Don’t get me wrong, as you’ll see below, there is a lot worth talking about, including some really hilarious peak college football. Without Shane though, if I’m going to riff by myself, the written word seems like the better medium.

The Other Shoe Drops

While I don’t think that we will ever top last year’s dog-pissing Egg Bowl celebration, that fired two coaches and perhaps set off the butterfly effect of the shit-show that is 2020, college football blessed us all with a supremely stupid moment. Plus, in true beautiful and stupid fashion, this landmark moment in Florida Man history overshowed a whole host of other supremely stupid efforts by the Gators to jettison themselves from the playoff conversation.

Before we get to the other moments of Gator derp, we have to talk about THE MOMENT that was the 20-yard shoe toss that extended an LSU drive that would’ve been an LSU three-and-out, clearly too-big-moment for true freshman QB, Max Johnson. As soon as the play ended I saw Marco Wilson chuck something, and, when two flags came flying in shortly after, the old ECW “YOU FUCKED UP! YOU FUCKED UP!” chant was blaring in my head.

What I didn’t expect, was that the object was TE Kole Taylor’s shoe and that the officiating squad would determine that it was extremely important to let us know it travelled 20 yards downfield. This prompted a true moment of Twitter joy, in which my timeline was full of laughter and glee about the stupidity, inquires into what the yardage threshold of shoe flight triggers a penalty, and GIFs of George W. Bush dodging shoes while dueling GIFs of Austin Powers pondered the age-old question of “who throws a shoe, honestly?!”

LSU then drove down the field for what ended up being the game-winning FG, which you may forget was a 57-yard absolute BOMB, prompted LSU to posterize Florida on Twitter after the game. The Gators then responded with a short drive to attempt a 51-yard kick that sailed wide left. Game over, playoff hopes dead, and a whole host of people in College Station likely pissed their best win lost to a Bo Pelini defense that gave up over 600 yards while the third and Grantham meme died, actually holding LSU to only 8 conversions on 19 attempts.

But like I said, diagnosing their Achilles’ heel is no easy task as Florida happily shot themselves in the foot repeatedly even outside the shoe toss. Kyle Trask likely shooed himself out of Heisman contention as his two interceptions overshadowed his 474 yard, 2 TD effort. Prior to the shoe toss, a DPI delivered another swift kick to the third-down junk which led to a Tiger TD late in the fourth. Dan Mullen also tripped over himself to call a timeout before LSU’s game winning field goal attempt while the Tigers were scrambling to get their field goal unit out with no timeouts (and it looked like no holder to me). There was also a highly questionable series of play call choices in the fourth when Florida found themselves feet from their own endzone: three straight passes in as fog rolled continued to descend to field-level.

All credit to LSU for the win, but Florida absolutely snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

One more hilarious note, all day ESPN had been running a bottom line about the playoffs, with a note that Texas A&M and Florida were looking for their first playoff berth. Just a few minutes after the loss, Florida had already been edited out of that line.

Sarah Fuller Makes History, Again

Just a couple weeks after becoming the first woman to play in a Power Five football game, Sarah Fuller booted two extra points, making her the first woman ever to score in a Power Five football game. For anyone thinking this was some stunt that the team wasn’t on board with should check out footage of the team celebration (also, shout-out to the center judge for making sure the historic ball was handed to Fuller directly and not Vandy staff). Fuller also found herself taking photos with her opponents after the game as well.

Seems like the whole narrative over this being a stunt and a slap in the face of other players might just be a load of misogynistic garbage!

Of course, that won’t stop people from trying to shit on this really cool moment. Assholes will happily show you who they are by pointing out that Vandy was able to get another kicker on the roster this week to handle kickoffs and also attempted a 39 yard field goal, which was outside Fuller’s publicized 38-yard range.

The bottom line is that Vandy’s interim staff believed Sarah earned a chance to have her moment. It wasn’t her fault that Vandy got shut out, forcing her to attempt to write history via a squib kick. After taking loads of unwarranted armchair kicking from internet experts, she deserved a chance to get on the score sheet.

The only real disappointment here is Vandy didn’t get into her FG range to prove she could do even more. Trotting her out there for a 39-yard attempt would’ve put her in a position to fail and would’ve been horribly irresponsible by the coaching staff when they need to try to win a game. THAT would’ve been a PR stunt.

So good on everyone involved. This was a very cool moment in a year full of garbage. I genuinely feel sad for anyone spending the energy to drum up outrage over this.

In 2021, the senior will take a grad transfer a few minutes north of me to the University of North Texas to play goalie for the Mean Green. Here’s hoping she might get a chance at a couple more field goals as well.

Fire Gus Season

The annual “Duck Season! Rabbit Season!” is finally over out on the plains. Gus Malzahn’s hot seat reached the boiling point and Auburn has fired the maligned coach. Showing that, even during a pandemic, all Americans have things properly prioritized, Auburn announced they would pay Gus’ $21 million-plus buyout in full. Inspiring.

As I’ve described in pervious weeks on the pod, I felt this was coming. Bo Nix became yet another disappointing QB, failing to show any signs of developing under Gus. Auburn’s offense consistently became more inconsistent despite having some ridiculous weapons at their disposal and, this year, even the usually solid defense took a step back.

Auburn’s 6-4 record could easily be flipped. Two of those wins came thanks to some questionable officiating against Arkansas and Ole Miss, two teams Auburn should have outclassed rather easily.

Simply put, it was time. For whatever reason, things weren’t working out. Auburn will also probably rightly get what they deserve for their malcontent as I not-so-eagerly await for the galaxy brain hire of Hugh Freeze.

