Credit: Soobum Im / USA TODAY Sports

For every coach in the post-Lou Holtz era of Notre Dame football, the ending of a coach’s tenure came well before the final game.

As a fan you can almost sense it, that point when you finally realize the program is not going to be truly great with that coach at the helm. For Bob Davie, it came in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl when the Irish got humiliated and manhandled by Oregon State 41-9. In the Tyrone Willingham era it was year two. With a road trip to Syracuse and a minor bowl bid on the line, the Irish were absolutely pasted by an average Syracuse team that would finish just 6-6 by a score of 38-12.

For Charlie Weis, it was the start of the 2007 season when the Irish were humiliated at home by a Georgia Tech team that finished 7-6 by the score of 33-3. Yes, those coaches all continued to coach after that. But they were, in essence, done.

I believe the end of the Brian Kelly era began Sunday night in Texas at the hands of the Longhorns. Before everyone in cyberland gets crazy, Kelly is an excellent football coach. He has won football games at every place he coached. He is by far the best football coach that Notre Dame has had since Holtz.

Unfortunately, the elusive national championship seems further away than ever. Another high profile game in front of a national audience and the Irish failed to deliver. When was the last time they did? The decision to rotate quarterbacks in a road game with a hostile environment will be questioned forever – especially given the disparity between DeShone Kizer’s performance and that of Malik Zaire. In a game that came down to one possession, the Irish managed to waste three by continuing to go back to a clearly ineffective Zaire.

Does anyone remember Bob Diaco? Some criticized his defenses as “vanilla”; others felt the pro-pedigree and exotic blitzes that Brian VanGorder would bring would be the key to the Irish getting to that “next level.” Right about now I’d like an extra scoop of vanilla please.

In the Bob Diaco era, the Irish had a total of two games where they gave up over 40 points. In just two years and one game, this is the sixth game under VanGorder where the Irish have given up over 40 points. If last night is any indication of what’s to come, we will likely see more of these games. Brian Kelly has been stubborn in his defense of VanGorder. Maybe stubbornness will be the most defining characteristic of his career at Notre Dame.

The post Texas Loss Marks Beginning of Kelly’s End At ND appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Let that little factoid wash over you.

Steph Curry, Rihanna, Adele, Haley Joel Osment, Emma Stone, and Michael Cera were all born the year the Irish last hoisted the crystal football, or whatever they hoisted back then. It was probably a rough-hewn marble tablet or something. Something sepia toned, and in the newsreels everyone moved too fast, and all the men wore hats.

Vietnam is known as “The 10,000 Day War.” Only in retrospect, through the lens of history, can we now plot way-points, such that Dien Bien Phu is the sort of beginning and the Fall of Saigon the sort of end. With Notre Dame, we’re not able to do that, yet. We don’t even know if we have another 10,000 days ahead of us. HOLY ISH BALLS WE MIGHT GO ANOTHER 10,000 DAYS?!?!??!??!?

In that same amount of time, other Irish sports have amassed 16 national championships. And we call ourselves a football school.

The 1988 Fighting Irish ran the table to win the national championship in the Fiesta Bowl, defeating West Virginia 34-21. In victory, Coach Holtz channeled his inner-Morrissey and remarked that, “[t]his team will go down as a great football team because nobody proved otherwise.”

In 2013, Alabama proved the Irish to be other-than-great, despite going undefeated in the regular season. Had the Irish won, I’m sure that some of you would still be debating Brian Kelly’s membership in the pantheon of Notre Dame head football coaches, but no one would be debating that squad’s “greatness.” But this post isn’t about “greatness,” it’s about championships.

It’s also about the uncertainties of the pre-playoff era, a time when chain-smoking sports-reporters and coaches gathered together in a transparent elections-system to which today’s presidential campaign can only pretend. The Irish had a case to argue in 1989, when they went 12-1. Their only loss came against The U, the season’s eventual champions.

Same again in 1993, but this time it’s personal. I was there, a senior, to watch the implausible Kevin McDougal vanquish Charlie Ward’s Seminoles. It was a battle of #1 versus #2, and the first foray of College GameDay outside the friendly confines of Bristol, Conn. It was the first “Game of the Century.” Since then, we’ve had – what? – 50 of them? The Irish won, 31-24, and then lost the next weekend to Boston College, 41-39. HOLY ISH BALLS WE LOST TO A TEAM WE BEAT BY 47 POINTS THE SEASON BEFORE?!??!?!???!??!??!

