Notre Dame, Other Schools Give to Charity

Notre Dame was one of the over two dozen major NCAA universities to contribute to charity in the first ever Charity Bowl. Fanblogs.com, a great place to get info on your favorite college sports program (and Notre Dame, specifically) has the whole thing covered. Although the Irish did not come in first in the competition, they were represented nonetheless, and it’s always good to involve yourself in such well-deserving endeavors.

The purpose of the Charity Bowl was to increase participation in charitable contributions to the Red Cross, CARE and International Rescue Committee, amazingly helpful organizations which help in disaster relief like those for the Myanmar typhoon, China earthquake and even the continuing effort to aid New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

Notre Dame Fanbloggers contributed a total of $100 to the charity organizations. While that was nowhere near first place Michigan ($7,260), it is still worth a blog and worth congratulations. To the anonymous donors out there, the Notre Dame Blog salutes you. Competition in the spirit of giving is a great thing. Incredibly, the Charity Bowl helped to raise a total of over $20,000! Fanblogs said it best, when they said, “Wow. Just… wow.”

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 15, 2008 - Post a comment

Joe Montana’s Son, Nate, To Walk on at Notre Dame

As far as having high expectations to meet, there are few more daunting than those facing the son of Joe Montana as he prepares to begin a college football career at the University of Notre Dame. Nate Montana, the eldest son of Joe Montana, has decided that he will attend Notre Dame. Even though he did not receive a scholarship to play football there, he will walk-on as a freshman quarterback.

Anybody who has seen Rudy knows that being a walk-on at Notre Dame doesn’t mean that you’re resolved to a live a anonymity, but all the same, he’ll have an uphill battle if he even wants to get playing time, let alone even get mentioned in the same sentence as his legendary father. The orchestrator of some of the most memorable comebacks in Notre Dame and NFL history, the winner of multiple Super Bowls and NFL MVP awards, Joe Montana is probably the most famous player associated with the program outside of George “The Gipper” Gipp.

Nate Montana played for De La Salle High School, arguably the best high school football program in the nation for the past two decades. His senior year he was the third string QB, so he didn’t get much time to shine. At Notre Dame, he’ll be behind Jimmy Clausen, Dayne Crist and probably Evan Sharpley in the depth chart.

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 14, 2008 - Post a comment

Non-Drafted Notre Dame Football Players

As you might have gathered from the blogs we’ve written in the past week or so, there were four Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players who were drafted to play for NFL teams in the 2008 NFL Draft. John Carlson was picked up by Seattle in the second round. Trevor laws also went in the second round, picked by the Philadelphia Eagles as the No. 47th overall selection. Tom Zbikowski was taken in the third round by the Baltimore Ravens. John Sullivan was taken in the sixth round by the Minnesota Vikings. But there were a few other graduated seniors who were on the board as possible selections. Let’s take a look at them, shall we?

Joseph Brockington, Geoff Price and Ambrose Wooden all had an outside shot at getting to the next level. You can look at their draft bios at ESPN to get an idea of their relative strengths and weaknesses. Not making it to the NFL doesn’t mean that their football careers are over, though. There are indoor leagues, Canadian teams, and even the possibility that they could make a roster by trying out next year. Regardless of the fact that they were not drafted, let’s take a moment to honor them for their careers at Notre Dame. Congratulations on graduation, boys. Good luck in your future endeavors! Thanks for some great Notre Dame memories.
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Permalink - Posted in General on May 13, 2008 - Post a comment

John Sullivan, Irish Viking

John Sullivan was an offensive center for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for nearly three years, so many Irish fans were happy to see that he was drafted in the recent NFL Draft. The Minnesota Vikings selected him in the 6th round, the 187th overall selection. Although this was a bit of a drop for him in terms of where he was expecting to get drafted, it could still turn out that he has a successful NFL career. The experts seem to like the basics about him, but he does lack some of the skill sets that NFL centers generally have.

One thing that could have hurt Sullivan in the draft was the miserable offensive performance of the Irish last season. They allowed sack after sack and the running game was among the worst in D-1 NCAA football. If there was a bright spot on the line, it was Sullivan, though. He’s 6-3 301, and looks even bigger. He’s got the drive and the heart, but if he wants to get playing time in Minnesota, he’s going to have to learn how to move laterally better, among a few other things. The Vikings have him listed as the No. 2 (out of 2) centers on the team. Above him is Matt Birk, who is 31 years-old, 6-4, 308. The training camp battle will be interesting at this position.

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 12, 2008 - Post a comment

Tom Zbikowski Drafted by Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens drafted Tom Zbikowski, a safety from Notre Dame, in the third round (No. 86 overall). Tom Zbikowski was the Ravens’ fourth pick in the draft, and they were not necessarily drafting to an immediate need on the team. They did get one of the best available players at the time, and as Notre Dame Blog readers know, Tommy Z can be a huge asset to any football team. We expect that he will do well in the NFL.

Right now TZ is put into the second spot on the Ravens’ depth chart for strong safety. He might wind up with a starting job depending on what the coaches see in training camp. And injuries can always help to give a guy a shot at making in impression.

The biggest strength with Tom is his ability to block up running lanes, as he’s a good open field tackler. Some people think that he lacks good turnaround speed, so he’s more likely to use his physicality to make plays. This leads to pass interference calls. But in the NFL, they might be more likely to let Tom’s play slide, so he might just succeed on an already good Raven’s defense.