Start Up the Carousel

Gus wasn’t the only one to receive his walking papers this weekend. Arizona bid farewell to Kevin Sumlin after giving up a 70-burger to their in-state rival. Lovie Smith, who should’ve never shaved his beard, is gone from Illinois as well.

Huge shoutout to all these universities who will shell out millions for their next hire while complaining about athletic budget shortfalls due to COVID-19.

The Fog of War

The Amry/Navy game delivered a glorious rock fight that not only hit the under of 38 that was discussed on the picks podcast, but did do easily, staying under 20.

Much like LSU/Florida, fog was a player in this game, forcing a heavy use of skycam giving us the classic Madden view, which I’m on board with. When NBC announced their skycam experiment with ND, that is what I was hoping for. Find a way to put the yellow line on the screen and it’s perfect, in my opinion.

As for the game, Army dominated in a 17-0 win. Navy had a lone chance to really make a game of this, but stumbled over themselves after a pitch was swatted by Navy’s defense. Instead of getting a gift scoop and score, Navy failed to recover at all, allowing Army to keep the ball after it rolled out of bounds.

I thoroughly enjoyed it. Especially since this was the first Army/Navy game that I’ve consumed in years due to typically doing my Extra Life marathons during this weekend.

Luck of the…Trojans?

Southern Cal did it once again, somehow winning in the last minute despite being dominated for the majority of the game. A 20-point fourth quarter, ending with a final drive that featured a 56-yard kickoff return, 35-yard pass (with a ridiculous Tyler Vaughns) catch, and a quick 8-yard TD strike to Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Every week it looks like SC will finally be pantsed, only for their talent to finally take over just long enough to secure a win. While it’d be nice to believe the luck will finally run out, there’s no guarantee Friday’s Pac-12 Championship tilt against Washington will take place due to COVID issues on the Husky side.

That would then leave the Rose Bowl, which may not be played in the Rose Bowl, and could likely feature Northwestern as their opponent. What a charmed season.

If anything, I think this means Clay Helton has secured a lifetime extension. Lock him up.

Mack Brown Still Hates Manny Diaz

Mack Brown fired Manny Diaz after he gave up 550 yards to BYU while at Texas. Mack apparently didn’t forget as he Tar Heels put up 554 rushing yards against the creator of the turnover chain. Just hate to see something like that to Da U.

A big shout out to Mack’s pettiness as the 62-26 victory made Notre Dame look like a million bucks. While it’ll be interesting to see what the playoff committee has to say tomorrow about specific scenarios, it’s hard to imagine anything put a complete blowout by Clemson to keep the Irish out of the playoffs at this rate.

Can You FedEx a Gift Suite?

In what I’m sure is going to be a potential trend this week, four power five teams have announced their intention to opt out of bowl season:

• Boston College
• Pitt
• Stanford
• Virginia

The reason is largely the same to this point: everyone is done with the heavily restrictive season. A trip to a bowl that will feature little, if any, of the fun events that make the trip worth it, on top of needing to stay away from family and friends, just isn’t worth it.

I can’t blame anyone for this. Honestly, outside of the New Year’s Six, I don’t see much of a point to any of the bowl games. I say this as someone that loves every single dumb bowl game with all his heart. These are typically great rewards for the players after a long season, but it just isn’t there this year. It’s more work. I’d want to go home too.

Dabo Still Sucks

Greg Stankey of the SEC was doing some playoff politicking and took some shots at the ACC for “protecting” Clemson and Notre Dame. Of course, Dabo was asked, and of course he showed his ass AND BROUGHT UP FLORIDA STATE AGAIN:

“I would’ve loved to play this past weekend,” Swinney said. “I had no problem with that. I didn’t make the decision. We wanted to play when we were down in Tallahassee and were about to get on a bus and go play. Things happen.”

Via ESPN

I’ve gone over this before, but Dabo’s game is so old. Politick for your teams. Fine. Stop bringing up the same old crap over and over again, you man-child.

And Right Before I Was Ready to Publish…

Vanderbilt and Clark Lea might just be happening.

Glad I took the week off. Gonna be drinking a lot, it seems.

The post HLS Recap (Text Edition): Soled Out appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Are you kidding me?! The Irish put up 710 yards and 48 points against a team that will very likely be playing in a bowl game this season. Notre Dame’s backup quarterback, Ian Book, was 8-8 with a touchdown. They only punted twice. The game was 48-23 in the 4th quarter before Wake added a couple of late touchdowns in garbage time.

Anyone that understands football knew Wake would play until the end. This was a team playing against a former coach, Mike Elko, who jilted them for a “better job”.

This game was never in doubt people. Move along to Miami. There is nothing to see here.

(Now, if you are in Columbus or Unhappy Valley, that is an entirely different matter.)

All that being said, another win affords the Irish nothing. As dominating as they were on Saturday, it in no way assures them of victory at Miami.

We will hear all week about Catholics vs. Convicts, the history of the series, etc. I love it. I’ll probably watch the 30 for 30 for the 100th time this week in anticipation.

The truth is that all of that talk means nothing as well. Both teams bear little resemblance to the teams that represented Notre Dame and Miami during that era.

This is especially true for the Hurricanes. Miami has not compiled a ten win season since 2003, although they are on track to do so this year. But in the 1980s, Miami stood at the pinnacle of college football. Now, they, like Notre Dame, are trying to fight their way back to top.

So throw all the nostalgia and hoopla out the window. The things that really matter, and will define Saturday, and likely Notre Dame’s season, are on the stat sheet,

Notre Dame’s 5th ranked rushing offense will face the 67th ranked Miami rushing defense in Miami. Miami was very stout on Saturday night against a Virginia Tech running game that is ranked just 58th. Will the Irish run the ball effectively against such a unit?

