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Pat Connaughton may have led the league in minutes played this summer. He averaged around 30 minutes per game. This is a good sign for his future with the Portland Trailblazers. Pat started the summer league with a bang, dunking one down early against Spurs. He then shot poorly vs Suns, going only 1-for-7 from beyond the 3 point-line. However, he adapted by scoring 14 points on hard drives and drawing fouls. Pat’s leaping ability was also on display on the defensive side as he managed a block or two per game. In one of the more exciting summer league games, Pat hit four 3-pointers and scored 19 points in OT win over Jazz. Watch this video of Pat’s late game heroics against the Jazz. In the final summer league game for the Blazers, Pat played big minutes once again and ended the day with 23 points, four rebounds and shooting 3-for-10 from downtown. The Blazers have shown great confidence in Connaughton this summer and we will surely be seeing more of him in this upcoming season.

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Jerian Grant had a roller-coaster of a summer league. He started against Sixers and a plus of 12 with seven points and a couple assists. Grant’s best moment of that game was getting two steals in a row while pressuring the inbound. It is obvious that Grant is still gaining confidence on shot. He had 14 points against the Celtics, but went 2-for-8 from 3. Against the Wizards, Grant put up eight assists but also missed all seven threes that he attempted. Jerian hit his stride in the second half of the semi-final game when he scored 13 points to lead the Bulls to a comeback victory over the Cavs. Then Grant won MVP of the summer league finale! He collected 24 points, 10 rebounds (!) and five assists in the final game and was also clutch in overtime. His Chicago Bulls ended up being the only undefeated team this summer. It was also nice to see Grant and the 14th overall pick Denzel Valentine playing together in the backcourt as opposed to subbing for each other. Jon Barry, an ABC/ESPN analyst, likes Jerian Grant, saying “he’s a nice young talent.”

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Jack Cooley was a a welcome surprise for me and for the Bulls. Against the Philadelphia 76ers, Jack provided a defensive spark with two blocks, while also getting a couple buckets. Jack looks stronger than most players down low, but he is also a little short, especially against the exceptionally long Sixers team. Jack subbed in real well against the Celtics. He battled for 11 points and eight rebounds (including five offensive) in only 16 minutes of play. Jack has a knack for making the most of his minutes, in only seven minutes against the Spurs, he managed six rebounds, two steals, and a bigman’s three-point-play. And in only 10 minutes of play, Jack put up seven points and eight rebounds against the Wizards. He did not play in final game. Did you know Jack Cooley once got a 27 point 29 board game in d-league play??   Watch this video of Jack being Jack. I think he should shoot more 3’s!

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Zach Auguste was a spark for the Lakers against the Sixers. In 20 minutes, Zach recorded eight points, seven boards, two steals, and a block. While Zach did have a play where he drove hard and fell over himself, he finished at the basket well. It was nice to see Zach’s usual passion and hustle on display. In 15 minutes against the Cavs, Zach collected five rebounds, drew fouls, and he even ran the fast-break on a couple of plays! He has seemed to amp up his aggressiveness on both sides of the ball, whether demanding the ball in the post on offense or contesting shots on defense. Unfortunately, in the same game against the Cavs, Zach only went 2-for-8 from the free throw line and showed some frustration in that regard. Auguste started in the final summer league game for the Lakers, but only played 12 minutes collecting two points and two assists. The Lakers have plenty of bigs on the roster including the recently signed Timofey Mozgov, Ivica Zubac, Robert Sacre, and Tarik Black. In my opinion, Zach outplayed Zubac this summer. However, because Zubac was actually drafted, he has already signed on with the Lakers. Given the crowded roster I imagine Zach will be playing in the D-league or perhaps finding a home on another NBA team or even overseas.

