You could feel that something special was going to happen Wednesday night at Purcell Pavilion. Those in attendance were hoping to see if Coach Brey could lead the Fighting Irish to magical win 394, topping Irish coaching legend Digger Phelps. Among all the excitement, there was a sense of concern as well. The day before, we learned that the Irish would be without Captain Bonzie Colson due to a broken foot.

However, ACC play stops for no one. So let’s jump into the game recap and see how the team fared against the NC State.

The Fighting Irish had a reversal of sorts on Wednesday night. Typically, the Irish get off to a slow start in the first half, that wasn’t the case last night. T.J. Gibbs started the Irish off with a quick 3-pointer, followed by a monster slam dunk by Martinas Geben and a 3-pointer by D.J. Harvey.

Despite the strong start, it wasn’t as easy a game for the Irish at it appeared. NC State played a stifling half court pressure that the Irish needed to figure out. Then, half way through the first half, Matt Farrell went down with an apparent foot injury. He went to the locker room for the remainder of the half while the Irish built a lead as high as 15 points in the half. All things considered, this was one of the best halves of basketball by the Irish to date this season.

The Irish took a 48-36 lead into the locker room. Harvey led all scorers with 13 points (3-4 from 3-point range), Gibbs was next with 11 points after a full 20 minutes. To backup the teams play here are some other great stats for the Irish: 18 points in the paint, 10 points off of turnovers, 19-31 from the field and 9-18 from 3-point range.

The second half was completely opposite from the first as the typical Irish quick start out of the locker room was non-existent. The defense, however, stepped up. John Mooney and Geben hand some great blocks on defense. To showcase the defensive effort, the Irish did not allow the Wolfpack to score until 4:53 into the second half and allowed only eight points through the first twelve minutes. The Wolfpack tried to apply the same half court pressure from the first half, but the Irish would have none of it.

The Purcell Pavilion roared to life with 1:00 remaining as those in attendance knew they were witnessing a great moment of ND Basketball History. The Irish won this game 88-58 and Coach Brey would win his 394th game as Notre Dame Men’s Basketball Coach. T.J. Gibbs led all scorers with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 3-6 from 3-point range and played 38 minutes. D.J. Harvey had a career high 17 points along with 3 rebounds in 30 minutes of play. Pflueger had a great night as well. Pflueger came up short of a career night with 16 points, 4 rebounds.

Farrell would not return to the game after the intermission, instead vocally leading his team from the bench along with Colson.

Following the game there was a ceremony at half court to honor Coach Brey accompanied by a video presentation about this career at ND. Coach Phelps presented Coach Brey with the game ball an AD Jack Swarbrick presented Coach Brey with a replica banner of the banner to be forever hung in the rafters of Purcell Pavilion.

The post game interview was one of joy and sorrow. The media gathered in the press room knew the joy of what was Coach Brey’s win, but they were wondering behind all of that, what was going on with Farrell and his injury. Coaches opening statement to the press “What a way to get to get there, to 394 and to 2-0 [in the ACC]. And what I told our team was, when I think back, the record breaking game we lost Bonzie Colson the day before. We lost Matt Farrell half way through the first.  And our group just responded. Just really proud of them. We got 394 off the board. We can keep chasing some ACC stuff and love the position this team is in.”

The discussion shifted to talk about Bonzie Colson’s broken foot. Coach said “Bonzie’s injury happened at practice on Friday. He felt he strained something. He moved around fine and scored 22, unknown it was a broken foot. I feel sorry for Bonzie. I feel for college basketball. Bonzie Colson is the most popular player in college basketball and maybe the best. Coaches love him. Media loves him. He is a great story. College basketball lost a great story and I am hurting for him. I told his father we will not rush him back. I am really sensitive to being healthy and fresh for him to make the NBA.”

Next up for the Irish is Syracuse. the Irish will be on the road Saturday with a 3:15 start. Congratulations to Coach Brey on 394, and best wishes and a speedy recovery for Colson and Farrell. Cheers and #GoIrish!!!

The post Notre Dame Men’s Basketball: A Huge Win and Another Loss appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

I’ll admit as a kid, basketball always took a back seat to football in that the Irish football teams were typically better and I generally prefer football as a sport.

As I got into my teen years, the gap widened as the Digger Phelps era gave way to John MacLeod. It might be said that Troy Murphy single-handedly brought me back to Notre Dame basketball during his time at Notre Dame, which also coincided with Mike Brey’s first year on the job.

