With another signing period officially in the books, Shane and I enlist an actual recruiting analyst, Kevin Sinclair of Irish Illustrated, to join us on the podcast. Kevin helped break down the class as well as some of the major storylines in this cycle--including something about vultures and Huskies. Or maybe that was Asa Turner just trying to figure out his future as he said in his own words. I donno, crootin' is weird and people get mad. So come join us on a fun episode looking into the ...
Recruiting
HLS Podcast: Notre Dame Recruiting with Irish Illustrated’s Kevin Sinclair
Shane may be out in this episode, but, thankfully we already had a guest scheduled to spare you from hearing me talk to myself! Irish Illustrated's Kevin Sinclair joins the show to discuss a rather huge week in Notre Dame recruiting. Plus, as I am admittedly far from a recruiting aficionado, I ask Kevin to give his take and insight on the crazy world that he covers. There's some great nuggets of info in there, my favorite of which is one rather major difference between how Stanford and Notre ...
Your Complete Guide to Signing Day
As the calendar flips over into February, we have arrived at that magical moment: National Signing Day. It's basically Christmas for the hardcore college football fan, receiving an entire new class of new presents that will don their school's colors. It's also the day that gives us a brief respite in the offseason, as the dead period of the post-national title hangover slowly gives way to the long, terrible offseason. So in celebration, I decided to give you a complete guide to handling ...
Good Fridays w/Padre: Bad Question
Last weekend was that big football game which millions ignore to watch everything else that goes on around it. A lot of defense was played and a quarterback of mature years seemingly concluded his career on a high note. One of the several occurrences that people found more interesting than the game itself was the press conference during which the defeated quarterback was laconic, surly, and dismissive before dismissing himself from the press conference. I’m told this fellow attended no fewer ...
Does Notre Dame Have a California Problem?
I'm admittedly a fan of prospects out of California that go on to become great college football players. I especially love it when they buck the trend and go out of state, and take a chance on Notre Dame. From my days of cheering on Kory Minor, I have always had a soft spot for guys on our roster from the Golden State. Fresh off signing day 2016 and the anticlimactic Caleb Kelly announcement, I wanted to know how Brian Kelly has fared recruiting wise compared to his predecessor, Charlie Weis. ...
Liam Eichenberg’s Refreshing Bluntness
The Irish Sports Talk podcast recently hosted Notre Dame offensive lineman commit Liam Eichenberg on its show, and the 4-star offensive lineman from St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) didn't mince words when it came to a fellow lineman who was offered a Notre Dame scholarship: Host: A couple of weeks ago there were reports of a few other linemen that supposedly got offered for Notre Dame. Notre Dame already has three linemen. You want to tell us about that how that went down? Eichenberg: Parker ...
The Irish and the 2016 NFL Draft (Because, Why Not?)
A couple weeks back, Tex provided some evidence as to why Notre Dame having but one player picked in the 2015 NFL Draft shouldn’t be too troubling. Of course, telling ND fans not to panic is a lot like telling USC students to go to class – it’s just not going to happen. While there are certainly stronger indicators of program performance than NFL selections, it’s undeniable that analysts, fans, and even (theoretically) recruits consider a team’s track record of NFL graduations when assessing ...
Good Fridays w/Padre: Bad Ideas
Like the icicle that starts to form at the corner of the roof, it slowly grows until it’s a heavy, sharp, pointed thing that will impale you without warning. It was fascinating to behold at one time, but it became a lethal sculpture that plunged through the window and left your room cold and wet. This icicle is a metaphor for a Very Bad Idea, and many of them are forming at this time of year. Not surprising that an athletic conference, the source and summit of bad ideas, is the water ...
Playing the Numbers: How do the Irish Stack Up?
With National Signing Day in the rear-view mirror, and with the popularity, and proliferation, of shows about "the haul," shows like Deadliest Catch, Lobster Wars, Alaska Fish Wars, Swords: Life on the Line, and Wicked Tuna, it struck me that it might be interesting to compare Notre Dame's recruiting hauls under now sixth-year Head Coach Brian Kelly with our 2015 competition. Then, I threw LSU into the mix, for a little flavor, a little lagniappe. So, without further ado, let's look at the ...
National Signing Day So Far: The Irish at 24
Well, it's been a good day, so far, for the Notre Dame Figthing Irish, with twenty-four recruits, including early-enrollees, in the bag. Once again, Coach Kelly and his staff trolled far and wide to land this class, pulling athletes from what appear to be thirteen (13) states, giving Brian Kelly 224 votes in the Electoral College. But the biggest troll of the day, so far, was the (tragically-incorrect) news that Brady Hoke had joined the Irish coaching staff as a defensive coach. This would ...