Credit: Bart Young/NBAE

Demetrius Jackson put his leaping ability and defensive prowess on display this summer. Jackson picked up guards full court and managed almost two steals per game in limited minutes. In 14 minutes against the 76ers, Jackson got two steals and two assists. He started against the Spurs and played well, collecting 11 points, two steals, three boards, and shooting 3-for-4 from deep. The highlight of Demetrius’s summer league was getting two-and-1 plays in a row against Cavs. This was also the same moment in which Jon Barry said he was impressed with Jackson’s NBA ready strength and physique. Jackson had mixed results with his high flying drives to the hoop as he got blocked four times against the Cavs in the first round of the tournament. He started the final game but only tallied 14 minutes, managing four points, three assists, a steal and a block. Jackson has some stiff competition in Terry Rozier. The Celtics GM Danny Ainge even said Rozier was his best player in summer league. Isaiah Thomas, of course remains the starter and former All-Star for the Celtics at point guard. Meanwhile, rumors are circulating about Russell Westbrook coming over in a trade. As long as things remain up-in-the-air for the Celtics, so too does it for Demetrius. Getting signed to a guaranteed deal is a positive first step.

The post Checking in on Former Irish Now in the NBA appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Demetrius Jackson will be sticking with the Irish theme and heading to Boston. Not only are the Celtics already considered one of the best teams in the East, but they also had eight picks in this draft! Jackson will be joining a beefy and talented roster, to say the least.

The Celtics already have 4 point guards: All-star Isaiah Thomas, big guard Marcus Smart, defensive specialist Avery Bradley, and point-forward Evan Turner. Honestly though, the latter 3 can all play at shooting guard or forward. Jackson, on the other hand, is a pure point guard much like Thomas. D.J. is definitely stronger than Thomas. And he may even be faster? But, Jackson can learn a few things from the veteran Isaiah on the offensive end.

On the defensive side, Jackson has indicated a desire and shown an ability to become elite. I think a Jackson/Bradley backcourt would be a tough defensive lineup for any team to face. Every time I see D.J. play, he reminds me of a Derrick Rose or even Russell Westbrook type of player. All three use superior strength and athleticism to get to the hoop. And they all have incredible leaping ability (D.J. jumped 43.5 inches in the vertical jump).

Although, he slipped into the mid-second round, I think Demetrius can surprise a lot of people and may even give Thomas fits during practice.

One thing is for sure, though: We can all look forward to watching Demetrius Jackson in the NBA playoffs next year!

The post NBA Draft: Demetrius Jackson appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

With the departure of Demetrius Jackson, the Irish lose a leader, an INCREDIBLE athlete and perhaps the most well-defined set of shoulders in all of college sports. As a projected lottery pick, there is no doubt that Jackson deserves to play in the NBA and even has a potential to grow into an all-star caliber player. Anyone else note the Russell Westbrook similarities? Jackson’s speed of play – as well as his athletic build – are both eerily similar to that of Westbrook. When it comes to the speed factor, both players show-off different gears, often jumping from 1st into 4th before you can yell ‘Dunk!’ It’s going to be fun watching Jackson at the next level. As a side note, I am really looking forward to Jackson’s pre-draft vertical jump. Can he beat the 44 inches put up by our very own Pat Connaughton in 2015?! I wonder.

Matt Farrell has quickness, great ball-handling and intelligent offensive play. A Matt Farrell turnover is very rare, while a Matt Farrell 3-pointer drops more often than expected. Farrell’s ball-handiling, energy and heady play were both needed and on display in this year’s tournament. However, though I can relate to the man, Farrell’s size is an issue when it comes to guarding top tier talent in the ACC and beyond. That being said, size isn’t everything. I’d like to see Farrell get scrappier on defensive. Going for steals, diving for loose balls and reaching in the lanes are areas that Farrell needs to bring into his overall game if he wants to make his lack of size a non-factor.

I chose this picture of Rex because it is a perfect illustration of ‘Rex Pfleuger Defense.’ Here he is, going up against one of the most talked about guards of the 2016 season in Marcus Paige, who looks more than a little rattled by Rex’s close proximity.

During the tournament, Rex showed Irish fans an incredible tenacity on the defensive side of the ball. The high flyer (Pfleuger definitely means ‘flyer’ in the old Germanic) can block centers, as he showed against Michigan. In addition, his help-defensive is very impressive and a welcome sight to any Irish fan.

I obviously have a crush on Rex’s defensive ability. However, questions still remain on the other side of the ball. Can Rex show improvement when it comes to his ball-handling? Can he become more aggressive in terms of attacking the basket? This year we saw glimmers of hope, but mostly we saw Rex giving the ball up to Jackson or Vasturia pretty much the second he caught it. I firmly believe that without Rex we are out round 1 (patent pending ‘Rex Pfleuger defense’). Without Rex we are out round 2 (the tip of a lifetime). So, needless to say Rex is already a vital part of the team. I can’t wait to see him throw down his first jam in the lane. We know he’s got the hops!

