In the latest installment of this site’s efforts to run out the clock until we beat Navy (72 days, kids!), I wanted to look back at the best of those we’ve played since last we were the best. As a lawyer, I’m all about objective findings, so I used ND’s 1988 National Championship as the last time we were “objectively” the best. I’m also all about the assumptions that underlie an opinion, so my “quest for the best” considered only those who played for our “traditional” foes: Army, Navy, Michigan, Michigan State, USC, Purdue, Stanford and Pitt. I didn’t include Boston College because of this. I was there. It still hurts. My final assumption was that Al Gore didn’t invent enough 1’s and 0’s for me to go through a three-deep at every position, and your IT people aren’t going to let you read this at work for the nine hours it would take to read a breakdown of the offensive and defensive players at the same time. Next week, I’ll run through the best defensive players from the same teams during the same time frame. Unless I get distracted.
QB: So, here we go. Obviously, when you consider a football offense, you consider the quarterback first. If you’ve got a stud behind center, you’re going to win games. Only Grantland-X doesn’t know this. But we’re not talking about Tommy Rees today. Instead, we’re talking about Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Andrew Luck. To my mind, Brees (Purdue, 1997-2000) and Brady (Michigan, 1996-1999) were no-brainers and I’m comfortable with Andrew Luck (Stanford, 2009-2011), given his loopy college stats, and the fact that Indy sacked Manning to get him. What Brees and Brady, but mostly Brees, have done in the NFL is just sick. Seriously, other than the fact he hasn’t signed a damn contract yet, is there anything remotely negative to say about Drew Brees? Other than his “smart” car? 
On the other hand, is there anything positive to say about Tom? Other than this? No, actually, not even that.
Receiver: Picking the three best receivers ND has tried to cover wasn’t easy, but it’s still impressive to see these names all in one place: Desmond Howard (Michigan, 1989-1991), Keyshawn Johnson (USC, 1994-1995) and Larry Fitzgerald (Pitt, 2002-2003). You can argue with me about Desmond as a receiver, but he won the Heisman in 1991. Who’d you put instead of him? Braylon Edwards (Michigan, 2001-2004)? I can see that.
RB: This is the position at which my assumptions started hampering my research and I had to compromise. I also have to swallow some of the breakfast I just threw up writing this list: Mike Hart (Michigan, 2004-2007), Toby Gerhart (Stanford, 2006-2009) and Reggie Bush (USC, 2003-2005). I’m not even certain that the NCAA allows me to write that Reggie went to USC, but there you go. You know why you hate Reggie, but do you remember why you should love him?
So what do you think? Who’d I miss? Leinart? Barkley? Dwayne Jarrett or Taylor Stubblefield? In my deliberate slight of Boston College, I didn’t miss (m)any offensive stalwarts. I’ll put one on my defensive list, Luke NoodleKugle.
Is it Dublin yet?
Hating Hurricanes Since 1990.
Bayou Irish is a Jersey boy and Double Domer who fell under New Orleans' spell in 1995. He's been through Katrina and fourteen years in the Coast Guard, so we cut him some slack, mostly in the form of HLS-subsidized sazeracs. But, when he's not face down on the bar and communing with the ghosts of Faulkner and Capote at the Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone, he's our man in SEC-land, doing his best to convince everyone around him that Graduation Success Rate is a better indicator of success than the number of MNC's won in the last five years.
- Finding Flaws in a Diamond: Clemson’s Rushing Offense - December 17, 2018
- Why Nobody Will Cotton to Notre Dame - December 3, 2018
- Irish Finish Regular Season Perfect 12-0 - November 26, 2018
Thanks for the BC fg and Bush push. I just threw up a little. Not a Saints fan and don’t think I could love him even if I were.
Right?
Didn’t we play Georgia Tech while Calvin Johnson was there?
I believe so, BUT Tech didn’t meet my baseline requirement that we had to play them a lot. Or whatever.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aPaqjNyo4Y
I wanted Calvin on the list if only for that play.
I mean, I get your rational to sticking to the rivals, but seriously. A list made of Calvin, Larry & Keyshawn has a LOT more weight than any list containing Desmond.
I don’t even like to mention the Heisman because it’s such a farce. Fitzgerald was a Heisman winner, Desmond’s merely a Heisman holder.
Bill — any weight put in any list I invent is done at the reader’s peril. I couldn’t agree more that Calvin blows Desmond out of the water, but Desmond was a pretty electrifying little college player. ND played Tech four times since 1989, one of which was a bowl (Gator) and only once during Calvin’s career. You and Alli rightly called me out on Calvin Johnson’s exclusion, but I don’t think Tech met my criteria. I had to draw a line somewhere. I didn’t consider players from Tennesse, Penn State or Miami either. I looked for players from Air Force and BYU and didn’t see anyone who jumped out at me.
I’m surprised no USC QBs made the cut. NFL careers aside, Palmer, Leinart, and Sanchez were all damned good in college and Barkley is hitting that level as well.
That RB list makes me rage.
I don’t disagree with any of that and Leinart was on my list until I really looked at Luck’s numbers and Leinart’s not so amazing NFL career. Barkley may very well be the best of them all when all is said and done.
Not a Bayou article goes by without a dig at me…#notfeelingthelove
It’s not you, it’s your relentless support of Tommy. #easytarget
I’m all for mocking BC (I try to do it on a daily basis, I mean, have you ever BEEN on the Green Line?), but excluding them well including Army, Pitt, and Purdon’t baffles me. I mean, not that they’d have any players on the list, but just for the sake of maintaining a complete record.
Big Red — my slight to BC was completely intentional and childish. There were a number of conceits that went into my analysis — such as not picking teams we only played once or twice or thrice during that period, thereby leaving out Calvin Johnson. Matt Ryan got a look from me, to be honest, if only to wrap my mind around how much I dislike him.
Charles Rogers of Sparty fame