Well, HLS certainly made history, but not quite in the way we intended. The Hangout happened; however, I was nowhere to be found due to...well, we still have no idea. What I do know though is that everyone at Fighting Irish Digital Media team did what they could to try and get me in and I went through three PCs, several logins, cache/cookies and everything else I could think of. Sometimes, technology just has other ideas. I definitely want to thank them for their efforts. Trying to scramble ...
Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy: Quarterback
As we wind down the "Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy" series, we come to the most hotly debated position on the Irish: Quarterback. While I've been rather consistent in my stance of "anybody but Tommy", I haven't yet stated who I would start as the QB. Kieth Arnold over at Inside the Irish got me thinking about this even earlier than I planned to when asked to rank the top 25 Irish players on the roster. As I did that exercise, I decided to rank everyone on where I think they are skill-wise ...
And a Tip of the Cap to…Brandon Newman
Yes, I tore him apart for previous comments that I felt were out of line (and still do); however, I can't focus purely on the bad and not praise the good should it arise. That happened over the weekend in the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel. When asked if he thought Kelly was the right man for the job, the News-Sentinel set Newman up on a tee to go off on a coach that he felt didn't give him proper playing time. Instead, Newman took a difference approach: “You have to go through (coaching at Notre ...
Reminder: HLS Makes History Tomorrow at 7:30pm EDT
This is your friendly reminder to not miss out on a Google+ Hangout featuring Jack Swarbrick as he is grilled interviewed by a roundtable of Notre Dame bloggers, podcasters, forum Board Ops, and yours truly. Sure, Arizona may have beaten us to the punch, but the first open question was fielded by Pac 12 commissioner, Larry Scott, about the Rose Bowl (meanwhile, in the Midwest, Delany screams "THE PRECIOUS!!!") and Arizona's mascot actually fielded questions by nodding his head. Much like ...
Friday Roundup: The “One F*@&ing Job” Edition
As I recounted some of Weis' moments from my manager days in the Brandon Newman piece, I mentioned one of my personal favorite speeches/ass-chewings that he would give out. Weis, in what he would call his "eloquent New Jersey vernacular", had two particular weapons of choice, dubbed by the managers as (now is a good time to warn everyone this post is going to have some salty language...) "getting motherfucked" or giving the "you have one fucking job to do" speech. "Getting motherfucked" ...
Brandon Newman, Some Things Are Just Better Left Unsaid
Former Notre Dame and current Ball State defensive linemen, Brandon Newman, did an interview with the Fort Wayne based News-Sentinel. In it, he gave his perspective on the Notre Dame battle at quarterback. While it is always great and refreshing to get an inside perspective, Newman went a bit too far and made some comments he shouldn't have. First, he starts off with a conversation that former Irish and current Kansas QB, Dayne Crist, had with Tommy Rees: “Dayne was telling Tommy that even ...
Friday Roundup: The “Can’t Unsee” Edition
For today's Roundup, it's time to dig back into my manager days for another story. This one happened while I was on a locker room shift. Usually, I'd abide by the "what happens in here stays here" rule, but it's far too funny not to. If there was one thing I loved about Weis, it was that he demanded that his players respected everyone, managers included. The day prior, the locker room was apparently quite a mess. Now, we usually have to clean up a few towels on the floor and some tape in the ...
Rent Like a Champion Today
While the big changes of HLS 3.0 are still coming down the road, we are pleased to announce one change that you may have already noticed. We are proud to announce that we have partnered with Rent Like a Champion and they have taken over the ad real estate in the sidebar that once housed one of our Google ads. Personally, I am thrilled. Ad revenue to offset the server costs is great, but working with an alumni owned and operated company that I've had friends happily use before are huge pluses ...
Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy: Defensive Line
The HLS positional preview continues in the trenches, moving this time to the defensive side of the ball. For the Irish, the departure of Aaron Lynch has left the position of top dog on the line up for grabs. As for our opponents, it appears that it is a Notre Dame tradition as of late to face some absolutely superb defensive line talents. 2012 will be no different. Louis Nix III Position: NG Year: Sophomore Height/Weight: 6'3"/340 lbs. Despite Lynch's departure, the Irish still have ...
Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy: Offensive Line
Our position preview for 2012 moves from special teams to the big uglies. As I'm a firm believer that championship teams are built from a foundation in the trenches and then outward, I was more than happy to take on this assignment. This week, we look at the offensive line. Off all positions to evaluate, these are by far the most subjective as the only stats usually available for evaluation are of their mistakes. Despite that though, I feel rather confident that I've singled out the best on ...