Daily ND Five - August 18, 2008

A little late this morning, as it is my week off before I start working again. And when I can sleep in, I will sleep in. In other words? Don't expect to see the Daily ND Five early this week.

One: Playing a lot of underclassmen may not be the worst thing that has ever happened to Notre Dame:

And Notre Dame is actually getting younger, because the sophomores now have to look over their shoulders. Gary Gray has a great shot of playing, but here comes Blanton, a cocky and talented frosh. Ragone's in the driver's seat at tight tend, but Rudy is impressing the hell out of everyone.

More there, plus a lot of comment thread worth reading. (The Rock Report)

Two: Some highlights from Coach Weis's media session. My favorite is this:

Speaking of quarterbacks, Weis said Nate Montana "could come in and finish a game for us if he needed to, which he just might do."

I assume that was meant for a laugh, but I do love the thought of a Montana coming in to finish a game. (eTruth)

Three: Another preview of the Notre Dame season. Here's the take on Boston College:

There was a huge controversy this week that dominated talk radio. The argument was whether it was poor sportsmanship for Coach Weis to keep his first string in the entire game, and to go for two in the final play of the game, thus ensuring the Irish would have sole possession of the most lopsided game ever in college football history.

Prediction: 223-0 Notre Dame

Color me highly amused. (Domer Law Blog)

Four: Satire works when it has a ring of truth:

Former American women's gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi will be joining Tom Hammond and Pat Haden in the booth, providing the unrelenting enthusiasm and unfiltered partisanship that Notre Dame fans appreciate, all bundled in a loveable old man with a great mustache and accent.

Oh, and Michael Phelps will be in the booth, too. (Rakes of Mallow)

Five: Leprechaun hunting in the South Bend area:

Whitton described spotting the bizarre, tiny magical humanoid creature in the very early hours of Saturday morning staggering out of a local drinking establishment, and the brief but harrowing firefight that ensued. In the end, magic or no magic, the pixie was no match for Whitton and Dyer's arsenal of modified assault rifles and body armor.

And here I thought leprechauns were more prevalent around Mobile. P.S. - I never get tired of that video. (The House Rock Built)

Daily ND Five - August 15, 2008

Today is my last day at my current job - if this seems at all distracted, that's the reason.

One: Just a reminder, Notre Dame has daily video of practice up on the official website. At this point, practice videos and the upcoming move are the only two things keeping me sane prior to real, actual college football games. (und.com)

Two: Another set of "Around Twenty Questions," this time with Golden Tate. Besides learning that Tate likes to fish, there is this:

II: What's the most crab legs you've eaten in a sitting?

GT: "Six or seven plates. Liked stacked up."

That's a lot of crab legs. I couldn't even make it through one plate of crab legs earlier this week. Then again, I am not a football player. (Irish Insights)

Three: Another loss from the junior class. This time, it's wide receiver Richard Jackson:

Jackson a native of Clermont, FL (East Ridge High School) was a highly sought after prospect in the 2006 recruiting class, when he ranked as the 87th best player on the USA today top 100 list. Jackson was also a first-team all-state selection in the talent-laden Florida class 6A division.

Jackson missed all of last season after breaking his wrist in the Blue-Gold game. (BlueandGold.com)

Four: A quick look at yesterday's practice:

One final absence to report: No. 60 was not at practice. That's right, Duval Kamara has his old No. 18 back, though not without some controversy, apparently.

Controversy involving a significant overnight weight loss. (eTruth)

Five: As this has to do with a Notre Dame opponent, I figure that it is worth posting:

That's right, folks, you read that correctly. Fully 25% of the Trojan football team has contracted a particularly ornery strain of jock itch, whose virulent epidemiology has left even Pete Carroll speechless, and I'm sure he's seen damned near every groin-related malady in his long tenure as a football coach.