Since then, since that precise moment, Notre Dame didn’t so much as sniff the beer- and sweat-scented air of the Natty until 2012. The closest Dame-fan could get was a deep-inhale in the Dirty Thirty until that got shut down when the U.S. signed off on the Fourteenth Hague Convention.

And let’s face it, the air itself came out of the program when Holtz left. The Davie years, 1997-2001, were essentially the Reader’s Digest version of the Book of Exodus. Tyrone Willingham, 2002-2004, was so ineffective that then-Athletic Director Kevin White terminated his five-year contract after just three years. But hey, at least he got to improve his short-game.

Charlie Weis coaches the Notre Dame football team during a September 2009 game. (Courtesy of Flickr user Larry)

Speaking of air, Charlie Weis blew into the Gug in 2005, bringing with him some Super Bowl rings, a decided schematic advantage, and dozens of pairs of Sansabelt pants. His high-water mark, which ironically saw its denouement play out in post-Katrina New Orleans, came in 2006. That 10-3 season was the “best,” and now even language seems awful to me, until 2012.

Call me a “Kelly apologist,” but I think we’re closer to being out of the desert than at any time since 1993. I don’t think it will be another 10,000 days. The program, in the last six seasons, has been punched in the nose by awful luck and circumstance and still, a championship was played for and double-digit seasons were achieved. We were in the playoff-mix last year, too, if you can remember back that far.

Maybe in 365 days, we’ll be talking about the chances of a repeat.

The post 10,000 Days: Fighting… For Another Championship appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

South Bend Tribune Photo/GREG SWIERCZ

Harry Hiestand is arguably the most coveted assistant in the Brian Kelly coaching cabinet. One could argue that he’s certainly not the flashiest (hey there Prince Sanford), but his presence has significantly improved the ground game, offensive line recruiting and development, and #NDFB as a program. Let’s dive into an eight-year rabbit hole worth of running statistics – four “Pre-Harry” and four “Post-Harry.”

From 2008-2011, the running game ranged from mediocre to piss poor. These four years established an average of 131 rushing yards per game, 4.0 yards per rush, 15 rushing touchdowns per year, and 1,674 rushing yards per year.

The worst year came in 2008 (oh Charlie…) where the Irish ranked:

• 101^st in both yards per rush (3.3) and rush yards per game (110)
• 102^nd in rushing touchdowns (11)
• 97^th in total rush yards (1,426)
• Obligatory bullet note to apologize for even compiling these numbers and putting them on virtual paper.
• Bonus points for anyone who can guess the 2008 offensive line coach who helped orchestrate this stellar running campaign…John Latina. Latina was unsurprisingly let go following the 2008 season, and recently retired from coaching this past February after serving as the offensive line coach at Duke.

In the years following Hiestand’s hiring, the Irish have averaged 177 rushing yards per game, 4.8 yards per rush, 22 rushing touchdowns per year, and 2,299 rushing yards per year. These averages show improvements of 46 rush yards per game, 0.8 yards per rush, 7 rushing touchdowns per year, and a solid 625 rushing yards per year. This past year proved to produce possibly the most effective running game in over a decade wherein the Irish offensive line helped propel the run game to:

• 28^th in rush yards per game (208)
• 8^th in yards per rush (5.6)
• 30^th in rushing touchdowns (29)
• 27^th in total rush yards (2,699)

Hiestand was able to drastically improve these numbers by developing the talent he inherited when hired, but also by stocking the cupboard with top talent across the country.

From 2008-2011, Notre Dame recruited 14 offensive linemen (not including unranked/preferred walk-ons). Among these 14 linemen were eight athletes who were considered 4-star talent according to 247Sports composite rankings. Five were ranked 3 stars and one was a 2 star.

Hiestand has established himself as one of the most effective recruiters as it relates to his position group. As evidence, look no further than the improvements made since his arrival in South Bend.

From 2012-2015, his recruiting efforts manufactured 15 letters of intent from offensive linemen.  This haul included twelve 4 stars, three 3 stars, and no player ranked lower (again, not including unranked/preferred walk-ons). Hiestand undoubtedly has recruiting trending in the right direction.

Credit: Andrew Ivins / BGI

Let us not forget about the incoming 2016 class. A trio of offensive linemen mammoth human beings: 4 star Tommy Kraemer, 4 star Liam Eichenberg, and 3 star Parker Boudreaux will soon be joining the Irish.

