Tag: Hurricanes

Notre Dame No. 1, and Big Ten ‘Desperate’ to Get into State of Florida

As long as conference expansion is discussed, Notre Dame will be the top target of all.

Notre Dame is pridefully independent in football.  If you do the least bit of research, something many struggles to do, you can see why being independent means so much to those associated in any capacity with the football program.

But that doesn’t keep the rest of the nation of college football fans and analysts from wishing it were another way.

[autotag]Greg McElroy[/autotag] was discussing conference realignment on his podcast Always College Football, and when asked about potential Big Ten expansion targets, stated the obvious regarding Notre Dame.

“The No. 1 team that they would target would be Notre Dame, Notre Dame by a mile…Notre Dame is everyone’s No. 1.”

-Greg McElroy

Before anyone jumps on McElroy for putting Notre Dame in a conference, please realize he was answering a question that was asked to him by a viewer.

The more interesting part to me is the conversation he has about Miami possibly joining the Big Ten as he calls the conference “desperate” to get into the state of Florida.

Miami would do that, as would Florida State, which McElroy discusses and shares why both would make sense, specifically together.

You can see the entire conversation below.

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This two-round 2024 mock draft has the Saints prioritizing the line of scrimmage

This two-round 2024 mock draft has the Saints prioritizing the line of scrimmage, starting with finding Bryan Bresee’s new tag-team partner:

Mock drafts are all the rage, and the bye week presents a good opportunity for New Orleans Saints fans to take a look at which prospects are impressing ahead of the 2024 NFL draft. We’ve got a two-round projection from Curt Popejoy over at Draft Wire, who has the Saints investing their first-round pick on Miami Hurricanes defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III.

Taylor is a perfect fit at a listed 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, and he’s disruptive with 22.5 tackles for loss in his 28-game career thus far. Bryan Bresee looks like the real deal and pairing him with someone like Taylor could set the Saints up at defensive tackle for years to come. They could lose Malcolm Roach in free agency in the spring which opens a slot in the rotation. Nathan Shepherd has played the most snaps at defensive tackle this season but he’s going to turn 31 next year in the second year of his three-year contract. Adding Taylor could help the Saints get younger and faster up front.

But the Saints’ pick in the second round of this mock draft would be a good get, too. Popejoy has them taking Washington offensive lineman Troy Fautanu at the No. 45 pick coming back from the Denver Broncos. Fautanu is someone we highlighted in our own recent five-round projection as someone who could help the Saints out at either left tackle or left guard, where things are very uncertain moving forwards.

Andrus Peat has looked like their best player at left tackle after taking over for Trevor Penning after he was benched, but he’s a free agent in the spring, and James Hurst hasn’t been that impressive at either spot. Maybe Fautanu can help the Saints figure out a long-term plan at one of those positions. Either way, the Saints are not winning at the line of scrimmage often enough on either side of the ball this season, and it’s clear that they should continue to invest in their offensive and defensive lines to get better up front.

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30-year old Saints rookie Lou Hedley has won the Saints punter competition

30-year old rookie Lou Hedley has won the Saints punter competition

Now isn’t that something: the New Orleans Saints will be going in a new direction at punter this season, with 30-year-old rookie Lou Hedley named the starter ahead of third-year pro Blake Gillikin. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill first reported that Hedley won the job, adding that the Saints are seeking to trade Gillikin if possible.

Hedley might be the most interesting man in the NFL. The former scaffolder hails from Australia and has pursued other ventures before trying his hand at pro football, including owning a tattoo shop in Indonesia. He sold his stake in the business to fund a move to America, where he eventually joined the Miami Hurricanes and put NFL scouts on notice.

He’ll soon be punting on Sundays. The Saints also made a change at kicker by going with Blake Grupe (another rookie) and trading Wil Lutz to the Denver Broncos, where he’s reunited with Sean Payton. Dennis Allen is putting his own specialists in place in a pivotal year for his coaching career.

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Notre Dame football: Miami (FL) no longer on the schedule for 2024

Inability to manage a schedule – it’s a Canes thing!

Few rivalries can be defined by a t-shirt but Notre Dame vs. Miami fits that mold.  Three simple words tell you pretty much everything you need to know about how the two feel about each other.

Catholics vs. Convicts.

Say no more.

You hear those words and flashbacks to 1988 immediately come to mind regardless of who you’re a fan of.

The once-annual football rivalry is a shell of itself now as the Irish and Hurricanes only meet when the rotation of Notre Dame’s ACC games calls for it.

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That is, unless Miami over-books themselves and has to do some rearranging to their schedule.

Watch: Top Ten defensive ending plays in Notre Dame football history

I’m not going to argue that the top two on this wound up sealing wins for Notre Dame over top-ranked teams in the nation. However, you can’t convince me there is a more impressive play on the list than the two goal line tackles made on the east coast to seal victories. 

Notre Dame released another NDTop10 over the weekend with the greatest defensive plays to seal victories being counted down.  In looking at this list it’s important to go realize they’re still thinking biggest wins and not so much actual toughest or most-amazing play to win the games.

Before I share my thought after and what I would have put number one, take a watch for yourself.  Some great memories in this one, almost all I could tell you where I was watching the moments unfold.

Well, except for the couple I wasn’t born yet for…

I’m not going to argue that the top two on this wound up sealing wins for Notre Dame over top-ranked teams in the nation. However, you can’t convince me there is a more impressive play on the list than the two goal line tackles made on the east coast to seal victories.  Stanford in 2012 resulting in a 12-0 regular season I think makes it more impressive than any one of the tackles on that stand, as great as it was.