The jokes right themselves. Which is probably why I can't come up with one. (NCAA Football Fanhouse)

Daily ND Five - August 14, 2008

For someone moving in a few days, I have packed surprisingly little. But I will definitely take care of the Daily ND Five. Much better idea than packing!

One: Bringing back some emotion to Notre Dame - both by the players and by the fans:

It has been a beautiful thing to watch as this team has pulled itself up from the dark abyss of 2007 and actually worked on being more physical and emotional out on the field.

The post is like a highlight reel of the off-season, in a good sense. (Subway Domer)

Two: Looking at some of our opponents during their respective fall camps. A tiny bit of these extensive previews, this is about the Michigan quarterback situation:

The team's quarterbacks continue to improve daily. An emphasis has been put on fundamentals due to each quarterback's limited collegiate experience, but the coaching staff is pleased with the breadth of the playbook that they have been able to handle.

Lots and lots more at Irish Band of Brothers to get you excited about the upcoming season (or scared about the upcoming season). (Irish Band of Brothers)

Three: Looking at the 2008 Notre Dame quarterbacks:

Last season was a long one for the young Clausen, who had been used to winning all of his athletic career, winning 4 state championships in high school. In his frosh campaign, Jimmy was sacked a whopping 27 times, more than twice as much as Brady Quinn was sacked in his freshman year.

Good stuff on all three quarterbacks. (Domer Law Blog)

Four: Notre Dame will be inviting back coaches and/or their families who won National Championships this season:

Holtz and Parseghian will be present, while approximately 20 Devine family members, 15 members of the Leahy family and six Rockne family members are expected to return for the weekend.

September 13th (also known as the date of the Michigan game) is the game celebrating the 20th anniversary of 1988 National Championship. (und.com)

Five: Around Twenty questions with Darrell "Flash" Gordon:

I still go on Notre Dame's campus and people still call me by Flash. When I hear people call me that name, I know it's a Notre Dame contact. I still get it today. But as time progressed, more folks called me by Darrell because they didn't understand my background. But when I'm around Notre Dame, I hear Flash.

My only problem here? Eight questions doesn't really qualify as "around twenty questions." I would have liked more - that's a good problem to have. (Irish Insights)

Daily ND Five - August 13, 2008

Already way behind this morning (so what else is new?). I'm hoping no one at work notices that I am gone, but, as my last day is Friday, there really isn't much they can do at this point. Now, on to the Five.

One: Wow, people were quite optimistic about last year's team. OC Domer takes a look at some rosy predictions from prior to the 2007 season from across the blog world:

Ah, memories! Times were simpler then. There certain things you could count on in this world. Like blocking, tackling, and beating Navy. But life is more complicated today.

Gosh, the good old days seem so far away. (OC Domer)

Two: A quick look back at the weekend of open practices:

Naturally, you have to avoid trying to go too far between the lines when consuming practice reports and massive amounts of coach-speak and spoon-fed cliches that come from the players in these settings. Everybody looks fine in practice, everybody's "just a little bit of confidence" away from having a big year. Even with that fully justified caveat, the "Dive Right In" philosophy is exactly where the Irish should be heading right now. No looking back, just charging straight forward. If nothing else, it beats the "throw it on the wall and see what sticks" style from a year ago.

I will definitely take the "Dive Right In" philosophy! (Section 29, Row48, Seat 10)

Three: Some thoughts on yesterday's open practice:

Ryan Burkhart has a strong, strong leg. He booted the ball into the end zone consistently both Sunday in the fan practice and again Tuesday during the media open practice. He'll be the kickoffs guy, no doubt.

I like the sounds of that. (Irish Insights)

Four: Then again, how much can we learn from a practice?

The Irish have 20 returning lettermen on offense and 16 on defense, but even that stat is deceiving. How valuable is experienced gained during lopsided losses in a 3-9 season? That answer, and others, will not be known until the Sept. 6 season opener against San Diego State -- and perhaps not even then.