Kramer was the closest offensive lineman to have the coveted 247sports composite 5 star ranking with a final grading of .9819, good enough for 27^th best player in the country. Eichenberg also graded within the top 100 players with a final ranking at 80^th.

Without getting too carried away (because college football fans never do that), it would be no surprise if Hiestand added to his list of first round draft picks with Kraemer. Kraemer is already listed at 6’6 and 309 lbs. as a high school senior. To put that into perspective, he already outweighs every starting offensive linemen from Notre Dame’s 2012 team. Hiestand has demonstrated a distinct ability to attract the country’s top talent to South Bend, which has given the Irish the luxury of formidable depth at the offensive line position that it likely hasn’t seen in decades.

The positive residual effect of Hiestand’s presence doesn’t stop at rushing stats or recruiting rankings, but also the number of penalties committed by offensive linemen.

With the aid of @andrewwinn, I analyzed every Irish offensive penalty over the past eight years (103 games total). The data suggests that an offensive line coached by Hiestand is far more technically sound than those that haven’t been blessed by his infinite wisdom.

From 2008-2011, the offense committed a total of 176 penalties, of which 80 were specifically attributed to an offensive linemen (disclaimer: not all penalties listed were directly credited to a specific player – for example these four years included 13 holding penalties where no player was specifically named).  Of these 80 penalties committed by offensive linemen, 33 were false starts, and 34 were holding calls.

Photo credit: Irish Sports Daily

From 2012-2015 the offense committed a total of 153 penalties, of which 79 were attributed to offensive linemen (throughout these more recent four years all holding calls were attributed to a specific player).  False starts were admittedly far more frequent with 59 occurrences. However, over the course of these four years the offensive line was astonishingly only credited with 10 holding calls.  The false starts may have increased since Notre Dame has had six quarterbacks under center in Hiestand’s four years. It may also be due to Hiestand’s more aggressive approach to pass blocking. The decrease in holding penalties is truly remarkable, especially when one considers a Hiestand line has averaged only 2.5 holding penalties per year.  This is a testament to the progress and development of the offensive line as a unit under Harry Hiestand.

Obviously, Hiestand is not the single determining factor in the many improvements made over the course of eight years.  One would be remiss to not shed light on how far #NDFB has come as a program: the institution of training table, the addition of analysts to the coaching staff, the facility updates, etc. Brian Kelly deserves a ton of credit for putting his assistant coaches in opportunities where they can flourish and succeed.

With all of this being said, the old adage that “it all starts up front” still holds true even in today’s spread offense era. Four years’ worth of significant and consistent progress suggests it is no fluke that Harry Hiestand continues to develop one NFL draft pick after another (Chris Watt, Zack Martin, soon to be Ronnie Stanley and Nick Martin).

Couple Hiestand’s developmental gift with his ability to draw top high school talent to South Bend, and #NDFB has one of the best in the biz. The Irish were able to quickly recover from the loss of beloved assistant coach Tony Alford this time last year, but here’s to hoping Hiestand has found his home for the long haul.

The post Harry Hiestand’s Impact Is Unmistakeable appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

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. My fuzzy memory tells me that Weis had better success in CA and landed a good number of kids from the state.  With the help of my HLS compatriot, @andrewinn, I looked at the data. Here are some summary points:

Charlie Weis in California

• Through Weis’ years (2005-2009) Notre Dame targeted 45 prospects in CA.
• Weis had 12 commits during this period, representing a 27% hit rate on pulling guys from out west.
• 11% of Weis’ commits transferred or left Notre Dame, guys of note – Joe Fauria and Shaq Evans who went on to become good players at UCLA (note that Evans left after Weis was fired, and it seemed he never was in the good graces of the new coaching staff)
• Notable misses from CA: honestly? Looking at the guys we didn’t get and looking at star ratings and what they went on to become – the only guy that could be a ‘miss’ was Mark Sanchez.

