Countdown to Notre Dame Football: 94 Days

In 94 days we’ll again see Notre Dame football on the field as the 2020 season will open. Find out today’s ND Football fact about 94 now!

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends.  Notre Dame is set to open their 2020 football season now on Labor Day weekend at Navy as the Irish will play in Annapolis for the first time in the series that’s seen 93 meetings to date.

Yesterday we got news of the game being pushed back a week and moved from Ireland to Annapolis so we moved the counter back up to 95 as we count down the days to the Saturday of Labor Day weekend.

Today we move back down to 94, a number we discussed a week ago as we remembered former star defensive lineman Willie Fry.

Today we look at another 94 in regards to the history of Notre Dame football and it has an obvious link to the 2020 season opener.

94:  This year will be the 94th meeting all-time in the series between Notre Dame and Navy.

As you’re most definitely aware, Notre Dame has dominated this series for the better part of a century, leading all-time against Navy with a 79-13-1 mark to date.

Some quick facts about the Notre Dame/Navy series:

  • Having been played every year since 1927, Notre Dame and Navy is the longest uninterrupted inter-sectional rivalry going in college football.
  • The series has been played in 11 different cities:  Baltimore, South Bend, Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia, East Rutherford, Dublin, Landover, Orlando, Jacksonville and San Diego.
  • Notre Dame won 43 straight in the rivalry from 1964-2006, a streak that started with the Irish beating the reigning Heisman Trophy winner Roger Staubach and the Midshipmen, 40-0 in Philadelphia.
  • Navy’s four wins in the series from 2007 to 2016 match the amount of wins they had against Notre Dame from 1957-2006.
  • Why keep playing such a one-sided rivalry?  As fans of both programs are likely aware, Navy using Notre Dame as a training center for V-12 candidates during WWII, paying the University enough in that time to keep the doors open.

College Football Morning Announcements: June 2, 2020

One of the best WRs in college football will miss 2020. What does it mean for his teams title hopes? And Notre Dame/Navy reschedule opener.

Happy Tuesday to each and all of you.  If you’re looking to escape the craziness of the world we live in for a few minutes then check out my podcast, the “College Football Morning Announcements”.

I don’t get an episode out quite every day (yet) but am looking to grow it in the not-so-distant future.

Today’s episode is short with two main topics:

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Subscribe to Nick Shepkowski’s CFB Morning Announcements on Apple Podcasts

Why tight end Tyler Mabry could make Seahawks roster

The Seahawks have a lot of tight ends on the roster, but Tyler Mabry is a good run-blocker which could give him an advantage for a spot.

The Seattle Seahawks brought in a whopping 17 undrafted free agents from the 2020 class to compete for spots on the active roster.

Most years, teams are lucky to get one UDFA to make the squad, as they are primarily brought in to give the team extra bodies during training camp.

However, the Seahawks have had plenty of luck finding diamonds in the rough in years past, including Dave Krieg, Jermaine Kearse, Doug Baldwin and most recently, defensive tackle Poona Ford.

They have a lot who could impress enough in training camp to make the active roster, including blocking tight end Tyler Mabry.

Mabry spent three years at Buffalo, racking up 60 receptions for 567 yards and three touchdowns before graduating and transferring to Maryland for his final year of eligibility.

Mabry had 13 receptions for 155 yards and three touchdowns for the Terrapins, reaching his three-year touchdown total in just one year.

However, the Seahawks are not interested in Mabry for his receiving yards, or even his touchdowns numbers. They like him for his size (six-foot-three, 250 pounds) and his reputation as a very good run blocker, something the Seahawks have long coveted from their tight ends.

Of course, Seattle has plenty of tight ends to choose from on the current roster. Will Dissly, Jacob Hollister and Luke Willson are all back in uniform, and they are joined by veteran Greg Olsen and a pair of draft picks, Colby Parkinson and Stephen Sullivan, as well as fellow undrafted free agent Dominick Wood-Anderson.

However, despite the sheer number of tight ends, Seattle actually doesn’t have that many who are primarily run-blockers. Dissly is excellent in protection, but injury issues have really slowed him down in his first two NFL seasons. Willson is a good blocker as well, but he has also dealt with injuries and could be a cap casualty this offseason.