Defensively, Miami ranks 42nd in total defense, just slightly higher than Notre Dame who ranks 50th. Miami is also ranked slightly higher in scoring defense at 11th versus the Irish who sit at 17th. Which defense will carry the day?

Neither team has given up a ton of points and both are almost identical in turnover margin. Obviously, Miami has a huge advantage playing at home;  however, I would be much more concerned if the Orange Bowl was still standing and the game was being played there.

For me, this game hinges on the quarterbacks for both teams. Both Malik Rosier and Brandon Wimbush have played well. Based off of stats alone, Rosier has thrown the ball better while Wimbush has been the better runner. You can throw every thing else out of the mix in my opinion.

The quarterback who plays better Saturday Night will lead his team to victory. Wimbush is surging and could very well make his own Heisman claim on Saturday Night, authoring the type of “marquee win” that all truly great quarterbacks in Notre Dame history have on their resume. Personally, I like Brandon Wimbush’s chances of etching his name into Notre Dame lore on Saturday Night.

The post Much Ado About Nothing appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Notre Dame’s James Onwualu tackles NC State’s Matthew Dayes. (Grant Halverson / Getty Images)

I was happy to turn the page on the new year if nothing else than to turn the calendar on one of the worst years of Notre Dame football that I can remember.

Starting on New Year’s Day of 2016 and throughout the season it was seemingly one bad moment after another. Now with the national title playing out tonight, our long Notre Dame nightmare can end.

Or can it?

Since the end of this season, there have numerous coaching changes. When the Irish tee it up on opening day next year, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator will all be new. Additionally, Paul Longo will not be returning as the strength coach. That is four major components of a football program all in a tremendous state of flux as we head towards the 2017 spring practice season. How those changes are viewed will vary but given the direction of the program over the last twelve months’ change was certainly in order.

Backup QB Brandon Wimbush looking at 2017 like “Hell yeah.” (Photo credit: SupermanTDJesus)

The Irish will also be breaking in a new signal-caller in the spring and the months to follow. Brandon Wimbush will come in with lofty credentials and tons of “potential” but the fact remains he has attempted five career passes. He should get a boost in the return of Josh Adams and Mike McGlinchey both of whom figure to help boost an Irish run game that was far too inconsistent in 2016.

LOWERED EXPECTATIONS

My early view is the Irish will have tepid expectations from the national media. The talking heads will likely focus on the “major changes” the Irish are undergoing and the “hot seat” Brian Kelly is on when discussing Notre Dame football.

The schedule is no peach either. Though the Irish open against a Temple program that is replacing their coach, they match up in week 2 vs. SEC mainstay Georgia.  September closes with back to back road trips to BC and Sparty, followed by a home date with Miami of Ohio. I think a 3-2 September is very likely. October features the bye week and home dates with USC and NC State after an Oct. 7 date with UNC. USC is always hard to figure; they have been so inconsistent lately but looked formidable with a freshman quarterback in the Rose Bowl.

I think the Irish likely head into November at 5-3.  I’m largely basing this on the fact that they squeak out a win over either USC or UNC. At this point, I’m not sure which one. Notre Dame’s luck was so bad last year; I think they will likely get a few breaks from the football gods this fall. November closes the season with trips to Stanford and Miami and home dates with Wake Forest and the always dangerous Naval Academy.

As it looks in early January, I’m going to go 7-5 and a trip to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. If that is the finish it will be very likely that this year’s off-season changes will give way to bigger ones next off-season.

The post My Early Prediction For Next Year appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

So, I won’t drag on too long about this. For your weekly laugh, I’m wondering how A-Rod is feeling about this game:

Anyways, let’s get to it. Your entry form:

Bonus Points

One lone bonus this week because there was nothing more dead on than this:

This game will feature more of the same from a Kelly lead football team…head scratching play calls, poor special teams, and the D unable to get off the field. ND will at least run here and there but it will be all delay runs or parallel to the LOC and of course, all out of shotgun. We will never pound the ball enough to get any back into a rhythm. Another trend that will continue is the regression of the QB play. Every QB BK has had has gone down hill over time. Kizer will be no different. You are slowly starting to see more turnovers and forced throws and expect that to continue…even vs a banged up Stanford secondary. Irish move to 2-5 and BK will have another excuse. – Shiftekapone

+1, /throws up everywhere

Standings

Staff Picks

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Cat Picks

Straight Up: 4-3
Against the Spread: 4-3

Please forgive me for my vertical video sin.

The post Predictions: Yeah, We’re Still Doing This appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Miami vs North Carolina (Sat 3:30 PM ET ABC)

Credit: Miami Herald

The Irish have a late kickoff against Stanford, so here’s a good afternoon game. Notre Dame’s next coach Larry Fedora has the Tarheel offense clicking, but Miami’s defense has shown signs of life this season.

Will Miami’s offense keep up with UNC’s scoring? The winner of this game will be in good position in the ACC’s Coastal Division.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 6-6. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 37-28 (56.9%) with an average schedule strength of 55.

Other Upcoming Opponents

• Army vs Lafayette (Sat 12:00 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Southern Cal at Arizona (Sat 3:30 PM ET Fox)
• Virginia Tech at Syracuse (Sat 3:45 PM ET ESPNU)

Past Opponents

• Duke at Louisville (Fri 7:00 PM ET ESPN)
• NC State at Clemson (Sat 12:00 PM ET ABC)
• Michigan State vs Northwestern (Sat 3:30 PM ET Big Ten Network)
• Texas vs Iowa State (Sat 7:00 PM ET ESPN3)
• Nevada at San Jose State (Sat 10:30 PM ET CBS Sports Network)

The post Opponent Watch: Look What the Hurricanes Blue In appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

R.J. Shelton #12 of the Michigan State Spartans scores a touchdown in front of Drue Tranquill #23 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the first half of a game at Notre Dame Stadium on September 17, 2016 in South Bend, Indiana. Credit: Stacy Revere/Getty Images

Notre Dame is a deeply flawed team this year; last night confirmed that. It was almost hard to watch the Irish make huge errors on special teams, continue to play defense with the density of Swiss cheese and make questionable coaching decisions in a game they absolutely had to win. There was seemingly no rational reason for handing the ball back to Michigan State down 36-28 with 3:37 remaining.