Brian Kelly in California

• Obviously Brian Kelly has a few extra years on Weis, but if you just consider his first five years – ND offered 70 prospects. If you include through 2016’s class – a whopping 123 total prospects offered.
• Unlike Weis, we didn’t land as many guys out of our targeted prospects. BK only signed 13% through his first five years, overall through 2016 ND has signed 11% of its CA targets.
• Not a lot of transfers out of ND for CA guys – one guy of note, Tee Shepherd (only for the drama), and most recently Tyler Luatua. Not a transfer but kind of a bummer – Troy Niklas leaving early for the NFL.
• The guys we missed on reads like an all-star roster (or the starting roster for USC): George Farmer, Robert Woods, Anthony Barr (still irks me that we couldn’t get him), Arik Armstead, Eddie Vanderdoes, Deontay Greenberry, Su’a Cravens, Matt Dickerson. It would be an understatement to say that the recruitment of these guys (and others from CA) were eventful and came down to the wire, and then some.

So what can we say about ND’s presence in CA? It would appear that Weis had better success from a bottom line perspective, targeting fewer guys but landing all of our top targets in the state. I mean, the guy called Jimmy Clausen on day one of the kid’s recruitment. Weis had Brian Polian running CA for the most part if I recall, and Polian really worked hard in the state for the most part.

Brian Kelly, although not as successful, is targeting more guys in the state, and going toe to toe against USC, UCLA, and Stanford to a certain extent, for a lot of the in-state talent. We hear of Denbrock running recruiting for CA, which at first seemed iffy. But he’s had a good run in the state and the addition of Mike Sanford is a good sign for CA recruiting.

I’m a believer in hitting to win – and you can’t get guys from CA if you’re not offering. It’s a good sign that we are offering as many guys over time in California; if anything to keep our traditional opponents on their toes (USC, Stanford).  I think as painful as these long recruitment sagas can go, I appreciate that ND is in it for a lot of guys late in the game. I think an energetic guy like Sanford could move the needle a bit for CA recruiting and we can have the best of Weis and Brian Kelly with regards to success out west.

The post Does Notre Dame Have a California Problem? appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

While Notre Dame will get its fair share of air time every week, the podcast is more of a college football podcast than it is an ND one, following in the spirit of the Roundup posts over the years. The stories are certainly told with my ND bias proudly on display–so what I’m trying to say is that I’m doing things a bit differently than every other ND podcast to not completely over-saturate everything.

This post will serve as a supplement to the audio fun. I will always include links of things that I discuss on the show and sometimes (like this week) include things that I missed/forgot about or anything big/hilarious that happens after recording.

I should also note that this post will go live every Friday at noon; however, if you subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or Podbean, you will get early access to every episode which goes live early Friday morning.

If you like the podcast, be sure to give me a review on iTunes. If you have suggestions, comments, or want to tell me that I suck, I’m all ears as well to help make this thing better.

So with all that said, let’s get to this week’s episode. We got some fun news about our friends at Rent Like a Champion, coaching moves, a Weis paycheck, the ND playoff picture, some Temple talk, and terrible picks with NDEddieMac to get to.

The Roundup

In this episode:

• Da U got a little less Golden
• I totally forgot about this in this week’s episode, but Jerry Kill retired due to health reasons. Honestly, I’m very upset that I let this slip my mind. Happy trails, coach, we will always have the best memories of Dilly Bars.
• Forgive me Father, for I am going to link a Rovell tweet, but our long nightmare of having to pay Weis money will be over soon.
• From a potential contender in the SEC West, to QB controversies and a divided locker room. Things are not going well in Aggieland.
• Things are a little rough at Florida State. Dalvin Cook is out, Golson isn’t taking first team snaps in front of the media, but Jimbo claims he is still the “likely” starter.
• Undefeated Baylor will have to overcome QB issues of their own, but this is injury related.
• Weekly picks

The Booze

This week, I enlisted Philly Kelly for this segment. After all, she’s been planning this tailgate for a few years and she’s ridiculously excited. She’s even got a selfie stick for this occasion. I better get Facetimed.

Here is Kelly’s booze recommendation for the weekend:

• 3 to 4 bing cherries, pitted
• 1/2 ounce lemon juice
• 1 ounce simple syrup
• 2 ounces whiskey
• 1 cherry, to garnish

1. In the bottom of a short glass (Old Fashioned-style), muddle the cherries with the lemon juice.
2. Fill the glass with ice, add the simple syrup and whiskey. Stir for 10 seconds. Garnish with a cherry and enjoy!

Moment of Nix

Adidas ruins everything that they touch. They created glow in the dark helmets for Texas A&M. It looked cool, it sounded like an awesome idea for a Halloween game at night.

