Thank you for bringing celebrity status back to Notre Dame basketball. Thank you for being in the headlines and welcoming the fame. Thank you for being the face of Notre Dame basketball. Thank you for being apart of the emergence of Dunks DuLac. Thank you for the tears, though they were hard to see, it was great knowing we had a captain that cared deeply about this team. We needed someone to help spark the fire and I thank you for taking that role. Thank you for not giving up after a less than stellar freshman season. Many would have been down and out but you saw the potential in the team and in yourself, I thank you for the tenacity in your training to come back and be better than ever.

Most of all thank you for leaving early. We will miss you, but you leaving early helps to legitimizes the program. Notre Dame can develop players who are capable of declaring for the draft and leaving early. As my good friend Lil Wayne once said, “hate to see them go but love to watch them leave.”   We wish you the best of luck, DJ.

To the last two years of basketball,

Thank you for the 14.7 million views in the 2015 Elite 8 and the 10.1 million in 2016. Thank you for giving the fans two players that we can watch in the NBA. Thank you for allowing the Notre Dame fan base to extend into basketball, you guys are a major part of the stardom that has hit Notre Dame basketball. Thank you for the 56 wins in a two year span. We had our ups and downs, but you have prepared the fans for a life of following Notre Dame basketball. Thank you for bringing to light what a great coach Mike Brey is and how wonderful our program and atmosphere. Thank you for the lack of scandal and the class act guys that have come out of the Notre Dame basketball program. Thank you for making it possible to have my school in my March Madness bracket, it’s been hard to leave y’all out in the past.

Thank you for the hashtags that trended on Twitter and being #1 trends. Thank you for the heart attacks from many of the thrilling wins. Thank you for giving me hope and excitement for the years to come. 

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I think it would have been better to call this day Wine Wednesday, because obviously the Apostles* had to stock up for the Last Supper. But, then again, an Irish-Catholic college campus never needs an excuse like Wine Wednesday (and neither does this Frenchman). With a Wednesday like that, we might as well have a Sauce Saturday.

In 33AD, this was a pretty big week for the Apostles; and this week is pretty big for the basketball lads, since they have a Sweet Sixteen game on Friday. But I can’t write about comparisons between the basketball team and The Twelve, because there are 14 members of the team (and I can’t add Matthias to the count because he was subbed in for Judas). Still, I’m rather fascinated by the possibility of bringing the Apostles and the basketball lads together in some form, because how much cooler would Catholic school names sound if we had a Saint Bonzie or a Saint Rex. And how fierce would our team be if we had a player named Simon the Zealot, or a pair of brothers nicknamed “The Sons of Thunder.”

I can’t write about the Biblical significance of the number 16 because there isn’t any. Sure, there are four 16-letter words in the King James Bible, but they don’t really give any inspiration. I don’t want the Fighting Irish to play the Badgers with lovingkindness. It may sound intimidating to say that we compete with evilfavouredness, but when you think about it, that’s neither a good thing nor a compliment. And when it comes to unprofitableness and covenantbreakers, I don’t have the basketball team in mind, but I am shooting the stink-eye right at you, whoever you are in the Athletic Department that decided it would be a good idea to crawl into bed with the Whore of Babylon…I mean the Big Ten.

Though I can’t write on Good Friday, we are playing basketball on that day. I have no problem with this, so long as the team and fans pray from Noon to 3:00 and don’t eat meat. In fact, I strongly encourage everyone to eat ample amounts of grilled cheese, symbolically devouring Wisconsin. Winning against the Badgers will send us on to play North Carolina or Indiana on Easter Sunday. There was a famous Olympic track star who refused to compete on a Sunday because of his devout Christian beliefs. But he was a Scottish Congregationalist, and they’re just really no fun. Easter is the day of greatest celebration for us, so as long as the team, students, alumni, and fans all participate in the holy celebration of the Mass in the morning, I think it’s fine to celebrate a basketball game later. Besides, we can be assured God approves, since the Holy Trinity shoots a mean three.

