As a reaction to my post the other day, and a few LTE's in the Observer supporting my stance....And after the project's leadership dismissed the idea because (i am paraphrasing here) 'sales went down from '02 to '04 when we stuck with shades of green' (and nevermind that the team went from 10 to 5 to 6 wins and Ty got canned during that same time period - let's blame it all on the color) in THEIR letter to the editor, I have decided that it's time to take a stand here. So, we're launching an all-out, grassroots campaign to UNITE ND STADIUM under a single, consistent color, year in and year out.

This is about doing what's best for ND Football, and recognizing that all the great benefits of The Shirt 1) Will not go away with a single color and 2) Are owed to the success of the Football Team in the first place

So, I've created a petition HERE.

Step 1: GO SIGN IT! That's done by CLICKING HERE.

Step 2: Forward the link to EVERY ND FAN YOU KNOW. Facebook it, Tweet it (#FixTheShirt is the hashtag), Email it, whatever. Just get the word out.

Step 3: EMAIL theshirt@nd.edu and let them know you've signed and that you want a single color for The Shirt. Forever.

Step 4: Spread the word some more. C'mon, it's quick - just shoot off that email, tweet, whatever. Please?

It's time to fix this thing folks. It's time to welcome opposing teams with unity and fire when they walk into ND Stadium. Help us out!

But it's about time that The Shirt also serve a purpose for the football team: uniting the fans in a single color to show opposing teams that they are, indeed, playing an away game. AT NOTRE DAME STADIUM.

I rant on this once a year, and I guess it's that time again. The Shirt changes colors every year for some god-forsaken reason. To sell more. To be 'creative'. Whatever, none of them are good reasons. Because, in addition to being socially conscious and raising money for some important student funds, The Shirt should, ultimately, UNITE THE FAN BASE. It should be a way to get all fans on the same page in terms of home garb colors. Too often ND Stadium looks like a bunch of people wandered in off the street and decided to sit down.

Blue (X 30 Hues)
Gold (X 30 Hues)
Green(X 30 Hues)
Away Team Colors
Random Colors of Peoples' Jackets

Notre Dame's crowd is the Skittles of CFB.

TASTE THE FREAKING RAINBOW PEOPLE!

All of these are mixed and matched and there is absolutely no coherence to the stadium, outside of the student section. Why? Well, because not everybody will buy this year's The Shirt. And the crowd has been trained that there is no particular color that is preferred. So we end up with this mess.

Remember Nebraska? Aside from all the ND fans selling out and selling their tix to Nebraska fans, this game taught us one thing: a unified color in the stands can make a difference. That game FELT like an away game for Notre Dame, in our own beloved stadium. So do you think that having a random mish-mash of colors in the stadium doesn't have an impact? Oh it does. And it's time to fix it.

It's time to declare a home game color of choice. One color, for the entire season, for every season, forever. Fans can, of course, choose to wear something different. But maybe this will get a majority on board, and it will start a trend of displaying unity in the stadium.

This can and should start with The Shirt. First, pick a color. One color. Kelly Green. Navy Blue. Whatever, just pick one and stick with it. Permanently. This will, over time, become the 'game day color' for Notre Dame. And yeah, some folks will wear something else, and some will wear one shade of green instead of another, but the unity will be apparent. And it will be clear to visiting teams that they are at Notre - Freaking - Dame.

Yes, I understand that The Shirt has many missions. But without success on the field, it will in the long run mean very little. And while the impact may be small, every little bit helps. It's time to do that little bit and get everyone on the same page.

It's time for The Shirt to do Job #1: Support the Team.

Let's get to it, folks.

There are a lot of reasons to pick any school: academics, networking, fit, coaches, coaching style/scheme, depth chart, NFL prospects (although you can go to the League from almost any school now) location, weather, faith/spirituality, campus, dining hall, etc etc etc

And the importance of each of these is different for each recruit, and some consider all of these, and some consider very few of them. But there's one area that tends to be a bit over-looked, and I am guessing that it's largely because it hasn't been quantified with regularity in the past.

I have no idea if the staff pushes this today, and I don't know how important it is to any of our recruits, but I know it's important to many people in the world. The one thing?

Money.

Cold, hard, cash.

MONEY MONEY MONEY MO-NEY. MAH-NEY!

Businessweek, in conjunction with PayScale, did their best to estimate the value of an undergraduate degree from a school, and then I looked at the #'s among Football Players and African American Football players by building in graduation rates (from NCAA calculations provided by WhiskeyJack). And you know what? ND is the BEST CHOICE among competitive programs for African American players, and a close #2 to Stanford overall.

Let's take a look at it in detail.

OVERALL RANKINGS (all students)

1. Cal Tech
2. Harvey Mudd
3. MIT
4. Princeton
5. Stanford
6. Dartmouth
7. Duke
8. Harvard
9. Penn
10. Notre Dame

Notre Dame is #10 overall with a Net Return of $1.4 million. The rest of the Top 10 includes only 1 other competitive FBS program in Stanford (no, Duke isn't competitive). The next 'big name' program on the list? Cal, at #18, with a return of <$1.2 million. So sure, a player can choose a school other than Stanford or ND, and it's going to cost that player, at minimum, $200,000 (on average). That is real money folks! And looking for the #4 competitive program shows an even bigger difference. That school is UVA (and are they even really competitive?), and they are ranked 44th with a return of <$1MM which will cost a player ~$400K vs going to ND or Stanford.

And how about some of the top FBS programs out there today? What does a degree from one of the 'heavyweights' earn you over a career? Let's take a look at a few of those top programs, and how much attending one of those schools over ND is going to cost a student (opportunity cost), on average:

USC - Rank 50. ROI: <$900K. Cost ($ lost by student) vs ND: $500K
Michigan - Rank 63. ROI: <$900K. Cost vs ND: $500K
Texas - Rank 104. ROI: $700K. Cost vs ND: $700K
Wisconsin - Rank 117. ROI: $700K. Cost vs ND: $700K
Florida - Rank 125. ROI: $700K. Cost vs ND: $700K
...
Alabama - Rank 329. ROI: $400K. Cost vs ND: $1 million.

GOING TO ALABAMA WILL COST A STUDENT, ON AVERAGE, $1 million dollars over a career. And this difference is even greater among players, driven by lower and lower graduation rates among 'football factories' vs ND.

Note: All numbers rounded to nearest $100K

FOOTBALL PLAYERS.

Because of ND's amazing graduation rate among players, ND ranks #1 on ROI among African American Football Players, and #2 among All Players.

Ranking Among Players:

1. Stanford
2. Notre Dame
3. Duke
4. BC
5. Vanderbilt

And among African American Players:

1. Notre Dame
2. Duke
3. Stanford
4. BC
5. Vanderbilt

ND is an African American player's best chance to earn the most money. Period. ND and Stanford are 1 and 2 overall. Period..

And unlike almost every other school in the nation, African American Football players are actually projected to make MORE than the average player. So a player comes to ND, is much much more likely to earn a degree, and with that degree is much, much more likely to earn a bunch of money over a career when compared to what they would earn in a career with a degree from another school (if they were lucky enough to be one of those players that actually graduates from said school, which is not at all guaranteed).

So, every recruit should know this. I hope the staff is making this known. Money is important to many people in the world, and for a lot of kids coming from single income/struggling households, it's even more important. And while it's likely not (and should not) be the only factor, I think these stats are important to share with the community. Because let's say you're on the fence. You're a blue chip kid and you're looking at ND and you're looking at, say, 'Bama. Well, wouldn't you want to know that going to ND comes with an extra million bucks over the course of a career (down the road of course)?

No, ND won't pay you under the table right now to come to South Bend (unlike some other schools). But man, the degree is certainly worth a TON more than the average school, and the difference gets greater and greater when graduation rates are included in the discussion.

And this is something EVERY recruit should know.

$

We promise daily posts from Poot, continued snark from MQ, great analysis by screen grab from Tex, and more randomness and dancing leprechauns from me.

Also, here's a sample of the Title Track from Ken O'Malley's "Forever Irish" tailgating album. This song tugs at the heart strings, and I think it makes a great Christmas gift for the ND fan in your life.

Happy Holidays!

This Saturday, a game that could have pitted two Top-10, 1-loss teams arrives. *sigh* But still, not much changes other than how much money ND can make in a bowl, and some public perception of whether ND is 'back' or not. No matter what, this game is the second big test of the season to see where Notre Dame Football stands in 2011. While I believe Stanford is still ranked a bit too high based on the love for Andrew Luck, they are a legit Top 10-15 team and this game is a measuring stick for the Irish.

Season to Date and Competition

Stanford comes into the game 9-1 with its only loss to a quality Oregon squad. Outside of the thrilling triple OT win over USC, the Oregon loss and last week’s nail-biter vs Cal, Stanford rolled through the rest of their (very light) schedule. Scores like 37-10 were the norm for the Cardinal this year, and they have 7 games where they scored over 40 points.

Upon closer inspection, this isn’t quite as impressive as it first appears to be, though. Stanford’s Sagarin SOS is only 48 (compared to ND’s 36, which some call ‘weak’), and that’s heavily impacted by the USC and Oregon games. Outside of those two, the Pac-12 was extremely weak this year and Stanford’s OOC schedule included lowly San Jose State and Duke. Not exactly a challenge.

I’m not saying Stanford isn’t good. I’m just saying that their only really impressive W to date was USC, and that took triple OT to get there.

Oregon and USC rank 5th and 15th respectively in Sagarin’s rankings. The rest of their schedule, all W’s, came against competition ranked as follows:
38th: Cal, 48th: Washington, 52nd: UCLA, 69th: Arizona, 76th: Washington State, 82nd: Oregon State, 99th: San Jose State, 105th: Duke, 114th: Colorado.

So, yeah, Stanford has essentially played 3 tough games in Oregon, USC and Cal, and went 2-1 with one W in Triple OT and the other W going to the wire. They’ve handily beaten a bunch of teams ranked 48th or lower, with 5 of those ranked 76th or lower.

The point? Stanford’s results this season aren’t as impressive as they look on paper when you consider their schedule. They struggled mightily against any team ranked 38th or higher. Notre Dame is currently ranked 25th by Sagarin.

In other words, I’m telling you there’s a chance.

An 8-3 ND team that's played the 36th most difficult schedule with a few very close calls vs a 9-1 Stanford team that's played the 48th most difficult schedule with a few very close calls. It's a fairly even match-up, folks.

Adjusted Stats

Poot loves to push the use of Adjusted Stats, and I have to say that I have become a true believer. Football Outsiders’ FEI efficiency ratings help us understand how a team performs on a level playing field vs others by adjusting for level of competition and removing non-impact plays (e.g. end of half kneeling), and a comparison of the production of two squads can help us better gauge how a team stands vs another before they step out onto the field. To compare, I use the FEI ratings from Football outsiders which can be found heeeyah.

I think everyone would point to Stanford’s QB and their amazing point production and consider Stanford the superior O. But once adjusted for competition, and when we ignore the insane amount of Turnovers for ND earlier in the season, ND actually comes out ahead. ND’s offense ranks 14th in FEI adjusted stats, and Stanford ranks 25th. What’s more, ND’s defense is essentially tied with Stanford at 15 vs 14, respectively.

I don't think a lot of people would look at the two team's resumes to date and conclude that Notre Dame has an offense that is more efficient at moving the ball down the field. But points and competition level hide a lot of things, and ND actually matches up well against Stanford in these key statistical areas. This doesn't mean that point production doesn't matter (obviously) and ND will have to execute in the red zone on Saturday, but these rankings indicate that ND should, at the least, have good opportunities to put points on the board.

Note: Both teams are mediocre to bad on STs, with Stanford ranked 58th and ND 69th.

So?

ND has a shot at an upset in this game, and it’s not some pipe dream. While playing Away will certainly have an impact, this isn’t a game that ND cannot win. To me, there are 2 critical areas that will determine ND’s ultimate chances: health and turnovers.

The biggest challenge for Notre Dame is a test of the next man in philosophy, because the team is missing some key pieces that helped them achieve the current FEI rankings. Guys like Jonas Gray, Braxton Cave, and KLM were key cogs in the machine that produced Top 15 rankings on both sides of the ball. So the question there is: can the next men in step up to fill the void?

And then we have to focus on getting the guys that can play ready to play health-wise. If ND can get some of its key guys ready to go this weekend, ND has a shot to pull off an upset to end the season. This means getting the guys with the flu healed up in time, and getting those guys with nagging injuries going at 100%. Some huge parts of this team are done for the year, so ND is certainly not bringing all firepower to the table. This is material and injuries are too often ignored by the ND fanbase, but to have a shot the team needs to get those guys that can still play as close to 100% as possible.

And then it’s all about playing clean football, which is a tall order for this hot and cold Irish squad. If the Irish turn the ball over, even once, this game will be very difficult to win. ND will need to play flawless football for the most part, something this team has not yet shown. But if ND can come in with the squad firing on all cylinders health-wise, and if the team can refrain from turning the ball over, ND can come out on top. This is a pretty close matchup once you examine the numbers.

Now let’s go do it.

Blowing out teams you're supposed to beat seems like a fairly innocuous thing. "Of course that's supposed to happen, so what?" Well, the 'so what' is that it HASN'T been happening.

Syracuse. Tulsa. Navy, Navy, Navy. UCONN.

You know those games and you cringe just reading those words. Why? Because ND should be whipping those teams, and not beating them in close games, let alone losing to them. Program-defining wins for teams that have no right even hanging with ND became commonplace in previous years. No longer.

This year, ND Football has taken steps toward becoming a winning program. This team isn't playing down to the level of competition. This team isn't allowing 'meh' teams to hang in there for a shot at a W at the end of a game. This team is WHOMPING some small-fries, and it is a BEAUTIFUL THING PEOPLE!

Yes, yes, USF was a disaster of a game to start off the year. This step hadn't been taken yet. And yes, yes, Michigan was a game we should've won, but we let them hang around. And yes, yes, Pitt was an ugly affair. And yes yes, Wake has an ugly record. But none of those teams are cream-puff matchups just begging for a blowout. None of those are games you expect to walk away with an EASY win. USF and UM were also insanely weird, and Pitt had a great defensive game plan that they saved for ND. Wake is an up and down team that beat FSU and took Clemson to the absolute wire. These are not the focus of my post.

I'm talking about the games you're supposed to win, handily. I'm talking about Purdue, Air Force, Maryland. And this week, I'm talking about BC.

These are teams that ND should dominate year in and year out. Combined scores of these games in 2011? 198 - 78. We absolutely CRUSHED these teams, and it's something that's been missing for quite a while. In years past, given the exact same opponents, we'd have seen ND drop at least 1 of these, and another would have been down to the wire. Instead, ND handled each of these games.

This team isn't 'there' yet. I know that we have a lot of things to work on and please refrain from giving me all those small examples of why we haven't yet arrived. I know we aren't there yet. If we were, we'd be undefeated and on our way to a MNC. But these types of blowout wins over outmatched opponents are important. It's a vital step to building a program. It builds confidence, it teaches players/coaches how to put a team away, it allows starters to rest and heal, and gives backups a chance to gain experience critical to their future development.

Winning against overmatched teams in the way we have is a major step forward for this program. I watched every second of that Maryland game it was FREAK-ING BEAUTIFUL.

Now we just need a repeat performance against BC, and my point will be proven. ND will have, officially, taken this step. Beating teams you're supposed to beat is one step towards beating them all. Let's take one more step Saturday. BEAT BC!

Hit Play

my my My MY!
Defense hits him so hard, make you think "Oh My Lord"
Thank you for blessin' ND, with a Hawaiian rhymer that can carry this team
Feels good, when you know you're down, with a non-haole homeboy far from his hometown
And he's known, as such, and this is a Receiver, you can't touch!

STOP! TOMATIME!

These aren't meant to be new 'anthems' for ND, or a replacement for the classic tunes of yore. Rather, it's a pretty laid back album designed to make for good tailgating music - the artist isn't really taking himself too seriously here, so please don't either. It's just a fun product designed to fill a hole for Irish fans - Irish Tailgating Music Sweetness.

There are a few key ways to learn more about the album. The first is the YouTube Montage/Sampler:

You can also check it out on iTunes, or on Amazon, and we have a nice little home for it right here on HLS.

We should also have the player featured here on the home page shortly as well, so you can fire up some Irish inspiration whenever you visit HLS.

The album features 8 songs, including:

1. Irish in the Yard - set to the tune of "Whiskey in the Jar", the Irish classic, this song epitomizes Irish music and Irish football at the same time. "We are the Blue and Gold, there's Irish in the Yard"
2. Forever Irish - the title track, it's a great song about Notre Dame and the special role the school has in fans' lives. "We never will forget Her, Notre Dame our Home."
3. Tailgating Irish - just what it says it is, a song about drinking, food, and tossing the football in the lot prior to a game. "It's Saturday Morning and there's work to do, kickoff's in 6 hours let's tie one on (or two!)"
4. The Horsemen Ride Again - a song about the legends of old, and new Irish legends in the making. "Outlined against a Blue-Gray Sky, the Horsemen Ride again. Yes Grantland sees the Irish shine, the time has come to win. In the Polo Grounds the spirits stir and you'll feel a shiver when, the Horsemen Herd comes thundering by, and the Irish rise again"
5. Raise a Glass - classic Irish drinking tune dedicated to the boys in Blue and Gold. "The Fighting Irish in our blood we will prevail!"
6. We Are Her Loyal Sons - you guys first heard this one a few months back. Good one to fire up before a game. "We. Are. Her Loyal Sons. We'll get 'em on the run boys, let's get 'em on the run."
7. Make Way for the Irish Guard - A march-like anthem for the legendary Irish Guard. "Make way for the Irish Guard, the Grand Ole Irish Guard."
8. Play Like a Champion Today (I Will) - Amazingly simple yet catchy tune about the classic ND sign/saying. "We recruit in every Parish, cuz we're the Fighting Irish and we'll turn them into heroes by and by."

But the point stands. We've been beaten by a single team: USC. Notre Dame has defeated Notre Dame twice: when the opponent across the line happened to be USF and UM. Yeah, yeah, it doesn't show up that way in the record books. I get it, those both count as losses. But in 2007 Notre Dame was beaten by EVERYONE, and occassionally stole a game from a team beating itself (UCLA). The next 2 years ND would get beaten by having a hot-and-cold offense and a mediocre defense. This year ND has been beaten in one game, and has given away two others through weird turnovers and bad special teams play.

So what???

Well, there's a difference between 5-3 with 3 losses to teams that beat you and 5-3 with 2 self-inflicted wounds. It's not easy to see at 5-3, but there IS a difference. Because you can see potential in production that doesn't consistently lead to points. You can see the team's ability to move the ball, and slow down the opposition. You can glimpse what we can/will be. When other teams are HANDLING you week in and week out, you can't see that. When all losses are 'the other team is flat out better', it's tough to measure progress. It's just tough to see it. But in a season where we've outplayed every team but 1, I am seeing progress. It's not pretty. It's inconsistent as hell. And the Turnovers/Special Teams stuff has to be fixed, obviously. But even if ND squeaks out those first 2 games by 1 point wins each game, and everything else stays the same, we're having an entirely different conversation. ND would be Top 15, and everyone would be singing praises despite the USC setback. Well, we're 2 plays away from that being the case, and this team isn't all that different from that scenario.

Football Outsiders captures a lot of this dynamic in their rankings based on production rather than just final scores (note that the stats are also adjusted to reflect the 'true' values, but I'll leave that to you guys to read through on their site if desired.) This helps us understand where that progress is happening when things like TOs and STs cloud the view. And right now FO has 5-3 Notre Dame ranked 9th. 9th! 10th in Offense and 10th in Defense. Before you scoff and say 'they have no idea what they're talking about', here's their Top 10:

Bama, BSU, LSU, Oregon, Wisconsin, OK State, OK, Stanford, ND, MSU.

Seems to make some sense, yeah? It may not be a perfect system, but given the results you also can't just toss it aside without considering that it can provide some solid context for measuring progress at ND.

Anyway, the point remains - our offense and defense are producing on drives like other Top 10 teams, and against a fairly rigorous opening slate of games. And it's a very balanced amount of production on Offense and Defense. The challenges have been with areas outside of the 'bulk' of the game, which is what you do when you have the ball and what you do when the other team has the ball. Do you move it down the field? Or no? Does your opponent move it down the field? Or no?

Further, these stats are looking much better year over year. If we look at our rankings in production from 2005 to YTD2011, you'll see a pretty positive trend since 2007.

Improvement has really been consistent, and significant. ND went from 118th and 46th in O and D respectively in 2007 to 10th and 10th thus far this year. And this year's team currently outpeforms ND's first 2 years of the Weis regime where we were ranked 12th and 26th.

And while this doesn't make up for those first 2 losses, it does paint a picture of SOME progress. Not amazing, drastic, unbelievable progress in all phases of the game. But good progress. Now it's up to the team to continue that progress and to clean up those other things so that the progress in production is, more often, translated into points for us, and therefore W's.

Go Irish.

Jack holds court with Brian Kelly for his radio show at Legends

1. What was your first introduction to ND Football?

I used to watch the Sunday Morning Notre Dame Football Replay with Lindsey Nelson and Paul Hornung on Channel 56 in Boston. (Found out Coach Kelly used to do the same thing!) Cheered for the Irish, but also cheered for my Dad’s alma mater College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.

2. Coaches come and coaches go. What parts of ND have stayed the same through all the coaches and teams you've reported on? What has changed over the years?

A remarkable combination of success on the field and in the classroom by the student athletes, reinforced by an even more remarkable level of success both on and off the field and in life overall after graduation. Notre Dame has always demanded its athletes achieve in the classroom, but the University is much tougher now academically than it was when I first arrived on campus in 1982.

3. How did you get started on this career path? And what led to your fairly recent transition over to the ND side of things from WNDU?

I always wanted to be a sportscaster. I used to take a tape recorder to Fenway Park and Boston Garden and do my own Red Sox and Celtic broadcasts. I then worked on my high school radio station before moving on to the University of Missouri where I was the sports director of KCOU radio, the student station, and then moved on to work at the University’s NBC television affiliate KOMU where I became the 6:00 pm Sports Anchor. From there took a job with a start-up network you may have heard of, CNN. At CNN I was a sports producer, reporter and anchor before moving on to WNDU as a sports anchor in 1982. The best thing about the job at WNDU was the opportunity it provided me to do the play-by-play of Notre Dame Football on TV and basketball on the radio.

I was approached in 2006 and asked if I would like to go to work for Notre Dame Sports Properties full-time to handle the announcing and reporting duties for all the in-house TV and Radio productions and the newly expanding video efforts on und.com. Of course I said yes.

4. What is your official job title and description? What do you spend most of your time doing day to day? And, do you consider yourself the luckiest man in the world to have it?

I am the Director of Media Productions for Fighting Irish Digital Media (formerly the video and radio arm of Notre Dame Sports Properties). I handle the on-air and on-camera duties for the football and basketball coaches’ TV and Radio Shows, the official Notre Dame Football Postgame Radio Show, the play-by-play of Notre Dame men’s basketball on the Notre Dame Basketball Radio Network and the daily reporting and hosting duties on projects too numerous to mention for und.com. I spend my days preparing for these broadcasts and webcasts while also handling the administrative duties involved with the Coach Show TV Network and our various radio networks, from dealing with the affiliates to creating the commercial formats and making sure all the production pieces are in place for each project.

Yes, I am a lucky guy!

5. Tell us a memorable story about an event, game, or interview that's really stuck in your mind over the years?

One of those moments that when you look back, you chuckle, or find it hard to believe that actually happened. My first year announcing Notre Dame Football on WNDU, I was asked on air to predict the score of the first game I was going to announce, which happened to be against Purdue. I just pulled 28-14 Notre Dame out of the air. Notre Dame won 28-14, which was a sign to me that I had made the right decision to leave CNN and come to Notre Dame! As far as interviews that have stood out, there are so many. And the theme that stands out is how much Notre Dame means to the athletes who have played here, and how their experience at Notre Dame becomes even more meaningful to them as they grow older.

6. What's your perspective on the shifts going on in media as it relates to College Football. The rise of blogs, podcasts, independent new sites, etc etc.? Is it a good thing? Bad? A bit of both?

The rise of the internet has allowed some very talented people to produce some outstanding writing and reporting on College Football. There are many more voices and perspectives out there than ever before. The responsible blogs are a positive. The irresponsible blogs are a negative. The downside is reading printed words on a computer screen sometimes gives them a credibility they do not deserve. And fan chat boards that allow virtually anyone to anonymously launch vicious personal attacks on players and coaches are not a good thing.

7. When you look at this year's team, what's the one thing about them that would surprise fans to learn?

This year’s team has a great chemistry. They really like to be around each other, even when they don’t have to be. It’s not forced, its real.

8. Lightning Round:

Holtz or Ara? Pick between two Legends who are not only great men but have been great to me? No way!
Pass or Run? Run
Blue or Gold? Gold
USC or Michigan? USC
Pizza or Burgers? Pizza
OL or DL? OL (Irish All-American Offensive Lineman and Post-Game Show Co-Host Mirko Jurkovic would kill me if I picked DL!)
Late Nights or Early Mornings? Late Nights
Derivatives Trading or Breakfast? Breakfast. Derivatives trading made our economy sick!

Thanks Jack for taking the time, and for all you do for ND!