Matt Fortuna spent six years covering the Notre Dame football team up close for ESPN. In part one, we talked to Fortuna about his departure from the cable sports network and his future. In this final part, Fortuna discusses his interview with Notre Dame athletics director Jack Swarbrick, his impression of Irish fans and his bold fashion choices. One of your biggest "gets" was the mid-season interview with athletic director Jack Swarbrick this year. Take us behind the scenes a bit. What was your ...
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Catching Up With Matt Fortuna
Matt Fortuna spent six years covering the Notre Dame football team up close for ESPN. His tenure at the World Wide Leader ended Dec. 31, but the future remains bright for this 2011 Penn State graduate. We caught up this week with Fortuna to discuss his story so far - and his road ahead in sportswriting. This is the first of a lengthy two-part interview. The second installment will appear tomorrow. First, tell us a bit about yourself. Where did you grow up? Where is home nowadays? What do you ...
Lyght Source: “Kizer looks to be the guy…”
During Tuesday's edition of College Football Daily on ESPN, analyst Kevin Carter shed some "Lyght" on the quarterback battle currently ensuing between Malik Zaire and DeShone Kizer. Carter was an NFL teammate of Notre Dame's defensive backs coach, Todd Lyght, during their days on the St. Louis Rams. Carter name drops Lyght as his informant in the following exchange with fellow analyst Brendan Fitzgerald: Well, I actually spoke to my good buddy Todd Lyght, fellow Super Bowl 34 champion and ...
Good Fridays w/Padre: Era’s End
So the Freemasons have won. Or the Illuminati, Rosicrucians, Elders of the Priory of Sion – let’s just call them the E-lders of the S-ion P-riory freemasoNs. They and their Rodent Overlord enjoy a complete victory; they have taken over college football and forced the creation of the playoff system that they have long wanted, and will long broadcast, for lots of money. I mourn the passing of an era. Gone are the days when the leading teams from regional affiliations of colleges would compete ...
Friday Roundup: The “Brian Kelly Hates the Goal Line” Edition
So last week, I spent a lot of time discussing how the change were good and the new FieldTurf is just one example of progress. This week, I realize that I have failed you. Just watch the final time lapse of the FieldTurf installation. Let's see if you notice it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d40pJ_tL-2I Did you see it? You probably missed it. The distraction of plastic cancer-causing grass, kickoff shamrock logos, and midfield monograms likely distracted you from the truth. Let's try ...
Rick Reilly is Lazy and Wrong
Every time Rick Reilly puts out a new piece a friend of mine and I inevitably end up spending (far too much) time complaining to each other about how Reilly, who ESPN consistently reminds us won something like 72 Sportswriter of the Year awards, has either thrown in the towel on actually trying to put out a quality product or has completely lost his journalistic abilities as he’s aged. During his prime his column was the first page I flipped to every week when I received my Sports Illustrated ...
What if Samardzija had chosen the NFL over MLB?
After reminiscing about one of my favorite Notre Dame memories involving Jeff Samardzija last week, I got to thinking about the Shark’s decision to pursue a career in baseball rather than the NFL in 2007. Earlier this season I had the fortune of watching Samardzija absolutely dominate the Cardinals at Wrigley Field, and while I am a fan of the pathetic Cubbies I couldn’t help but think I would rather see the Shark donning a Bears #83 jersey instead. In 2012, his first full season as a starter ...