Lots more questions marks follow and precede that one. (Post-Tribune)

Five: Lastly, not leastly, the final part in Classic Ground's look at the 1988 National Championship season:

Irish running back Mark Green remembers, “We had a ton of talent. It was a matter of putting yourself second. It was more important to me to help win a national championship with these guys at Notre Dame.” Frank Stams recalled, “That season was the most fun I ever had playing football.”

Part One is here, Part Two here. A highly recommended read. (Classic Ground)

Daily ND Five - August 12, 2008

The "Back To Drinking The Kool-Aid" Edition.

One: Some thoughts on why Notre Dame will be better this year:

Weis admitted that players were often scared to make mistakes which made the team uptight and drained all the emotion from their play. The payoff of Weis's decision to step back and encourage his team to show emotion was evident in the Blue Gold Game, where it actually looked like the kids were having fun and playing harder because of it. Notre Dame now looks like a team that wants to kick your ass and is going to talk it up and have fun doing it.

Gosh, Kool-Aid tastes great. (The Rock Report)

Two: Yet another preview that isn't so scary:

The first thing I noticed is that Notre Dame isn't facing a single receiver who cracked the thousand yard receiving mark last season. Even more striking, of the 27 starters listed here, only 9 had more receiving yards than John Carlson did on last year's NCAA-worst Irish offense.

More specifics on the wide receivers that Notre Dame will be facing this season here. (The Blue-Gray Sky)

Three: A look at yesterday's practice, which was open to the Notre Dame professors:

Briefly looking at the quarterbacks, it appears Dayne Crist has a higher release point than the rest of the quarterbacks, although it could be more deception since he's 6-4 while Jimmy Clausen is 6-3 and Evan Sharpley is 6-2. Neither Clausen nor Sharpley appear that tall, though.

Ah, the ol' height exaggeration. Nice. (Irish Insights)

Four: Part Three of Subway Domer's pre-season predictions, including some pre-game antics, including this bit about the Washington game:

The start of the game was delayed by over an hour as a chaotic set of events was set off when the newly unemployed Ty Willingham was found driving on the field with a pimped out Rolls Royce golf cart. As security chased him down Ty hit his NOS switch and gunned it towards Irish head coach Charlie Weis.

It just gets better from there. (Subway Domer)

Five: Some ND history - Part II of a look at the 1988 season contains this tidbit about life after the memorable Miami game:

For Pat Terrell, people still stop him on the street to congratulate him on the swatted-down 2-point conversion attempt: “There were fifty-nine thousand at that game that day…and I think every single one of them has told me over the…years…what they did or how they felt when I got that deflection. It gets kind of funny, but it still does mean a lot to me.”

More great thoughts here. (Classic Ground)

Daily ND Five - August 11, 2008

The "Making an Offer on a House Prevented Me From Posting Promised Updates" Edition. With an updated format to make up for the lack of promised posting, though!

One: Having drunk the post-press conference Kool-Aid, some sobering thoughts over at ND Nation:

The left side, particularly at tackle, is downright scary. Neither Paul Duncan nor backup Mike Turkovich is ideally suited for the position, but there is no one else available. Duncan does not have the requisite agility and footwork to neutralize opposing pass rushers, so he had better be able to yell, “Look out, Jimmy” at the appropriate times.

More things to help convince you that a loss against San Diego State is imminent here. (ND Nation - News and Views from the Board Ops)

Two: Some Sunday practice observations, including this tidbit on the grass:

Seeing the Notre Dame field up close, the new sod project seems to have taken well. The grass, unlike in previous years, is actually green now.

No word on the actual length (probably has something to do with USC being an away game this year). (Irish Insights)

Three: Some more thoughts on the open practice:

Weis got all over Golden Tate for not immediately running faster out of his stance on a deep ball thrown down the sideline. George West, David Grimes and Robbie Parris caught whatever was thrown to them. West had a chance to make a spectacular grab and Weis kidded him that catching it or not was the difference between him being on the front page of the sports page.