I know we will hear the arguments and excuses.

The Irish had three timeouts left.

It was fourth and 7 and the Irish were on their own 32.

Blah, blah, and blah!

COACHING FAILURES DOOMED IRISH

With 3:37 to go, the Irish needed two yards on third down to keep the drive and, in all reality, the season alive. Did Brian Kelly have that little confidence in the run game that he didn’t believe they could get him two yards? If the run is stopped, it’s fourth and short.

Despite analysts dramatizing time, football fans know a team almost never runs out of clock. A turnover or a failure to get 10 yards in four downs kills the two minute drill. Kelly opted to take the ball out of his best players’ hands and put the game on a defense that allowed more than 500 yards of total offense.

I predicted the Irish would win this game last week because of Kizer. But, for me, the Irish sealed their fate the moment Kizer trotted off the field and the punt team entered. I would have “rolled the dice” on fourth and 7 in favor of leaving it the hands of the defense.

This week is no easier for Brian VanGorder. The Irish defense struggled. The Spartans manhandled them on the line. The tackling and pass coverage was simply abysmal. I don’t see any scenario where VanGorder returns next year.

It’s difficult to see many wins on the remaining schedule. I think Syracuse, Army, Navy and Duke are likely wins. But, at this point, who knows? NC State, Miami and Virginia Tech – games which, just weeks ago, seemed very manageable – now go into the “toss up” category.

CBS’s latest project has Notre Dame in the Russell Athletic Bowl versus Oklahoma. The leaves haven’t even fallen, and the Irish are out of the playoff race. It’s hard to believe.

The post After Last Night, I See Only Four “Likely Wins” Left appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

The Irish got exactly what they needed on Saturday with a convincing win over Nevada. While I don’t think Nevada is a great team, any win on Saturday was welcome. I would also argue that Nevada is akin to a victory over a top MAC program as the Wolf Pack have been in a bowl game the last two seasons. It is also a much higher quality game than the FCS opponents that dot other top programs’ schedules.

WHAT LIES AHEAD

Saturday night in prime time the Michigan State Spartans come calling along with their No. 12 ranking. This is yet another game in prime time against a top tier opponent. The Spartans have won the Big 10 championship in two of the last three seasons and also were a College Football Playoff qualifier last season. The Spartans also return 12 starters.

However, Sparty did not exactly look unbeatable in their opener. They led Furman 21-13 in the fourth quarter before finally putting the Paladins away 28-13 in the first week. As bad as the loss to Texas was, the Irish could completely change their situation with a win over Michigan State. A win on Saturday night arguably puts the Irish back in the playoff picture. A win over Michigan State and Notre Dame likely heads into the Stanford game at 5-1.

EVERYONE NEEDS TO WIN

At that point, they need Stanford and Miami to keep winning. It also wouldn’t hurt to have USC go on a run after their opening game debacle at Alabama. The climb for Notre Dame is high largely because of the remaining schedule. That being said, the early forecast for this college football season looks particularly stormy, which clearly puts a ton on the line Saturday night.

A loss here, the playoff is done and it is hard to see even a New Year’s 6 bowl. Additionally, another loss in prime time would likely derail any momentum that DeShone Kizer has been building for a Heisman trophy run. It will be interesting to see how much the defense has progressed since Texas.

I hate to sound overly optimistic. But each time I watch Kizer play, I’m more convinced that he is one of those rare players that gives you a shot to win regardless of the opponent every time he takes the field. Regardless of our defense at this point, because of DeShone Kizer, I’m confident heading into Saturday night.

The post The Irish Get Well With Nevada Win, But Spartans Loom appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Domers all around the country world are psyched with the offensive firepower Notre Dame hopes to unleash this year. Likewise, the Irish faithful are conscientious of how important a well assembled depth chart is – especially on defense. But, how many people are equally aware of the importance of the often forgotten third facet of the game? That’s right, we’re talking about those special teams, baby! Invariably, there will be a moment this year when the game comes down to a last second field goal, or the turning point is a clutch downed punt on the opposing team’s two yard line. Thankfully for the Irish, they return two of the most talented specialists in the country.

For The Irish: #19 K Justin Yoon, (Soph.), 5-foot-9, 190 lbs.

Justin Yoon (UND.com)

Yoo(ooooooo)n, the former number one ranked kicker in the country (according to 247sports), earned a spot on Sporting News Freshman All-America team last year after he made 15 of 17 field goals and 50 of 52 PATs. His long field goal was a 52 yard bomb against Navy – one yard less than the school record. With all of these freshman successes, “inconsistency” was the word that surrounded Yoon’s performance following the 2016 fall camp. Yoon elaborated with NDinsider.com reporter Eric Hansen:

“I’ve been having struggles hitting the ball with my foot properly…having struggles of making sure I’m finishing straight through all the way to the field goal posts in the middle. Sometimes my body alignment is off, my rhythm is off. And so I work on each and every little detail that I could to this point, and I think I’ve overcome all the hurdles. I feel like at this point, I’ve come to a solid point where I could say I’m very confident. It’s just a matter of getting ready for Texas now.”