The newcomers are all receivers more than they are blockers, which leaves a bit of a hole on the roster.

Seattle probably won’t roster more than four tight ends, and imagining Mabry making the roster over the two draft picks is tough to do, but perhaps a spot on the practice squad, and an emergency role as a special teams contributor or extra blocker could come to fruition for the former Terrapin if he can show well in training camp.

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Finding 3 Warriors backup options for Draymond Green in the NBA Draft

Who could the Warriors find in the NBA draft to fill their depth chart behind Draymond Green?

The end of May has usually signaled the start of another NBA Finals run for the Golden State Warriors. Yet in 2020, the three-time champs are on a different path. Prior to the NBA season getting put on pause due to the coronavirus, the Warriors were the first and only team in the league to be officially eliminated from the playoff picture.

For the first time in years, Golden State’s 15-50 record has set the team up to land a top prospect in the 2020 edition of the NBA draft.

With their championship core still in place, Steve Kerr and Bob Myers can go in a bevy of different directions with their top pick. Instead of drafting the best player available, Golden State could look for a player to complement Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

Behind their veteran All-Star trio, the Warriors depth chart is rather thin. With three selections in the 2020 draft, Golden State could address multiple areas — including a backup for the former Defensive Player of the Year.

After an impressive rookie campaign, Eric Paschall could slide in behind Green on paper. Though, the Warriors could view him as something more than just a backup off the bench. The Villanova product has shown versatility and could be in line for a featured role in year two.

Even if Paschall sticks as the lead option behind Green, the Warriors could still address the frontcourt in the draft. With Green’s ability to contribute in a bevy of ways, Golden State could tap multiple players at different positions to fill his role when the three-time All-Star is off the floor.

Warriors Wire looked at three different draft prospects the Warriors could bring into back up Green in 2020.

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Four-star speedy wide receiver lists Texas in top schools

Oklahoma was shockingly absent from four-star wide receiver Malcolm Johnson Jr.’s top remaining schools, Texas and seven others remain.

There are now just eight schools left in the hunt to land four-star wide receiver Malcolm Johnson Jr. Continue reading “Four-star speedy wide receiver lists Texas in top schools”

Notre Dame Recruit Tristan Bounds Uses Loophole to Visit Campus

Much has been made about how much Notre Dame has been hurt by its inability to recruit players during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Much has been made about how much Notre Dame has been hurt by its inability to recruit players during the COVID-19 outbreak. The university’s location puts it at a disadvantage. Still, that didn’t stop one recruit from stopping by campus anyway.

Tristan Bounds, a three-star offensive tackle who’s part of the 2021 recruiting class, has eight schools at the top of the list. The pandemic had prevented him from visiting four of them, including Notre Dame. But Bounds, the 39th-ranked offensive tackle in his class according to 247Sports, made the trek to campus Tuesday, one day after he visited Michigan. Though the dead period has been extended to June 30, a loophole allows recruits to visit colleges as long as they aren’t accompanied by or in contact with anyone affiliated with the football program during their trip.

Bounds, who measures at 6-foot-8 and 280 pounds, plays for Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, Connecticut, still has to make visits to Boston College and Texas. So far, he also has set foot on Virginia Tech, Virginia, Maryland and Vanderbilt. It’s a lot of traveling, but nothing the student at a boarding school over 300 miles from his home in Bethesda, Maryland, can’t handle.

Jeff Quinn, the Irish’s offensive line coach, offered Bounds a scholarship May 1, the day Notre Dame was revealed to be on Bounds’ list. The Irish emerged as a late contender for his services. However, his visit to campus means they’re still in the hunt.

 

Taulia Tagovailoa’s dad shares why Taulia chose to leave Alabama

Tagovailoa transferred to Maryland, and his father Galu Tagovailoa shared with AL.com why Taulia chose to transfer.

When news broke that Taulia Tagovailoa had made the decision to transfer to Maryland, many fans were shocked, considering his older brother Tua had just been drafted to the Miami Dolphins and the Tagovailoa family seems to enjoy being together, considering the family moved from Hawaii to Alabama when Tua Tagovailoa moved to Tuscaloosa.

Many people assumed Taulia would transfer to a school in southern Florida such as FAU, FIU, and Miami, but he didn’t. Tagovailoa transferred to Maryland, and his father Galu Tagovailoa shared with AL.com why Taulia chose to transfer.

