Tag: NCAA Sports

Notre Dame Football: Kelly raises bar for freshman RB Tyree

It is clear that Brian Kelly and Notre Dame have high expectations for Chris Tyree in 2020 after the coaches comments on Thursday.

Notre Dame’s 2020 recruiting class was plenty good with some star power but lacked the depth to be considered great by any stretch of the imagination.

One of the prized pieces of it was all-purpose-back, speedster Chris Tyree of Chester, Virginia.

Tyree has blazing fast speed and comes with a four-star ranking from both 247Sports and Rivals, but the concern about him entering his freshman year was his size, or lack thereof.

Tyree was listed at 5-10, 170 pounds during his recruitment, a weight that made his potential durability come into question for some, myself included.  Tyree is listed now at 5-10, 179 pounds on Notre Dame’s official roster.

That added weight, assumed to largely be muscle, had head coach Brian Kelly raising expectations for the freshman back when Kelly met the media via Zoom call on Thursday.

“He’s not a specialist who just plays in the slot or hand-off sweeps, he’s a guy who can run the football downhill between the tackles too” Kelly said, “He’s not going to get 30 carries, don’t get me wrong, but he’s a guy who’s going to play as a freshman.”

Tyree will be one of the most interesting players to watch in 2020 as he comes with speed that’s comparable to the likes of Braden Lenzy, Rocket Ismail, Armando Allen and George Atkinson, just to name a few of Notre Dame’s fastest players in semi-recent memory.

For comparisons sake, Allen entered Notre Dame listed at 5-10, 181 pounds.  Sure the 2007 Fighting Irish were awful which allowed for more reps early in his career, but Allen recorded 86 rush attempts and 24 receptions his freshman year, something Greg Flammang pointed out on Twitter early Thursday.

With the backfield not yet appearing to have a standout load back and there now being only ten regular season games compared to the twelve originally scheduled, the amount of playing time and carries Tyree gets as the year goes on will be a compelling story-line to watch, especially with his head coach already tooting his horn a bit.

No Notre Dame/Navy for first time since 1926

There will be no Notre Dame/Navy game this fall for the first time in almost a century. The uniqueness of all of it will be missed in 2020.

It may be one of the most lopsided rivalries in all of sports and it may not feel like your traditional rivalry filled with dislike, disrespect and hate, but Notre Dame and Navy have played football every fall against each other since 1927.

That unfortunately won’t be the case this fall, however.

With the nationwide pandemic due to COVID-19 and the conferences of college football scurrying to put together a plan for the year, Notre Dame joined the ACC for the 2020 season.

Part of the ACC guidelines were that member schools could play just one out-of-conference game and that one game had to be played in the ACC member schools home state.

As a result, Notre Dame and Navy, which was set to be played in Annapolis, Maryland this September, is now off.

It’s the first time since 1926 that these two won’t meet on the football field.

I know the Navy game is one that Notre Dame seemingly has nothing to gain from:

  • An offense that is equal parts unique and physical that is nothing like Notre Dame plays against the entire rest of the season.
  • A national perception that a win means nothing, even if its in blowout fashion over a ranked opponent, like was the case when Notre Dame beat No. 23 Navy 52-20 in 2019.
  • Lose and jokes will be made about it literally over a decade later.

Yeah there are negatives that come with it.  It’s also tradition and something that unless you’re knocking on the door of the century mark in years, you haven’t seen before.

That’s not to say some traditions aren’t worth re-examining, see the end of the Notre Dame series with Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue in the last decade.

Notre Dame and Navy might not be the most thrilling of rivalries and it may not get your blood boiling like when USC or Michigan are in town, but it’s a tradition that has been going on seemingly forever and I’m sad to see everything from the different feel on campus that game day to the playing of the Alma maters after the game vanish for this fall.

Here’s to hoping things get back to normal  with these two in 2021.

Notre Dame Descendant Gets Scholarship Offer from Irish

If your grandmother was once Joe Montana’s tutor you’d be more than a little excited to get a scholarship offer to Notre Dame, too.

If your grandfather was a former national champion linebacker, your great-uncle was a backup quarterback and your grandmother tutored perhaps the the biggest football star to ever come from the same university, one might say that particular school is in your blood.

That’s the case for high school junior Nolan Ziegler, a 6-4, 205 pound safety with a 3.85 GPA from Catholic Central in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Ziegler is a class of 2022 prospect and is the grandson of ’73 Notre Dame national champion linebacker, Tim Sullivan.  He’s also the great-nephew of former backup Irish signal caller, Fred Trosko, Jr., who was a sophomore on that ’73 title squad.

