Tag: Jerome Bettis

Jerome Bettis predicts future of Steelers QB Kenny Pickett

Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Fame running back Jerome Bettis believes Kenny Pickett has the it factor.

If the preseason foreshadows the next 18 weeks, Kenny Pickett will be pretty good, and Jerome Bettis knows it.

“I really believe he has the potential to be a superstar. I think if he develops the way he has been and continues to, I think the sky is the limit for this football team because I think we have some special players all over the football field,” Bettis told WTAE.

Though he’s now a spectator, he was a pro at watching a rookie grow after Ben Roethlisberger was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2004. He witnessed his ups and downs and everything he went through to improve his game — a process that Pickett started in earnest this offseason.

Kenny Pickett’s Growth Process

He worked tirelessly with personal quarterbacks coach Tony Racioppi to improve technique and learn from past mistakes. He put as much work in on the field throwing as he did in the film room studying.

“He watched every incompletion he threw last year and took notes on it,” Racioppi told Matt Lombardo of FanBuzz.

In his first 13 games, Pickett threw 144 incompletions and nine interceptions. He meticulously studied each to make that ever-important second-year leap.

“He was looking for themes,” said Racioppi. “Every time I have to climb the pocket and look for a second-level throw, do I sail the ball? Is there a common thing? Are there five or six of those? That’s how you start your program. … Let’s fix the issues I had last year from a fundamental standpoint.”

From the preseason look of things, it’s worked like a charm. Pickett went 13-of-15 for 199 yards for a perfect passer rating of 158.3 in five drives. The performance has even the national media hyped about what’s to come this season, with many tabbing him as a top candidate for a breakout season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers kick it off on September 10 when they host the San Fransisco 49ers.

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ChatGPT ranks top 10 running backs in Notre Dame history

How do you feel about this list?

We recently put AI writing tool ChatGPT to the test and had it list what it believed was Notre Dame’s top 10 quarterbacks. The list surely caused some debate for some readers, but guess what? We’re going to cause you to think again by having it generate its list of the top 10 running backs in program history.

Some of you might disagree with what ChatGPT says, and others might even say the list is too short. However, the point of this is to make you think and spark discussion. Also, even though ChatGPT has not been updated since September 2021, it’s a safe assumption that no one on the Irish since then has played well enough to have a place on this list with the possible exception of [autotag]Kyren Williams[/autotag]. Just out of curiosity though, would you include him?

Anyway, without further adieu, here’s the list with ChatGPT’s descriptions of each player. Some entries have been edited for clarity and updates:

Jerome Bettis, Jr. headed back to Notre Dame

Come on through!

The son of one of the best and most famous players to wear blue and gold at Notre Dame is going to visit the campus again soon. Jerome Bettis, Jr., who is entering his junior year at Woodward Academy in Georgia, will be at Notre Dame’s cookout day on July 30 according to Irish Breakdown.

“I’ve said it before but the main thing I love about Notre Dame is their emphasis on recruiting me,” Bettis Jr. told Irish Breakdown in the past. “They recognize that I still have other schools pursuing me, and that they still need to recruit me the same way they would anyone else. Them letting me know that they want me for me is something that really stood out to me.”

Bettis is a different player than his old man. The younger Bettis is a wide receiver and stands 6 feet, 2 inches. He holds offers from Notre Dame, Boston College, Arkansas, UConn and UMass and has taken visits to other programs as well.

Notre Dame has two commitments in the 2025 recruiting class: tight end [autotag]Nate Roberts[/autotag] and defensive lineman [autotag]Davion Dixon[/autotag].

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About that Super Bowl ring on Pawn Stars

Yeah, it belongs to a former Notre Dame player…

[autotag]Joe Montana[/autotag] won three of them as the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers but it’s not his we’re talking about.

[autotag]Jerome Bettis[/autotag] played his final football game in Super Bowl XL in his hometown of Detroit but it’s not the ring he received, either.

And it wasn’t Paul [autotag]Hornung[/autotag]’s, the first former Notre Dame player to win a Super Bowl, who we are talking about either.