These aren’t just considerations for students-athletes and fans of Our Lady’s University. I’m sure there are good Catholics on the Wisconsin team who must balance loyalty to their school with the requirements of their faith . Had we played Xavier, things like holy days and religion don’t much concern the Jesuits.

Thus, as we like to do at Notre Dame, this Holy Week we combine Church and Sports, our two favorite devotions. And just for Friday, let’s change Pflueger’s name to Rex Iudaeorum

EFS CSC

*Jesus sent John and Peter to get supplies for the Last Supper. Since John is always pictured as beardless, we must assume he was underage. Hence, John would have bought the bread, while Peter went on a wine run. Let that be an instructive and cautionary exegesis for all Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors.

Padre’s book Father Sorin Says: The Founder Comments on Today’s Notre Dame is available from the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore and from Amazon. It is a perfect addition to any Easter basket, and can be used to convert others to the One True Faith.

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These issues are too real when attending Notre Dame. We have so much passion for our school and our sports (we sign off email “Go Irish”). Unlike many schools, our athletes are fully immersed with the whole student body. Do you know how hard it is to tell a basketball player that you have the Irish losing in the second round!?! It’s heartbreaking. But, I am a winner, I like to win and I am also a broke college student who likes to win money from their friends and family. And many a times, the Notre Dame basketball team is just not set up to go very far. And other times, like last year, we had the faith that Notre Dame would be going fairly far in the tournament.

Here’s a real life account of the terrors, that are, making a bracket as a student. Last year, I went with a realistic bracket. I had Kentucky vs Notre Dame in the Sweet 16 and Kentucky going onto the Final Four. I have never felt like such a traitor than when I was watching Notre Dame killing it against Kentucky and almost winning, but knowing that I had previously had not faith in them against Kentucky. Then the mockery from your friends, who had Notre Dame beating Kentucky begins. Now, you feel especially low. Eventually, Kentucky would prevail and make it to the National Championship, just like your bracket had predicted. (Look who’s laughing now!) It is such a bittersweet moment, when you win all the cash money, but at the expense of betting against your school. The money was great, but after seeing friends on the basketball team so defeated after the loss, you feel like Edward Snowden.

I do not think there is a real right or wrong way to make a bracket. My philosophy, switch off tactics each year, or at least have ND going all the way when we are at least projected to go to the sweet 16 and how well I know the people on the team. So this, Notre Dame shall be the 2016 National Champion (at least according to my bracket).

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Elijah Burns is another East Coast (best coast?) guy on our basketball team. He is a whopping 6-9/ 234 lb forward. Burns transferred to Blair Academy during high schoool, where he played two years at the alma mater of greats such as Luol Deng (I met his family in the elevator at the Bulls game, so basically we are great buds now), Royal Ivey and CHarlie Villanueva. Burns name will soon be up in those being listed of notable alumni. Burns has earned a silver medal with the 16 USA team and played with the 2014 U18 USA team in Mannheim, Germany. He averaged 17.8 ppg and 10 rpg as a sophomore, became team captain as a junior and played in three Empire State Games. Through all these high school accomplishments Elijah did undergo an ankle surgery that sat him in all post season play after high school.

The ankle surgery kept Burns from practicing and being all about the GAINZ during the summer. Though Elijah has fully recovered from the ankle surgery, Brey and Burns thought it best to get him that Freshman 15 (muscle not cushion like the rest of us) before playing.

Elijah is best known for his awareness of the court and ability to take a leadership role on any team. He will give the Irish shooting consistency, in line with that of Matt Ryan and Steve Vasturia. He can take over in the rebound department, post-ZA era and has that New York swagger and toughness that Coach Brey embraces. Had Burns been able to play and pump some iron this summer, I am positive we would see him no the court tearing it up when the Irish are needing a guy who combines the rebounding skills of ZA but the offensive prowess of Beachem.