Yoon appears to have all of the mechanical kinks worked out, picking up where he left off last year, drilling 50+ yard field goals with ease. Yoon should benefit, as he did last year, from a dynamic and explosive offense providing many red zone field goal opportunities (hopefully more PATs as well). Expect nothing short of another highly successful year in regards to the Irish kicking game on the boot of Justin Yoon.

For the Enemy: #15 K Michael Badgley (Jr.), Miami, 5-foot-10, 180 lbs.

Like Yoon, Badgley was the number one rated kicker coming out of high school (according to 247sports). Last season, Badgley set a Miami school record connecting on 25 field goals out of 30 opportunities – beating the previous record of 22. He also was perfect on all 40 PAT attempts. He set additional school records notching five field goals in one game (accomplishing this feat twice last year) and connected on a remarkable 57 yard field goal. Badgley failed to split the uprights on other attempts over 50 yards (51, 53). He was named Third Team All-ACC as voted on by the coaches.

If the Irish defense force the Miami offense into a position where Badgley is called upon five times in one game, I like the Notre Dame’s chances given the Irish potential on offense to put up multiples of 7 compared to Miami’s multiples of 3.

For the Irish: #85 P Tyler Newsome (Jr.), 6-foot-2, 210 lbs.

Credit: Michael Caterina / SB Tribune

Tyler Newsome is not your average punter. Before diving into the wide world of punting stats, let’s instead dive into the life of Notre Dame’s coolest cat. Newsome sports long, wavy, blond hair and completely out of style short shorts, which instantly qualify him as worst dressed on the team. Newsome doesn’t care. Instead he chooses to justify his short shorts with the phrase, “sky’s out, thighs out.” He also has a specific “cookin’ dance” he likes to show off after a quality punt. For more on the interesting punter, I strongly suggest reading this piece by Tim Prister of Irish Illustrated.

On to football – 2015 was the first year of punting duties for Newsome. He booted an impressive average of 44.5 yards per punt. His long punt was a solid 62 yard blast. Many, including myself, believe Newsome was snubbed from the 2016 Ray Guy Award preseason watch list – the award for the nation’s best punter. Fortunately, “watch lists” are meaningless.

Newsome’s specialties don’t end with punting  – he also manages the kickoff duties. In 13 games, he recorded 21 touchbacks in 84 kickoffs. Punting is often a thankless job, but only because everyone hates the idea of fourth down. With an established weapon at punter, the Irish should be confident in their ability to flip field position when needed.

For the Enemy: #46 P Alex Boy (Sr.), Nevada, 6-foot-3, 200 lbs.

Credit: Nevada Wolf Pack athletics

Boy is an extremely talented and experienced punter. In his time at Nevada he has played in 26 games, totaling 124 total punts amassing an amazing 5,346 total yards. He ranks second in the Nevada school record books with an average of 43.1 yards per punt. Boy has been named to the aforementioned 2016 Ray Guy Award preseason watch list. His career long is a 68 yard punt that likely produced a divot in the ground if it wasn’t caught. Fun fact – Boy walked on his freshman year. Hopefully the Irish faithful get to know Boy very well as he is forced to add to his impressive 5,346 career yards after many three-and-outs when Nevada faces off against Notre Dame in the Irish home opener.

May the Notre Dame special teams prove to be nothing short of…special in 2016.

Cheers and Go Irish!

The post Special Teams: Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Some are so complete, the commercials are included. Others just include one moment – a Penn State kicker making a game-winning field goal, a Pittsburgh quarterback dropping a profanity on broadcast television or a 280-pound BYU punter successfully executing a fake. There’s games that will look awesome on your high definition television (trigger warning) and others that are lacking sound.

If there was multiple videos for the same game, I tried to choose the best. There’s three weeks worth of content here. (I haven’t watched it all.)

Subscribe to the playlist for all the latest updates and tell your friends. This took me hours, and I’m ridiculously proud of it.If