Lots more thoughts over there, some good, some not so good. (uhnd.com)

Four: An in-depth look at the scary special teams performance last year:

Notre Dame opponents averaged 10.25 touchbacks though the season last year. Notre Dame didn’t record a single touchback. That’s 10 times during the season that ND’s opponents didn’t have to worry about their opposition getting great field position. 10 times that ND opponents didn’t give their defenses craptastic circumstances. And 10 times ND didn’t do their own defense any favors.

Don't worry, it gets worse. (Her Loyal Sons)

Five: Lastly, not leastly, here is the link to all of the pre-season practice goodness, courtesy of Notre Dame. Only 26 days to go... (und.com)

Daily ND Five - August 8, 2008

The "Thanks To This Morning's Presser, I Am Drunk On The Kool-Aid (and P.S. - When Do the Weekly Press Conferences Start?)" Edition.

One: Even Coach Weis couldn't lay off of the Brett Favre issue at today's press conference. And who asked the question that involved Lee Corso? I could have done without that. (und.com)

Two: De-Fense Re-Cruit! De-Fense Re-Cruit! (The Rock Report)

Three: Predictions, part II, courtesy Subway Domer. (Subway Domer)

Four: More predictions, over at Her Loyal Sons. (Her Loyal Sons)

Five: Not predictions, but things to watch, from Domer Law Blog. (Domer Law Blog)

I have about half of an article done, that might see the light of day later today. If not today, over the weekend.

Daily ND Five - August 7, 2008

The "Please Tell Me I Don't Have to Hear Anything Else About Brett Favre EVER AGAIN" Edition.

One: A little Skywriting for you. (The Blue-Gray Sky)

Two: And also a little Classic 'Round the World. (Classic Ground)

Three: I try not to drink the Kool-Aid, but it's so darn tasty! (The Rock Report)

Four: Looking at Georgia's ranking in light of recent college football history - including some recent ND history. (College Football 360)

Five: Intriguing non-conference games - not surprisingly, Notre Dame makes a few appearances. (The Bleacher Report)

Daily ND Five - August 6, 2008

The "I'm Back From House Hunting In Another State" Edition.

One: Previewing the running backs. (The Blue-Gray Sky)

Two: If, like me, you didn't have the cash money to apply for football tickets, here's your chance to pick up some to various games. (und.com)

Three: Am I considering driving five hours to watch practice at Fan Appreciation Day? The answer to that is a definite yes. (und.com)

Four: The speculation about the Irish season does not end. (Chicago Sun-Times)

Five: The NCAA football schedule, helmet-ized for your pleasure. (Irish Round Table)

Daily ND Five - August 1, 2008

The "My Internet Is Working Again (Sort Of)" Edition.

One: Previewing this season's opposing quarterbacks. (The Blue-Gray Sky)

Two: Previewing the Notre Dame quarterbacks. (Rakes of Mallow)

Three: How about a preview of opposing running backs. (Irish Eyes)

Four: Continuing the timeless plays - Numbers six to three. (BlueandGold.com)

Five: Some of ND's annual rankings in The Princeton Review. (Irish Insights)

Daily ND Five - July 29, 2008

The "Hey, It's Shark Week!" Edition.

One: Timeless ND plays - Numbers 10-7. (BlueandGold.com)

Two: Ten out-of-conference games that would be great if they happened - including the actually happening ND-Washington game. (Fox Sports)

Three: Some more love for Chris Zorich. (und.com)

Four: Notre Dame - a team worth hating. (The Bleacher Report)

Five: It's all about hating today. (ESPN)

Daily ND Five - July 29, 2008

The "Up Early and Getting Things Done" Edition.