Get yourself some protein powder and heavy weights, so we can see ya in action soon, Elijah.

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Rex Pflueger, Barstool ND’s favorite basketball player and this week’s Freshman Spotlight had the unfortunate experience of being an example of why we proofread things. (I don’t necessarily follow this advice  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, but I am also not as important as Under Armour) The best part is that it took until halftime for anyone on the team to notice (laughing crying emoji).

Well, I think Rex, also known as Charles Rex, deserves to have his name spelled right, and here is why. Rex hails from Mater Dei High School, where our beloved Joe Schmidt also came from. Rex, like any smart kid, picked Notre Dame over Cal, Washington State, A&M and SDSU. He is a 6-5 shooting guard that has already begun to see time on the court at Notre Dame. Pflueger has seen action in 16 of Notre Dame’s 24 games. These games include time against Duke, Virginia Tech, where he had a career high 11 points after taking on the point guard role for an injured Demetrius Jackson. Rex Pflueger is not only an offensive threat raking in a total 40 pts and shooting 33% from beyond the 3-pt arc, Coach Brey also praises him for his defensive skills

Pflueger held BC guard Eli Carter to just 6 baskets from the field in the game at Boston College. Brey has referred to his defensive skills as textbook, moving his feet, chest up and quick hands. These skills allowed for other guys such as Steve Vasturia to have standout offensive performances. These type of dynamic guys off the bench are a part of the success that Notre Dame has been having on the court. Sitting at 8-4 in conference play and an impressive 17-7 overall, Notre Dame is only getting better the more confident players like Rex become.

We saw glimpses of this confidence as Rex hit his third 3 of the year to put Notre Dame up by 6pts in Cameron Indoor Stadium and ran down the court as if he has been swishing clutch 3s for years. Or his impressive defensive play against Boston College, where he began to find his role in the team. Though Pflueger has decent offensive stats, its on the defensive end where you really want to watch out for Rex. The freshman says he channels his aggression to the defense, with the a team that has not notoriously been known for its defense, a player like Rex is a welcoming.

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Confusing times such as these call for reflection.  And so, I address these conundrums, and like the pool in front of the Library (but with much less duck poop), I reflect:

Strange Signs in the Sky – Football in the descendant, Basketball in the ascendant

Well, I suppose I wouldn’t say football is falling, but the season certainly fell apart.  There’s always next season and the hope that brings; and at least we didn’t have a Michigan season (“Michigan” now synonymous with “shambolic, laughably bad”).  But where did this basketball team come from?  Were these Fighting Irish born under a star?  Teams from the East keep coming to see them, not to do homage, but to lose.  This team fights through adversity, comes from behind, never says die, and does it again and again.  These Irish make amazing baskets, play tough, and refuse to let up on themselves or their teammates even into overtime.  It must be said that the basketball team could only have learned these noble traits from the football team which, aside from having all the championships, is a full 11 years older than the basketball team, and therefore the athletic and spiritual mentor.

Even the basketball arena is doing better than the football Stadium.  Ned Joyce’s big top has a winning percentage of .793 since the ringmaster opened it in 1968, while Notre Dame Stadium has a winning percentage of only .758 since Rockne built it in 1930.  So I say, well done, Ned; Stadium, get your act together.  I look forward to the Tournament, the only playoff system I like…because it’s old and I have no choice.

A Mysterious Metamorphosis – When is a football stadium not a football stadium

As anyone knows who has tried to walk to a business class or a game in the Rev. Edmund P. Joyce, CSC, Athletic and Convocation Center, there is some sort of strip-mining operation going on around the Stadium.  Like an 80,000-seat caterpillar, the House the Rockne Built is become the House of Football, Anthropology, Psychology, Music, and Recreation – a collegiate butterfly of truly monumental proportions.  The project is…interesting; and since they’ve moved more dirt than it took to build the Panama Canal, the project is…inevitable.  So quit complaining.