Early in the Brey era, the Irish always scored but in my opinion were suspect defensively. Nevertheless, it was during that period that Notre Dame basketball mattered again. This trend has continued for the 17 years that Mike Brey has coached.

I was skeptical that Notre Dame could compete in the ACC when the move was made. However, they have thrived in the ACC. Whether it is players leaving early (such as Troy Murphy and Demetrius Jackson), the challenge of “winning” at a football school, or the move to maybe the toughest league (ACC), Mike Brey has been a constant for Notre Dame basketball.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey smiles after Notre Dame defeated the Loyola Ramblers 81-61 at the Purcell Pavilion. Credit: Matt Cashore – USA TODAY Sports

Over his time in South Bend, Brey has compiled a .671 winning percentage, made 11 NCAA tournament appearances, and most recently, made back to back trips to the Elite 8. More importantly, he has really built a brand — particularly in the last few seasons. Last year’s tournament run highlighted the hard-working, heady, tenacious and gritty teams that he builds. Thus far it has carried over into this season. One needs to look no further than Saturday’s road test at Virginia Tech to see further evidence of this. With a raucous crowd in a frenzy and a game seemingly slipping from their grasp, Matt Farrell used intelligence, desire, and hustle to “steal away” late momentum by Virginia Tech and seal an Irish victory. Plays like this have come to typify Brey’s Irish over the last few seasons. They find ways to close games out and they find ways to win.

As an Irish football fan, we have lamented over the last few seasons games that we seemingly let out of our grasp (like Florida State 2014 and Clemson and Stanford 2015). We have griped over our inability to close! Brey’s teams of recent years are the exact opposite as they come up big when mental toughness and tenacity are at a premium. Teams reflect their coach. Passionate, tough, cool, and calm — that is the Mike Brey brand!

The post The Mike Brey Brand appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

We will endow professors, deans, officials, and coaches; but we won’t endow the president. Believe me, whoever that poor fellow is, he spends a lot of time hearing people tell him, “I pay your salary.” If we endowed the presidency, that would literally be true for one lucky alumnus (and one unlucky CSC). On the converse, though one man can tell the football coach, “I pay your salary,” the coach can respond, “No – you paid it once, and you can’t take the money back.” And when an alumnus throws this in his face: “Do you know how much money I give,” the coach can respond, “I’m not sure, but I know none of it goes in my pocket.”

We will accept donations for a building and name it for the benefactor; but we won’t place anyone’s name on the Main Building or the Grotto. Even though the one, like an aging diva, has required a lot of work over the years, and the other needs some touching-up after the occasional ivy fire, only The BVM gets her name on either. We’ll mount plaques here and there, just like in Sacred Heart – but entire holy places don’t get anyone’s name. Look at the Stadium: technically it has never had a name other than Notre Dame Stadium. But we do plaques, we named the gates, and now we’re giving it a Duncan and a Corbett pillow on either side to bolster it in comfort, and something yet-to-be-named as a footrest.

We will name halls for people and families; but we won’t take the name off later*…except if you’re a priest or professor no one remembers. The Lemonnier Library is now Bond Hall, and the Hoynes College of Law is now Crowley Hall. You see, Fr. Lemonnier and Prof. Hoynes didn’t pony up any cash. This is of immediate concern for Walsh and Badin, two antique penitentiaries in need of entire inside-out reconstructions. Tom, Steph, it’s nothing personal, but you might want to buy your personalized sweatshirts now because they may not be around for much longer. And look out, Dillon, Lyons, Howard, Carroll, Corby, Cavanaugh, Farley, Nieuwland, Rockne, Joyce, and Hesburgh – you could be bought out.** I leave Morrissey and Zahm off the list because though Andy and John would love to get their names off those two flophouses, no one would want to take credit.

We will create colleges, schools, institutes, centers, and programs in donors’ names; but we won’t study just anything. For instance, we have an institute for Irish Studies (Keough-Naughton to be precise). But we would never have a program in Michigan Studies. Well, I suppose we might study the State of Michigan, but that would fall under the Philosophy Department, since the program would ask such imponderable questions as “Why two peninsulas,” “Who was Ann Arbor and what did she do to deserve this,” “Why haven’t Michigan State fans fully evolved.” I mean we would never have a program in Wolverine Studies – who needs to learn more about a gluttonous, blood-crazed weasel when we can observe one froth and snarl in its filthy habitat six times each Fall. And we wouldn’t even have an endowed chair of USC Studies…though if we did, it would be more appropriate to make it an endowed mattress instead.