“It’s really tough and it’s nothing against Alabama. But my boys are competitive and Lia is such a competitive kid. And he wanted an opportunity to compete. He was told that he was going to come in and compete and he didn’t really get that opportunity, so he wanted to use the spring to do that. But with the COVID-19 thing going on, he didn’t really have the opportunity to compete. He’s a competitor. He likes to work. He likes to compete on the field. And just, going into the season this year, he just felt that he wasn’t given that opportunity and he wants to take it somewhere where they’re going to give him the opportunity to make the best of his skill set.”

And according to Galu, Maryland seemed to be the best fit for Taulia:

“He’s a player. This kid likes to play. He wants a chance to get on the field. He knew that him getting on the field this past season was just to hand off the ball and they didn’t really showcase him and who he is. He doesn’t fear competition. He just wants an opportunity to go out there and play. And the best place right now for him is Maryland.”

Maryland was also appealing largely because of the head coach, Mike Locksley, who was Alabama’s offensive coordinator in 2018, and had the opportunity to coach Taulia’s older brother Tua.

Sure, Tua Tagovailoa will go down in history as being one of the best Alabama quarterbacks of all time, but that doesn’t mean Taulia isn’t capable of making a name for himself as well.

After all, Taulia was rated as the No. 4 pro-style quarterback in the 2019 class by 247Sports and PrepStar.

Taulia also became the only quarterback in Alabama state history to have at least four 400-yard passing performances in his career, throwing for 3,728 yards and 35 touchdowns as a senior at Thompson High School. Tagovailoa also led Thompson to the 2018 Class 7A state championship and was selected to the Class 7A All-State first team in 2017.

Taulia saw limited action in Tuscaloosa for the Crimson Tide. He recorded 9 passes for 100 yards and 1 TD. He only played in 3 games in 2019: against Western Carolina, Arkansas, and Southern Mississippi.

But Taulia is extremely talented and has so much potential, and Mike Locksley can help him. Considering he’s coached Tua Tagovailoa, Mike has an edge that every other coach doesn’t.

Maryland released a statement that said, “Tua Tagovailoa threw for 3,189 yards and a school-record 37 touchdowns as the Crimson Tide offense averaged 47.9 points and 527.6 yards per game. The Locksley-Tua Tagovailoa combination helped Alabama set school records for points scored (623), single-season total offense (6,859 yards) and passing yards (4,231) in a season.”

It’s true. And if Locksley can help Taulia find his own unique skillset, Maryland could become a team to keep an eye out for.

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Former Alabama QB Taulia Tagovailoa, younger brother of Tua, transfers to a Big Ten opponent

The former Bama QB has a new home in the Big Ten

[lawrence-newsletter]Former Alabama QB Taulia Tagovailoa is headed to the Big Ten Conference. The younger brother of Tua Tagovailoa, the 2020 first round NFL draft pick of the Miami Dolphins, is transferring to Maryland he announced Friday.

A consensus four-star recruit coming out of high school, Tagovailoa originally chose Alabama over the likes of Florida and LSU.

Last season at Alabama, the younger Tagovailoa appeared in five games while playing sparingly in those appearances. He finished the year 9-12 passing with 100 total yards and a touchdown. The news comes just a couple of months after former Maryland QB Tyrrell Pigrome transferred from the program to Western Kentucky, leaving a spot open at the position.

Wisconsin will see Maryland on the road on October 24, 2020.

Mike Locksley knows not to compare Taulia Tagovailoa to brother, Tua

There’s one thing in particular about Locksley that sticks out: he knows not to compare Taulia to his older brother Tua

Mike Locksley was in the middle of his Instagram Live show Friday night when he found out that Taulia Tagovailoa would be coming to play for him in Maryland. He was surprised nonetheless that Tagovailoa had chose Maryland over other schools including Miami, FAU, and FIU.

“As I’m in the middle of the show, which starts at 7 o’clock Eastern time here, I just know my phone started blowing up and buzzing and buzzing and buzzing,” Locksley, who was Tua’s offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2018, told AL.com. “So I looked down and saw I had a missed call from an 808 (Hawaii) number. And then I was finishing my show and by the time I finished the show, probably around 7:35 or 7:40, my phone had just blown up that Taulia had said he was coming to Maryland. So I called him back and he said, ‘Hey Coach, as a family we’ve prayed about it and I’m coming to Maryland.’”