** As far as I know. If I’m missing a game, let me know in the comments section and I’ll be sure to add it.

#1: Nov. 1, 1913: Notre Dame 35, Army 13 (00:04:10)
#2: Nov. 27, 1913: Notre Dame 30, Texas 7 (00:04:54)
#3: Oct. 18, 1924: Notre Dame 13, Army 7 (00:02:35)
#4: Jan. 1, 1925: Notre Dame 27, Stanford 10 (Rose Bowl)(00:02:03)
#5: Nov. 12, 1927: Army 18, Notre Dame 0 (00:00:43)
#6: Nov. 10, 1928: Notre Dame 12, Army 6 (00:04:35)
#7: Nov. 17, 1928: Carnegie Tech 27, Notre Dame 7 (00:02:47)
#8: Oct. 26, 1929: Notre Dame 7, Carnegie Tech 0 (00:05:32)
#9: Nov. 30, 1929: Notre Dame 7, Army 0 (00:02:15) / part 2 (00:00:19)
#10: Oct. 25, 1930: Notre Dame 35, Pittsburgh 19 (00:03:19)
#11: Oct. 10, 1931: Notre Dame 0, Northwestern 0 (00:11:33)
#12: Nov. 21, 1931: USC 16, Notre Dame 14 (00:01:04)
#13: Dec. 2, 1933: Notre Dame 13, Army 12 (00:01:48)
#14: Nov. 2, 1935: Notre Dame 18, Ohio State 13 (00:02:01)
#15: Nov. 9, 1935: Northwestern 14, Notre Dame 7 (00:27:28)
#16: Nov. 27, 1937: Notre Dame 13, USC 6 (00:00:45)
#17: Nov. 11, 1939: Iowa 7, Notre Dame 6 (00:18:20)
#18: Nov. 2, 1940: Notre Dame 7, Army 0 (00:01:04)
#19: Nov. 16, 1940: Iowa 7, Notre Dame 0 (00:00:30)
#20: Oct. 3, 1942: Georgia Tech 13, Notre Dame 6 (00:03:05)
#21: Sept. 25, 1943: Notre Dame 41, Pittsburgh 0 (00:00:38)
#22: Oct. 30, 1943: Notre Dame 33, Navy 6 (00:01:43)
#23:  Nov. 11, 1944: Army 59, Notre Dame 0 (00:02:27)
#24: Nov. 3, 1945: Notre Dame 6, Navy 6 (00:02:01)
#25: Oct. 12, 1946: Notre Dame 49, Purdue 6 (00:10:06) / part 2 (00:10:03) / part 3 (00:10:11) / part 4 (00:07:07)
#26: Nov. 9, 1946: Notre Dame 0, Army 0 (00:09:02)
#27: Nov. 30, 1946: Notre Dame 26, USC 6 (00:01:37)
#28: Oct. 11, 1947: Notre Dame 22, Purdue 7 (00:10:37) / part 2 (00:10:01) / part 3 (00:10:30) / part 4 (00:10:25)
#29: Nov. 8, 1947: Notre Dame 27, Army 7 (00:02:24)
#30: Nov. 22, 1947: Notre Dame 59, Tulane 6 (00:01:01)
#31: Dec. 6, 1947: Notre Dame 38, USC 7 (00:03:37)
#32: Sept. 25, 1948: Notre Dame 28, Purdue 27 (00:03:49) / part 2 (00:39:59)
#33: Oct. 9, 1948: Notre Dame 26, Michigan St. 7 (00:03:48)
#34: Dec. 4, 1948: Notre Dame 14, USC 14 (0:00:13)
#35: Oct. 8, 1949: Notre Dame 35, Purdue 12 (0:09:43) / part 2 (00:09:11)
#36: Oct. 15, 1949: Notre Dame 46, Tulane 7 (00:01:48)
#37: Oct. 29, 1949: Notre Dame 40, Navy 0 (00:01:04)
#38: Nov. 5, 1949: Notre Dame 34, Michigan St 21 (0:02:05)
#39: Nov. 26, 1949: Notre Dame 32, USC 0 (00:05:45)
#40: Oct. 7, 1950: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 14 (00:07:54) / part 2 (00:06:49) / part 3 (00:04:11)
#41: Oct. 21, 1950: Indiana 20, Notre Dame 7 (00:02:16)
#42: Nov. 10, 1951: Michigan State 35, Notre Dame 0 (00:02:54)
#43: Oct. 18, 1952: Notre Dame 26, Purdue 14 (00:29:42) / part 2 (00:31:39)
#44: Nov. 8, 1952: Notre Dame 27, Oklahoma 21 (00:05:21)
#45: Sept. 26, 1953: Notre Dame 28, Oklahoma 21 (00:26:39)
#46: Oct. 3, 1953: Notre Dame 37, Purdue 7 (00:09:59) / part 2 (00:02:59) / part 3 (00:09:59) / part 4 (00:06:09) / part 5 (00:11:23) / part 6 (00:03:57)
#47: Oct. 24, 1953: Notre Dame 27, Georgia Tech 14 (00:02:57)
#48: Sept. 25, 1954: Notre Dame 21, Texas 0 (00:25:47)
#49: Oct. 2, 1954: Purdue 27, Notre Dame 14 (00:02:40)
#50: Oct. 22, 1955: Notre Dame 22, Purdue 7 (00:33:25)
#51: Nov. 12, 1955: Notre Dame 27, North Carolina 7 (00:06:42)
#52: Sept. 22, 1956: SMU 19, Notre Dame 13 (00:02:08)
#53: Oct. 13, 1956: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 14 (00:12:19) / part 2 (00:09:53) / part 3 (00:14:25)
#54: Oct. 27, 1956: Oklahoma 40, Notre Dame 0 (00:01:23)
#55: Nov. 24, 1956: Iowa 48, Notre Dame 8 (00:01:02)
#56: Oct. 12, 1957: Notre Dame 23, Army 21 (00:01:23)
#57: Nov. 2, 1957: Navy 20, Notre Dame 6 (00:01:06)
#58: Nov. 16, 1957: Notre Dame 7, Oklahoma 0 (00:34:00)
#59: Nov. 22, 1958: Iowa 31, Notre Dame 21 (00:01:17)
#60: Oct. 3, 1959: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 7 (00:06:01) / part 2 (00:25:11)
#61: Oct. 24, 1959: Northwestern 30, Notre Dame 24 (00:29:14)
#62: Sept. 24, 1960: Notre Dame 21, California 7 (00:01:20)
#63: Oct. 1, 1960: Purdue 51, Notre Dame 19 (00:43:18)
#64: Nov. 19, 1960: Iowa 28, Notre Dame 0 (00:10:03)
#65: Oct. 7, 1961: Notre Dame 22, Purdue 20 (00:11:19) / part 2 (00:11:17) / part 3 (00:11:02) / part 4 (00:05:50)
#66: Oct. 14, 1961: Notre Dame 30, USC 0 (00:01:04)
#67: Oct. 21, 1961: Michigan State 17, Notre Dame 7 (00:01:22)
#68: Oct. 6, 1962: Purdue 24, Notre Dame 6 (00:10:21) / part 2 (00:08:19) / part 3 (00:10:50)
#69: Oct. 27, 1962: Northwestern 35, Notre Dame 6 (00:10:24) / part 2 (00:10:32) / part 3 (00:10:40) / part 4 (00:12:22)
#70: Sept. 28, 1963: Wisconsin 14, Notre Dame 9 (00:04:55)
#71: Oct. 5, 1963: Purdue 7, Notre Dame 6 (00:12:43) / part 2 (00:12:39) / part 3 (00:13:06)
#72: Oct. 12, 1963: Notre Dame 17, USC 14 (00:04:47)
#73: Oct. 19, 1963: Notre Dame 27, UCLA 12 (00:04:47)
#74: Oct. 26, 1963: Stanford 24, Notre Dame 14 (00:04:51)
#75: Nov. 2, 1963: Navy 35, Notre Dame 14 (00:04:45)
#76: Nov. 9, 1963: Pittsburgh 27, Notre Dame 7 (00:00:29) / part 2 (00:02:57)
#77: Nov. 16, 1963: Michigan State 12, Notre Dame 7 (00:02:57)
#78: Nov. 28, 1963: Syracuse 14, Notre Dame 7 (00:04:24)
#79: Sept. 26, 1964: Notre Dame 31, Wisconsin 7 (00:05:53)
#80: Oct. 3, 1964: Notre Dame 34, Purdue 15 (00:03:57)