We will accept endowments from alumni, friends, and fans; but we won’t take money from just anybody. There is a long-standing rumor that we refused a donation from the Chicago priest who wrote smut. What would it have endowed – a chair in bodice-ripper cassock-ripper literature? We won’t accept donations from individuals who made their money in unseemly ventures; so no gifts from arms dealers, Big Ten officials, or Jesuits. And we won’t accept benefaction from foreign despots; hence nothing from the President of the NCAA, the President of ESPN, or the Pope.

I firmly believe that if we stay within these sensible and straightforward boundaries, and if we respect a few simple exclusions, then anything or anyone can be…well…endowed.

EFS CSC

*Yes, I know what happened with the Band Building.

**No one is touching the hall with my name or St. Edward’s. Even though I didn’t hand over an envelope full of gold certificates, it’s called “but for causation.” That is, but for me dragging my French butt derriere to Northern Indiana, no one would have had the chance to name anything but a musty log cabin and two muddy lakes (which used to look like one in winter).

Padre’s book Father Sorin Says: The Founder Comments on Today’s Notre Dame is available from the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore and Amazon. It should be given as a thank-you gift to all donors and benefactors, and as an April 1st gift to friends who foolishly support other teams.

The post Good Fridays w/Padre: NDowment appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Now, if these young alumni will graduate in 2029, that means they will enroll as freshmen in 2025. While I haven’t any doubt whatsoever that each of these fine, leprechaun-sized scholars will make it to Our Lady’s University, Notre Dame will necessarily be a different school nine years from now. In 1879 we had a pile of charred timbers and blackened bricks; in 1888 we had a Golden Dome. One walk across campus today, and you realize that, as Heraclitus said, you can’t step into the same quad twice.

Thus, let us consider what our beloved Notre Dame will look like when Ms. Allison Silva’s third-graders begin their four-year adventure under the dome in 2025.

*** The bronze statue of Brian Kelly is unveiled outside the southwest tower of StadiumCity. The fifteen storey structure, now renamed the Kelly Tower, appropriately houses the Department of Irish Language and Literature, as well as Westish Dining Hall, the 150-bed McCorquodale Residence Allotment for Men, and part of Grounds-and-Maintenance. Kelly Tower matches the southeast tower of StadiumCity, itself recently renamed Burj Hesburgh. Retired head coach Brian Kelly himself was on-hand for the unveiling ceremony, during which he reminisced about the 2017 Championship Season which, at 17 games, was the longest Notre Dame football season on record.

*** Head Footbal Coach Louis Leo “Skip” Holtz, Jr., praised his predecessor in his own remarks during the event, but reminded Kelly that he – Skip – already has a bronze statue of himself outside StadiumCity, as one of the players standing behind his father Lou. Considering that The Arbiters of Excellence (formerly known as college football playoff selection committee) now require independent football teams to go undefeated for two complete seasons before being granted a playoff berth, there are alumni rumblings that Skip Holtz may have to wait a while to see a statue of his own. Fortunately, proud father Lou Holtz is able to watch all of Skip’s home games from the St. Andre Tower of StadiumCity, which houses the Alumni and Honorary Alumni Retirement Village and Assisted Living Resort and Spa.

*** The statue unveiling and tower christening were presided over by Father George Rozum, C.S.C., now in his fifth year as President of the University of Notre Dame. Commenting on the amazing energy of the spry 86-year-old university leader, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Condoleezza Rice said, “Making Fr. George President was the only way we could get him out of Alumni Hall.” Rozum’s tenure as President of Notre Dame has seen continued growth of the University. The StadiumCity project was completed, making the home of the Fighting Irish the “Biggest, Tallest, Most Complicated” athletic, academic, residential, food-selling, pastoral care, self-sufficient “UniversiPlex” in the country.