2014 Nike EYBL. Session #2. Dallas.

Temple Gibbs is young, but highly recruited 4-star athlete. According to some pro-scouters his greatest strength is, in fact, his physical strength. Watching Temple’s highlights, I instantly thought of Andre Miller as a comparison. Andre Miller, perhaps the most underrated basketball player of all time, used strength and intelligence (often referred to as old-man savvy) to make a successful career for himself.

So, much like Andre, and very unlike Demetrius, Temple Gibbs will not be leaping out of the stadium anytime soon. However, nothing but overall growth is stopping him from being a smart distributer and scorer for the Irish in year one.

The question is how fast can he transition into the college game? How much talent does Gibbs possess? As a four star athlete, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him starting day one, but as an incoming freshman there may be some growing pains. Only time will tell. Depending on Temple’s development this may be a question saved for next year. But I am interested to see if Temple can show us a post-up game (much like Andre Miller) as a way to take advantage of his strength against smaller guards.

Last year, Mike Brey had it pretty easy when it came to replacing the point guard position, simply sliding Jackson over as Grant’s replacement. There was nothing much to it, of course, besides pushing Jackson to be more vocal and aggressive.

This year, however, is a different story. Barring a breakout into stardom by one of the three mentioned above, I am picturing our point guard of 2016-17 to be less individual star power and more of a three-headed monster (even four if we add Vasturia to the mix). Still, many questions remain. Can Farrell play defense against the large guards of the ACC? Can Pfleuger be aggressive on offense as well as defense? How good is Temple Gibbs and is he ready for college ball? Brey has questions to answer and big shoes to fill, but he also has plenty of talent to work with. Let’s GO IRISH!

The post How Does Notre Dame Replace Demetrius Jackson? appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Courtesy of Showtime

“This group should be remembered. When it’s all said and done – we’re going to play for a long time. Our season’s going to go for a while. We should be remembered for things that happened in Notre Dame basketball that’s never happened before.” – Notre Dame men’s basketball coach Mike Brey

It’s seven weeks before Selection Sunday, and Showtime has brought its cameras to two college basketball programs that are both on surprising upswings.

After disappointing 2013-14 campaigns, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have figured out how to win consistently on the road despite a grueling ACC schedule. The Maryland Terrapins, newcomers in the Big Ten, have rebounded from a disappointing final season in the ACC and are taking down traditional powerhouses like Indiana and Wisconsin on the way to second place in their conference this year.

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What Showtime put together, the NCAA has continued – placing both Notre Dame and Maryland in a daunting Midwest bracket. On the eve of the tournament’s beginning, Showtime gives us a chronological look back to how exactly we got here.

The 90-minute documentary chronicles Notre Dame’s big home win versus Duke, their crushing loss to the Blue Devils in Durham, road wins at Boston College and Louisville and the head-scratching home loss to struggling Syracuse. It also replays our last wonderful week, culminating in the university’s first conference championship in men’s basketball.

The game footage is thrilling, and the producers made a brilliant decision by including Jack Nolan’s enthusiastic radio calls of the team’s finer February and March moments.

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But it’s the smaller stories that make the documentary worth watching.

The Boston College game is a homecoming for Arlington, Mass. native Pat Connaughton, whose enormous extended family has managed to secure a mind-boggling 500 tickets to the game. After the Irish’s convincing win, Pat’s family and friends party in the Conte Forum – because there’s literally nowhere else they’d all fit.

Demetrius Jackson has a similar family affair in Louisville, where his foster family has made the four-hour trip south to root on the son they’ve claimed as their own. It should be no surprise, then, when Demetrius has one of his better games in an Irish victory.

Before the tourney starts, there’s Senior Day at the Purcell Pavilion as the Irish host Clemson. Harvey Grant, Jerian’s father, perfectly encapsulates the true meaning of the special event.

“The thing that I’m so proud of that he’s getting his degree from Notre Dame. You know, that goes a long way,” he said. “I tell him the other things – basketball – that’s the icing on the cake. And you make your own destiny.”

