Tag: Syracuse

Georgia Tech/Syracuse delayed awaiting COVID-19 test results

Kickoff for one of the early ACC games for week four has been delayed as extra test results for COVID-19 are waited upon.

A developing story out of upstate New York early this afternoon has kickoff for the Syracuse game against Georgia Tech being delayed as COVID-19 test results are still pending.

The host University announced that on Twitter just before kickoff that was set for noon in the east.

As it turns out, three players for the Orange are being re-tested before they’re given the clear to play.

If those tests don’t come back negative one would have to imagine with the players having warmed up with teammates earlier today that this game wouldn’t end up being played today.

Syracuse enters 0-2 on the young season while Georgia Tech is 1-1 after falling to UCF last week.

Stay tuned for what could be another massive story out of the ACC.

The picks are in! Analysts predict Irish vs. Duke outcome and more

ESPN’s College Gameday crew picks this weeks slate of games with Wake Forest alum and NBA star Chris Paul.

It’s become a Saturday tradition at ESPN, as their analysts pick games with a celebrity guest. Find out who picked Notre Dame to beat Duke along with the other big games of the day.

ESPN College Gameday with Wake Forest alum and NBA star Chris Paul

Costal Carolina at Kansas

Lee Corso – Kansas

David Pollack – Kansas

Kirk Herbstreit – Kansas

Desmond Howard – Kansas

Chris Paul – Kansas

 

Charlotte at Appalachian State

Lee Corso – App St.

David Pollack – App St.

Kirk Herbstreit – App St.

Desmond Howard – App St.

Chris Paul – Charlotte

 

Louisiana at Iowa State

Lee Corso – Iowa St.

David Pollack – Iowa St.

Kirk Herbstreit – Iowa St.

Desmond Howard – Iowa St.

Chris Paul – Louisiana

 

Florida State at Georgia Tech

Lee Corso – Florida St.

David Pollack – Florida St.

Kirk Herbstreit – Florida St.

Desmonds Howard – Florida St.

Chris Paul – Florida St.

 

Syracuse at North Carolina

Lee Corso – North Carolina

David Pollack – North Carolina

Kirk Herbstreit – North Carolina

Desmond Howard – North Carolina

Chris Paul – North Carolina

 

Duke at Notre Dame

Lee Corso – Notre Dame (BIG)

David Pollack – Notre Dame

Kirk Herbstreit – Notre Dame

Desmond Howard – Notre Dame

Chris Paul – Notre Dame

 

Clemson at Wake Forest

Lee Corso – Clemson

David Pollack – Clemson

Kirk Herbstreit – Clemson

Desmond Howard – Clemson

Chris Paul – Wake Forest

Notre Dame Preseason Top 5? One Analyst Says Yes

With the strange feel around college football entering 2020, one preseason ranking now has Notre Dame in the top 5. Find out who, here.

Preseason polls have been out for sometime now as the both the AP Top 25 and Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY were released earlier this month amid the confusion of ranking teams even though they’re not playing football this fall.

Paul Myerberg of USA TODAY went ahead and ranked the 76 teams that will be playing FBS college football this season and he gave Notre Dame as much respect as any I’ve seen from any national outlet ahead of the 2020 campaign, as he ranked the Irish fifth.

Myerberg’s top ten went the following:

  1.  Clemson
  2. Alabama
  3. Georgia
  4. Oklahoma
  5. Notre Dame
  6. Florida
  7. LSU
  8. Texas
  9. UCF
  10. North Carolina

Myerberg ranked Notre Dame’s 11 opponents for the 2020 season as follows:

1.  Clemson
10.  North Carolina
24.  Pitt
25.  Louisville
28.  Florida State
41.  Duke
44.  Wake Forest
52.  Boston College
60.  South Florida
64.  Syracuse
68.  Georgia Tech

A battle of potential top ten teams the day after Thanksgiving in Chapel Hill?  North Carolina is improved but even in this strange fall to come that seems a bit strong to me.

For Myerberg’s entire rankings, 1-76, click here.

Notre Dame Finally Gets 2020 Football Schedule

Notre Dame’s 2020 football schedule is officially out. Check it out here and find out what longtime rivalry sadly ends…

Notre Dame and the ACC unveiled their 2020 football schedule on Thursday with some significant changes compared to what it looked like just a month ago.

Here’s how 2020 shapes up for Notre Dame:

Notre Dame 2020 Football Schedule:

September 12 vs. Duke
September 19 vs. Western Michigan
September 26 at Wake Forest (Charlotte)
October 3 BYE
October 10 vs. Florida State
October 17 vs. Louisville
October 24 at Pitt
October 31 at Georgia Tech
November 7 vs. Clemson
November 14 at Boston College
November 21 BYE
November 27 at North Carolina
December 5 vs. Syracuse
December 12 or 19 ACC Championship in Charlotte

There it is – Notre Dame’s first schedule as a member of the ACC.

