Tag: Crossroads Classic

Fighting Irish Wire makes Notre Dame Stadium debut at Blue Gold Game

Major stepping stone for our site.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The first Notre Dame event Fighting Irish Wire covered on location was the final edition of the Crossroads Classic. That was in late 2021. Since then, we have covered many Irish men’s and women’s basketball games at Purcell Pavilion and elsewhere. We also traveled to Boston a year ago when the baseball team played at Fenway Park.

However, we never have had media access to any football events, let alone one at Notre Dame Stadium. That changes today with the annual Blue Gold Game to wrap up spring practices. Yes, you read that correctly. Fighting Irish Wire is covering its first event inside the House That Rockne Built.

As of this writing, we aren’t entirely sure what we’ll be writing about today. What we are sure of is we’re excited to be here, and we hope this will serve as a dress rehearsal to covering at least some regular-season games here this fall. We appreciate your support on this big day for our site.

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Big Game Boomer: Notre Dame biggest college brand in…Illinois?

Not sure we agree with this.

It’s no secret that a large portion of Notre Dame’s fan base is in the Chicago area. That’s reflected by the fact that every writer on this site is based there. But is that reflective of the state of Illinois as a whole?

Big Game Boomer, a top college sports list and graph aficionado on social media, has been mentioned on here many times before. His latest entry as of this writing is a U.S. map that lists the biggest college brand by state. Notre Dame is listed for Illinois and the only school not located in the state it represents:

Inevitably, someone asked about this, and he was quick to respond:

And when asked why Indiana doesn’t have Notre Dame, he said this:

The first event I covered on location for this site was the now-defunct Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis. Even though the Irish were the designated home team, the crowd at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was heavily for the Hoosiers. So the statement about the Hoosiers owning the Hoosier State is not wrong.

Still, as nice as it is to see Notre Dame represented on this map, it’s hard to call it the best college brand in the Land of Lincoln. Sure, Northern Illinois is too small for consideration, and everyone is distancing themselves from Northwestern right now, but what about Illinois? While the Illini football program has done little to help the brand lately, it’s a little unfair to discount those fans.

Anyone who lives in Illinois knows that the further south you go, the more you’ll find people who don’t care for Chicago. I won’t go into the reasons for that here, but this is one case where Chicago probably shouldn’t represent the whole state.

Illini fans reign supreme throughout Illinois, and one merely needs to travel throughout to find them. They are proud, and they are passionate about their team. Many of them still are mourning the loss of Chief Illiniwek as an official university symbol.

So as nice as it is to have Notre Dame as Illinois’ representative on this map, it really should be a school from Illinois. And Illini fans probably are most deserving to represent the state. After all, Chicago is a pro sports town first, so it should not be taken into account when making a map like this. Consider the rest of the state please next time, Big Game Boomer.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Micah Shrewsberry wants annual game to showcase Notre Dame in Indiana

Are you a fan of this idea?

Since being named Notre Dame coach, [autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag] has had Indiana at the front of his mind, and not only because he’s from there. Recognizing the state’s rich heritage and talent pool, he’s made it his mission to put the Irish on the same level of recognition as Indiana, Purdue and Butler. It’s not stopping with recruiting either.

In an appearance on “College Hoops Today with Jon Rothstein,” Shrewsberry mentioned how he wants at least one of those aforementioned teams involved with the Irish regularly:

This past season was the first without the Crossroads Classic, which had been held in December in Indianapolis for several years. On the Irish’s local media day before the season, [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] expressed relief the program didn’t have to deal with it anymore. The Irish finished below .500 all-time in that event, so his feelings were somewhat understandable.

But there’s a new sheriff in town, and Shrewsberry wants to embrace the Irish being part of the Hoosier State, not move away from it. It’s unknown when or if at least one of the former Crossroads Classic participants will be seen on the Irish’s schedule again. A game in Indianapolis probably is more likely to happen first. Whatever happens, Shrewsberry’s pro-Indiana approach could change things for the better in South Bend.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Notre Dame in the Crossroads Classic through the years

The Irish could have fared better during this event.

Notre Dame is set to face Indiana in what will be the final Crossroads Classic at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

The four-team event, which includes Purdue and Butler, has been held every December since 2011 but is coming to an end after this season. It’s a pity an event meant to celebrate all things basketball in a state known for the sport will not exist anymore, especially since it hasn’t been around for very long.

However, all things must come to an end, and the time for this one to wrap up is now.

The Irish are 4-6 in the Crossroads Classic, so they will have a losing record all time for the event. Here is how those games have gone:

Notre Dame will face Georgia in Atlanta on Dec. 18

Make your plans to head to the Peach State in December.

While we still don’t know Notre Dame’s complete 2022-23 schedule, we now know of at least two December games. That’s thanks to this tidbit from Tom Noie of the South Bend Tribune:

As this game is being held the weekend before Christmas, it appears to be this year’s replacement for the Crossroads Classic, the annual Indiana college basketball showcase that was held for the final time last season after the Irish opted out of it. The good news is the Irish still will have the luxury of playing in an NBA arena at the same time of year.

The Irish and Bulldogs previously have met three times. They most recently faced each other during the 2011 CBE Classic in Kansas City, Missouri. After having lost twice to the Irish, the Bulldogs got on the board in the all-time series with a 61-57 win. [autotag]Jerian Grant[/autotag] had a game-high 20 points and led the Irish with four assists.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Caleb Swanigan leads Purdue past Notre Dame in 2016 Crossroads Classic

RIP to a terrific player.