The game is being played at 11am in Texas. Adidas has now created a live Aggie joke and Texas A&M is trying to convince everyone that the uniforms will work during the day. You are the worst, Adidas.

Special Mention:

Because I didn’t see this until this morning. Enjoy drunk Michigan fans losing their minds (NSFW audio, by the way) as Sparty breaks their spirits:

Subscribe!

Yeah, I’m going to make sure y’all don’t forget how to subscribe to this thing:

• iTunes
• Podbean
• RSS

The post Friday Roundup: The “Trick or Treat: Here’s a Podcast” Episode appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

The When/Where/What Time/Etc. vs. the Minutemen of UMass, 3:30 PM ET, NBC. LET THIS ALL BE YOUR OFFICIAL WARNING…..HE’S BAAAACK…..

Saturday’s #UMassvsND will be an @NBCSports national broadcast. Tom Hammond, @DougFlutie and @KathrynTappen will have the call. #BeatND

— UMass Football (@UMassFootball) September 20, 2015

The Opposing Coach: The Minutemen are run by Mark Whipple, who had so much fun coaching them in the late 90’s/early 2000’s, that he signed back on to be their head coach again before the 2014 season. Whipple replaced former ND OC Charley Molnar who lasted just two seasons at UMass before his ousting. The Minutemen, obviously living up to their name, found Molnar’s consecutive 1-11 seasons, the first two at the FBS level for the school, to fall short of expectations. Enter(Return) Mark Whipple – The Knute Rockne of UMass football. His legend looms large given that his first season with the Minutemen was the one and only FCS championship in the team’s history. Feel free to opine below about who will play him in Mark Whipple: All American.

In 2014, one way of thinking about Whipple’s performance was that he was 200% more successful than Charley Molnar. In another, more accurate way, his team was 3-9. If you’re trying to profile what type of game plan to expect, the safe bet is AIR RAID. In 2014, UMass was the 14th most pass heavy team in all of college football…well, of the offensive plays they got to call…they were 14th most likely to call pass. So far in 2015 they’ve upped that to 4th nationally…in pass play percentage.

Whipple’s resume is probably more impressive than many would think. He was the QB’s coach for Pittsburgh from 2004-06, and just as Weis was getting ready to bring his schematic advantage to Notre Dame, Whipple was picking up a Super Bowl ring of his own. He’s also had stints as The U’s OC and the distinct pleasure of coaching Brandon Weeden while with the Cleveland Browns. Am I really on a third paragraph about Mark Whipple? Okay…moving on.

The UUUUUUU(Mass)’s Last Game:  In a game that no doubt had LOTS of ND advanced scouts in attendance so they could see not one but two future opponents, UMass and Temple battled to one of the best finishes of the day on what was a great Saturday of college football. Temple was coming off wins versus Penn State and the Gunner Kiel-led Cincinnati Bearcats and, even as the road team, seemed to be prohibitive favorites. But you don’t just walk into Gillette Stadium and mess with Massachusetts. You most certainly DO NOT. Temple ripped the heart out of ND’s next opponent with a 25 yard field goal with just seconds remaining to deny the Minutemen the win, 25-23. This was apparently a big blow to UMass Bowl Aspirations. I can’t tell if that link is serious or not. 

Even for a team that’s made losing tough, close games a habit, this one had to hurt. They’re a more competitive team than their record from last year (3-9) and this year (0-2) might suggest. Over that stretch, 6 of their 11 losses have come by a combined 21 points. The Irish seem focused and unified from all of the adversity they’ve had to face, but taking this week’s opponent as a total walk over would be a mistake.

I feel dirty writing down that cliche remark.

I think it’s a given that were a team to in fact ignore that they had a game this week that 1) the coach should be fired, and 2) they’d stand a good chance to lose. I’m not of the opinion either of those things has/should occur.

Team Talent:  On (virtual Excel style) paper, this is the largest talent gap Notre Dame will have over an opponent all season. While skewed somewhat by their FCS status prior to 2012, even over the last couple of recruiting cycles, you’re talking about a team that is recruiting players roughly at the same grade as Navy. This is not a knock on Navy as those players are taking on responsibilities more important and long-term than those which occur on a football field, but if you’re a non-military school recruiting like one…you’re in trouble. A cool new tool 247 Sports introduced just today is their own “Team Talent Index.” The lazy people like myself just take the composite totals from recruiting cycles and ignore the fact that transfers, suspensions, injuries, and NFL jumps all occur. 247’s focuses on the 85 best graded player on the active rosters to develop their index. Notre Dame currently sits at #8 nationally. UMass (along with all 3 service academies) did not make the top 100, which is as far as their ranks dip at the moment. In other words: smart systems agree with lazy systems…these two teams are of a different class talent-wise. If we were in Southwest seating priorities, ND’s an A. U Mass is on standby for a C.