There’s other little moments, too, such as mass in the hotel before the game, the cheer squad’s amazing send-off before the ACC championship game. Showtime posted two that didn’t make the final cut on its website: the team hitting up a hibachi restaurant and taking in the Bengal Bouts, the university’s charity boxing tournament.

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Notre Dame fans will appreciate Showtime’s effort to get them pumped up for today’s 12:15 game vs. Northeastern. By time “Hoops U” re-airs, let’s hope the team has given us even more to get excited about. As the gents are fond of saying: Not done yet.

“Hoops U” re-airs on the following dates and channels:

• 8:05 p.m. Saturday, March 28 on Showtime Extreme
• 1 p.m. Sunday, March 29 on Showtime Extreme
• Midnight Saturday, April 4 on Showtime Extreme
• 1:15 a.m. Sunday, April 5 on Showtime
• 3:15 p.m. Monday, April 6 on Showtime Extreme
• Noon and 6:30 p.m. Saturday, April 11 on Showtime Extreme
• 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, April 15 on Showtime
• 10 a.m. Thursday, April 16 on Showtime Extreme
• 7 p.m. Saturday, April 18 on Showtime
• 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 21 on Showtime Extreme
• 9 p.m. Sunday, April 26 on Showtime Extreme
• 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 29 on Showtime Extreme
• and Showtime On Demand

The post Review: Showtime’s “Hoops U” appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Defense is still a touch lacking and often times the Irish have dug themselves into holes because of some defensive lapses. Despite that, the Irish have found ways to claw back into games, including an improbable 18 point comeback in the second half to topple North Carolina State on their home court (where, incidentally, Duke recently lost) just this past weekend. The Irish have never felt outclasses, even when they fell against undefeated Virginia, one of their only two losses on the season.

So now Duke rolls into the Bend with likely future #1 NBA draft pick, Jahil Okafor (yes, that last name should ring a bell, he’s Emeka’s cousin), with a similar two loss record against a very similar schedule. I could attempt to break this game down, but it’s already been done, and, to be frank, much better than I could even hope to do. This matchup is a far cry from last year in which yet another sure-fire NBA lottery draft pick, Jabari Parker, came into South Bend to take on an Irish squad that struggled to down Canisius at home and weren’t too far removed from the news that Jerian Grant would miss the remainder of the season. That game was a pure, unexpected upset, seemingly an annual staple for Notre Dame squads.

But that’s not what’s happening tonight. Tonight is a heavyweight fight between two of the nation’s best. Jerian Grant is generating his own NBA draft buzz while Demetius Jackson is coming into his own and Zach Auguste has found the next level of his game. Of course, we can’t forget Pat Connaughton still managing to do his thing, leading the Irish in both three-point shooting (45%) and rebounds (175).

I know we’ve all been conditioned to not get too excited until March when the rug gets pulled out from underneath us. But this is different. No Mike Brey team has ever gone this far into a season with just two losses–hell, I only found a couple of Brey teams that managed to not lose more than two games in the month of January when conference play ramped up. Simply put, this team is different. Not just in record, but in the style of ball that they play as I mentioned at the start of the post. Worries about what may or may not happen in the postseason are so incredibly fruitless when this team is so much fun to watch:

https://vine.co/v/Od5rX7TWDxg

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To hell with the ides of March. #4 Duke is here tonight in our house. Posterize them like we did last year:

Go Irish. Beat Devils.

The post Notre Dame vs. Duke and Why You Shouldn’t Be Waiting Until March appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Eric Atkins and Mike Brey look on as the Irish fall to Wake Forrest in the ACC tournament. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

The 2013-2014 Notre Dame men’s basketball season is a frustrating thing to deconstruct. On one hand, you have one of the most incredible snake-bitten season’s possible with the academic suspension of Jerian Grant, Austin Burgett needing heart surgery of all things, Demetrius Jackson had his own academic issues for a short while, and Cameron Biedscheid going from redshirt to transfer. On the other hand, you have simply the worst Fighting Irish basketball season in the Mike Brey era, ending the season below .500 and winning only one conference game on the road against Boston College, an eight-win team.

The season was also full of multiple frustrating performances and some, like Indiana State and Ohio State, came while Grant was still on the roster. While I can certainly say, this team “never quit”, the other side of that coin is that they could never quite get over the hump. When something like that happens, I can’t help but look at coaching.

And perhaps this is a good time to take an aside. I’m far from Brey’s biggest fan. My first experiences with him as a student weren’t exactly great:

Three incredibly mediocre-at-best seasons, with some court-storming worthy upsets mixed in, all ending with postseason disappointments. I thought that streak stopped during my senior year after a horrid 2005-06 campaign, but then I was slapped in the face with a 10 point loss to 11-seed Winthrop. Not exactly a great way to win someone over.

And that seems to be the way of things: meddle around, throw in a big win here and there, finally get a bit of hope, and get slapped in the face by postseason reality. And right or wrong, those postseason memories (or lack thereof) are the ones that stick the longest.

I do understand that Brey and Notre Dame are fighting a bit of an uphill battle as it is in men’s basketball. ND isn’t in the business of attracting the one-and-done superstar nor are they ever going to be heavily involved in the ever-increasingly shady AAU programs. Basically, I don’t have any illusions that ND will ever be considered an annual national title contender, but I don’t think it’s too much to ask for a bit of postseason noise/excitement on a semi-regular basis.

I’m also aware of the other favorite excuse: sub-par facilities. While I know it isn’t helping the cause, Brey pulling in two of his best recruiting classes ever seems to shoot that argument down immediately. Further, I’d argue it’s easier to sell postseason excitement to a recruit than nicer practice digs. And while I hate drawing analogies to football, to me it would be like saying that we should’ve been more patient with Ty because the Gug was on the way or that Weis’ two BCS appearances were a direct result of the Gug.

In short, for the past decade of watching Brey-ball (and for others that have seen this for four additional seasons), all the excuses and continual postseason disappointments have grown increasingly stale (and that’s with my personal preference of boring play-style aside). However, this year, coming off Brey’s two best recruiting classes, falling this flat, loss of Grant or not, is inexcusable.

Even worse, Brey had this to say about next season:

We were 6-12 in the regular season. How far were we from nine league wins? We weren’t that far from nine league wins or I would be even more concerned…Nine league wins would be absolute heaven next year. That’s where you start.

Absolute heaven?! I’m not sure trying to be next year’s NC State, who just barely scraped their way into the Big Dance thanks to SMU’s horrid out-of-conference schedule, fits that bill.  And while Brey believes this year’s team was close to nine ACC wins, they were also just as close to only having three ACC wins as two came in OT and one by a margin of only three points.

I can understand Brey trying to deflect a bit of concern away from his team considering what happened to them this season, but to set the bar so low for next year is just mind-boggling. Going .500 in conference play should be a stepping stone of a season–nothing more, nothing less.

Perhaps that .500 mark is a good measuring stick for a young team rebuilding, but if Grant returns as planned that isn’t a rebuilding year, that’s getting back a potential NBA lottery draft pick. With Grant in place, if young players like Jackson and Zach Auguste play up to their potential, you have a team that, on paper, should have a much higher expectations that tripping over a .500 bar.

In short, I’m not exactly sure which direction this program is going. To crib from True Detective, Notre Dame is in a flat circle of time, going nowhere but right back to where they started a few years ago.

I certainly hope that I am wrong about all this and this is all simply my pessimistic bias of Brey taking over rational thought. At some point though, I need to see a spark that shows me 2014-15 is a new beginning for this team. Because if it looks like we are starting another classic cycle of Brey, I’m going to go mad watching the rest of the Brey-era.

#BreyBallIsDeterminedToKillMe

The post The Frustrations of Brey-Ball and the 2013-14 Season appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

One of the highlights of this event though, is the special guest that comes to talk to the club and participate in a Q&A. This year, that special guest was none other than the voice of the Irish, Director of Media Productions for Fighting Irish Digital Media, and honorary Monogram winner, Jack Nolan.

Photo Credit: UND.com

Biscuit previously profiled Jack here on HLS and I was happy to finally meet and talk to him face-to-face instead of behind a screen during a Google+ Hangout. I also enjoyed the shout-out to HLS during my question in the Q&A when he called me “my great loyal son”.

So without further ado, here are the highlights from the ND Dallas Kickoff Party with Jack Nolan:

Did You Know?