Then on top of all that, Ziegler’s grandmother that married Tim Sullivan was in Notre Dame’s first female class and tutored the legendary Joe Montana.

Wednesday saw Ziegler get his own attention from Notre Dame as the three-star safety received a scholarship offer from Brian Kelly and company.

Ziegler’s clearly got bloodline to the University of Notre Dame that few can compare to.  I can understand both sides of it for the now Notre Dame target as for one, you get to carry on a family legacy of attending Notre Dame, but on the other hand, I would fully understand if he’d eventually want to go somewhere and not constantly be seen as “the guy with a ton of family members from there”.

Congratulations to Ziegler on the offer as Notre Dame joins the likes of Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska and a handful of MAC schools to have offered a scholarship.

Related:  Notre Dame’s 2020 Recruiting Class Commitments

WATCH: Notre Dame Updates, Re-releases ‘Here Come the Irish’

A song that has become part of Notre Dame football’s game day festivities got an face-lift over the weekend. Check it out right here!

If you are a fan of Notre Dame football or just admire the University in any way you’ve heard the song “Here Come the Irish” that was performed by Cathy Richardson of Jefferson Starship after being written by Jim Tullio and John Scully.

The song has taken on a life of it’s own since being written in 1997 and many have put together slideshows and their own videos with it’s audio accompaniment on the internet.

Over the weekend the University of Notre Dame’s athletic department released a new video to go along with the song you hear just before kickoff at Notre Dame Stadium and it’s worth your five minutes today.  Watch the video in the tweet below.

LET’S GO!

Notre Dame Football: Offer out to top ’22 Colorado propsect

Notre Dame football is hard at working forming its 2022 recruiting class as they offered one of Colorado’s best players in the ’22 class.

It’s been a busy day for Notre Dame on the recruiting trail as the commitment of tight end Jack Nickel to the 2022 recruiting class was made official.

Brian Kelly and the Fighting Irish weren’t done there though as the program made a scholarship offer to offensive tackle, George Fitzpatrick.

Fitzpatrick is ranked the second best prospect in the entire state of Colorado in the 2022 cycle and checks in at 6-6, 255 pounds.  He is currently rated by 247Sports as a three-star prospect.

Fitzpatrick currently holds offers from a 11 other schools:  Arizona State, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Michigan State, Nebraska, Oregon State, TCU, Utah and Washington State.

Notre Dame’s 2022 recruiting class currently has two commitments including one offensive lineman, tackle Joey Tanona of Zionsville, Indiana.

Related:  Notre Dame’s 2022 Recruiting Class Commitments

A Busy Day on D-Line Recruiting Trail for Notre Dame

It was a busy morning for Notre Dame’s coaching staff as the Irish made three scholarship offers to ’22 defensive linemen. Learn more here..

The week started with a bang for Notre Dame in terms of scholarship offers being made as three were offered by the Fighting Irish coaching staff to 2022 defensive linemen.

These aren’t offers being made to middle of the road prospects, these are some big-time names in the 2022 class that will see Notre Dame have to go toe-to-toe with the biggest of players if they’re going to eventually land a commitment from any of the three.

So who are the offers to?  A quick summary of each:

Wilfredo Aybar – Defensive End – Cheshire, CT

Aybar is a 6-3, 220 pound weakside defensive end from Cheshire Academy in Cheshire, Connecticut. Ranked the top player in Connecticut by 247Sports, Aybar ranks as a top ten weakside defensive end in the 247Sports rankings.  Of the now 20 offers Aybar has received, Florida, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State and Tennessee stand out as the biggest competition.

Derrick Moore – Defensive End – Baltimore, MD

Moore has 17 offers to date but that number will only continue to swell.  A 6-4, 245 pound strong side defensive end from St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, Moore will be in demand by all of the biggest programs.  The 247Sports Composite rankings give Moore a four-star grade as he’s seen widely as a top-three defensive end in the 2022 class.

Mykel Williams – Defensive Tackle – Columbus, GA

A 6-5, 255 pound bohemeath from Georgia, Williams will be one of the best defensive tackles in the 2022 class.  Williams has 24 offers listed on his 247Sports profile page but according to his tweet annoucing the Notre Dame offer, he’s now reached 30.  The Irish will have to out-duel the likes of Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State and plenty more.