Instead, take a quick trip down memory lane to former Notre Dame and New England Patriots cornerback [autotag]Brock Williams[/autotag].  He won a Super Bowl XXXVI with the Pats in an upset of the Rams.  The ring he received from the team for winning is no longer his, though.

However, if you’ve watched the TV show “Pawn Stars” then chances are good you’ve seen his ring.  Williams once pawned it for $2,600 to Rick Harrison.  If you’ve seen the show but are unfamiliar with names, Harrison is the bald guy who makes the majority of deals and is seemingly always calling in an expert.  The ring Williams pawned is featured in the show’s open each episode.

Williams told ESPN in 2011 when asked about the ring that:

“Ah, man, that was a bad time,” he says over the phone, letting the space between his words linger. “I’m just trying to put that all behind me.” – Brock Williams

Meanwhile, Harrison clearly sees it from a different perspective:

“You want the thing a guy worked his whole life to get,” -Rick Harrison

Here’s to hoping that Williams has resolved those bad times.

Ring, or no ring.

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Best NFL player to wear each jersey number: How many Rams were picked?

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar picked the best player ever to wear each jersey number and 6 Rams made the list. Can you guess who?

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There are some players in NFL history who became impossible to see wearing any other jersey number. Tom Brady and the No. 12 go hand in hand, just as Aaron Donald and No. 99 do.

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar went through the fun (and challenging) exercise of picking the best player to ever wear each jersey number, from No. 00 to 99. The Rams have had some historic names suit up for them throughout the franchise’s history, many of whom made Farrar’s list.

It’s easy to think of a few, like Marshall Faulk and Eric Dickerson rocking Nos. 28 and 29, as well as Orlando Pace in his No. 76 uniform. In total, six Rams were selected, including Donald at the very end.

Marshall Faulk: No. 28

Eric Dickerson: No. 29

Aeneas Williams: No. 35

Jerome Bettis: No. 36

Orlando Pace: No. 76

Aaron Donald: No. 99

Faulk wore No. 28 throughout his NFL career, including his first five seasons with the Colts before going to the Rams in 1999. It was a tough number to sift through because there were a lot of deserving picks, including Adrian Peterson, Darrell Green and Darren Woodson, but Faulk was the best choice.

Dickerson edged out Harold Jackson, Earl Thomas, Ken Houston and others at No. 29, a number he wore his entire NFL career, too. No. 35 wasn’t as loaded as some other numbers, but the Hall of Famer Williams made those digits look good for both the Cardinals and Rams.

Bettis is best known for his time with the Steelers but he got started with the Rams, where he also wore No. 36. Pace and Steve Hutchinson were the top candidates at No. 76, along with Marion Motley and Steve Wisniewski.

At No. 99, there were a host of current and future Hall of Famers alongside Donald. J.J. Watt is one of the best ever, as is Warren Sapp. Jason Taylor also got consideration thanks to his Hall of Fame resume. But Donald is one of the rare all-time greats who’s still currently playing, and his resume at the end of his career will be the best of anyone to wear No. 99.

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Cole Kmet set to graduate from Notre Dame

Congrats, Cole!

It always is inspiring to see a professional athlete who left college early come back to finish their degree. Notre Dame football has had many of those in recent years, including [autotag]Jerome Bettis[/autotag], [autotag]Jaylon Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Stephon Tuitt[/autotag]. Now, it’s [autotag]Cole Kmet[/autotag]’s turn.

Ahead of commencement at Notre Dame this weekend, Eric Hansen of InsideNDSports wrote a piece about Kmet’s academic journey. With three years as a Chicago Bears tight end under his belt, he returned to South Bend in January and moved in with his brother, [autotag]Casey Kmet[/autotag], a starting infielder on the baseball team. One semester later, he will have his degree in political science.

The next former Irish player to join the delayed graduate club appears to be [autotag]Kyle Hamilton[/autotag], who began working towards that goal during the past semester after his rookie season with the Baltimore Ravens. It’s great to know so many current and former NFL players, no matter what university they went to, are going back to finish what they started. It certainly will do a lot to dispel the notion that college athletes who turn pro early don’t care about their studies.

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

Something strange in Notre Dame’s neighborhood

Who you gonna call?