It’s progress, people!  The Joyce Center isn’t winning any beauty pageants (though it looks suggestively like something one of the contestants might wear), but it’s a tremendous improvement over the old Fieldhouse.  That was a truss-roof warehouse with a castellated façade stuck onto it.  Today it would pass for a Camelot-themed restaurant, or a park where children play golf against moving windmills, clown mouths, and fake Medieval fortresses.  It was hot in spring and summer, cold in fall and winter, and had a cinder track for most of its history.  It was torn down over the protests of those who felt the campus was losing its tradition.  All that’s left is a square block of bricks with a brass plaque, and no one knows why the patch around the Druid fountain is called Fieldhouse Mall.

Don’t try to tell me that sticking classrooms and a student center onto the Stadium moves the “heart” of campus away from the Main Building and Sacred Heart.  That was done when they started building on my farm.  There are already classroom buildings next to and beyond the Stadium.  And good luck explaining the concept of a “heart of the campus” to any lad living in Carroll Hall.  If I had wanted the Main building to be the hub of a radiating wheel, I wouldn’t have built it and the church on top of two waterholes (which REALLY did look like one).  Walk out of either building and you can roll down the hill, past the Grotto, and into the Lake.  Believe me, I saw a sophomore from New Jersey do it once.  The Main Building may have been the heart and entirety of campus at one time, but these days the only reason most students go in there is because they got caught making hooch in a dorm room; or because a lad got caught with Jane Hooch in his dorm room after midnight.  And most students don’t even go to Sacred Heart on Sunday.  They wake up around noon, lie on a fainting couch eating cold pizza all day, and then at the appointed non-canonical hour, they go to the dorm worship space in their pajamas to blow up balloons and sing “Be Not Afraid.”

Real versus Fantasy – The intrusion of professional football

All Americans are commanded to focus their attention on professional football for its annual halftime show surrounded by a final game.  Not satisfied with one weekend of fawning attention, the league has manufactured a sham controversy about withering footballs.  I know why the New England team took air out of their footballs – to prepare for Pete Carroll who loved that old trick at USC.  And when New England trots out the quarterback and the head coach to assure us they did nothing wrong, pardon me if I have trouble believing a Michigan man and the basta fellow who recommended Charlie Weis to us as a great hire.  I really don’t care if there’s too much air or not enough air in the footballs come Sunday.  I say we fill them with hydrogen like a German blimp and see what happens.

Yet, college football, with its shiny new playoff, continues to try to be more like professional football, because it’s “The Real World.”  When was the last time a college student wanted life to hurry up and become the real world?  You already have tyrannical bosses who impose unrealistic expectations and unreasonable deadlines; you already have noisy and nosy neighbors, and if you live in Cavanaugh you have a house next door full of ill-behaved children; you already pay too much rent for too little space, and if you live in Morrissey it’s in a slum.  Besides, you can’t drink in the library in the real world…most of the time.

If we want college football to be like the NFL, why don’t we build an oversized municipal stadium housing decadent luxury boxes, charging obscene amounts of money for tickets, named for some product-sponsor, and slinging overpriced beer?  Hmmm…I don’t think we’ll sell naming rights, and I’ll renew my annual appeal for Stadium beer sales.  My point is, with what goes on off the field in the NFL, which is a bit more serious than cheat-sheets and phantom ladyfriends, we at the collegiate level should not aspire to be more like the professional system – unless you’re the SEC or FSU, in which case your scandals are already on par with the NFL, if not just a little worse.

The Hand of the Divine

With all these inversions, reversals, signs, and situations, we are clearly receiving a message from God.  Long ago, he used the Flood of Noah and the destruction of the Tower of Babel to communicate his disfavor.  Today, He is more subtle when he alerts us that He wants us to do His will.  To me the message is clear: He wants us to sacrifice the Jesuits on the altar of the Joyce Center next week, when Boston College falls to Irish Home Victory #601.

EFS CSC

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