Notre Dame Football: Santa Awards Two Scholarships to Walk-Ons

With Mrs. Claus by his side and Brian Kelly speaking for him, Santa dropped off two presents for the young men earlier this week.

Santa has been busy the last few days but did find the time to make a stop in Orlando to give out a couple of presents to two members of the Notre Dame football team.

Those two are Mick Asaff, a walk-on running back from Atlanta and Colin Grunhard, a walk-on offensive lineman from Kansas.

With Mrs. Claus by his side and Brian Kelly speaking for him, Santa dropped off two presents for the young men earlier this week.

These never get old to me and my favorite part may be seeing how excited the scholarship players are to see their teammates who have given so much time, energy and effort get rewarded.

Assaf has 34 yards on 10 carries for his career and Grunhard, son of Tim (played at Notre Dame from 86-89, later with the Kansas Chiefs) has appeared in eight games over the last two years.

Notre Dame Football – Camping World Bowl Schedule

Not going to lie:  Obviously excited for one more game for the 2019 season to get here but now I really want to go drive a go-kart before Christmas.  

Notre Dame’s 10-2 football team leaves South Bend today to spend Christmas in Orlando as they prepare for the 7-5 Iowa State Cyclones in the Camping World Bowl.  When will you hear from Brian Kelly and some of the players before the game?

Today is the travel day from South Bend while plenty is planned both in preparation and in fun off the field this week.  Here’s how that will look for the Fighting Irish (all times ET):

Monday, Dec. 23 – Travel Day

Tuesday, Dec. 24 – First On-Site Practice (Boone High School)

  • 11:30 a.m. – Brian Kelly and a selected player will meet the media before practice gets underway at noon. The first three periods of practice will be open to the media at Boone High School in Orlando.

Wednesday, Dec. 25 – Second On-Site Practice (Boone High School)

  • 11:30 a.m. – Brian Kelly and selected student-athlete will address the media before noon practice again just as Jesus would want it on his birthday.

Thursday, Dec. 26 – Day For Kids & Third On-Site Practice (Camping World Stadium)

  • Day for Kids Event (9-11 a.m.) at Andretti Indoor Karting & Games

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL1h9aiHVR8&w=560&h=315]

  • 1:30 p.m. – Coach Kelly available upon arrival before practice begins at 2 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 27 – Head Coaches Press Conference (Rosen Plaza Hotel)/Pep Rally (Pointe Orlando)

  • Coach Kelly & Iowa State Head Coach Matt Campbell will hold a joint press conference (9 a.m.) at the Rosen Plaza Hotel

  • Notre Dame pep rally at 4:45 p.m. at Pointe Orlando

Not going to lie:  I’m obviously excited for one more game for the 2019 season to get here but now I really want to go drive a go-kart before Christmas.

Also worth noting – with Christmas coming up we’ll all be busy but keep it here as we’ll have reaction from each day ahead of game day as Notre Dame seeks just their eighth 11-win season in school history.

Notre Dame Football: Iowa State Sells Out Camping World Bowl Allotment

If they traveled to San Antonio by the masses to see their Cyclones play Washington State you could bet your rear end they were going to travel to Orlando to see them take on Notre Dame.

We told you on Sunday that part of the reason Iowa State was so appealing to the Camping World Bowl was because they’ve got a passionate fan-base that makes up for a less-than-stellar team history.

We mentioned how Iowa State fans helped pack the Alamo Bowl last year and the Liberty Bowl previous to that.

You can go ahead and add the Camping World Bowl to that list.

It’s hardly surprising. If they traveled to San Antonio by the masses to see their Cyclones play Washington State you could bet your rear end they were going to travel to Orlando to see them take on Notre Dame.

In case you’re curious there are tickets available on the Notre Dame Athletic website at the time of this posting, listed between $79 and $190.

Notre Dame Football – Final Bowl Projections

At this point you’re aware Notre Dame will be headed to the Camping World Bowl to take on a Big XII opponent on December 28.
What we don’t know is who they’ll be playing when they get there.

At this point you’re aware Notre Dame will be headed to the Camping World Bowl to take on a Big XII opponent on December 28.

What we don’t know is who they’ll be playing when they get there. Although we will know by the early afternoon Sunday, here’s the experts final projections as to who the opponent will be:

247Sports – Brad Crawford: Texas

The Athletic – Stewart Mandel: Kansas State

Bleacher Report – Kerry Miller: Kansas State

College Football News – Pete Fiutak: Texas

ESPN – Bonagura and Schlabach both: Texas

Stadium – Brett McMurphy: Iowa State

Final Tally:

Texas 4

Kansas State 2

Iowa State 1

Oklahoma State 0

We’ll find out officially in a few hours. FWIW I’ve had it being Texas for a couple weeks now.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Notre Dame Bowl Projections – Post Week 14

These were the five outlets with six total projections that I was able to find Sunday evening.  Do you have a preference in which Big XII team Notre Dame plays in Orlando, where it appears they’re ultimately headed?

Notre Dame accomplished it’s goal after the debacle in Michigan, going 5-0 in the month of November and finishing 10-2.

Most years a 10-2 Notre Dame team would be playing in a big-time bowl game, one of the New Year’s Six, but in this strange college football season it appears that dream is dead, something I declared a week ago.