Here are some quick tidbits that came from Jack throughout the event:

• Jack nearly started his career off in Texas as a Cowboys beat writer. There was one catch — the job was in Abilene, not Dallas. He decided a six hour commute wasn’t such a great idea and went to CNN instead before finding his home under the Dome.
• FIDM does more than just cover ND football. They cover all 26 sports, as well as doing video work for the University beyond athletics. And they do this all with a staff of only five full-time employees.
• Notre Dame Stadium’s inner bowl is painted battleship-gray and remains that way because of Navy. While many fans are well aware of the story of how Navy saved ND from closing during Wold War II, you might not know that Navy also donated their surplus battleship paint to ND so we could paint the stadium. Just another chapter in one of the mots unique relationships in college football.

On His Favorite Interviews

To no surprise, Manti Te’o stood out, calling him a “remarkable interview and a remarkable young man.” And that whole Lennay mess?

There are athletes across the country who get in a whole lot of serious trouble that you never hear about. I don’t think that a fake girlfriend should be up there.

I couldn’t agree more.

Is Brian Kelly Really Getting QBs from the Dorms?

While Kelly was mostly joking he actually is looking to add QB depth — for the scout team. Kelly wants Malik Zaire to take reps with the first team and get needed experience running an offense he could be leading in a hurry. Rees will be departing, and Hendrix, while he has a fifth year available, hasn’t seemed to take that next step quite yet. While we all expect Golson back next semester Jack reminded us that this ND and the final decision “isn’t up to the football coach.” So while we are all hopeful Golson can be back as planned, Kelly must prepare for the worst case scenario and Zaire taking scout team snaps won’t help that.

Personally, I think this speaks volumes to how high the staff is on Zaire’s potential.

Would Kelly Consider a 2-QB System with Zaire?

This question was asked by former Irish WR, Omar Jenkins, who wondered if Kelly would consider running a Rees/Zaire combo to make up for the loss of Golson and the mobility skill-set that is now gone.

Jack’s short answer to this was that Kelly hadn’t said anything to that fact yet. Jack isn’t quite sure that Zaire would be ready to see any playing time this year; however, he does see a lot of positives at this early stage in his career. In particular, he has noticed that the defensive backs seem to have more issues adjusting to Zaire’s southpaw passes than they do for other QBs.

Jack also noted that we shouldn’t discount the progress Rees has made as well, especially physically. Jack has noticed more muscle on Rees’ frame and increased arm strength (please be true). Hopefully, these physical gains bode well for Rees because, as Jack noted, Kelly only named Rees his starter for game one.

Should We Be Concerned with Tuitt’s Weight Gain?

Jack did note that Stephon probably looked “ten pounds” too heavy, but that will likely fall off during camp. Further, Tuitt continues to be a beast and this story from Camp Shiloh during an Oklahoma drill that featured 1st team D-line vs 2nd team D-line, pretty much sums it up:

Every person that Stephon Tuitt hit bounced back at least five feet — two of them hit the ground and rolled. It got to the point they would look up and go ‘Oh no, we got Stephon.’ Don’t worry about Stephon.

Don’t Sleep on T.J. Jones.

Jack agrees with me that T.J. Jones has been overlooked, especially considering his production was comparable to Eifert’s.

Of Course There Was a Punt Returning Question!

I had planned to ask this, but my thunder was stolen immediately before my turn at the mic. However, we can now put our minds at ease because ND does indeed have a plan for the punt return game:

Yeah, they are going to return the ball this year.

REJOICE!

In all seriousness, Jack noted that Greg Bryant and Amir Carlisle seem to be the early favorites for helping save perhaps one of the most maddening things from the 2012 season. While talking to Jack as the event winded down, I got the impression that Greg Bryant is his favorite to win the job.

Here’s My Question. Spoiler Alert: It’s a Softball.

No lie, I panicked here and didn’t feel like whipping Jack with a question of “what happened to your tooth”, so I went with asking for his opinion on which incoming freshman is standing out the most thus far. His pick: Greg Bryant.