As you may notice, the Navy game was unable to be worked out, marking the end of a consecutive series that dates all the way back to 1927.

Notre Dame Offers Top 2022 New York Prospect

Kaleb Artis is starting to gain interest from some big-time programs. Notre Dame joined the growing list to offer the d-tackle on Monday.

Notre Dame made an offer for the 2022 recruiting class Monday morning, extended a hand to defensive tackle Kaleb Artis of St. Francis Prepatory School in Fresh Meadows, New York.

Artis is listed at 6-5, 260 pounds and grades out as a three-star prospect on 247Sports.

The 2022 prospect has also received offers from the likes of Boston College, Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Tennessee as well as a few others.  Artis is ranked as the second best prospect in all of New York state in the 2022 class.

Watch: Notre Dame’s Top Ten Men’s Basketball Buzzer-Beaters

Notre Dame has had some classic basketball finishes over the years. Relive the 10 best buzzer-beaters in program history by watching here.

Nothing in basketball is better than a game that comes down to a last second shot.  Sometimes it goes in, sometimes it doesn’t and sometimes Pat Connaughton leaps out of a gym and stuffs it before it ever has a chance to find the bottom of the net.

In their latest edition of #NDTop10, Notre Dame released their ten best men’s basketball buzzer beaters in program history.  Take the next three minutes and enjoy a couple hand-fulls of epic Fighting Irish basketball finishes.

I love that Rex Pflueger averaged 5.4 points per game during his Notre Dame career but managed to make the list twice, including the top spot.  I still don’t know how the Irish got by Stephen F. Austin that day but I’m not complaining.

Glad to see Torin Francis on the list on what was to me, Chris Thomas’s most-memorable play/assist at Notre Dame.

I still contest that stuffing someone at the buzzer should count for this though.

Best to Wear Number Five? Notre Dame Legend Left Off List

Who is the best college football player to ever wear number five? Fox Sports asked but left a Notre Dame legend off their list of answers.

In their Cinco De Mayo celebration Tuesday, Fox Sports was asking who the best player to ever wear number five in college football was.  Some great nominees were on there including Reggie Bush, Christian McCaffrey and LaDanian Tomlinson in recent years.

Notre Dame even had a nomination in the form of Manti Te’o who wore jersey number five for the Fighting Irish between 2009-2012, finishing second in the Heisman Trophy voting his senior year.

Looking at their list, sure, everyone is a rather modern player with both Edgerrin James and Donovan McNabb ending their college careers in 1998 being the oldest players listed.  They don’t however say a word about there being a year or era requirement to decide.

So, isn’t there a certain Heisman Trophy winner from Notre Dame that is missing from this list?

I get that Paul Hornung is considered by many to be among the most-overrated players in the history of the NFL.  When you hear his name plenty immediately argue against his bust being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He’s also the only player to ever win a Heisman Trophy despite playing on a losing team, doing so in 1956.  The quarterback ran for all of 420 yards that season while throwing for 917 more with three touchdown passes, good for the second most total yards in the nation that season (1337).

Hornung beat out Johnny Majors of Tennessee and Tom MacDonald of Oklahoma, who actually received more first place votes that season.  However, isn’t it a little strange to have a number five from a school mentioned as the best to wear a number when the same school produced an actual Heisman winner?

Just a thought.

For the record – the correct answer is Reggie Bush, even if USC isn’t currently allowed to claim him.

A look at where Alton Robinson fits along Seahawks defensive line

Alton Robinson posted gaudy sack totals in college, but will that production translate into a productive NFL career for the Seahawks?

The Seattle Seahawks decided to double up on defensive ends in the 2020 NFL draft, using a second rounder on Darrell Taylor and taking a shot at Syracuse’s Alton Robinson in the fifth.

However, Robinson was a perfectly logical gamble for John Schneider and the staff to take, as he posted gaudy sack totals during his two years at Syracuse – and his top of the line athleticism and explosiveness off the edge should translate at the next level.

“I’m really fired up that we were able to get Alton [Robinson] where we got him,” coach Pete Carroll said after the draft. “He’s got the ability and the production to do stuff like guys that were picked quite a bit higher. We were fortunate to get that done.”

However, with Taylor and Robinson joining newcomers Bruce Irvin and Benson Mayowa, the team seems to already have a lot of bodies along the defensive edge – and that’s not even including a potential big addition like Jadeveon Clowney or Everson Griffen.