Trends/Thoughts/Stats: This is absolutely one of those games where UMass must play perfect and hope for multiple Notre Dame mistakes in order to make this competitive. It would easily be the biggest win in the history of the UMass program to come to Notre Dame and knock off the #6 team in the country. It’s hard to imagine it happening. Look, the team cannot ignore their opponent this week or diminish them, but as a fan/observer, I can.

BCF Toys has what they call the Massey Index to evaluate team types. If ND wants to be an Elite Team (defined as Top 5 nationally), then it is expected to post dominant wins versus FBS competition. A “dominant” win is defined as winning by 25 or more points. On average, “Elite” teams will beat FBS competition by 25+ points 44% of the time. In a 12 game schedule, that means 5 such wins. The Irish have one and are looking for four more. This game really must be the second such dominant victory to stay on pace to “look” like an Elite team.

There are three players on the Minutemen to keep your eye on:

1. Blake Frohnapfel – Blake, aside from having an unpronounceable last name that made me look it up about 12 times to ensure I got the spelling right is the team’s best player and quarterback. Again, this is a team that will pass, pass, and pass some more. He’s a volume passer though, not an efficiency master. B-Frohn has completed just 55% of his passes over the past year+. Since the start of 2014, he’s thrown 27 touchdown and 12 interceptions. For reference, last year Everett Golson threw 29 TD’s and 14 picks. The Frohn-man was a Davey O’Brien watch list member. I’m excited to tweet out his name at least once or twice.
2. Tajae Sharpe – UMass has 53 receptions as a team so far this year. Sharpe has 22 of them. Last year Sharpe had 85 receptions, the next closest had 41. In the loss to Temple, Sharpe had 11 receptions and became UMass’ most prolific receiver of all-time. So, can we all take a guess as to who Blake will be targeting?
3. Jovan Santos-Knox – If the Minutemen have a Jaylon Smith, it’s this guy. Okay, they don’t have a Jaylon Smith, but the senior linebacker will be their all everything on defense. If we’re lucky some Tyler Luatua/Santos-Knox collisions are in our future. Only, no injuries, Tyler. Heck, same for you Jovan. I’m tired of injuries.

Tex will drop the predictions post either late Friday or Saturday morning. Call for big numbers people. The Irish need a calm, dominant performance.

The post Taking a Minute, Man, to Assess Saturday’s Opponent appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

PODCAST

• Irish Illustrated (F): Irish hit spring stride (50:55)
• ND Insider: Podcast: ND Insider recruiting update 4-2 (10:42)

RECRUITING – OFFERED

• Bruin Report Online ($): Video: Lucas at The Opening ( AZ RB Chase Lucas)
• Dawg Post (F): Big get for Dawgs – Price commits ( GA OT E.J. Price)
• Irish247 (F): Robinson, family excited about Notre Dame offer ( KY CB Davonte Robinson)
• Irish Turning Point: The buzz buzz
• Scout (F): Offers coming in for Ulmer, Robinson ( KY CB Davonte Robinson)
• Scout ($): 4-star TE Angeline planning Penn State return (PA Cary Angeline)
• Scout ($): 4-star TE Angeline gets Michigan fill (PA Cary Angeline)
• Scout ($): ND history on, off field impresses 4-star TE (PA Cary Angeline)
• Scout ($): Fulton likes LSU’s DB track record ( LA CB Kristian Fulton)
• Slap the Sign: Notre Dame offers ’17 Florida offensive lineman Dillan Gibbons
• USC Football.com: Trevon Sidney steals the show ( CA CB, also CA WRs Tyler Vaughns and Dylan Crawford)

RECRUITING – ND INTERESTED, NO OFFER

• Big Red Report (F): Brendan Scales talks about Nebraska offer ( MO TE)
• Big Red Report (F): D.J. Morgan adds Nebraska offer ( CA S)
• Irish Illustrated ($): LaBruna visits dream school (CA QB Andrew LaBruna, no rating yet)
• Scout ($): Alloway has two on top ( CA WR Damian Alloway)
• Show Me Mizzou ($): Mizzou offer for Scales ( MO TE Brendan Scales)