*** Fr. Rozum has also tried to bring an end to the vicious cycle of ‘Musical Dorms,’ that began under his predecessor Archbishop John Jenkins, C.S.C.. This seemingly never-ending shuffling of student populations around the campus began with the opening of two new residence halls on Dragon Quad (so named because its remote location prompted campus map illustrators to write “Here be Dragons” to mark the site). The men’s dorm, Hesburgh Hall – affectionately called Teddy by residents who don’t want people to think they live in the library – sits next to New Pangborn Hall, which was filled with residents of the dorm previously named Pangborn in the original cultural experiment. The old Pangborn was renamed Pothole Hall, since anything would fill it. First Walsh and then Badin women were moved into the Pothole during major renovations; but the whole system broke down when the Morrissey men were scheduled to spend a year in the ‘Hole. When work began on the “Manor,” a construction worker removed a transom over a door and the whole structure nearly collapsed in a steaming heap. It has taken an international team of architects and engineers, a Novena-marathon in Sacred Heart, and roughly $14.5 million to save Morrissey, but Fr. Rozum hopes to reopen the hall next year. In the meantime, the Manor-Tent-Camp continues to occupy the remains of the Burke Golf Course, while the men of Zahm have moved into Pothole Hall (now without windows, because of the stench). When Fr. Rozum exempted Alumni Hall residents from having to move anywhere, Dillon seceded from the University and posted armed guards, prompting the administration to treat Dillon like Carroll and ignore it completely.

*** All of this barely controlled chaos is to be settled by the start of next year, in preparation for the visit of Pope Leo XIV, Class of 1981. The former Charles Cardinal Brown, previously the Nuncio to Ireland and Prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for Catholic Education, is a loyal son of Notre Dame, and also the first American Pope (though that is only of mild interest to the alumni). He will visit his Alma Mater in 2026, and will say Mass in StadiumCity, further consecrating the already hallowed ground. Much of this landmark event has been organized my University President-Emeritus Archbishop John Jenkins, now in charge of the Pontifical Council for Economic Expansion, also known as “Vati-Development.” Pope Leo will dedicate the new glass dome on the basketball arena with the help of Muffet McGraw and Mike Brey, two of the longest serving coaches in Notre Dame history. McGraw has vowed to coach until she wins her fourth National Championship; and though Brey has found his way to two Final-Fours and two Championships, he has stated repeatedly that he will not retire until he finds a fetching necktie.

*** As much as things have changed, much has stayed the same. The University remains a premier institution of higher education and a powerful force for good; the Dome still reflects both the sunlight and the hopes and dreams of millions; voices raised in prayer have never ceased to echo from the Grotto;  snow remains possible from October to April; parietals are still in force; and Notre Dame is always Our Mother.

That is just a guess at what Our Lady’s University will look like in 2025, when the young men and women of Ms. Silva’s class enroll. But don’t ask me what Notre Dame will look like by the time they graduate in 2029 – that’s four whole years later.

EFS CSC

Post-Script: The football game played on the weekend of the Kelly statue dedication saw the Irish defeat the Michigan Wolverines by the unusual score of 37-0, when Coach Holtz successfully went for three after the fifth touchdown.

Padre’s book Father Sorin Says: The Founder Comments on Today’s Notre Dame is available from the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore and Amazon. A gift for loyal students, alumni, and friends of the University – a punishment for fans of all other teams.

The post Good Fridays w/Padre: 2025 A.D. appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Late Saturday night (or was it Sunday morning by the time the game was final?), the Notre Dame Men’s Basketball team achieved a feet they hadn’t since 2003 by reaching the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament. In a hard fought battle, Notre Dame outlasted her in-state brother Butler 67-64 in overtime. The game was stressful, frustrating, and fulfilling all at once. In a season that’s been defined by the perseverance of the team, it seemed almost fitting that this was the way the team finally exorcised its Sweet Sixteen demons.

It wasn’t until  elation was in full effect for the fans and players that everyone found out Mike Brey’s remarkable mother had passed away earlier in the day. Betty Brey deserves a eulogy longer and more thoughtful than anything I could put together. An Olympian and world champion in her own right, the Notre Dame community owes Betty a debt of gratitude for raising and lending her incredible son to us. It’s not fair to Betty Brey and the son she raised to limit commentary to too singular a moment. It’s difficult not to think that Mike Brey’s actions resulted from a lifetime of learning under Betty. Also clear: Mike Brey’s motivation on Saturday was not to mourn the loss of his mother but to honor her by living and serving others as she’d taught him. We can but scratch the surface of what Coach Brey’s sacrifice involved.

We all deal with death differently, but it’s normal to want to withdraw and simplify in such moments. So much emotional energy is expended that even seemingly basic decisions like what to eat or wear can feel like a body suit of weights. Being the head basketball coach at a nationally prominent school isn’t easy on the best of days. Now imagine trying to do so on one of your worst days, in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by the bright lights of the NCAA Tournament, and while haunted by the ghosts of past early tournament exits. The desire to run away and simplify had to be overwhelming for Mike Brey. I shouldn’t say that. My desire to run away and simplify would have been overwhelming. For Brey? The answer was simplify…only not for him.

The elegance of Mike Brey’s action is that it was really a decision not to act. For a man and coach who has always seemed to put team first, this may well be the ultimate example of that philosophy. Don’t change the routine. Don’t change the mindset. Keep things simple. Notre Dame lore is rich with stories that paint a vivid picture. The legend of “Win One for the Gipper” embodies the archetype of coach as master motivator. Reaching into the coffers of wisdom and experience to tug at the emotional strings of his team with just the right words and story. Yet Brey knew his team well enough to refrain from any of that. There’ll be no great speech to remember “Win One for Betty” by because that speech never got made. Yet undeniably Brey’s actions, instilled in him by Betty, will similarly become part of the fabric of Notre Dame lore.

I’m hardly a superstitious man. I don’t read my horoscope, and I try to keep my sports quirks to a minimum. However, there are times when events align in such a way that denying a greater architecture to the World is made more difficult. When I think of the legacy of Father Hesburgh, the word that instantly comes to mind is servant. For close to a century, Father Hesburgh served and honored others above himself in a way that positively influenced generations of people to come. His legacy of serving others is deeply embedded in the fabric of Notre Dame’s community. If you’ve yet to do so, go read David Haugh’s piece from the Chicago Tribune about Mike and Betty Brey. You get the sense that Betty Brey believed in those principles as well. The World never loses people like Father Ted or Betty Brey. Instead, their values echo through the lives of those they impacted. On Saturday, Mike Brey became the walking embodiment of those values.

When was the last time a week went by without some critique being levied agains the NCAA and its member schools on their treatment of student-athletes? Pawns in a money making scheme. Chewed up and spit out without a care for their well-being. These are the common refrains. Yet, regardless of where you stand on those issues, it’s impossible not to look at Mike Brey and realize everything he did, he did to serve those players, that team, above himself. I’m happy Notre Dame won the game. I’m more grateful of a real-time reminder of what it means to serve others.

Thank you Mike Brey.

Aside: It was impossible for all the members of HLS to share their thoughts in this space, but Bayou Irish had a few words to add that I share with y’all as well:

[Brey]’s clearly got the team focused. You don’t go on a four game win streak that includes Duke and NC without focus. That those four games put you in the Sweet 16 just proves the point. He has his guys winning on the biggest stage. That he kept news of his mother’s death a secret speaks to his professionalism. Team chemistry is a delicate thing and you can’t spring news like that on them the day of a big game. He kept them focused and kept it about them.

The post Thank You, Mike Brey 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.

[iframe id=”http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid3671166871001/?bctid=4097422908001&autoStart=false” align=”center” autoplay=”no” maxwidth=”500″]

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.

[iframe id=”http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid3671166871001/?bctid=4109563315001&autoStart=false” align=”center” autoplay=”no” maxwidth=”500″]

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.

HIBACHI: [iframe id=”http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid3671166871001/?bctid=4109578133001&autoStart=false” align=”center” autoplay=”no” maxwidth=”500″]

BENGAL BOUTS: [iframe id=”http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid3671166871001/?bctid=4109563313001&autoStart=false” align=”center” autoplay=”no” maxwidth=”500″]

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.

How did you first become a Notre Dame fan?

Jerry Barca: I was born Irish-Italian and Catholic in New Jersey. I don’t think there was much choice about it. It was just life, sort of like a grass-is-green, sky-is-blue thing. You said Hail Marys at night, fidgeted through Mass on Sunday, and followed Notre Dame.

What was your best childhood Notre Dame memory?

JB: I’m the youngest of five kids and one of my older brothers went to Notre Dame, so that provided the opportunity for some pretty good childhood memories of the school. Going to the 31-30, Catholics vs. Convicts game in ’88 stands out, as does meeting and hanging out with Roger Valdiserri and Laphonso Ellis that weekend.

