Tag: Virginia Tech

Notre Dame Offers, Immediately Makes Cut for Michigan/Penn State/Texas Target

‘Twas a productive morning for Notre Dame football as they offered an offensive line prospect Friday morning & made his cut just hours later

Notre Dame made a scholarship offer Friday morning and were immediately included as that player announced his final eight schools a few short hours later.

Notre Dame made the cut down to 2021 offensive tackle Tristan Bounds’ final eight potential schools.  The newly offering Fighting Irish join traditional power houses Michigan, Penn State, Texas and Virginia Tech while Boston College, Vanderbilt and Virginia also made the cut.

Bounds is a 6-7, 285 pound prospect from Wallingford (Choate Rosemary Hall), Connecticut.  He ranks as the 39th best offensive tackle in the class per 247Sports, who grades Bounds as a three-star prospect.

Bounds spoke to 247 after cutting his potential schools down to eight and says two things especially stick out when considering Notre Dame.

“Notre Dame is (on the list) because of the academic tradition and also they have a program that puts offensive linemen into the NFL,” Bounds said. “I think those two things alone make Notre Dame very enticing.” Tristan Bounds to 247Sports

Bounds also says he’d like to announce his decision before the start of the season as long as he’s able to make his official visits this summer.

Of Notre Dame’s eight current commitments in the 2021 class, only Pat Coogan finds a home on the offensive line.

Notre Dame Offers a top 2022 Cornerback

Keenan Nelson now has 15 offers with some big-time players as you’d expect including Georgia, Penn State, Miami, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Pitt and Michigan State among others.

Notre Dame continues to try and shape the 2022 recruiting class as they offered a scholarship to one of the nation’s top corner backs in the class Monday morning.

Keenan Nelson, Jr. of St. Joseph’s Prep School in Philadelphia was officially offered by the Irish and let the world know on Twitter.

Nelson is listed at 6-1, 200 pounds and as a four-star corner back.  247Sports ranks him as the 60th best player in the 2022 class and ninth best corner.

Nelson now has 15 offers with some big-time players as you’d expect including Georgia, Penn State, Miami, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Pitt and Michigan State among others.

If you’d like to know more about the latest Notre Dame offer you can watch his sophomore year highlight video below.

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4 things to know about Patriots rookie tight end Dalton Keene

Fans should know these things about Dalton Keene.

The New England Patriots clearly understood how dire of a need addressing the tight end position was. After selecting Devin Asiasi with the 91st pick, Bill Belichick and co. didn’t think that was enough. They moved back up into the third round to take another.

New England jumped back up to No. 101 to select Virginia Tech tight end Dalton Keene. The Patriots continued their theme of drafting multiple tight ends in the same draft. They did this in 2010 with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. Neither of the 2020 picks were taken as high as Gronkowski, but they can still make an impact in New England during their rookie seasons.

Here’s what fans should know about their newest tight end.

Keene wasn’t super productive at Virginia tech.

In his three years, the Hokie brought in 59 receptions for 748 yards and eight touchdowns. Those numbers aren’t going to wow anybody. However, where Keene did excel was in the trenches. He is a very solid blocker in the ACC. That ability may be able to translate to the NFL.

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Watch: T.J. Gibbs Leads on Senior Day vs. Virginia Tech

T.J. Gibbs was known for hitting shots from downtown during his Notre Dame career.

T.J. Gibbs was known for hitting shots from downtown during his Notre Dame career. He made sure everyone knew that during his final game in South Bend, in which he led all scorers with 22 points and hit five 3-pointers. Watch his Senior Day performance here:

Notre Dame Basketball Player Review: Dane Goodwin

Sophomore guard Dane Goodwin was Notre Dame’s best bench player of the past season.

Sophomore guard Dane Goodwin was Notre Dame’s best bench player of the past season. A potent threat on offense, Goodwin averaged 10.8 points a game while shooting 43.3 percent from the field, 37.7 percent from 3-point range, and 83.3 percent at the free-throw line. He so impressed Mike Brey that he earned his second start of the season in the Irish’s only ACC tournament game before the sports world came to a halt. That left little doubt about his value moving forward.

Goodwin had the best scoring game of his career so far when he scored 27 points Dec. 10 against Detroit Mercy. On Senior Day against Virginia Tech, he did a whole bunch of right with 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field while dishing out four assists and finishing one rebound shy of a double-double. His best stretch came when he scored in double figures in six consecutive games from Jan. 11 to Feb. 1.

If Brey inserting Goodwin into the starting lineup at the very end of the season is any indication, that will be Goodwin’s home for the rest of his time at Notre Dame.

Badger moments: Bronson Koenig hits 8 treys in win over Virginia Tech

Have a day, Bronson Koenig

Almost every college basketball player has a certain set of dreams. One is to make the Final Four — not every player thinks a national title is realistic, but the Final Four is much more widely accessible, as Loyola of Chicago reminded us in its 2018 run to the big show in San Antonio.

Another dream is to play in the NCAA Tournament — no explanation needed there.

The third and most central dream of any college basketball player is to play one’s very best in the NCAA Tournament, to make the most of the opportunity if it ever emerges.

In the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, Bronson Koenig of the Wisconsin Badgers had the kind of day every player dreams of.

