Other Irish Starters Announced- Whole Team to Come Soon

Head football coach Charlie Weis is keeping some of his cards close as the season-opener draws near. He announced (and we blogged about yesterday) Weis starting a new kicker, freshman Nick Tausch. Other positions are getting filled in, for example, the opening day punter will be Eric Maust. Other jobs that have been filled include the punt return men, either Armando Allen, Jr. or Golden Tate.  Weis is still trying to determine who will field the kickoff returns, but we have a feeling it will be either Allen or Tate as well.

The Irish are not saying what will happen with one of their most highly-touted new recruits, freshman linebacker Manti Te’o. One of the most sought-after defensive players this past offseason, Te’o has been practicing at weak side linebacker, but has not officially locked down the starting position. Weis said he expects to see Manti Te’o, who has been nursing a hamstring injury lately, on the field for the first game, but we think he’ll probably be coming off the bench.

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 27, 2009 - Post a comment

Freshman Kicker to Start for Notre Dame

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team will start a freshman when the season begins in a couple weeks. Froshkie Nick Tausch, one of the many highly-touted recruits that coach Charlie Weis picked up this season, will get the opening kickoff and first field goal and extra point opportunities, barring any major setback. Nick Tausch beat out a junior by the name of Brandon Walker, who you might remember had some trouble, especially early, last season.

Nick Tausch comes from Plano, Texas and has a good deal of power and consistency. Apparently he was a shoe-in as the starter. Although kicking was not the most glaring problem with the Irish last season, having a good kicker can be the difference between a BCS and just another bowl. Close game situations will be a little less nerve-racking with a steady boot at the ready. Good luck out there, Nick!

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 26, 2009 - Post a comment

Notre Dame’s Football Scheduling Complications

The University of Notre Dame plays as an independent, meaning that it has no official conference, and thus can negotiate its own schedule as it sees fit every year. While sometimes this is a good thing- as it enables Notre Dame to make an easier or tougher schedule year to year and allows a lot of variety, there are some tough parts to being an independent.

A recent AP article talked about how the Irish are in a pickle right now, having not locked down all the opponents to the next season. Notre Dame goes with a 7-4-1 schedule, meaning that they have seven home games, one neutral site game which is officially cited as a home game, and four away games. They must play Navy, Purdue, USC and Michigan every single year. After that, they can build their own schedule. They have a relatively easy schedule of teams this season, though, so we’re anxious to see how it all plays out this year!

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 25, 2009 - Post a comment

Notre Dame Makes No. 23 in the Preseason AP!

 The university of Notre Dame football team was recently ranked as the No. 23 team in the nation in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 Poll. The AP Poll is generally considered the foremost college football ranking system outside of the BCS. To make the preseason top 25 is a huge honor, and the Domers haven’t been on the list in the preseason since 2002. congratulations to the football players. This is a great starting position to work from, and it should lead to good things. It’s easier to climb up the ladder once your on it than to get on it later. Here is the complete AP Top 25:

 

1 Florida

2 Texas

3 Oklahoma

4 Southern California

5 Alabama

6 Ohio State

7 Virginia Tech

8 Mississippi

9 Oklahoma State

9 Penn State

11 LSU

12 California

13 Georgia

14 Boise State

15 Georgia Tech

16 Oregon

17 TCU

18 Florida State

19 Utah

20 Brigham Young

21 North Carolina

22 Iowa

23 Notre Dame

24 Nebraska

25 Kansas

 

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 24, 2009 - Post a comment

ESPN Talks UND Running Back Situation

ESPN’s Brian Bennett wrote an article recently about the Notre Dame fullback situation. With Armando Allen set to be the No. 1 tailback in the Notre Dame offense, a former top-rated recruit will have to move to a secondary role. Fighting Irish fans have gotten to know James Aldridge as the go-to in the backfield for a few seasons, but in his senior year he’s supposed to give the choice snaps to Allen. Did he whine and complain about being demoted? Not a chance. Aldridge wants to help in any way possible. According to the story, Aldridge said:

“A lot of people wouldn’t want to make that move. But I was open for a change… My ego went out the window a long time ago. It really did. I came to a point of my life where I just go with the flow. I felt really good about the situation, so I jumped on it as fast as I could.”

Check out the article and then look for some tickets to see the two tailbacks in action this season. Will they get a chance to tear up the USC front line? Let’s hope so!

