Charlie Smyth struck while the iron was hot in Saints preseason opener

Charlie Smyth struck while the iron was hot in the Saints’ preseason opener. The rookie kicker came through in the clutch:

What a way to start your career in American football. Not just the NFL — when Charlie Smyth took the field on Saturday night to attempt a 37-yard field goal for the win, he did so on his first kick in the American game. The rookie from Northern Ireland joined the New Orleans Saints through the NFL’s International Player Program this offseason, and he’s been turning heads all summer.

That included during pregame warmups. Smyth booted two tries from distances of 60-plus yards, then watched Blake Grupe go to work for three quarters. When his turn finally came, it was in the game’s final seconds, with the Saints trailing by a single point. And his coaches had full confidence in him in that moment.

“We would’ve kicked it from, I don’t know, sixty. You know? Depending on how much time was left in the game and whether I thought the down and distance was, what we thought the percentages was. So it’s a little bit of a hypothetical,” Allen mused in his postgame press conference.

At about the same time, the Irish rock band U2’s hit single “With You or Without You” could be heard echoing from the celebratory Saints locker room, per Nola.com’s Luke Johnson. Allen continued: “But I felt good about him hitting the distance. Wasn’t worried about that at all. And I thought that was awesome. First kick in not an NFL game a football game, in an American football game. For him to knock it through like that in a pressure situation, that was cool to see.”

That’s not to say Smyth has won the job just yet. He needs to keep up the good work and harness the power in his leg (he pushed a few warmup kicks wide to the right, as has happened at training camp practices) and improve his placement on kickoffs. He’s sent too many of those out of the field of play. But he may just need more experience. You don’t see many players with his raw talent. His status in the IPP has bought some time to better learn the sport, but Smyth just might end up pushing the envelope.

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The 10 performers for the 2024 Grammys, including Travis Scott and Billie Eilish

SZA, who has the most nominations of any musician this year, is also performing.

We have seen some incredible performances (like Kendrick Lamar stealing the show in 2016) at the Grammy Awards over the years.

During the 66th Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles at Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 4, music fans will have an opportunity to see some move very special moments.

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Some of those musicians with the most nominations include SZA (nine), Billie Eilish (six) and Olivia Rodrigo (six) will take the stage to perform at the ceremony as well.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell will perform at the Grammy Awards for the first time. Meanwhile, U2 will broadcast a show from The Sphere in Las Vegas.

Here is a full list of those confirmed to perform on music’s biggest night:

RELATED: Grammy nomination snubs (including Morgan Wallen), according to Twitter

Top 10 musical artists that need to perform at Notre Dame Stadium

Who do you want to see play in South Bend?

According to the website setlist.fm, Johnny Cash was the first artist to play at Notre Dame Stadium in 1977. That would be the last musical performance at the stadium until Chicago played at halftime of the Irish’s 2017 game against USC. Since then, Chicago has come back for one other game, and Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood have played there twice apiece. Weezer appeared there for the 2019 Winter Classic, and Billy Joel played a full show there in 2022.

Other than that, Notre Dame Stadium has a very paltry history when it comes to hosting big musical acts. I don’t know or care what’s behind that. I just want to see Notre Dame Stadium become a hot spot for concerts like most other stadiums around the world are when they don’t have games to host. Plus, such things only can be a boost to South Bend’s economy, and those shouldn’t have to happen only during football season.

Here are 10 artists I believe need to add Notre Dame Stadium to their next tour: