I just got done with a run this evening, and for the first time in months, the air wasn’t trying to kill me. It wasn’t 95 degrees after sunset. It wasn’t 45000% humidity. And there wasn’t the smell of dead… something… emanating from the nearby metro stop. To me, that signified a shift, and it got me thinking about a lot of coming shifts. There’s the shift in seasons, as we turn the corner in August from sweltering heat to probably more sweltering heat with a dose of hope for relief in September. There’s the shift in expectations practically everyone has for the 2011 Irish Football program, having staved off a near-depression in the late fall of 2010 to rally in a way that’s got lots of folks feeling nervously bullish about 2011. But there’ll be very little shift in our approach to the 2011 Pre-Season Irish Blogger Gathering, administered by Subway Domer as always. Below, we’ll pose 5 questions to our fellow IBGers (and the ND fan community at large). Then we’ll sit back, relax, and await the participants to post their answers up on their own sites. When we catch wind of answers being posted, we’ll let y’all know by linking to their answers here on HLS. By now y’all should be as familiar with this as you are with the typical hot read for a boundary corner blitz in a Brian Kelly offense. Got it? Good. Let’s get started!
1. Go to youtube, pick a song that a) applies to your life in some way and b) will serve as the unofficial 2011 Fighting Irish Football Anthem. Extra points if you entirely avoid any band with members born in Ireland. Disqualification for any use of Freekbass. Embed the video for that song in your answers and explain why it’s so fitting under both qualifications A and B.
2. Now that you’ve got your unofficial anthem rocking the home office, predict the single biggest play, positive or negative for the Irish, that will occur this season in a Notre Dame football game. Color this prediction with situation, players involved, opposing team, and even weather conditions. It’s the pre-season. Let’s see what your imaginations are doing.
3. I’m a fan of the cinematic hit, “Kicking and Screaming.” I know, it’s a film you all love too. So naturally we’d all like to re-live that moment when they’re playing “Would You Rather.” So let’s do so: Would you rather suffer a humiliating loss to Michigan this year, or a humiliating loss to Southern Cal? Why? And stop eyeing that chicken across the street, perv.
4. Great teams require leadership, and with Notre Dame being the only truly national college football program in the country, a great Notre Dame football team requires national leaders. So pick one. Name a player on the Irish roster in 2011 who will lead the nation in a particular, official NCAA category. Also specify how much he’ll lead the nation by indicating his national rank in that category. Note: You must be predicting this leader to finish at least as high as 10th in the nation in your chosen category. Bonus Points: Don’t pick David Ruffer – the best player on the Irish Roster.
5. You’ve already done more parsing of Brian Kelly’s words than is healthy since he first took a podium in this pre-season. What’s the single most surprising thing he’s said in that time?
Alright, that ought to about do it. If you don’t have your own ND Football Blog, first, let me say, why not? They let anyone have one. Just look at the guys we’ve got involved in this gathering thing. And second, I invite you to share your own thoughts in our comments section below or go ahead and start a thread on our Sideline forum. Thanks, and Go Irish!
- Friday Roundup: That Was Fast Edition - December 14, 2018
- Ian Book Is Smokey and the Bandit - December 12, 2018
- Don’t Call It A Comeback - December 10, 2018
Erik '04
4) Kyle Brindza will be at least #7 in the nation in touchbacks this year. Have you seen the video of him kicking off through the uprights? Back him up 5 yards and he’s still out the back of the endzone. Haven’t had a leg like that in ages.
Matt Q. (DMQ)
Nice. Good call. Will definitely have to track that one.
The tricky thing about that one is it’s not tracked by the NCAA as an individual stat:
http://web1.ncaa.org/mfb/natlRank.jsp?year=2011&rpt=IA_teamkoreturndef&site=org&div=IA&dest=O
The Biscuit
Wonder why Ruffer is in the lead to do Kickoffs?
trey
1. Go to youtube, pick a song that a) applies to your life in some way and b) will serve as the unofficial 2011 Fighting Irish Football Anthem.
I can’t embed it here, but the one that comes to mind is “Dynamite” by Taio Cruz. a)Because sometimes in my life, I just have to “throw my hands up in the air sometimes” and move on with struggles. b) With LNIII, Aaron Lynch, and the return of Mike Floyd, this team is going to BLOW some teams up “On and on and on”!