CURRENT TEAM

• CSN Sportsnet Chicago: Notre Dame won’t be surprised by Will Fuller’s growth
• Inside the Irish: Opportunities await Notre Dame’s running backs
• Inside the Irish: Spring practice breakdown: A look inside (finally!)
• Irish247 ($): Irish staff navigating through quarterback competition
• Irish247 (F): Denbrock: ‘(QB) is going to be a hard decision to make’
• Irish247 (F): Smythe leads the way for Irish at tight end
• Irish Illustrated (F): From a one in a thousand chance to…
• One Foot Down: Notre Dame football – Spring practice recap for April 1
• Rant Sports: 5 questions for Notre Dame football during 2015 spring practice

COACHING

• CBS Sports: Power Five college football coach rankings: The top 25 (Brian Kelly is #13)
• Irish Illustrated (F): The village voice(s)
• Irish Illustrated (F): Sanford scouting style, substance

IRISH IN THE NFL

• Bleacher Report (Monaco): Notre Dame football: DaVaris Daniels, Kendall Moore eye NFL careers
• ESPN: Atlanta Falcons waive safety Zeke Motta
• Irish247 (F): Daniels ready for next step
• Irish247 (F): Boosting draft stock was Koyack’s Pro Day focus
• Irish Turning Point: Pro Day results
• State of the Texans (F): Vince Wilfork is “here for Houston” (Louis Nix)

MISC.

• USA Today: College football playoff will keep weekly rankings

The post Morning Roundup: April 3, 2015 appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

PODCASTS

• Irish Sports Daily: 2-16-15 Power Hour (1:06:27)

RECRUITING

• Irish Sports Daily: In the film room: Donnie Corley
• Irish Illustrated: Irish offer 2017 four-star (Maleik Gray)
• Bleacher Report (Monaco): Notre Dame football recruiting offers of the week (Cary Angeline, Maleik Gray and E.J. Price)
• UW Dawg Pound: 2016 UW football recruiting: The rest of the West (Devin Duvernay, Byron Murphy and Chase Lucas)
• USA Today: Nation’s No. 3 player in Class of 2016 set to commit; Ole Miss seems to be the favorite (Shea Patterson)
• Shreveport Times: Calvary QB Shea Patterson to pick college Tuesday
• WLOX: Ole Miss could make biggest catch on Fat Tuesday: Blue chip quarterback Shea Patterson
• Northeast Ohio Media Group: Gregory Little, Jaylon Jones and T.J. Vasher – looking at Ohio State’s recent scholarship offers (Little, Patrick Bethel and Khalid Kareem)
• The Patriot News: Pennsylvania’s top 2016 football recruits; Pittsburgh C.C. corner Damar Hamlin
• Victory Bell Rings: Penn State football recruiting: Top 10 2016 recruits – Pennsylvania (Damar Hamlin & Cary Angeline)
• Burnt Orange Nation: Texas offers Florida QB Xavier Gaines
• 247 Sports: Best of the Midwest Combo MVPs (Quinton Baker)
• Slap the Sign: Notre Dame football recruiting class: Defensive grades

CURRENT TEAM

• Inside the Irish: Spring solutions: Quarterbacks
• UHND: At long last, depth for Notre Dame football
• St. Paul Pioneer Press: Twinsights: Torii Hunter Jr. returns to baseball at Notre Dame

COACHING

• Irish Illustrated: Piecing together assistant coaching puzzle
• Slap the Sign: Something new for 2015, a six-year coach at Notre Dame
• Bleacher Report (Arnold): Projecting Brian Kelly’s 2015 coaching staff
• Idaho Statesmen: Boise State football coaches Harsin, Yates up for new contracts (Mike Sanford)
• Mountain West Connection: Broncos extend Bryan Harsin to a new five-year, $7.35 million deal (Mike Sanford)
• Fansided: Boise State, Bryan Harsin agree on 5-year extension (Mike Sanford)
• ESPN: Roquan Smith got it right by waiting (Charlie Weis)
• Eleven Warriors: After coaching turnover, familiarity might correlate with stability for Ohio State (Tony Alford)
• Vavel: Charlie Weis on coaching again: ‘Highly doubtful’