Jack went on to note that only “spectacular” or “Tim Brown-type” freshmen will be able to see significant playing time due to the talent and depth that Notre Dame now enjoys. Now, he isn’t predicting that Greg Bryant is a guaranteed super star, but being mentioned in the same line of thought as someone like Tim Brown speaks volumes as far as I’m concerned. I’m very excited to see what he can do.

Continuing with the Freshmen, Jack’s Thoughts on Jaylon Smith.

Jack likes the way that Jaylon carries himself, calling him a “Yes sir, no sir” kind of guy. He thinks players like Jaylon are a prime example of the depth that ND is building on defense, ending his answer by noting that he thinks this defense will be better than last year.

On the ACC and Basketball.

Jack believes the ACC is a “perfect fit” for Notre Dame considering the conference is filled with the “most like-minded schools.” Further, Notre Dame is now out of the awful predicament of not having quality post-season bowl bids.

As far as basketball goes, Jack said that “Mike Brey’s got more talent than [Jack’s] ever seen him have” and sees the roster as having nine to ten true D1 talents. In particular, he thinks Demetrius Jackson is outstanding. This biggest challenge Jack sees him facing is the pressure of handling being the star in his home town and the large expectations it brings.

With Jackson in the fold, expect to see ND run a three guard lineup featuring him, Eric Atkins, and Jerian Grant.

Jack also sees away games in the ACC being much different than what the Irish are used to. With arenas that feature crowds right on top of the courts, crowds that are going to be hungry for their first shot at the Irish, the road schedule is going to be quite the challenge.

Finally, Jack talked about NCAA tournament disappointments. He noted that the Irish are always seeded based on their performance on the court, never by their athletic ability. This tends to lead to matchups to lower-seeded, but more athletic teams like Iowa State, which can give the Irish in trouble if they have a bad game (which they definitely did in their last appearance). The next step for the Irish is to use their more athletic lineup to match up with these teams and start making progress in the tournament.

Lessons Learned from the Alabama Loss.

And here comes one of the most quotable parts of the night:

Alabama’s awful, awful good guys. The SEC is in its own different world. They run their programs differently.

I think we just learned [Notre Dame isn’t] there yet. They need more players. They need more depth and Kelly’s talked about that. They don’t have the depth of Alabama just yet. They have to get to that.

I also think they learned that they’re gonna have to mix things up a little bit — especially on defense. I mean, Notre Dame had a defense that did the same thing every week and they did it exceedingly well. But you give a national championship program six weeks to get ready…they were able to pick it apart.

I don’t think Manti was right and how could you be in that situation. But the middle linebacker can’t be good if the line is getting blown up and the line was really blown up because Alabama was just better in the tranches.

I think this is a rather solid assessment by Jack and I definitely agree with him (save for Louis Nix who had a solid game, but ‘Bama stayed away from him). He also mentioned that ND getting some bad breaks didn’t help much psychologically either, but the fact remains that ND still has some work to go to close the gap against SEC powerhouses.

Are There Any Other Schools That Are on Our Side?

This question was asked in light of comments Steve Spurrier made about ND recently. In short though, the answer is no:

In the college football world, nobody likes a team with their own network.

…

I think [other schools] support and respect Notre Dame, but I don’t think anyone likes the situation Notre Dame is in. And every single one of them will take it if they can get it.

…

Notre Dame would make at least ten to twelve more millions dollars if they had joined the Big Ten than they get from NB….Jesse Harper said this back in the early part of the last century and Fr. Jenkins has repeated it: the mission of the Notre Dame Athletic department is to promote the values and mission of the University and to generate funds for the academic side. And you would be stunned at how much of the money goes to the academics at Notre Dame and that’s probably how it should be.

Closing Comments About the Shamrock Series

Jack ended the Q&A session with a few notes about the upcoming Shamrock Series game in Dallas:

• The game has a different “buzz” than a usual home game. It isn’t better, but just a different a unique atmosphere.
• There will be a pregame show hosted by Jack two hours before the game at AT&T Stadium and will include a video interview from Tim Brown shot at this event.
• All ND Dallas Club members in attendance shot a welcome message that will air during the first timeout in the stadium. This means you will see my face on the biggest damn TV in the world. I’m sorry.

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I want to thank Jack for taking the time to come down to Dallas for this event. He was great during the Q&A and took lots of time afterwards to chat with Irish fans well after it was over.

Thanks again, Jack!

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