Tag: Notre Dame

Notre Dame battles from behind against Georgia Tech, then wins

The Irish finally made their move towards the end.

Notre Dame never quit against Georgia Tech, even as its inability to go in front undoubtedly was frustrating. Still, the Irish fans who came to Purcell Pavilion for the late tipoff had to think a happy ending was in store. That was the case as the Irish completed a come-from-behind victory, 71-68.

The Irish trailed the Yellow Jackets for almost 37 of the game’s 40 minutes, but they never faced more than a seven-point deficit, the last of which came with 5:35 left. But that’s when they got their chance with the Jackets starting a lengthy scoring drought.

After a [autotag]Braeden Shrewsberry[/autotag] 3-pointer, more than three minutes passed before anymore points were scored. Then, within 36 seconds, [autotag]Markus Burton[/autotag] made back-to-back 3s to give the Irish their first lead.

A short time later after Shrewsberry missed the front of a one-and-one, [autotag]Tae Davis[/autotag] got the rebound but had the ball swatted out and was ruled to have touched it last after a replay review. It didn’t matter because the Yellow Jackets were whistled for a five-second violation:

[autotag]Kebba Njie[/autotag] put the nail in the coffin with a layup as he was fouled. Though he missed the subsequent free throw, Davis made two free throws on the next possession to complete a 13-0 Irish run.

Burton led all scorers with 26 points and four 3s. He also paced the Irish with three steals. Shrewsberry scored 15 points.

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Bengals feel like only NFL team capable of poaching Al Golden from Notre Dame

Were the Bengals the only team capable of making this happen?

The Cincinnati Bengals were able to lure defensive coordinator Al Golden away from Notre Dame.

And they might’ve been the only team capable of doing it.

Golden impressed onlookers during his introduction early this week. Naturally, one of the bigger talking points about his arrival was that it technically served as a return.

Golden, after all, had previously coached linebackers under Zac Taylor and didn’t sell his home when he left town.

RELATED: Bengals reveal coaching hires — and one comes with a twist

“I got in the care at 5 a.m. on Thursday, and when I made that right off (I-75) and saw the stadium, I knew I was home,” Golden said. “He keeps telling me to take a break, but I’m so energized by this opportunity.”

The theme prompted reactions such as this from Notre Dame reporter Jack Soble: “Always need to approach pressers with a certain level of skepticism, but based on this, I don’t know if Al Golden would’ve taken an NFL DC job that wasn’t the Bengals. His family stayed in Cincinnati when he was at Notre Dame. He feels at home there (not that he didn’t at ND).”

There was some question about whether Golden would want to leave such a prestigious spot as Notre Dame at all — and perhaps only the Bengals made it possible.

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ESPN projects Notre Dame performance in 2026 College Football Playoff

See how the Irish would go here.

Notre Dame fans might still be smarting over the outcome of the 2025 College Football Playoff title game, but it’s time to look to 2026. At least that’s how ESPN sees it.

Very quickly after the Irish’s loss to Ohio State concluded, Mark Schlabach presented his 2025 Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings and placed the Irish fourth. Now, Bill Connelly has presented his initial projections for the 2026 College Football Playoff, something he safely could do given the format will be unchanged from 2025.

The Irish are slotted as the seventh seed and host of a first-round game, but the bigger story in this scenario is their first opponent would be LSU. What’s more, this projection has the Irish beating the Tigers in a game that Brian Kelly surely never would live down.

Alas, this projection also has Penn State getting revenge on the Irish in the Rose Bowl en route to winning the national title. At least there’s no shame in losing to the last team standing:

https://www.instagram.com/on3/p/DFYLrobx-b9/?hl=en

Welcome to college football, where predictions never take time off.

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Super Bowl LIX has Notre Dame ties

There will be Notre Dame alum on the field during Super Bowl LIX

There are plenty of Notre Dame Fighting Irish alum playing in the NFL, and at least will be playing in Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles in New Orleans this year.

Linebacker [autotag]Drue Tranquill[/autotag] and kicker [autotag]Spencer Shrader[/autotag] will be playing in the game for the Chiefs. Former Irish quarterback [autotag]Ian Book[/autotag] was briefly on the Eagles’ active roster, but he’s back on the practice squad. Book was a Chief briefly during the preseason.

Aug 12, 2023; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Ian Book (19) looks downfield in the fourth quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

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Star Notre Dame defender declares for NFL Draft

Notre Dame defensive lineman Rylie Mills is going to the league.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman [autotag]Rylie Mills[/autotag] is moving on.

Mills declared for the NFL Draft on Monday.

He was a key anchor for the Notre Dame defense, though he missed the final three games with a right knee injury.

The five-year player had 37 total tackles and 7.5 sacks in 2024.

Mills posted a long thank-you note to Notre Dame fans on his Twitter account.

Notre Dame’s defense has now lost at least three stars to the NFL draft, with [autotag]Benjamin Morrison[/autotag] and [autotag]Xavier Watts[/autotag] also declaring. The departures aren’t necessarily unexpected given how crucial the Fighting Irish’s defense was to Notre Dame’s run to the national championship game, but they’re a blow nonetheless.

Notre Dame gets terrible news as another starter is out for the year
SOUTH BEND, INDIANA – NOVEMBER 09: Rylie Mills #99 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates a sack against the Florida State Seminoles during the first half at Notre Dame Stadium on November 09, 2024 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

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Two incoming Notre Dame players named McDonald’s All-Americans

Congrats to both players!