So where does that leave Robinson in year one? Well, fifth round defensive ends aren’t usually expected to have big roles on the defense right away, and Robinson’s lack of length (his 32 3/8 inch arms are the shortest the Seahawks have ever drafted at DE) will likely limit him to being a situational pass rusher right off the bat.

Eventually, Robinson has the tools to settle into a backup DE role, much like the role Mayowa is expected to fill this year, and the role Branden Jackson has had for the past few seasons.

Robinson may never be a star, but a quality pass rusher who generates pressure in a limited role is a perfectly fine result for a fifth round pick, and one that seems easily attainable for Robinson.

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The Athletic in Love/Hate Relationship with Notre Dame Alternate Uniform

The Athletic listed several alternate college football uniforms that they both love and hate. Notre Dame had one get both love and hate.

The Athletic has been on a uniform kick lately.  In the NHL they’ve been discussing the best sweaters in the history of each franchise and tackled recent alternate college football uniforms today.

Notre Dame has been wearing an alternate look at least once a season each of the last ten years and a couple times wearing a second alternate look twice in the same year.

Notre Dame didn’t get any love from The Athletic today for any of their alternate uniforms.  At least not none that was categorized under “favorites” on the list.  Notre Dame did get listed under “hated” for one of their alternates, however and I assume you already know which recent alternate it went to.

Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Pete Sampson and Nicole Auerbach said the following about the uniforms from the 2018 Shamrock Series game against Syracuse at Yankee Stadium:

Against:  These were less alternate jerseys than Halloween costumes, a Notre Dame football player trick-or-treating around the Bronx dressed up like a New York Yankee.  Most of Notre Dame’s alternates for the Shamrock Series have been edgy with some homage: military green for the game against Army, or touches of the Golden Dome on fabric for the Purdue game.  Even the Knute Rockne jerseys (faux old-school leather cleats!) from 2017 leaned into something Notre Dame.  Dressing up like a baseball player did none of that.  And replacing Notre Dame’s iconic gold with a dingy batting helmet?  Just thinking about it makes me clutch my pearls. – Pete Sampson

For:  Yes, I am aware that most of you hated these.  But that doesn’t mean you are right.  These jerseys paid homage to the most successful professional sports franchise in the United States on said franchise’s own turf.  They mixed elements of traditional baseball and football designs beautifully, from the pinstripes on the pants that looked classic and clean to the matte helmet that looked like a batting helmet.  I believe the backlash to these uniforms was not about the uniforms themselves but rather the success of the Yankees.  Just because you personally didn’t have the honor of growing up a Yankees fan doesn’t mean you have to disrespect the pinstripes.  They’re iconic, much like Notre Dame’s gold helmets.  You’re all just haters. – Nicole Auerbach

And people wonder why the Yankees get so much hate even if they’re not in the business of winning the World Series anymore.

I looked over all of the semi-recent Notre Dame alternates back in the fall ahead of the Irish wearing the ’88 tribute throwbacks against Boston College.  I agree with Sampson in that it wasn’t overall a good uniform but I did think they looked a ton better when the game actually came around than when they were unveiled during the previous summer.

Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

That said there is no excuse for the Rockne tribute uniforms to not get some praise in the “love” category.  Those are as perfect of alternate uniform that Notre Dame has ever worn and whenever they wear them again won’t be soon enough in my eyes.

Alton Robinson newest Seahawk who must prove he’s overcome adversity

Alton Robinson, a Seahawks 2020 NFL draft pick, is getting another shot after nearly losing his college career due to a robbery charge.

Defensive end Alton Robinson’s college football career nearly ended before it even began. Just two weeks after he committed to Texas A&M he was charged with second-degree robbery over an alleged struggle with his girlfriend and the theft of her purse and cell phone.

His legal woes ultimately led to his scholarship at Texas A&M being rescinded and he eventually made his way to Syracuse University. All charges were later dropped, but Robinson was left with a tarnished reputation.

He now joins a fairly lengthy list of Seahawks players who have been given another shot despite questionable histories. Seattle selected Robinson in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft at No. 148 overall to aid with the pass rush.

Robinson was forthright when asked about the criminal allegations by the Seattle media during his post-draft Zoom conference.

“Basically, I was immature at the time,” Robinson explained. “Me and my girlfriend at the time, we were in a relationship that was very immature. The situation, I’m sure you can find it, it was very embarrassing. I embarrassed myself, and my high school, my family and everything like that. I definitely learned from it.

“I’m looking forward to being a Seahawk, and I can’t wait to get up to Seattle.”

Robinson has a clean slate in the Emerald City and everything in the world to prove to Pete Carroll, John Schneider and everyone else who has been willing to give him a second chance.

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