As of posting (7/20/2020) Notre Dame is yet to receive any commitments in the 2022 class but is certainly not being hesitant about putting lines in the water for some of the biggest prospects out there.

 

Notre Dame Player Preview: Brendon Clark – Quarterback

The race to be Notre Dame’s backup quarterback in 2020 is on. Find out more about the leading candidate for it, Brendon Clark, right here!

We get a day closer to Notre Dame football returning and although we’re anything but certain as to what exact day that will be, we’re still excited for the idea of it.

Before the ball is kicked though we need to keep informing you on those that will suit up in blue and gold this fall (or next spring).

In this edition we look at a young man who isn’t going to be starting any games in 2020 but will be working towards being the starter at his position in 2021.

We’re talking about quarterback Brendon Clark, a young man who has never shied away from a difficult path.

Stats and Information…

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Indiana latest to suspend football workouts after positive COVID-19 tests

The Hoosiers football team had zero positive COVID-19 tests just a few short weeks ago but are now suspending voluntary workouts.

If you’ve been keeping tabs on college football teams and their COVID-19 results you may remember that along with Notre Dame and Michigan, Indiana has been one who has seemingly handled the situation well.

A June 23 report showed the Hoosiers having zero positive tests among the 187 that were administered.

Unfortunately that number is on the rise as six Hoosiers football players tested positive in the most recent series of tests, forcing the University to suspend voluntary workouts for the time being.

Obviously being in Indiana is one reason for posting this on a Notre Dame site but also relevant is that Indiana’s football team had zero positive tests a few short weeks ago. Notre Dame also had zero positive tests the last time the team went through the testing process.

What it means is just because it hasn’t seriously effected a team yet doesn’t mean it won’t.

Here’s to hoping this is just a speed bump for the Hoosiers as they’re now on the list of more than ten teams who have to suspend workouts due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

Rose Parade canceled, Rose Bowl still on…for now

The Rose Bowl is still set to be played on New Years Day but the annual parade that goes along with it is off for the first time since ’45.

If you’re like me you don’t care a whole lot for the idea of parades.

Sure, they were cool when I was a kid and I didn’t make an allowance so they were my best way to get candy.  But unless you’ve got a youngster you take to a parade, I don’t so much understand the excitement.

That said, if I ever went to a parade that wasn’t celebrating a historic achievement or a heroic return home, it’d be the Rose Parade on New Year’s morning.

Unfortunately that parade won’t be happening this year as the Los Angeles Times was first to report the Rose Parade has been canceled for the first time since 1945.

Don’t entirely fret though, the actual Rose Bowl game, this year a College Football Playoff Semi-Final is still scheduled to be played on New Year’s Day.

At least for now.

With it being a year that the College Football Playoff uses Pasadena for one of it’s semi-finals it’s actually a year Notre Dame could possibly end up in the Rose Bowl, something they’ve only done once, way back in 1925.

A Notre Dame July Bowl Projection because why not?

We don’t know much about what the next college football season will look like but we do know it will be something none of us have ever seen before. It may seem a bit far-fetched but why not have some fun and take a peak at a Notre Dame bowl projection that was recently released.

As we’ve seen in the last few days the college football season is very much up in the air as conferences continue to announce they’re only playing themselves this fall.

We don’t know much about what the next college football season will look like but we do know it will be something none of us have ever seen before.

With that preface, 247Sports recently released their July edition of bowl projections and whatever formula they used for schedules, they have Notre Dame headed to what has been a fairly regular destination of late.

It falls short of the College Football Playoff that Notre Dame fans clearly desire but it’s still a marquee game against a marquee opponent.  The projection you ask?

Fiesta Bowl vs. Oregon

Although the specific bowl game doesn’t thrill me since we’ve all seen them already play there a bunch, the match-up certainly does.  Oregon enters the year with high expectations after a Rose Bowl win and top five finish last season.  If it’s not the College Football Playoff, it doesn’t get much better than this for the Irish.

It would be Notre Dame’s sixth ever appearance in the Fiesta Bowl which would move it to the second most common bowl game in Irish history as they’ve played in the Cotton Bowl eight times.  Notre Dame has also played in the Orange Bowl five times to date.

The game, as impossible as it may feel to happen this season, would mark just the third meeting between Notre Dame and Oregon.  The Irish blanked the Ducks 41-0 in their 1976 meeting in South Bend before the two played to a 13-13 tie in Eugene, in 1982.