Tag: Irish Breakdown

Lindy’s projects Notre Dame to face Brian Kelly, LSU in Peach Bowl

Imagine the hype for this one.

How crazy would it be for Notre Dame to face Brian Kelly and LSU only two years after Kelly bolted for Baton Rouge? Well, at least one projection has it happening. Bryan Driskell of Irish Breakdown has flipped through the annual college football preview published by Lindy’s Sports and learned that the magazine is projecting an Irish-Tigers matchup in the Peach Bowl. This would mark the Irish’s first appearance in this particular New Year’s Six bowl.

While this obviously would mean the Irish have come up short in making the College Football Playoff, it would generate just as much hype as if they had. With the Tigers not currently showing up on any future regular-season schedules, a bowl game is the only possibility for these programs to meet for the foreseeable future. To have it happen when emotions still are a bit raw over Kelly’s decision simply needs to happen. You know you want it, so let’s wish it into existence unless a national championship becomes possible.

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Big Game Boomer trolls Notre Dame, then argues with Irish writer

There’s really no reason any of this should have taken place, right?

Big Game Boomer is known on Twitter for ranking and listing just about everything in college football. His topics range from coordinator duos to teams’ biggest needs to stadium bathrooms. Another one is the best college football teams this season by state. That’s where you’ll find something very wrong with this picture:

One Irish writer who wouldn’t take this sitting down was Irish Breakdown publisher Bryan Driskell. He quote tweeted a reply in which Boomer tried to justify his decision, and it led to quite the exchange:

If Boomer wants to defend his choice based on how the Irish have done it big games recently, fair enough. It’s not like the Irish have accomplished a lot in those over the past decade. However, to rank Purdue, which won’t even sniff the preseason top 25, over the Irish at this moment is just dumb and reeks of bias.

Whatever. We all know better, and we know the Irish should be in the top 10 all season. Then maybe, just maybe, Boomer will walk his decision back.

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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.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Notre Dame and the ACC: Who’s Dependent on Who?

A new piece from Irish Breakdown makes the argument that the ACC needs the Irish more than the other way around.

A new piece from Irish Breakdown makes the argument that the ACC needs Notre Dame more than the other way around. The issue of the Irish’s independence arose again over the past week with the Big Ten and Pac-12 announcing conference-only schedules for 2020. But the aforementioned piece showed why that independence likely won’t be going away anytime soon, and it has everything to do with where the ACC is.

The ACC and Pac-12 both pulled in $29.5 million for each school last season, but those figures were behind the three other Power Five conferences. And in spite of Clemson’s dominance, it typically drew fewer TV viewers than Notre Dame did. What’s more, the ACC title game had its lowest ratings ever, and it was the fifth straight year that viewership for the game fell.

Notre Dame isn’t struggling for relevance, and a TV deal other schools only can dream of helps ensure that. So why do the Irish need to do something to appease the mass of critics? They’re only jealous. Right?

Great Forecast Given for Incoming Notre Dame Freshman RB Chris Tyree

Bryan Driskell, publisher of Sports Illustrated’s Irish Breakdown site, has written a lot about Notre Dame since 2014.

Bryan Driskell, publisher of Sports Illustrated’s Irish Breakdown site and football analyst for Blue and Gold Illustrated, has written a lot about Notre Dame since 2014. He also coached college football for a decade. The man knows talent when he sees it, and he thinks he’s found it with one of the Irish’s newest players.

Driskell has written about incoming Notre Dame freshman running back Chris Tyree. For a long time, the Irish have lacked someone in the backfield with game-changing speed, and Driskell thinks they’ve found that player in Tyree. This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who’s kept up with Notre Dame’s recruiting for the Class of 2024.

Though Driskell doesn’t anticipate that Tyree will start or even get the majority of carries right away, he advocates for Tyree to not only play this fall, but get seven to 10 touches in each game. He figures it’s the best way for Tyree to foster his game, even as he’s coming off an injury-plagued senior season in high school.

The idea of a Notre Dame running back being automatic seems ludicrous to longtime fans. That Tyree might be the one to change that generates excitement. The pressure is on the coaching staff to develop this kid the right way. Whether they actually do it will be a burning question for some time.