IRISH IN THE NFL

• St. Paul Pioneer Press: Vikings’ Rudolph eyeing a full season
• The Times-Picayune: 2015 NFL draft: Brandon Scherff could be great tackle or all-pro at guard, says Mike Mayock (Zack Martin)
• Heavy: Jess Gysin, Jimmy Clausen’s wife: 5 fast facts
• Steelers Depot: Jerome Bettis says it’s too early for Browns to give up on Johnny Football
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Ray Fittipaldo’s Steelers chat (Ben Koyack)
• Carolina Panthers: Panthers name Steve Wilks assistant head coach
• The Republican: Patriots NFL Draft 2015 position preview: Looking for Rob Gronkowski insurance (Ben Koyack)
• News-Sentinel: NFL Combine brings annual scrutiny to Indy (Ben Koyack, Kyle Brindza and DaVaris Daniels)

HISTORY

• Chicago Tribune: How Michigan State’s Duffy Daugherty helped integrate college football (1966 & Ara Parseghian)

MISC.

• Inside the Irish: Mailbag: What to expect from defense
• TigerNet.com: Clemson announces 2015 football game designations, spring game date (Notre Dame game is IPTAY Day)
• Addicted to Quack: Roundtable: Oregon’s out of conference football games
• USA Today: Examining college basketball’s scheduling conundrum
• Bleacher Report: Meet college football’s most inexperienced head coach (Gerry Faust)
• EDSBS: The presidents assigned to their proper schools (Abraham Lincoln assigned to ND)
• ESPN: Ultimate ESPN 300: 15 things to know

The post Morning Roundup: Feb. 17, 2015 appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

FROM OUR SITE

• More good works from Oscar McBride

VIDEO

• WatchND: Torii Hunter Jr.: From the gridiron to the diamond (4:52)

RECRUITING

• Cardinal Authority: U of L football: Junior day update (Connor Foos)
• 247 Sports: Corley heading to Michigan
• Irish Sports Daily: In the film room: Ahmir Mitchell
• Irish Sports Daily: Foster being patient with the process
• Irish Sports Daily: Youngquist hoping to hear more from ND
• Badger Nation: Brown talks Wisconsin offer (Cameron Brown)

CURRENT TEAM

• Irish Illustrated: Make the pieces fit
• One Foot Down: Chronicling Malik Zaire’s passing vs. LSU in the Music City Bowl

IRISH IN THE NFL

• Detroit Free Press: NFL combine: Miami RB Duke Johnson puts mom at center of success (Kyle Brindza)

COACHING

• Larry Brown sports: Charlie Weis does not think he will coach again

MISC.

• ND Nation: An early Easter (Knute Rockne)
• The Blade column: Surprising BG deserves more fan support

The post Morning Roundup: Feb. 16, 2015 appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

VIDEO

• Ian Wierzba: Notre Dame football pump up (2015-16)

CURRENT TEAM

• UHND: Torii Hunter Jr to play baseball for Notre Dame
• Blue & Gold Illustrated: Hunter Jr. a dual-sport athlete
• Inside the Irish: Torii Hunter Jr. joins the Irish baseball team
• Inside the Irish: Mailbag, part 2: What to do with the QBs?

RECRUITING

• UW Dawg Pound: 2016 UW football recruiting: California prospects (Tyler Vaughns, Javon McKinley, Oluwole Betiku and Trevon Sidney)
• The Oklahoman: The Oklahoman’s Super 30 list of top football recruits for the Class of 2016 (Chandler Garrett)
• 247 Sports: Detroit King football aims for second state title (Donnie Corley)
• GBM Wolverine: Michigan recruiting: Robert Washington (RB) 2016 prospect
• Irish Sports Daily: Ball attacking process
• Scout: Big week for Skowronek
• Philadelphia Inquirer column: Gordon explains his decision to step down as LaSalle’s football coach (Cary Angeline)

COACHING

• College Football Talk: Charlie Weis says ‘it’s highly doubtful I will ever coach again’
• Lawrence Journal-World: Weis says coaching return unlikely
• KUSports.com: Weis says coaching return unlikely
• Sooners Illustrated: OU junior day storylines (Kerry Cooks)

MISC.

• Los Angeles Times: College football fall forecast (Notre Dame is #9)

The post Morning Roundup: Feb. 15, 2015 appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.