My first visit to the campus was pretty cool. It was 1985. I was 8 years old, and Allen Pinkett and Co. were taking on Army. Dressed from head to toe in freshly purchased ND gear and armed with a little yellow Notre Dame megaphone, I stood on a table helping Fisher Hall sell concessions on game day. We were set up right outside the old Bookstore location. I was shouting for people to get their “Gipper brauts, Rockne burgers, and Four Horseman soda.” Fisher Hall ended up being able to get a microwave for the dorm based on the sales that day, which in 1985 meant there were a lot of sales. Then 10 years later, when I was applying to Notre Dame I watched the admissions video. There — in the midst of some awkward dorm dance footage — was a clip of me doing this huckster shouting. And of course I mentioned this in the application process. I used everything I could. I needed to. I was wait-listed and I’m pretty sure that I was the last one accepted to the incoming class.

Did you play sports as a kid?

JB: Yes. Didn’t everybody? I’m thinking I should say more here. I played quarterback for the West Orange Mustangs Pee-Wee football team. I was sacked 46 times in a nine-game season. We weren’t very good as a team, but we did have a member of Providence College’s 1996 Elite Eight basketball team, a movie and TV actor, and a Broadway lead.

What made you decide to attend Notre Dame?

JB: It was always my dream since I was 8 years old and first visited the campus to see my older brother. I loved sports and I loved the friendships I saw my brother developing with his classmates. I mean even the grownups seemed like good, approachable people – Fr. (Richard) Warner and coach (Brian) Boulac come to mind. For me, I saw it as a special place since I was kid and I wanted to be part of that.

What was your best Notre Dame memory?

JB: There are a bunch. I don’t think I can single out just one. I really think it is the friends you make. I graduated 15 years ago. I can rattle off some great classes and experiences – Bookstore Basketball; doing the ring announcing for Bengal Bouts; getting up too early on Saturday mornings to stuff football programs in the press box; writing a 25-page paper on how Bruce Springsteen’s “Born In the U.S.A.” album changed material culture in America. But the core of all that is the friendships, the people who I was alongside to share these experiences.

How did you decide to write the book Unbeatable?

JB: I was surprised no one had gone back and revisited that era of Notre Dame football. Each year I’d see new Notre Dame football books come out, but nothing taking a deeper look at the Holtz-era, which was a formative football watching period for a lot of Notre Dame fans. I thought it was an important story to tell on the timeline of Notre Dame football history. And, as long I could get access to the players and the coaches, I thought it would be a great story to tell.

What was the biggest challenge in writing the book?

JB: The timeline. I wrote a sample chapter and put together the book proposal in late 2011/early 2012. I signed a contract with St. Martin’s Press in April 2012 and turned in the 84,000-word manuscript on October 1, six months later. I’ve said this before in other places – I gained 17 pounds, drank about 30-ounces of coffee during the day, chugged a Red Bull in the afternoon, got a large Dunkin Donuts coffee at 11 p.m. to stay up to do the rewrites until about 4 a.m. All this, plus devouring a box of Little Debbie nutty bars in less than 24 hours each time said box entered the house.

What surprised you the most in writing the book?

JB: A lot of things come to mind. Even though I thought I knew a lot about the Miami-Notre Dame game, there was so much more behind the scenes between the fans of both schools, and in the Fighting Irish’s preparation to face the ‘Canes. The multiple storylines leading up to the No. 1 versus No. 2 regular season finale at USC are some of my favorite passages in the book — the details of Ricky Watters and Tony Brooks being suspended; how a measles side effect impacted the game; and the strategy behind Notre Dame’s big plays.

Will you write another Notre Dame book?

Lisa Kelly and Jerry Barca signing books at Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore 2013

JB: Maybe. Someday. But at the moment I have no plans to write another Notre Dame book. But since you asked, now I’m wondering if Mike Brey might let me embed with the program for a year. Hmm?

So … what are your thoughts on the new FieldTurf?

JB: I wrote about this last week (http://jerrybarca.com/unbeatable/on-fieldturf-grass-and-tradition). Look, I love the grass at Notre Dame Stadium and like any super-duper bizarro fan I have a long, strangely personal, relationship with that grass. But I’m good with the FieldTurf. Times change, and so do playing surfaces.

What are your 2014 Notre Dame Football predictions?

JB: They will play home games on FieldTurf, and they will definitely play 12 games between the end of August and the end of November.