The future of Notre Dame basketball is very bright. The men’s team has one of if not the best 2025 recruiting class to look forward to. That same year, the women’s team will return a lot of talent from this year’s national championship contender.

Two players part of that promising Irish future are [autotag]Jalen Haralson[/autotag] and [autotag]Leah Macy[/autotag]. Both have been invited to play in their respective McDonald’s All-American Games. The rosters for those games were announced Monday.

This game is a regular thing for incoming women’s basketball players as the Irish have been represented every year except one since 2009. The men are featured far more infrequently with Haralson being the first incoming men’s player selected since JJ Starling in 2022.

Haralson is ranked 19th on ESPN’s recruiting ranks for the 2025 class and has a four-star rating. Coincidentally, Macy also has a ranking of 19th on ESPN’s 2025 girls list. She has a five-star rating there.

For good measure, here are some highlights of [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag]’s co-MVP performance in the 2023 girls game:

Congratulations to Haralson and Macy on this great honor.

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Notre Dame extends offer to 2026 four-star offensive tackle recruit

Can the Irish get him?

Notre Dame has turned out an impressive number of offensive linemen in recent years. That position also can be a liability if enough guys get injured, and the Irish had their fair share of those during this past season. All they can do now though is look towards the future.

For [autotag]Kyle Rudolph[/autotag] and the Irish, the hope is that future will include Felix Ojo, a 6-foot-6, 275-pound offensive tackle from Lake Ridge in Mansfield, Texas. The Irish have extended him an offer, the 45th he has received, which says a lot about how much college programs in general value him.

Ojo is a four-star recruit and, according to 247Sports, the No. 4 Texas recruit in the 2026 recruiting class and the No. 6 offensive tackle recruit nationally.

Texas reportedly is among the biggest challengers for the Irish, and Ojo was at the Longhorns’ junior day over the weekend. However, Kyle Kelly of Blue and Gold Illustrated is reporting that Rudolph was expected to visit Lake Ridge on Monday. So the competition for his services could be fierce:

https://www.instagram.com/felixtheol/p/DFVx19HuJHc/?img_index=1

Best of luck to Rudolph and the Irish in their pursuit of Ojo.

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Pat Connaughton/Blake Wesley NBA Tracker: Jan. 20-26

One player got to go overseas this past week.

Former Notre Dame guard [autotag]Blake Wesley[/autotag] had the opportunity of a lifetime this past week. He traveled with the San Antonio Spurs to Paris to play two games against the Indiana Pacers. He appeared in both games, and while he failed to score in either one, he did have three assists and a steal in the first game.

Wesley also was the subject of a very prominent post we published this past week. We sat down for an interview with his parents Derrick and Leslie. Our thanks again to them for taking the time to do that.

Back in the U.S., [autotag]Pat Connaughton[/autotag], Notre Dame’s other active NBA player, got some playing time with the Milwaukee Bucks. He scored his only basket while also grabbing five rebounds and dishing out three assists Jan. 23 against the Miami Heat. He had one more rebound and two more assists Jan. 25 against the Los Angeles Clippers, bringing his weekly averages to 1.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists.

Here is a gallery of both players from the past week:

Notre Dame targeting former Rutgers coach as defensive coordinator

Would you like this hire?

Notre Dame has an opening at defensive coordinator. It might not have been what Irish fans wanted after the season their team just had, but that’s the nature of football. Coaches come and go for their next big payday.

Pete Sampson of The Athletic has learned from multiple sources that the Irish are eyeing a “strong candidate” for defensive coordinator in former Rutgers coach Chris Ash. His last coaching position was defensive backs coach for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022 and 2023. That came off one season as safeties coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Ash went 8-32 with the Scarlet Knights before being fired a month into the 2019 season without ever making a bowl game. Previously, he was the defensive coordinator at Ohio State, Arkansas, Wisconsin and Drake.

Ash isn’t the first candidate to emerge for this job, but those possibilities haven’t worked out. That doesn’t necessarily mean Ash will be the guy, but Irish fans better start thinking that he might be. Welcome to the world of offseason speculation.

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Former Notre Dame guard involved in blockbuster WNBA trade

A major shakeup in the WNBA.

The writing for former Notre Dame guard [autotag]Jewell Loyd[/autotag]’s future with the Seattle Storm was on the wall for some time. The relationship between the two sides had deteriorated to the point where they no longer could work together.

Now, Loyd will have a new WNBA address for the first time.

According to an ESPN report, Loyd has been traded to the Las Vegas Aces as part of a three-team deal. The deal sends Kelsey Plum from the Aces to the Los Angeles Sparks. The three teams will swap picks in this year’s draft; the Storm end up with the second overall pick from Los Angeles.

Loyd will join fellow former Irish guard and U.S. Olympic teammate [autotag]Jackie Young[/autotag] in Sin City. She leaves behind a great legacy in Seattle. She was the first pick in the 2015 draft and lived up to that billing. She won two WNBA championships to go with being a six-time All-Star, an All-Star MVP, a three-time All-WNBA selection and the Rookie of the Year.

Aces fans hopefully will get to watch games like this:

Best of luck to Loyd in her new surroundings.

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