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 9, 2008 - Post a comment

CBSsports.com Thinks the Irish Will Get Better

Well, we should clairify. The Sport Xchange thinks that they will get better. But the link is for the article that the Sports Xchange wrote that’s available at CBSsports. Get it? Well, either way, this should be good news, because somebody thinks that Notre Dame Football will get better next year. As you might remember, the Irish had a devastatingly miserable season last time around, going 3-9 and hardly ever looking good until the end of the season. So how will the Irish get better? Let’s review a few of the main reasons that the article touches on:

  • Coach Charlie Weis has been giving up some play calling duties on offense to the offensive coordinator.
  • A new defensive coordinator, Jon Tenuta, has been hired.
  • Quarterback Jimmy Clausen will have one year of experience under his belt. And no fighting for his job.
  • The Irish have a couple of good recruiting classes waiting in the wings.

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 8, 2008 - Post a comment

How Will Trevor Laws Do on the Eagles?

On draft day this weekend of last, Trevor Laws shot up the draft board, and was actually selected in the second round by the Philadelphia Eagles. He was the 47th overall selection in the draft, though some were thinking that he could slip as low as the 90s or 100s. Instead, the Eagles used their first pick on him (Philadelphia did not get a first round selection). The fans base at the draft was, in typical Philadelphia fan fashion, mixed in their reaction. Some were cheering. Others wanted the Eagles to go after somebody else. But then, that’s just the Eagles fans being Eagles fans, and they certainly have a right to an opinion. You can’t blame them for their dedication to the team.

Now that Laws is on the team, we’re going to have to figure out what to do with him. The main knock on Laws: he’s too small to ever become an elite defensive lineman in the NFL. His growth potential as a player is smaller than most of other draft picks. However, he did very well in college against bigger players, and there is no reason to think that he won’t be similarly well suited for playing against bigger guys in the Big Time. He is listed as the No. 3 person in the RDT position in the Philadelphia Eagles depth chart now, but a lot can happen in summer training camp.

To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football tickets, go to StubHub.com.

Permalink - Posted in General on May 7, 2008 - Post a comment

Jeff Samardzija Playing Minor League Baseball- Not Football

You might remember Jeff Samardzija from his football days at Notre Dame. He was one of Brady Quinn’s favorite targets, a wide receiver with size, strength and just enough speed to catch over 170 passes in his college career. There were some who said that he would make a good NFL football player, perhaps even go in the first round of the draft. But Jeff Samardzija was also a great baseball player, and so upon his graduation form Notre Dame, he decided to go pro, playing minor league baseball. One day he hopes to get to the Big Show, but for now he’s just one of many good-but-waiting-for-that-big-opportunity-to-shine minor league prospects. He plays for the Double-A Tennessee Smokies (affiliate of the Chicago Cubs). Pete Prisco of CBSsports.com has a fine article about how Jeff has handled being known for his Notre Dame football career more than his baseball prowess.

This reminds me of Adam Dunn, the huge, long ball-hitting outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds. Dunn was a quarterback for Nebraska when he was in college, and, like Jeff Samardzija, he might have gone in the first round of the NFL Draft. Instead, he chose a MLB career, which has worked out great. He currently makes $13 million dollars to swing the bat a few times a day. For Samardzija, that kind of money is a ways off, but he’s still going to follow his dream in the sport he wants to play.

To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football tickets, go to StubHub.com.

Permalink - Posted in General on May 6, 2008 - Post a comment

How Will John Carlson Do in Seattle?

As you might have already heard, the Seattle Seahawks drafted John Carlson in the second round of the NFL Draft last weekend. He was the Seahawks’ second pick, taken in the second round, number 38th overall. Most of the experts had Carlson ranked in the top three at his position, tight end, so the Seahawks are happy to have him on their team. He should provide a nice target for Matt Hasselbeck to find in the red zone. But, how much will he play next year, and what will he have to look forward to in his exciting new career in the NFL. Will Carlson succeed in his first season away from Notre Dame?

The depth chart for the Seahawks at ESPN.com lists Carlson as the No. 2 tight end. He’s ahead of both Jeb Putzier and Joe Newton, but behind the starter, Will Heller. Heller is not an elite tight end, so there could be a chance for Carlson to impress the coaching staff and get a lot of playing time right off the bat. Heller caught 13 balls for only 83 yards last season, and he’s only scored 7 touchdowns in five years in the NFL. Carlson can compete with this guy when it comes to receiving, but mostly the battle will come down to who can give the potent Seattle running attack the best possible blocking.

To get Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football tickets, go to StubHub.com.

Permalink - Posted in General on May 5, 2008 - Post a comment

Lou Holtz Inducted into College Football Hall of Fame!

Lou Holtz, the famous Notre Dame Fighting Irish football coach, was inducted into the National Football Foundations’ College Football Hall of Fame yesterday. Clearly this is a momentous occasion for all of Notre Dame sports, as well as the Holtz family and all of the players, coaches and trainers who worked with Holtz. What’s not to like about this guy? Although he could occasionally have tempter, he was generally considered to be a nice man, with a passion for football and teaching young men life lessons with his infinite wisdom. Read the article at UND.com to get the whole scoop on the coach, in case you are just learning about him today.

And because it’s Friday, here’s a link to a story with some humor. Have to send you into the weekend with the right attitude, right? Although this fake story from TheOnion.com is about Tyler Hansbrough, we say it has something to do with Notre Dame sports because Tyler’s little brother just decided to transfer to Notre Dame this week.

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Permalink - Posted in General on May 2, 2008 - Post a comment


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