One: Timing - i.e., when we play them - for the final edition of The Case for Hope. (OC Domer)

Two: The expense of recruiting. Something I never thought about before. (South Bend Tribune)

Three: Another preview of Notre Dame. (The Sporting News)

Four: OK, I am not as upset as some about this scheduling tidbit, but it could be better. (Irish Band of Brothers)

Five: Because I can't leave it alone, guess who is hitting the links these days? (The Seattle Times - Husky Football Blog)

Daily ND Five - July 28, 2008

The "Nothing Related to a Certain Former ND Wide Receiver, Because I Am a White Sox Fan" edition.

One: Subway Domer's first part in a series of predictions for the games this season. (Subway Domer)

Two: Great nicknames in college football...look to Number One for a familiar group of men. (The Bleacher Report)

Three: A list of things to mention (or not to mention) when talking to fans of college football teams. Notre Dame is on there. (The Bleacher Report)

Four: An interview with Tony O'Hara/Roberts. (Post-Tribune)

Five: Robert Hughes is on this list of second year tailbacks to watch. (cfb360.com)

Man Shoots Lawn Mower

Ah, Wisconsin. Land of beer, cheese, and a seemingly endless array of people who manage to get themselves into situations that people elsewhere find amusing.

People such as this fellow:

According to the criminal complaint, Walendowski said he was angry because his Lawn Boy wouldn't start Wednesday morning. He told police quote, "I can do that, it's my lawn mower and my yard so I can shoot it if I want."

Really, though, who hasn't wanted to shoot something that wasn't working properly?

Daily ND Five - July 25, 2008

The "I need to get to work soon!" edition.

One: Updates on ND football players in the NFL. (The Blue-Gray Sky)

Two: I am not linking to the New York Times preview of Notre Dame, but I will link here, and you can read the rest of the article if you want. (Irish Insights)

Three: Some pre-season thoughts on where Gameday will be going - I miss Gameday! (The Bleacher Report)

Four: How about some pre-season thoughts on games to watch? (It's Insider content) (ESPN)

Five: I'm mostly posting this article on the cutting down of the trees because I am still upset that there will be no tailgating in these lots this year - they are all under construction. (South Bend Tribune)

Daily ND Five - July 24, 2008

The "I got caught up in work and an early meeting" edition.

One: Some more information on those pesky ads and the reporting of said ads. (The Rock Report)

Two: A day late, but a highly amusing look at some coaches on the hot seat (as opposed to those who are inevitably gone). P.S. - I want Fire Mark May updates! (Every Day Should Be Saturday)

Three: Speaking of Fire Mark May, here is something I love from the site. (Fire Mark May)

Four: September 20th as a do or die date for teams? (The Bleacher Report)

Five: How about a rebuttal to an article on Washington chances of beating Notre Dame? Someday, we shall give up this obsession...but that day is not today. (Irish Band of Brothers)

Daily ND Five - July 23, 2008

The "I have way too much work that I get paid for to be doing" edition.

One: Scheduling may make for a better season. (The Rock Report)

Two: A quick recap of the last few weeks. (Irish Insights)

Three: Keeping an eye out for potential violations of NCAA rules. (Chicago Sports.com)

Four: Prospects at Top Gun (not the one with Val Kilmer and Rick Rossovich - although the thought of Mr. Rossovich makes me want to watch that one when I should be working). (uhnd.com)

Five: Some info on the new football practice fields. (South Bend Tribune)

Daily ND Five - July 22, 2008

The "I'm off for a swim" edition.

One: Everytime I hear Pepper the Notre Dame Comeback Dolphin, I think of the Flipper theme song, with proper substitutions.

They call him Pepper, Pepper, faster than lightning,
No-one you see, is smarter than he,
And we know Pepper, lives in a world full of wonder,
Flying there-under, under the sea!