It has been quite the week at Notre Dame. Condoleezza Rice and Rick Bayless were on campus, but neither caused quite the stir that Peyton and Eli Manning did. At first, some attention seekers on social media claimed the two Super Bowl winning quarterbacks were there because of their five-star quarterback nephew, Arch Manning.

That clearly turned out to be false, but the Mannings were at Notre Dame to record part of an episode of “Peyton’s Places,” which airs on ESPN+.  ESPN describes the show as one that “revisits seminal moments in NFL history through conversations with former players, coaches and other key figures about football and its cultural impact.”

Notre Dame was a stop on that tour, and we know that once it airs it will feature some kind of ghost busting by a two hall of famers and a third that likely will be before long.

That was very cool of the Mannings to let a Notre Dame student participate in the skit with them.  I’m looking forward to it whenever it gets released.

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All of Notre Dame’s first round NFL draft picks since 1975

Which had the best NFL career?

Notre Dame has had a long history of winning a lot of football games and putting a bunch of talent in the pros.  You know plenty of the names that turned into NFL stars and plenty would didn’t have as great of professional careers, either.

This past NFL draft, [autotag]Kyle Hamilton[/autotag] became the latest former Notre Dame player to become a first-round NFL draft pick.  He joins a long list of Fighting Irish greats that have had their names called in the first round.

Will Michael Mayer become the latest former Fighting Irish star to hear his name called in the first round of the draft?  We’ll find out the evening of April 27.

[autotag]Jerome Bettis[/autotag], [autotag]Tim Brown[/autotag], and [autotag]Bryant Young[/autotag] are just a few of the greats who have been first-round picks.  Below is the entire list of first-round NFL draft picks that Notre Dame has produced since 1975.

 

Notre Dame football: Scholarship offer made to son of Irish legend

He’s not just any legacy, either…

Few to ever wear the blue and gold made the impact [autotag]Jerome Bettis[/autotag] was able to make in his three years at Notre Dame.  Now might his son get the same opportunity?  On St. Patrick’s Day which the Fighting Irish staff has tried to make their own thing, Jerome Bettis, Jr. was one of many recruits to receive a scholarship offer.

Jerome Bettis, Jr. isn’t small by any means but isn’t built like his father, either.  He’s listed at 6-3, 190-pounds on his Twitter account and plays wide receiver at Woodward Academy in Atlanta.  Notre Dame joins the likes of Arkansas, Boston College, UConn, and UMass who have also offered Bettis, who is a 2025 prospect.  He’s also taken visits so a few big-time programs including Alabama and plans to visit Oregon before long.

Are the Irish the one of the leaders to land Jerome Jr.?

“Yea they are,” he said. “Being an Irish fan since I was a kid definitely puts them ahead as one of my top schools.” – Bettis, Jr. to SB Live

It’s still early in his recruiting but this is obviously a recruitment we’ll be keeping an eye on the next couple of years.

Check out a few photos of Jerome Bettis during his memorable time at Notre Dame below!

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Notre Dame’s top-rated running back recruits since 2000

What would happen if Notre Dame’s recruiting of the running back position could meet what it does on the offensive line?

Notre Dame has long been known for fielding a solid running game on an annual basis. [autotag]Jerome Bettis[/autotag], [autotag]Ricky Watters[/autotag], [autotag]Reggie Brooks[/autotag], [autotag]Ray Zellars[/autotag], [autotag]Autry Denson[/autotag] and [autotag]Allen Pinkett[/autotag] come to mind from yesteryear. Stars [autotag]Kyren Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Josh Adams[/autotag] and [autotag]Theo Riddick[/autotag] wowed crowds over the last decade.

It’s been a long time however since Notre Dame has brought in what would be considered top-tier talent at the position with regularity. Sure, Adams, [autotag]Tony Jones, Jr[/autotag] and some others have earned NFL paychecks over the last decade, it’s been a long while since Notre Dame produced Julius Jones, the last Irish running back to be more than simply a role-playing back in the NFL. Perhaps Williams will change that with the Rams, but time will only tell.

So what has Notre Dame’s recruiting at running back looked like the last two-plus decades?

Here are the top 30 Notre Dame running back recruits since 2000 according to 247Sports. It is worth noting some of these players wound up changing positions once getting to South Bend.