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 14, 2009 - Post a comment

Football Focuses; Smardzija Starts, Soccer Scores

The NCAA-mandated acclimation period is over. What’s the acclimation period you ask? Well, it’s the five-day span when football programs are not allowed to wear pads. Now they can, which means that they can initiate the hard hits. UND.com has some of the best hits on tape at their site. Check it out. Plus- it’s two-a-days from here on in.

In baseball news, former Notre Dame baseball and football star Jeff Samardzija got his first start for the Cubs last night, pitching against the est offense in the National League, the Philadelphia Phillies. Although it didn’t fair well or Samardzija, we have high hopes for him in the future.

In soccer news, the Notre Dame men’s soccer team has been selected in the conference preseason poll to finish first in the Big East Blue Division. Also, Irish forward Bright Dike was selected by the conference coaches as the preseason selection for Player of the Year. Looks like it’s going to be a good year for soccer at Notre Dame.

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 13, 2009 - Post a comment

Fighting Irish Beat the Irish Nationals 1-0

 The Notre Dame women’s soccer team is off to a great start. They recently were named the unanimous selection to win the Big East in the conference preseason poll, their top forward was the preseason selection to win the Big East Player of the Year, and they just beat the Irish National team 1-0. The Fighting Irish beat the Irish. You heard it here first. UND’s women soccer team is ranked No. 3 in the nation coming into the season, and the Ireland National Soccer team is ranked No. 27 in the world. So that gives you an idea about the impressiveness of the Notre Dame victory and the strength of the team this season. Said head coach Randy Waldrum,

“This was a positive first step for us this preseason, coming out only five days into camp and having a lot of people playing new positions. Ireland is a very organized and disciplined team and it really tested our focus and resiliency for 90 minutes. We saw some things that we’re obviously going to need to improve upon, but for our first time out, I was pleased with the effort and the result.”

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 12, 2009 - Post a comment

UND Not in SI’s Top 20… But Don’t Worry

Sports Illustrated just released it’s top 20 list for the college football preseason. For Notre Dame fans, it might at first be a little disappointing. The Fighting Irish, despite some positive vibes and an overall optimistic media approach to the team in the lead-up to the start of the season, did not make the top 20. In other popular sports media outlets the Irish have been ranked as high as 16th. But not this list. Tim Tebow’s Florida Gators were No. 1 and the USC Trojans were No. 4.

What can we, as Notre Dame fans, take from this that’s positive? Well, the good thing is that even though SI doesn’t think that the Irish will be in the top 20 (And who does a list of 20 anyways? Aren’t most sports lists 25 teams long?) there is only one team in their lost that the Irish will play that’s ranked on the list, USC. The Irish should face teams that are weaker than them, with the exception of the Trojans.

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 11, 2009 - Post a comment

Football Practice and Soccer Practice

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is right in the thick of the hardest part of their years– the summer training camps are well underway. The Irish have been dealing with some excessive heat, but as this UND.com article says, they got a little break and were able to work that much harder at preparing for the season. Good luck out there, boys. Keep hydrated.

In soccer news, the Notre Dame girls team has started up their summer workouts. The Fighting Irish women are expected to be, as usual, one of the best women’s soccer teams in the nation. Last year they were the national runners-up and they’re the reigning Big East Conference champs. The Irish have not lost to a conference team in 52 consecutive matches. Knock on wood.

The Irish men’s soccer team was highly active in the off season. Several members played for club teams over the break, which is a good thing– it keeps you sharp and in shape. The Irish were recently ranked in the top 20 for a prestigious college preseason soccer poll.

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 10, 2009 - Post a comment

Quinn’s TD to Samardzija Voted Best Play of Weis Era

It’s Friday and we have something fun for you Notre Dame fans: a look back at one of the great plays of not just the Charlie Weis era, but Notre Dame Fighting Irish history. Do you recall the 2006 UCLA game, when the Irish were on the verge of getting upset by the Bruins on their home field? Well, as you’ll remember, the Irish were able to mount a last-second comeback and win it in grand style. The play was voted the best of the Charlie Weis era in a recent special run at the UND.com.

But is it a bit too early to put together the best plays of the Weis era, considering that that era isn’t over yet. Suppose Jimmy Clausen throws a 60-yard bomb to beat USC this season- wouldn’t that make a mark in the top 10? What if the Irish win the national title game this season? Well, have some fun this weekend and start getting pumped about the next football season.

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Permalink - Posted in General on August 7, 2009 - Post a comment


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