If only I could think of a word that rhymes with 'sea' that is appropriate to Notre Dame, it would totally work. (everydayshouldbesaturday.com)

Two: The return of Will Yeatman. (irishbandofbrothers.blogspot.com)

Three: Lou Holtz saved Chris Zorich from having to explain a spray paint incident to the Board of Bar Examiners later in life. (ncaafootball.fanhouse.com)

Four: Someone appears to have drunk the Kool-Aid, and for once, that person isn't me. (uhnd.com)

Five: Remembering a game that did not suck if you were sitting a mere few rows above the end zone where Samardzija scored, and what Coach Weis needs to do this year to not suck. (irishroundtable.com)

Random Hotness

Today's random hotness comes courtesy of College Football Live. Because I am starved for anything and everything college football, here are seven things that I took away from the first program of the season:

One: We start with a montage of intros from around the world, in many different languages. I'm guessing this is to remind us that the World Wide Leader is, indeed, world wide. Unlike, for example, college football.

Two: Brent Musburger introduced Jesse Palmer and Todd Blackledge, but not himself. That's not funny or anything, I just thought I would point out the little tidbit.

Three: Today (and, evidently, for many days to come), we are going to be subject to brackets to decide which helmet is the best in college sports. Is there really nothing better to do on this show than have a bracket to decide which helmet is the best in college sports?* Really? Perhaps actual analysis? Or do I ask too much of the WWL?

Four: During an interview with Tim Tebow, we learn that Tim Tebow is saving the world, one orphan at the time. Which we knew. We also learn that Tim Tebow loves him some Kenny Chesney. Could this end in a fight to the death between Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning for the love of a bald country superstar? A girl can only hope.

Five: Jim Tressel is on the show and he is not wearing a sweater vest! Avert your eyes! Also, just FYI, Jim Tressel does a horrible, horrible Inspector Clouseau impersonation. If ever you find yourself in a situation where Jim Tressel is going to start doing impersonations, consider yourself warned, and avert your ears.

Six: Random comment selected to appear on-screen during the Jim Tressel piece, which requires no comment: "I know the Bucks are going to go unbeaten and win the title. The only question is whether Beanie Wells wins the Heisman."

Seven: Georgia beat Miami in the first of the brackets to choose the best helmet in college football. Because I know you were totally on edge waiting for that result.

*Especially because the obvious answer is the helmet of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. No bracket needed to answer that question.

Non-Preview Preview - Michigan

The obligatory blog preview of the upcoming season, Sarah-style (i.e., the style for someone too lazy to preview teams properly).

Player Name Least Likely to Scare People: Bobby Centlivre. It means 100 books in French. Nothing scary about that (unless you’re a Michigan kinesiology major).

Obligatory Song for the Tailgate Mix: In honor of Appalachian State, I will go with a song best remembered for its video featuring an animated cat/cat-resembling creature:

Sport Michigan Sucked At Last Year: Women’s soccer, with a 3-9-6 record. This record includes such exciting games as a 0-0 tie with Notre Dame. And yet, people still try to convince me that soccer is not boring. To quote King of the Hill, “I’d rather be on a losing football team than a winning soccer team any day.”

If You Come Here, You Can Major In: Kinesiology! Okay, that’s too easy, even for me. How about Jazz and Contemplative Studies? I have visions of people smoking weed, listening to jazz, and having profound thoughts, all for credit (obviously). I also assume that most of those profound thoughts have to do with the complete and utter lack of discipline in the kinesiology department.

Neighbor of Mine Michigan Most Resembles: The dude with the Mustang. It’s his new baby, and he washes the thing at least twice a week. If anything you say or do can be construed as an insult to the Mustang (such as wearing a Corvette tank top out to your own car while he happens to be washing his car), you will get an earful at an abnormally loud level about the superiority of the Mustang to every other car in the world – except some classic Mustang that his dad used to drive. I avoid Mustang dude at all costs.

Mustang = Rich Rodriguez. Old Mustang = Bo Schembechler. It’s an uncanny resemblance, right down to the over-reaction at any perceived slight.

Random Conclusion Unrelated to the Game Itself: This is still one of my all time favorite commercials. Does it have anything to do with Notre Dame? Nope. Do I care? Nope.