Sorry for the smartassery, but I believe the people who know best how the team will do are Brian Kelly, his staff, and the players. Those guys and Notre Dame’s opponents. They all have a far better position to make predictions than me.

Any new projects we should know about?

JB: I have begun work on another football book. I am grateful St. Martin’s Press will once again be the publisher, and I’ll have more specific details on that in the future.

Thanks so much for having me. This has been great.

Want to read more from Jerry? His Notre Dame football book “Unbeatable” can be purchased at fine booksellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore.

Cheers & Go Irish!

The post Is This Our Year? Unbeatable 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.

—————-

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!

The post Jack Nolan Talks Notre Dame Football at ND Dallas Kickoff appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

What happened was beyond anything I could’ve possibly imagined.

When the game started, it looked like the Irish would be able to expose a huge size mismatch inside the paint. When the first media timeout hit, some cautious optimism set in.

Then everything went to hell.

Notre Dame started to turn the ball over. Continuously.

At one point in the first half, the Irish had a three minute stretch in which they were unable to take a single field goal attempt because they couldn’t hold on to the ball. By halftime, ND only had seven more shots than turnovers.

Fortunately for ND, Iowa State was more than happy to shoot themselves in the foot continuously as well. The entire first half might have been some of the worst basketball that I ever witnessed. Complete with the worst dunk attempt that I’ve ever seen.

Trailing at the half by only 12 was a gift. Then the Irish came out in the second half and allowed Iowa State to take a dunk that was practically uncontested. The remainder of the half had a similar defensive effort, allowing the Cyclones to shot for over 70% in the second half as they coasted to a 76-58 victory while most Irish fans changed the channel.

Understandably after (and during) this complete disaster, quite a bit of heat started flying at Mike Brey’s direction.

Now, I am completely on board with being beyond frustrated with the product Mike Brey has put out on the court, especially in the postseason. I’m not expecting constant trips to the Final Four, but something resembling competitive basketball in the Big Dance would be nice. We continue to watch the same movie over and over again and hope for a different ending, yet the same fiery disaster always awaits us at the end.

The Irish have been to the Sweet Sixteen only once in the Brey-era, 2003, one year before I arrived on campus. The Irish then treated me with three consecutive NIT berths, only finding their way into the Big Dance in my senior year in 2007. The best showing since then has been a second round exit at the hands of Florida State two years ago when the Irish managed to snag a 2-seed (and no, I’m not calling it the third round because the First Four isn’t a round — stop doing that, NCAA).

So, no, I won’t defend Brey in the least. However, calls for his head are absurd. He isn’t going anywhere.

First, there is that small ten year extension that Brey inked in 2012. Anyone that thinks that just one year later that ND is going to turn around and buyout the entire contract simply isn’t dealing in any kind of reality.

Even if Notre Dame decided to go crazy and fire Brey, who do you realistically bring in to replace him?

ND Basketball isn’t exactly a destination job by any means, especially considering that the basketball practice facilities are beyond sub-par in comparison to any top program in the nation (and quite a few mid-major schools at that). Couple that with heading into the great unknown of dealing with an ACC conference schedule and things aren’t very appealing. Basketball isn’t football, meaning the “back up the Brink’s truck” line of thinking doesn’t exactly apply (not like it’s a valid strategy for football either, see: Saban, Meyer, Stoops, Gruden, et al).

The bottom line is that Brey has done a fairly decent job with the Irish squad, especially considering the talent level available to them. Yes, the talent level does fall squarely on Brey’s shoulders, but it is what it is.

The mediocrity is beyond frustrating to watch, especially when it seems like every other sport at Notre Dame is excelling. Hockey won the CCHA Championship on Sunday. Fencing feel just short of a national title this weekend, but left with two individual champs. Baseball has found themselves ranked at #15. The women’s basketball team took home a Big East title as well as acting like a #1 seed in dominating fashion with a 97-64 win on Sunday.

Yet men’s basketball has been stuck in the same rut for a decade.

At this point, we simply have to hope that the star of the 2013 recruiting class, Demetrius Jackson, lives up to his superstar billing and is able to lift the Irish out of their March funk. Otherwise, I would expect more of the same from the Irish for as long as the Brey era continues which will seemingly continue:

(Hat tip)

The post Another March Disappointment: Irish Blown Out By Cyclones appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.