#81: Oct. 10, 1964: Notre Dame 34, Air Force 7 (00:03:34)
#82: Oct. 17, 1964: Notre Dame 24, UCLA 0 (00:03:54)
#83: Oct. 24, 1964: Notre Dame 28, Stanford 6 (00:04:05)
#84: Oct. 31, 1964: Notre Dame 40, Navy 0 (00:03:45)
#85: Nov. 28, 1964: USC 20, Notre Dame 17 (00:37:42)
#86: Sept. 25, 1965: Purdue 25, Notre Dame 21 (00:44:59)
#87: Sept. 24, 1966: Notre Dame 26, Purdue 14 (00:41:12)
#88: Oct. 1, 1966: Notre Dame 35, Northwestern 7 (00:04:52)
#89: Oct. 8, 1966: Notre Dame 35, Army 0 (00:05:09)
#90: Oct. 15, 1966: Notre Dame 32, North Carolina 0 (00:05:00)
#91: Oct. 22, 1966: Notre Dame 38, Oklahoma 0 (00:04:21)
#92: Oct. 29, 1966: Notre Dame 31, Navy 7 (00:04:19)
#93: Nov. 5, 1966: Notre Dame 40, Pittsburgh 0 (00:32:33) / part 2 (00:34:32)
#94: Nov. 12, 1966: Notre Dame 64, Duke 0 (00:04:50)
#95: Nov. 19, 1966: Notre Dame 10, Michigan St. 10 (00:07:27)
#96: Nov. 26, 1966: Notre Dame 51, USC 0 (00:03:59)
#97: Sept. 30, 1967: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 21 (00:48:50)
#98: Oct. 14, 1967: USC 24, Notre Dame 7 (01:46:59)
#99: Nov. 18, 1967: Notre Dame 36, Georgia Tech 3 (00:01:55)
#100: Sept. 28, 1968: Purdue 37, Notre Dame 22 (00:43:44)
#101: Nov. 30, 1968: Notre Dame 21, USC 21 (00:15:24) / part 2 (00:15:24) / part 3 (00:15:24)
#102: Sept. 27, 1969: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 14 (00:42:04)
#103: Oct. 18, 1969: Notre Dame 14, USC 14 (00:01:18)
#104: Nov. 8, 1969: Notre Dame 49, Pittsburgh 7 (00:59:40)
#105: Nov. 14, 1970: Notre Dame 10, Georgia Tech 7 (00:02:47)
#106: Nov. 21, 1970: Notre Dame 3, LSU 0 (00:02:53)
#107: Nov. 28, 1970: USC 38, Notre Dame 28 (01:04:31) / part 2 (01:06:53)
#108: Jan. 1, 1971: Notre Dame 24, Texas 11 (Cotton Bowl) (00:15:06) / part 2 (00:14:44) / part 3 (00:08:21) / part 4 (00:08:00) / part 5 (00:11:07) / part 6 (00:12:40) / part 7 (00:13:27) / part 8 (00:13:42) / part 9 (00:04:10)
#109: Sept. 25, 1971: Notre Dame 8, Purdue 7 (00:00:50)
#110: Oct. 23, 1971: USC 28, Notre Dame 14 (00:01:16)
#111: Nov. 20, 1971: LSU 28, Notre Dame 8 (02:32:35)
#112: Dec. 2, 1972: USC 45, Notre Dame 23 (00:07:14)
#113: Jan. 1, 1973: Nebraska 40, Notre Dame 6 (00:31:28)
#114: Sept. 22, 1973: Notre Dame 44, Northwestern 0 (00:05:31)
#115: Sept. 29, 1973: Notre Dame 20, Purdue 7 (00:37:44)
#116: Oct. 6, 1973: Notre Dame 14, Michigan St. 10 (00:04:50)
#117: Oct. 13, 1973: Notre Dame 28, Rice 0 (00:03:20)
#118: Oct. 20, 1973: Notre Dame 62, Army 3 (01:20:02)
#119: Oct. 27, 1973: Notre Dame 23, USC 14 (03:15:08)
#120: Nov. 3, 1973: Notre Dame 44, Navy 7 (00:04:16)
#121: Nov. 10, 1973: Notre Dame 31, Pittsburgh 10 (00:03:00)
#122: Nov. 22, 1973: Notre Dame 48, Air Force 15 (00:03:48)
#123: Dec. 1, 1973: Notre Dame 44, Miami (Fla.) 0 (00:03:08)
#124: Dec. 31, 1973: Notre Dame 24, Alabama 23 (02:00:42)
#125: Sept. 28, 1974: Purdue 31, Notre Dame 20 (00:54:50)
#126: Oct. 12, 1974: Notre Dame 10, Rice 3 (00:02:51)
#127: Nov. 23, 1974: Notre Dame 38, Air Force 0 (0:00:38)
#128: Nov. 30, 1974: USC 55, Notre Dame 24 (00:15:20) / part 2 (00:15:23) / part 3 (00:15:23) / part 4 (00:15:21) / part 5 (00:07:03)
#129: Jan. 1, 1975: Notre Dame 13, Alabama 11 (00:52:25)
#130: Oct. 11, 1975: Notre Dame 21, North Carolina 14 (00:01:28) / part 2 (00:03:07)
#131: Oct. 18, 1975: Notre Dame 31, Air Force 30 (00:04:28)
#132: Oct. 25, 1975: USC 24, Notre Dame 17 (00:59:10)
#133: Nov. 8, 1975: Notre Dame 24, Georgia Tech 3 (00:02:29) / part 2 (00:02:02)
#134: Nov. 15, 1975: Pittsburgh 34, Notre Dame 20 (01:00:36)
#135: Sept. 11, 1976: Pittsburgh 31, Notre Dame 10 (00:45:48) / part 2 (01:02:20)
#136: Oct. 16, 1976: Notre Dame 41, Oregon 0 (00:15:06)
#137: Nov. 6, 1976: Georgia Tech 23, Notre Dame 14 (00:00:46)
#138: Nov. 13, 1976: Notre Dame 21, Alabama 18 (02:42:51)
#139: Nov. 27, 1976: USC 17, Notre Dame 13 (00:51:20)
#140: Sept. 10, 1977: Pittsburgh 19, Notre Dame 9 (00:01:41)
#141: Sept. 17, 1977: Mississippi 20, Notre Dame 13 (01:16:06)
#142: Sept. 24, 1977: Notre Dame 31, Purdue 24 (01:20:46) / part 2 (01:08:09)
#143: Oct. 1, 1977: Notre Dame 16, Michigan St. 6 (01:05:05)
#144: Oct. 15, 1977: Notre Dame 24, Army 0 (00:01:36)
#145: Oct. 22, 1977: Notre Dame 49, USC 19 (02:40:52)
#146: Nov. 12, 1977: Notre Dame 21, Clemson 17 (01:19:52)
#147: Jan. 2, 1978: Notre Dame 38, Texas 10 (02:47:12)
#148: Sept. 23, 1978: Michigan 28, Notre Dame 14 (00:23:34)
#149: Sept. 30, 1978: Notre Dame 10, Purdue 6 (00:42:59)
#150: Oct. 14, 1978: Notre Dame 26, Pittsburgh 17 (02:52:41)
#151: Nov. 11, 1978: Notre Dame 31, Tennessee 14 (00:47:51)
#152: Nov. 25, 1978: USC 27, Notre Dame 25 (03:13:42)
#153: Jan. 1, 1979: Notre Dame 35, Houston 34 (03:07:16)
#154: Sept. 15, 1979: Notre Dame 12, Michigan 10 (00:03:22)
#155: Sept. 22, 1979: Purdue 28, Notre Dame 22 (00:40:03)
#156: Oct. 27, 1979: Notre Dame 18, South Carolina 17 (00:06:27)
#157: Nov. 10, 1979: Tennessee 40, Notre Dame 18 (00:59:19)
#158: Nov. 17, 1979: Clemson 16, Notre Dame 10 (02:23:40)
#159: Nov. 24, 1979: Notre Dame 40, Miami 15 (Mirage Bowl) (00:04:34)
#160: Sept. 20, 1980: Notre Dame 29, Michigan 27 (00:06:02)
#161: Nov. 15, 1980: Notre Dame 7, Alabama 0 (01:53:57)
#162: Dec. 6, 1980: USC 20, Notre Dame 3 (00:07:51)
#163: Jan. 1, 1981: Georgia 17, Notre Dame 10 (Sugar Bowl) (02:43:17)