After the regular season finale in Week-14 and before the conference championship games this coming weekend, here is where the bowl projection experts have Notre Dame going and who they have them squaring up against:

247Sports:
Brad Crawford – Camping World Bowl vs. Oklahoma State

CBS:
Jerry Palm – Camping World Bowl vs. Texas

College Football News:
Pete Fiutak – Camping World Bowl vs. Oklahoma State

ESPN:
Bonagura – Camping World Bowl vs. Oklahoma State
Schlabach – Camping World Bowl vs. Oklahoma State

The Sporting News:
Bill Bender – Camping World Bowl vs. Kansas State

These were the five outlets with six total projections that I was able to find Sunday evening.  Do you have a preference in which Big XII team Notre Dame plays in Orlando, where it appears they’re ultimately headed?  If so, leave it and the reason why on our new message board!

Sign up and start the conversation today!

CFP Rankings: Cotton Bowl Dream Dead for Notre Dame

Perhaps both Ohio State and Minnesota win Saturday, handing Michigan and Wisconsin their third losses of the year, but after that it gets tricky.

Although no games were played Tuesday night Notre Dame saw their hopes of ending their season in the Cotton Bowl for a second year in a row come to an unofficial end.

As the College Football Playoff rankings were released Tuesday night, Notre Dame remained at number 16 in the country, still the lowest of any two-loss power-five teams and also still behind three-loss Auburn.

So as it sits with No. 16 Notre Dame having just one game remaining against an under-500 Stanford team that won’t count for much, even if it does end with a 50 point win for the Irish.

The problem is that Notre Dame has already routed better teams than Stanford in recent weeks and gained no ground.

Unless you can figure out a way that Notre Dame jumps six teams and gets into the top-ten, then they’re headed to Orlando for the Camping World Bowl against a Big XII team.

With the games remaining it’s hard to find six losses that are going to benefit Notre Dame.

Auburn losing to Alabama would probably finally get the Irish ahead of the currently three-loss Tigers.

Perhaps both Ohio State and Minnesota win Saturday, handing Michigan and Wisconsin their third losses of the year, but after that it gets tricky.

Kansas over Baylor or Rutgers over Penn State?  No help coming in either of those.

Same pretty much going for Colorado’s chances against Utah, Florida State’s to upset Florida.

Not only would Notre Dame need one of those to happen, they’d need three of the last four listed in order to have a chance, couple with those Auburn, Michigan and Wisconsin losses listed above.

As you can tell the chances at the Cotton Bowl are about as good as gone. so if interested you might as well get those flights booked to Orlando.

That’s the unfortunate reality when what happens in Ann Arbor in late October happen to you in front of a national audience.

 

21 cities that could possibly get an MLB team

As the possibility of the MLB expanding to 32 teams becomes more likely, let’s take a look at 21 cities waiting in the on-deck circle.

If you build it…

While those now-infamous whispers were initially echoing from the baseball heavens via Shoeless Joe Jackson to a confused Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams, they resonate a very topical reality in today’s baseball landscape. As MLB revenues top the $10 billion mark, with local television deals seemingly attainable (and working), many cities would like to be the ones voicing such promises.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has not shied away from talking about expanding both in the US and internationally, either. And, with the premise that adding more teams will add more revenue—while, don’t forget, playing into the back-and-forth tactics of the CBA—the idea of expansion is very possible.

Of course, there are difficulties to consider—a defining difference from the NFL and NBA: For every new franchise that comes into the league, if there’s a minor league team in the area…well, it’s been lovely, but you gotta go!

Still, expansion in the MLB isn’t “if” it’s “when and where?”.

Here’s a look at 21 cities with a population, market size, and location that could put them in the on-deck circle.

Orlando

(Getty Images)

Orlando tops the list—mainly because it’s recently topped the MLB expansion headlines. Orlando Magic co-founder, Pat Williams, has become the face championing to get an MLB franchise in Central Florida. Although baseball in Florida doesn’t have the most celebrated PowerPoint presentation, that isn’t to say a team near Disney World would be a disaster.

Orlando is a top 20 television market with a metro area of over 2.5 million people. Nielsen’s 2020 DMA (Designated Market Area) rankings have Orlando’s marketing reach at 18th. With someone holding the financial status like Williams leading the charge, it’s possible the MLB would not brush this off as a mere publicity bake sale. (Williams, ironically, would like the team name to be the Orlando Dreamers.)

Odds: 7 out of 10 

How to vote your favorite Seattle Seahawks onto the Pro Bowl roster

Everything you need to know to cast your votes for your favorite Seattle Seahawks players to 2020 Pro Bowl roster.

Now that the NFL has entered the second half of the regular season, things are beginning to ramp up as teams compete for coveted playoff positions. Players are also starting to rally fans for votes to this year’s Pro Bowl, which will be held at Camping World Stadium, in Orlando, FL.

Here’s everything you need to know to vote your favorite Seahawks’ onto the Pro Bowl roster.

For the third season in a row, voting will be open for four weeks, with the polls closing on Thursday, Dec. 12.

Fans can vote multiple times for their favorite players, using a number of different mediums, including the league’s official website page at NFL.com/ProBowlVote.

In addition, fans can also vote directly on Twitter starting Nov. 28. All tweets should include the first and last name of the player, official Twitter handle (if available) or a hashtag including the player’s first and last name. All tweets must also include the #ProBowlVote hashtag.

The 2020 Pro Bowl is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. PT on Jan. 26 and will be televised on ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes and Disney XD.

Pro Bowl rosters will be announced Tuesday, Dec.17 on the NFL Network’s Pro Bowl special “NFL Total Access: Pro Bowl Players Revealed.”

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