2. Now that you’ve got your unofficial anthem rocking the home office, predict the single biggest play, positive or negative for the Irish, that will occur this season in a Notre Dame football game. Color this prediction with situation, players involved, opposing team, and even weather conditions. It’s the pre-season. Let’s see what your imaginations are doing.
Gary Gray will pick off Andrew Luck with 5:00 to go in a tied ball game and take it to the house. The sun will have just gone down and the sky will be a lovely shade of crimson, Luck will try to thread the needle over the middle to one of his wideouts, Gray will jump the route and have the likes of Darius Fleming, Manti T’eo and Irish Chocolate forming a massive wall of blockers that will demolish anyone that dares approach it. Their best chance will be to try to run AROUND the wall and catch Gray from behind because Nix will be evaporating them with his laser eyes, Manti will break bones and Fleming will blow off tacklers like they were tin foil. Irish go up by a TD and hold on to win the game and go to a BCS game.
3. Would you rather suffer a humiliating loss to Michigan this year, or a humiliating loss to Southern Cal? Why? And stop eyeing that chicken across the street, perv.
No doubt, lose to SC. For whatever reason, they’re still perceived as a top flight team and I think with the timing and their pedigree, we could absorb that loss much easier and rebound better than we could ANOTHER loss to scUM. Plus, three years in a row would be exceptionally bitter to swallow. An early season loss to an awful team AGAIN would just set a bad spiral going, but a mid-season loss to a very good(albeit ineligible team) could be recovered from.
4. Name a player on the Irish roster in 2011 who will lead the nation in a particular, official NCAA category. Also specify how much he’ll lead the nation by indicating his national rank in that category. Note: You must be predicting this leader to finish at least as high as 10th in the nation in your chosen category. Bonus Points: Don’t pick David Ruffer – the best player on the Irish Roster.
Yeah, the easiest choice is Ruffer. I was one that defended you picking him as the #1 player on the Irish squad and his finishing in last year’s Groza balloting only adds credence to his ability to be the guy for this question. If I cant pick him, I’ll go with Mike Floyd for TD catches. The guys is, without doubt, the best WR in the game and no one on the team is close. They say “there are only so many balls to go around” but I think #3 will get a TON go his way.
5. You’ve already done more parsing of Brian Kelly’s words than is healthy since he first took a podium in this pre-season. What’s the single most surprising thing he’s said in that time?
He mentioned that the offensive line is the strongest part of this team. If that is true, then look out! Cierre Wood could seriously be a major presence on this team and we could finally get the squad we’ve been squealing for over the last 4-5 years.
kyndfan
Is it Sept. 3rd yet?
Brad
1. Raining Blood, by Slayer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8ZqFlw6hYg&feature=related
Cause A) Thats just how I rock, and
Cause B) Manti’s new theme song, and the Ghosts of ND Defensive past awaken.
2. The biggest play of the season will be Hendrix taking an option for a 40 yard touchdown, in the rain, for the go-ahead touchdown over Air Force after Dayne gets a minor injury which keeps him out for the game. We all go bananas over Hendrix’s future.
3. I would take the loss to SC. It would suck, because its a night game and a lot of big time recruits are gonna be there, but getting over the hump against them last year will lessen the blow. Its more important to beat UM and have this team get on a roll early in the season.
4. As far as stats go, I predict that LNIII will lead the nation in murders, with 87.
5. Honestly, the most shocking think Kelly has said was the other day, when he mentioned that when he took the job, Ethan Johnson had no experience doing squats or other lower body strength exercises. For a D3 defensive lineman, that would be shocking. For a guy at Notre Dame? I don’t even have the words.
Matt Q. (DMQ)
Not real confident that murders are an official NCAA stat line, and give that Meyer is out of coaching for now, I don’t see it becoming one anytime soon.
E-Man
1)Can’t embed, and it’s not artist specific, and it uses a traditional Irish melody, but you got to check out “The Canticle of the Turning”. They’ve played it as the closing song in church a few times now, and it just gives me frisson. I can imagine the ND band blasting it out right after a turnover or as the team steams out of the tunnel. Check out the lyrics:
“You fixed your sight on your servant’s plight,and my weakness you did not spurn,
So from east to west shall my name be blest.