The basketball world is stunned by the news that former Purdue All-American and NBA player Caleb Swanigan is dead at 25. In two seasons with the Boilermakers, Swanigan averaged 19.7 points and 10.4 rebounds a game. He was a 2017 first-round selection of the Portland Trail Blazers and played 65 games for them over three seasons. He also was a Sacramento King for 10 games in between.

Swanigan played one game against Notre Dame. That occurred during the 2016 edition of the now-defunct Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis. Facing an Irish team that was coming off back-to-back Elite Eights, Swanigan was the straw that stirred the Boilermakers that day as he had a game-high 26 points to go with 10 rebounds in an 86-81 win. Meanwhile, the Irish got 23 points from [autotag]Bonzie Colson[/autotag] and 22 from [autotag]Matt Farrell[/autotag].

Our thoughts and prayers go to the Swanigan family during this difficult time. He might only have faced the Irish once, but his mark on basketball in Indiana never will be forgotten.

Joe Lunardi has Notre Dame among ‘Last Four In’ in latest Bracketology

Will the Irish go dancing this year?

Notre Dame has been playing very well since late December, and college basketball experts are taking notice. The Irish won two out of three games played over five days, including a road victory over ACC-leading Miami. They have clawed their way toward the top of the conference, leading to speculation as to whether they might make the NCAA Tournament in a down year for the ACC. If ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology is to be believed, the answer is yes, at least before the Irish play at NC State on Saturday:

Just the fact that the 15-7 Irish are good enough to be considered for the Last Four In is a testament to how far this team has come. It’s like a light went on after the Crossroads Classic loss against Indiana because the clunkers have been few and far in between since then. With a month left before the ACC Tournament, now is not the time to let up. You want to create as much distance between yourself and the bubble as possible if you can.

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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

One more Notre Dame Crossroads Classic loss for the road

The Irish won’t miss this event at all.

INDIANAPOLIS — Notre Dame’s decision to back out of the Crossroads Classic led to the event’s demise. Given its history in the event, it probably won’t missed in South Bend. Indiana dealt the Irish one more bad memory by beating them, 64-56, to give the program a final event record of 4-7.

During the second half, the Irish (4-5) erased a 10-point Hoosiers (9-2) lead with an 11-1 run, tying the game at 46 with over eight minutes to go. That was as good as it got for the rest of the game as the Hoosiers went on an 8-0 run that came too late for the Irish to overcome. Soon after, a two-handed dunk by future NBA player Trayce Jackson-Davis served as the final dagger and whipped the heavy Hoosiers contingent at Gainbridge Fieldhouse into a frenzy.

Appropriately, Jackson-Davis was the most productive Hoosier with 17 points and 12 rebounds, completing a double-double. Parker Stewart had 12 points, most of which came on three 3-pointers. Xavier Johnson scored 11 despite shooting only 3 of 11 from the field and committing four turnovers. Race Thompson also had 11.

Dane Goodwin, one of three active Irish players to play in the Crossroads Classic four times, was responsible for much of the Irish’s scoring with a team-high 15 points. Blake Wesley was just behind with 14 points, though he was compounded by 5-of-16 shooting from the field. Paul Atkinson Jr. had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds to go with four steals.

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Notre Dame vs. Indiana: First-Half Analysis

This game isn’t over by a long shot.

INDIANAPOLIS ⁠— Notre Dame might be tired of the Crossroads Classic, but it still showed up to play in the last one. With the jury still out on what type of team this is, some might have been a little surprised to see it play well against Indiana in the first half. Whatever the Irish are, they’ll be happy to have only a 30-27 deficit against the Hoosiers at halftime.

Shortly after the Irish fell behind, 8-7, with a little over five minutes gone, Paul Atkinson Jr. made a jumper to give his team a lead it would not relinquish until two-and-a-half minutes remained in the first half. A mostly decent display of offense (though it was both sloppy and nonexistent in the final minutes) and timely defense in which it forced several turnovers put the Irish in great position in front of a mostly pro-Hoosiers crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Barring a dramatic reversal in the second half, this will be far from a cakewalk, unlike the Purdue-Butler game that took place right before this one.

Blake Wesley is primed for another big game after leading the Irish with eight first-half points. Dane Goodwin isn’t far behind with seven, so the two players everyone is keeping their eye on have not disappointed so far. Atkinson has been superb on defense with five rebounds and three steals.

Yes, we’re actually here to cover Notre Dame in Indianapolis

Can you believe we’re here? Neither can we.

INDIANAPOLIS — No, this is not a drill. As we said before, we actually have been credentialed to cover Notre Dame in its Crossroads Classic game against Indiana.

This is the first time Fighting Irish Wire has gone out on location, and what better event to do it for than one that celebrates all things basketball in a state where the sport reigns supreme? That makes it all the more upsetting that the Crossroads Classic is going away, but who can blame the Irish for wanting to leave since they have to travel the furthest of any of the four programs it involves?

After Purdue blew out Butler in the first game, it’s up to the Irish to prevent a Big Ten sweep of the day. With a 4-6 all-time record, they won’t be able to leave this event behind with a winning record. However, they can prove once again they can hold their own against a quality nonconference opponent. They were able to do so against Kentucky, so they definitely are capable of doing it for the second time in a week.

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