes according to plan.
Rob Kurtz is probably the second most important big on the team. As a senior, he’s a guy that the team will look to for calm under pressure. At 6-9, he will be the tallest player on the court most of the time. Ryan Ayers is more of a wing, and he can be used as a tall guard sometimes. Zach Hillestand and Luke Zeller will both come off the bench to provide sparks on defense and offense, respectively. There’s so much to say about the team that it can’t all fit into one or two blogs. The best way to learn about your Notre Dame basketball team is to get tickets to a game and witness them in action.
To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball tickets, go to StubHub.com.