Could the world be about to turn?”
“My heart shall sing of the day you bring. Let the fires of your justice burn.
Wipe away all tears, for the dawn draws near,
and the world is about to turn!”
“You will show your might, put the strong to flight, for the world is about to turn.”
“From the halls of power to the fortress tower, not a stone will be left on stone.
Let the king beware for your justice tears
ev’ry tyrant from his throne.”
Winner. Just listen to it and admit it. Winner.
http://www.spiritandsong.com/compositions/30269
Joe Magarac
I am Irish and Catholic, but I don’t think Irish Catholic folk tunes should be used in church. A much better choice would be the traditional “Dies Irae” for when the Irish go on defense:
Day of wrath! O day of mourning!
See fulfilled the prophets’ warning,
Heaven and earth in ashes burning
Oh, what fear man’s bosom rendeth,
when from heaven the Judge descendeth,
on whose sentence all dependeth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=het4wj9hiCg&playnext=1&list=PL6B4E729B5657A218
E-Man
2) There will be a hard fought game against Navy, in the rain, and I mean the kind of crazy rain that makes the coverage look foggy and ND’s uniforms look black. No one can really do anything offensively, and ND shoots themselves a few times in the foot so that Navy has a 5-point lead with under a minute to go and are lining up for a 45 yard field goal on 4th and 15.
Aaron Lynch blocks it and after a wild scrum ND recovers on the 50 (we’ll say Filer recovers). No time outs left. Crist hits Eifert on a deep pass on 2nd down, and he gets gang tackled on the 7. Crist mis-fires a few times, down to the last play, and after scrambling around decides to tuck and run, and gets over-undered like Elway in ’98, spins heliocopter-like into the endzone. Touchdown.
E-Man
3) Humiliating loss to Michigan, because I am in more awe of Robinson’s athleticism than anyone on that USC team. I hate both of them so, this question makes me want to shower afterwards.
E-Man
4) Teo. Leading the nation in tackles for loss. Will just be an unstopable banshee on defense. Will be mentioned in heisman talk. Punishing hits on SportsCenter every weekend.
E-Man
5) His comments about the offensive line. Granted, running improved last year, but it wasn’t dominant. I just don’t know that he can affect a dramatic change in the line that quickly, unless, they were really, very, truely sorely undercoached in the past. I think that they were just undecoached.
Jeremy
“unless, they were really, very, truely sorely undercoached in the past”
That is partly true but the real issue is consistency. I read an interview of Trevor Robinson today, and he was saying they had a new line coach every year (Weis switched his last year to Verducci?) and this is the first year that they have the same coach for two years in a row. I hadn’t noticed that, but no matter what kind of coach Verducci was, having a new guy yell at you every year does not help. Kelly has been repeating the mantra, we know what to expect from them and they know what to expect from us. I think this makes a huge difference on the OL, and this is the first year they have to actually go into the season feeling like a true unit it years.
The possibilities that could result are very exciting.
Matt Q. (DMQ)
Well, Weis only had 2 OL coaches in his time at ND, but yeah, in Robinson’s time, he’s seen 3 different OL coaches. 3 very different styles. Certainly not an ideal situation.
Nate
1: U2 “Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For”
Until I see Diaco’s defense shut down Navy, that song applies.
2. Teo puts a hit on Denard Robinson so hard, the Michigan QB shatters into 1000 pieces. The team is so pumped up they win the next 3 games by 40. And those are just the points scored by the defense.
3. Tough one. I guess USC, because I hate Michigan more.
4. Teo, obviously, will be in the top 5 in tackles. He’d be my pick for first if BC didn’t have a robot at LB.
5. I don’t know, but I’d love to hear him go Kevin Wilson on a radio show host. Most preferably Colin Cowherd, though if he did it to Mike and Mike the awkwardness would be delicious.
Mayhem
http://rantingmayhem.wordpress.com/2011/08/14/ibg-mayhems-2-cents/
Domer Law
Domer law finally weighs in…
http://domerlaw.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-blogger-gathering-preseason.html