…and 320 more videos….

The post Here is Every Notre Dame Football Game on YouTube* appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Malik Zaire (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

WHY I CONSIDERED CHANGING MY PREDICTION

The pundits seem to think the Irish are very good given their pre-season rankings. Phil Steele has the Irish slated for a Top 10 finish. Athlon has the Irish headed to the Orange Bowl vs. Louisville, while the Sporting News has the Irish playing Penn State in the TaxSlayer Bowl.

The schedule is still a huge concern for me at this point. Just the names Texas, Michigan State, Stanford, Miami and USC bring pause. Yes I know the majority are at home. But it still is hard to look at that grouping and not see at least one loss. The loss of Jones is disconcerting too. I know he was not a huge star, but his role was expected to increase this year. Plus you have now lost a weapon before you even put pads on. That’s not exactly how you want to start.

The quarterback situation: Uggh! I’m not sure why Brian Kelly is waiting so long. I hope this does not drag out for much of camp. I always agreed with the pundits that if you have two quarterbacks it means you don’t have one. For me, it is time to pick a quarterback and move forward. For my two cents worth, I’m starting DeShone Kizer.

Finally, what about the defense. This very blog was highly critical of Brian VanGorder at various points throughout the summer. Is it warranted? Is the scheme too complex? Are players being fully developed? All very good questions that I admittedly do not have the answers to.

However, I will say this in my years as a Notre Dame fan I’ve recognized that Irish fans (in general) are coach killers. Not since Lou Holtz has a coach been fully embraced by the Notre Dame masses. At what point are the players accountable? Has VanGorder underachieved? Have the players? Or have both?

Alas, I digress from the original question posed. How good are the Irish? In July, I said a playoff team. Publications have them in the Top 10. Heather Dinich of ESPN projects the Irish as a playoff team. As July has faded to August, my optimism has faded some too. Another brutal schedule, a “potential” quarterback controversy, and some big questions on defense shows me at least two losses. Let’s hope I’m wrong.

The post Playoff in 2016? I’m Changing My Prediction appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.