But there’s one thing in particular about Locksley that sticks out: he knows not to compare Taulia to his older brother Tua. Afterall, Locksley coached Tua when he was offensive coordinator for the Crimson Tide in 2018.

But still, Locksley knows that Tualia has his own skillset and talent:

“To even begin comparing him to Tua, I would never do that,” Locksley said of Taulia, who threw for 3,728 yards and 35 touchdowns while leading Thompson High School to the Alabama Class 7A state championship game in 2018. “That’s obviously a tough, tough deal being the younger brother of a quarterback like Tua. But I do know this, at Thompson High School he put up a lot of numbers, threw the ball really accurately, has great athleticism in the pocket and is a winner. His accuracy is really what kind of jumps out to me as a passer.”

Sure, Tua Tagovailoa will go down in history as being one of the best Alabama quarterbacks of all time, but that doesn’t mean Taulia isn’t capable of making a name for himself as well.

After all, Taulia was rated as the No. 4 pro-style quarterback in the 2019 class by 247Sports and PrepStar.

Taulia also became the only quarterback in Alabama state history to have at least four 400-yard passing performances in his career, throwing for 3,728 yards and 35 touchdowns as a senior at Thompson High School. Tagovailoa also led Thompson to the 2018 Class 7A state championship and was selected to the Class 7A All-State first team in 2017.

Taulia saw limited action in Tuscaloosa for the Crimson Tide. He recorded 9 passes for 100 yards and 1 TD. He only played in 3 games in 2019: against Western Carolina, Arkansas, and Southern Mississippi.

But Taulia is extremely talented and has so much potential, and Mike Locksley can help him. Considering he’s coached Tua Tagovailoa, Mike has an edge that every other coach doesn’t.

Maryland released a statement that said, “Tua Tagovailoa threw for 3,189 yards and a school-record 37 touchdowns as the Crimson Tide offense averaged 47.9 points and 527.6 yards per game. The Locksley-Tua Tagovailoa combination helped Alabama set school records for points scored (623), single-season total offense (6,859 yards) and passing yards (4,231) in a season.”

It’s true. And if Locksley can help Taulia find his own unique skillset, Maryland could become a team to keep an eye out for.

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Mike Locksley was just as surprised Taulia Tagovailoa chose Maryland

Locksley shared with AL.com that “he had initially assumed Taulia would transfer somewhere in Florida or somewhere else down South

Let’s be honest, majority of college football fans had predicted Taulia Tagovailoa to choose a Florida school like FAI, FIU, or even Miami considering his older brother Tua had just been drafted by the Miami Dolphins as the 5th overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft. But when Taulia tweeted that he had made the choice to transfer and play at Maryland, many were surprised, including Maryland head coach Mike Locksley, who just so happened to be a former Alabama offensive coordinator.

According to AL.com, Mike Locksley was in the middle of his Instagram Live show Friday night when he found out the news himself.

“As I’m in the middle of the show, which starts at 7 o’clock Eastern time here, I just know my phone started blowing up and buzzing and buzzing and buzzing,” Locksley, who was Tua’s offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2018, told AL.com. “So I looked down and saw I had a missed call from an 808 (Hawaii) number. And then I was finishing my show and by the time I finished the show, probably around 7:35 or 7:40, my phone had just blown up that Taulia had said he was coming to Maryland. So I called him back and he said, ‘Hey Coach, as a family we’ve prayed about it and I’m coming to Maryland.’”

Locksley shared with AL.com that “he had initially assumed Taulia would transfer somewhere in Florida or somewhere else down South with his brother now playing for the Miami Dolphins, the family indicated to Locksley early in the process that Maryland would at the very least be a consideration.”

When Locksley reached out to the Tagovailao family earlier Friday afternoon, they were in a family prayer meeting. The rest is history.

Locksley was offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2018 where he was able to coach Tua, and meet the Tagovailoa family. This is a huge pickup for Maryland who went 3-9 last season.

Maryland’s 2020 recruiting class is ranked in the top-35 nationally and now has Maryland ranked 13th nationally in the 247Sports recruiting rankings for the class of 2021.