To me the most impressive plays on the list come in 1995 against Army and in 1998, especially the third down tackle against Boston College.  Both tackles are like running into brick walls, just entirely stopped dead in their tracks, even if bigger opponents and games were won by balls being batted away.

28-year-old rookie Saints punter Lou Hedley might be the most interesting man in the NFL

28-year-old rookie Saints punter Lou Hedley might be the most interesting man in the NFL. The Australian ex-scaffolder was sensational at Miami:

The New Orleans Saints might have added the most interesting man in the NFL after the 2023 draft, having signed Australian punter Lou Hedley after his sensational run with the Miami Hurricanes. He hails from Mandurrah, a coastal city of about 107,000 people in Western Australia, and he’s as unique as they come.

Get to know him a little better before he arrives in New Orleans for rookie minicamp practices in a few weeks:

ACC Baseball Standings/Schedule: March 24, 2023

ACC baseball standings and weekend schedule entering the third weekend of games this conference season…

Another weekend of college baseball is upon us and it offers a full slate of conference matchups in the ACC. Two weekends into the conference season it’s tough to see anyone running away with the race, but rough starts by Virginia Tech and Pitt in the Coastal have put both teams behind the eight ball early.

Notre Dame dropped two-of-three on the road last weekend at Wake Forest. Will the Irish be up for the tough task against Louisville this weekend? The Cardinals have had even the best Notre Dame team’s number in recent years?

Here’s how the ACC baseball standings look entering the weekend of March 24 along with the schedule of conference matchups this weekend.

Saints tabbed for another second-round QB in preseason 2023 mock draft

The Saints have been tabbed to pick another second-round QB prospect in the latest 2023 mock draft, selecting Miami Hurricanes passer Tyler Van Dyke:

We’re quickly approaching the start of the 2022 college football season, so it’s a good time to brush up on which prospects could get on the New Orleans Saints’ radar in the fall, even if they’re working without their first-round pick. And the latest 2023 NFL mock draft from Luke Easterling over at Draft Wire has added another name to our watch list: Miami Hurricanes quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, who posted the ACC’s second-best passer rating in 2021.

Van Dyke, an underclassman, impressed by throwing 25 touchdown passes against just 6 interceptions in nine games last year, relieving D’Eriq King after the starter went down with a season-ending injury. He’s shown enough anticipation and accurate ball placement that suggests he can compete at a pro level, though another year leading the Hurricanes should do well for his development. His new head coach Mario Cristobal has sent passers like Justin Herbert to the NFL, and he made that exact comparison between Herbert and Van Dyke over the summer.

Cristobal praised his quarterback during a June appearance on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, saying “He’s incredible. I mean, an exceptional leader. He’s a relentless-pursuit-of-excellence guy, his decision making is on point, his accuracy, his arm strength. He understands protections, the run game. He is a complete player. He really is and he’s very mobile. His pocket presence is off the charts. He understands the offense as well as anybody I’ve been around. He reminds me a lot of what we had at Oregon with Justin Herbert.”

Obviously Van Dyke still has a ways to go, and the 2022 season should be instructive. He’s being projected in the second round of mock drafts for good reason. NFL teams have only seen a small sample size from him and will want a full year’s worth of tape to evaluate. As far as how he stacks up against other 2023 prospects, Easterling has six different quarterbacks going inside the first two rounds, with Van Dyke the lowest-ranked player in the group (landing in New Orleans at No. 45 overall).

So while Van Dyke has shown plenty to like at this early stage in his college career, it’s not a sure thing that the Saints will in the quarterback market in the spring. They like what they’ve seen out of Jameis Winston, too, and if he can stay healthy and produce well they could very well stick with him long-term. But it’s on him to display the growth as a passer needed to make that decision. If Winston falls short of expectations, New Orleans could definitely be in the mix for a player like Van Dyke next April.

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Tennessee assistant a new name for Miami’s offensive coordinator position

Tennessee assistant is a new name for Miami’s offensive coordinator position.

First-year head coach Mario Cristobal is continuing to assemble his staff at Miami after being hired by the Hurricanes in December.

The Hurricanes are looking to fill a vacant offensive coordinator position under Cristobal.

Tennessee offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Alex Golesh is a new name to know in filling the vacant position, per Gaby Urrutia of 247Sports.

Golesh came to Tennessee after serving in the same capacity at UCF in 2020 under Josh Heupel.

Former Northern Illinois head coach Joe Novak describes Alex Golesh as ‘very sharp, intelligent’

Follow us at @VolsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of University of Tennessee athletics.

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Miami the latest to withdraw from bowl game

Another bowl very much in jeopardy…

The news with college football in regards to COVID in the last few days has been rough with teams having to withdraw from bowl games and games being cancelled in all.

The Military Appreciation Bowl and Fenway Bowls were both cancelled earlier on Sunday and we can now add another bowl potentially to that list.

Related: A look back at Notre Dame’s Sun Bowl win over Miami

Miami (FL), who was supposed to play Washington State in the Sun Bowl, is unable to field a team due to COVID protocols.  Washington State arrived in El Paso for the game on Sunday.  The game is scheduled to be played on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve.

According to Brett McMurphy, it is unknown if the Sun Bowl will be able to find a replacement for the Hurricanes.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed that things slow down in regards to the cancellations.

Related:

Top 10 Notre Dame plays of 2021 regular season