It is true that the Badgers needed strong defense down the stretch to defeat the Virginia Tech Hokies in Buffalo. Wisconsin held Virginia Tech without a field goal in the final 2:20, going on a 10-1 run to seal an 84-74 victory. The Badgers needed Nigel Hayes’ cleverness near the basket. They needed Ethan Happ’s work on the glass to secure crucial added possessions down the stretch. They needed to withstand a Virginia Tech team which played UW on even terms for the first 38 minutes of play. Yet, Wisconsin would not have been in position to win with just over two minutes left had it not been for Bronson Koenig.

Sam Dekker and Frank Kaminsky were and are the two iconic Wisconsin players on the 2014 and 2015 Final Four teams, but one can’t ignore how important it was that Bronson Koenig was part of the roster, forming an essential piece to the puzzle and a complementary player who fit together with the superstars on the Badgers. With Dekker and Kaminsky long gone in 2017, it was up to Koenig and Hayes to take on a more central leadership role for Wisconsin. They answered the call against Virginia Tech, Koenig in particular.

Yes, Hayes scored 16 points and notched the game’s biggest basket, an old-fashioned 3-point play to give Wisconsin some breathing room after Virginia Tech pulled within a point, at 74-73, with just over two minutes left. Hayes’ “and-one” 3-point play pushed UW’s lead to 77-73 and gave the Badgers the finishing kick they needed. However, Koenig was the player who carried the Badgers through the first 38 minutes. Koenig made sure Virginia Tech’s resilient performance was not rewarded with a victory.

Koenig hit eight 3-point shots in that Thursday night game in Western New York. He finished the game with 28 points and was the central reason the Badgers eclipsed 80 points against Virginia Tech. Koenig’s hot shooting enabled Wisconsin to score 50 points in the second half, offsetting Virginia Tech’s 44-point explosion after halftime and a surprising 23-point game from Hokie reserve Zach LeDay.

Bronson Koenig didn’t hit a 3-point shot in UW’s 2016 first-round win over Pittsburgh. He made sure this NCAA Tournament first-round game contained a different game flow and shooting line… but the same winning result for the Badgers.

ACC Tournament Bracket Set

The ACC regular season has come to a close and the transition to college basketball’s postseason now begins. Find out who and when your squad is playing here!

The ACC regular season has come to a close and the transition to college basketball’s postseason now begins. For Notre Dame that means the ACC Tournament which gets started in Greensboro, North Carolina on Tuesday.

In beating Virginia Tech on Saturday, Notre Dame locked up a 10-10 ACC record and seventh place conference finish. They get a first round bye as a result and will play No. 10 Boston College on Wednesday night as tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET.

If Notre Dame wins that they will play No. 2 Virginia on Thursday night at 7 p.m. and the winner of that contest will play the winner of the No. 2 Louisville, No. 6 Syracuse, No. 11 Virginia Tech and No. 14 North Carolina pod.

No. 1 Florida State and No. 4 Duke sit on the other side of the bracket.

Early impressions from me are that this is as good of a draw as Notre Dame could hope for. A Boston College team they should beat, a seconded-seeded Virginia squad they should have beat on the road earlier this season and then a potential semi-final draw that wouldn’t be against the only team to really run them out of the gym in an ACC contest this year.

March Madness is upon us. Here’s to hoping for a nice run into maybe Friday night for Mike Brey and the Fighting Irish.

Watch: Notre Dame Sends Seniors Off With Win

Although Notre Dame hasn’t had the season it hoped for, it could at least give its seniors a win in its final regular-season game.

Although Notre Dame hasn’t had the season it hoped for, it could at least give its seniors a win in its final regular-season game. It did just that Saturday against Virginia Tech, 64-56. See how it happened:

Notre Dame Earns Senior Day Win Over Virginia Tech

Don’t expect Saturday’s win to be replayed on ESPN Classic anytime soon as the teams combined for 26 assists but 25 turnovers.

After a 2-6 start in ACC play things looked bleak for Notre Dame basketball in 2020. Although ultimate goals weren’t reached in the regular season and plenty of heartbreak was had in close calls, the regular season ended Saturday with a 64-56 Senior Day win over Virginia Tech. With the win Notre Dame finishes the regular season 19-12 overall and 10-10 in conference play.

Don’t expect Saturday’s win to be replayed on ESPN Classic anytime soon as the teams combined for 26 assists but 25 turnovers. The Irish and Hokies also combined to shoot under 40% from the floor.

With the rough there was still good, especially in the form of TJ Gibbs for Notre Dame as the senior guard led all scorers with 22 points.

John Mooney had a rare day that didn’t end with a double-double as he scored just seven points but pulled down 13 boards.

Notre Dame was in control virtually all afternoon and allowed just 17 first half points to Virginia Tech, who finishes the regular season 16-15 and 7-13 in ACC play.

With the win Notre Dame secures the seventh seed in the ACC Tournament and will be in action Wednesday when they play one of North Carolina, Boston College or Virginia Tech again.

Aside from running the table in the ACC Tournament it would appear Mike Brey and the Fighting Irish will be headed to the NIT for the second time in the last three seasons.

Watch: Notre Dame Can’t Close vs. Virginia Tech and Muffet McGraw’s Postgame

It’s easy to get frustrated watching Notre Dame have an uncharacteristically bad season, but at a time when it’s difficult to find highlights, look for a few worthy ones in this reel: Let’s see what Muffet McGraw said afterwards:

It’s easy to get frustrated watching Notre Dame have an uncharacteristically bad season, but at a time when it’s difficult to find highlights, look for a few worthy ones in this reel:

Let’s see what Muffet McGraw said afterwards: