While the offense still has some things to work through, particularly Jack Coan having some odd accuracy issues, there are signs of an explosive offensive ready to break out. The offensive line, despite considering you, yes you, for LT, performed admirably.

Marcus Freeman and the defense continued their path to improvement, featuring an actual smart us of the three lineman dollar formation that gave Purdue fits. Better yet, the whole giving up multiple 60+ yard plays each game died a wonderful death.

All sides of the ball still have some work to do, but the positive signs are there. Come join Shane and I as we give our thoughts on Notre Dame’s first spread-covering victory.

Sponsors

This episode is brought to you by Homefield Apparel, where you can receive 15% off your first order with code LOYALSONS and If These Walls Could Talk – Stories from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Sideline, Locker Room, and Press Box by Reggie Brooks. Get your copy here and use code WALLSND25 for 25% off your order.

Podcast

The post The Beat Goes On – Notre Dame vs Purdue Recap appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

And then the game audio didn’t record right. And then the backup didn’t record right. So y’all get the back up of the back up which has the entire audio.

Thankfully, it’s functional enough, and servers as a perfect metaphor for Notre Dame Football in 2021. Oh, and the sim definitely has tapped into that reality as well. I dare you to watch/listen to this and tell me if it’s not maximum ND/Purdue.

I DARE YOU.

Podcast

VoD

The post NCAA Sim: Notre Dame vs Purdue appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Notre Dame Athletic Director, Jack Swarbrick, working his magic on future schedules, probably. (Photo Credit: Shane DeLeon aka SupermanTDJesus)

Now, I understand that, even in this barren desert of Irish football news, you may find it hard to get excited for games that are three and eight years away. To be fair, I’m right there with you; however, my excitement lies not with future dates with another SEC opponent, but rather how well ND and Jack Swarbrick have crafted their future schedules in the college football playoff era.

I’ve long hoped that the four-team playoff would force teams to see the value in scheduling tougher opponents, leading to more Power Five vs. Power Five matchups. With Notre Dame naturally having greater flexibility in their schedule as an independent, my personal hope was that the Irish would have a far better selection of willing opponents to agree to home-and-homes than they seemed to have in the BCS era.

That hope appears to have turned into reality with the SEC serving as the most willing dance partner. For all the hell I’ve personally given the majority of that conference for rarely travelling north of the Mason-Dixon line, take a look at what the Irish have put together starting this year through the time that the College Football Playoff contract expires in 2025:

2017: vs. Georgia

2018: vs. Vanderbilt

2019: @ Georgia

2020: vs. Arkansas

2024: @ Texas A&M

2025: vs. Texas A&M and @ Arkansas

And what of the (current) SEC-less gap from 2021-2023? A home-and-home with Ohio State in 2022 and 2023 will more than make up for it . In 2021, the Irish kick off the season in Tallahassee to avenge a certain bullshit offensive pass interference call. Still, consider that we are talking about games that are five-plus years away and it would be premature to say with certainty that the Irish won’t find a willing SEC opponent for those open dates, further adding greatness to these schedules.

But let’s look even further than the SEC additions to the schedule. With a certain Domino’s executive no longer in Ann Arbor, ND has put Michigan back on the schedule for the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Purdue has also found their way back on the Irish schedule for 2020-2021 and 2024-2026.

Yes, yes, I know it’s just Purdue, but step back, and look big picture here.

The Irish have a regional, Power Five (hey, stop laughing about Purdue being Power Five) opponent from 2018-2026, one full year past the CFP contract. Should the Irish continue this practice of scheduling SEC opponents or even dipping back into the Big 12 pool (see: Texas and Oklahoma as previous examples) with their current ACC scheduling agreement and current contracts with Stanford through 2019 and Southern Cal through 2023 (and I’m sure those will find extensions to at least 2025), you find a true, coast-to-coast, north-to-south schedule with a regional twist.

Feel free to show me another Power Five team in college football that can pull that off consistently. And that’s not a dig at the rest of college football either. It’s simply the reality of conference membership and the lack of flexibility that those schedules offer their members. Plus, even when most Power Five teams find their way into these non-conference matchups, they often find themselves going to an opening weekend neutral site game instead of the home-and-homes that the Irish are able to pull off.

It’s Rockne’s Ramblers for the modern college football era. If you want to stay independent and truly have a seat at the table in a four-team playoff, these true national schedules, pitting ND against three or even four of the Power Five conferences in a single season, are what the Irish must continue to play.

From a scheduling perspective, the path to the playoff has been paved. It will be up to the Irish to finally walk it.

The post Making the Most of Independence: Notre Dame’s Future Schedules 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.

Last night, you watched The Oscars.

This morning, for your consideration and viewing pleasure, we present the Top Fifteen Plays of the Brian Kelly Years.

@SupermanTDJesus helped with this project. I am grateful for his technical abilities and efficiency.

Let’s face it, though. There have been a lot of plays in five seasons of football. And, if we’re being honest, a lot of booze chased away the memory of the bad ones. These are the plays that have remained through it all. Through all the “Tommy NOOOO!” moments and through all the turnovers in 2014. These are the plays we can’t forget. Some were season-changing or -defining. Others were just plain incredible. So without further ado, if will, please:

15. C.J. Prosise versus Georgia Tech, 2015
The scene is a gorgeous sunny day at Notre Dame and the Irish are tangling with the Wrambling Wreck. The game was a defensive clinic by the Irish, but on O, C.J. Prosise was the man. This 91 yard run from scrimmage was one of three touchdowns he would score that day.

14. Jaylon Smith versus U.S.C., 2013
Remember when Jaylon was a freshman? This play was our entrée to his once-in-a-generation talent, as he covered fifteen hectares in four strides.

13. Stephon Tuitt versus Michigan, 2013
This play has everything you could want. A pick-six against Michigan. A diving Stephon Tuitt. A shockingly bad decision by a Michigan quarterback.

12. Tommy Rees to Robby Toma versus Purdue, 2012
Who would have thought the Purdue game would be the epic win that it was? A loss would have landed the Irish outside the Championship. This play, a third-and-ten conversion, set up the win.

11. Everett Golson “Superman” versus Purdue, 2012
Continuing the theme, this touchdown, though initially uncalled, made Rees and Golson to scoring what Lennon and McCarthy were to song-writing.

10. DeShone Kizer to Will Fuller versus USC, 2015
Of all the Kizer-to-Fuller moments, this is one of the brightest. Watch him torch Adorée Jackson. Looks like 4.32 speed to me.

9. Josh Adams versus Wake Forest, 2015
Longest run from scrimmage. True freshman. Fourth on the depth-chart.

8. Tommy Rees to TJ Jones versus Stanford, 2012
Did you think you’d see this much Tommy Rees on this list? It’s TJ Jones who makes the play.

7. Stephon Tuitt versus Navy, 2012
You knew 2012 would be a special season when we handed Navy its worse loss since Savo Island. This play, a scoop and score by Stephon Tuitt, showcased his NFL-caliber talent and set his team up for a run to the Championship.

6. CJ Sanders versus Stanford, 2015
“When the team is up against it, and the breaks are beating the boys…” you look for plays like this. Sure, the Irish ended up losing the game, but this was one for the ages.

5. Dayne Crist to Kyle Rudolph versus Michigan, 2010
There’s a reason Kyle Rudolph plays on Sundays. This is it.

4. Everett Golson to Chris Brown versus Oklahoma, 2012
One of the brightest plays under the brightest lights, this was the moment the relevance returned.

3. DeShone Kizer to Will Fuller versus Virginia, 2015
Rarely does a season turn on one play, but 2015 did. This is that play.

2. The D-line versus Stanford, 2012
“The Stand.”

1. Louis Nix, III versus Notre Dame, 2014
 Best call ever.

The post Top Fifteen Plays of the Kelly Years appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

This year has been a bit different. Just go take a look at this week’s IBG, the questions and answers are full of more “wait and see” themes than usual. Perhaps some of that is due to the bye being so early. Perhaps that is because there’s been only one opponent and game we’ve really been excited about and next week’s opponent isn’t USC or Stanford, but Syracuse.

So the more I thought about Notre Dame and their place in the college football world this week, the more my thoughts started to flow outward to the rest of that world.

While the game against Purdue caused some concern (and rightly so), take a look at how the rest of the week went. Virginia Tech, after convincingly defeating Ohio State, had their doors blown off by ECU. Georgia fell apart against South Carolina. Florida nearly lost to Kentucky in OT, in The Swamp no less. Iowa State took out Iowa. And, of course, Boston College upset Southern Cal.

Perhaps you had a feeling about some of these games. There is no way in hell you saw all of that coming. This past week was proof that no matter how hard we try, college football will remind us that we simply cannot predict everything.

College football is a crazy, illogical world. Its season is scattered with statistical outliers and results that make little to no sense. Emotions and other intangibles can reign supreme on any even Saturday and set fire to the expected paper result.

Compare this game to the NFL. Through much work, the pros have created a league of parity. Sure, you have good teams and bad, but the tiers are so well structured that the expectations stay reasonable. An upset will happen here and there, but you never see anything resembling this past week in the NFL. More often than not, you know what to expect: competitive games in which the known better teams will come out on top.

It’s almost a sterile environment for football in comparison to the college game. Give me the crazy, emotional investment with the potential for devastating, unexpected results any day.

Sure, this may mean that Notre Dame may inexplicably forget how to play football for a half against Purdue, leading to additional liver damage by way of increased alcohol intake. However, it also means that the joy of being able to find success in this crazy landscape is simply unparalleled.

The Roundup

Michigan fans are still trying to figure out their offense. Pay special attention to the play action pattern they uncovered here.

Famous Jameis being infamous. Poor meme usage leads to the question of whether or not he gets it at all.

Wait, stealing signs is a story? So last night, K-State mentioned Auburn was stealing their signs, leading to memories of Arkansas and Florida State claiming the same previously. Isn’t that, I don’t know, part of the game? I mean, that’s kind of the reason why people use signs in the first place instead of holding a big sign saying “Hey, play action is coming!” right?

File this under “Only at Notre Dame”. I won’t have proper words to describe this, just read it.

File this under “wait, really?!” So Washington fans knew Sark was a fraud and warned Southern Cal about it, apparently. Queue the “I told you so” column and I can’t help but wonder why they hate the guy that drug them out of the Ty Willingham abyss.

And now your moment of Nix… This is the only time BC has given me joy:

The Booze

I’ve been in Portland all week for work. This means all the IPAs, right?

The post Friday Roundup: The “Crazy World of College Football” Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

In this episode, we discuss Notre Dame surviving against Purdue in a crazy week of college football. Molly gives us an insight into what the atmosphere was like in the game and if the mood match ours as we were losing our minds on Twitter. And we cover the good, the bad, the frustrating, and wonder just how upset we should be about the Irish’s performance in this year’s Shamrock Series.

You can check out this week’s episode below:

Finally, as next week is the bye week, we want to hear from you. Fire questions away in the comments below or on Twitter with the hashtag #AskHLSTV. We’ll pick our favorite questions and answer them in next week’s episode!

The post HLS TV (Episode 3): Notre Dame’s a Survivor appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

To enter this week, head on over to the entry form.

But first, let’s see how you did last week. Let’s start with the quotes because I’m giving out some bonus points this week:

Is Devin Gardner like an 8th year senior? – Philly Kelly

I wanted to frame the quote as soon as I saw it last week. Point!

When I think of Michigan, I think of Morrie in “Goodfellas” when he says “Fuck ’em in the ear.” I believe ND will do some ear-banging this weekend. Not much to say. We have a better team, more weapons, and baring turn-overs and old fashion ass cramming by the Big 10 officials, I think they should win this handily. As Lou would say, “It doesn’t have to be close…..” – The Nature Boy

My God, I love this. All of this. ND indeed ear-banged Michigan, and you even called some B1G referring tom-foolery. Point, Natch! WOOOOOOO!

Michigan gets off to a fast start, Golson leads ND back only to lose in some strange horrific fashion that mirrors 4 of last 5 years. Bad Mojo. Hope I’m wrong. – IrishFaninMD

As the lone person to pick Michigan, you were indeed wrong, but I’m sure you don’t care.

1816: Arguably the last year Michigan was a respectable university (Wikipedia that for greater context). Also, in a closest to the pin competition, that would be the number closest to the margin of victory for the Irish. Irish win. Big. – @IrishMoonJ

Point!

Fuck Michigan – NDEddieMac

Well, I mean, obviously.

Utter domination, beginning to end. Break them. – stogiesnbeer

Request heard. Request granted.

No chicken dance tonight – Indiana Kid

More impressive was your perfect 31-0 prediction. Hold on…

/checks timestamp

/sees you did this on Monday

Well, that isn’t how this works. But hey, I appreciate the effort. For this reason I will add -6 bonus points to your score of 6 for a grand total of 0!

Standings

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Staff Picks

[table “” not found /]

Animal Picks

Apologize in advance for the poorer quality of video this week. My wife, the usual camera operator, is out of town this weekend, so I had to roll solo.

Will Gulliver improve on his 1-1, record?

Maybe he’s picking against the spread and I just don’t know it yet. I don’t understand you, Gulliver, but at least you hate Michigan.

The post Shamrock Series Predictions appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Actually, I’m sorry I said that. I’m giving him ideas…

Anyways, I know this rivalry has been rather one-sided recently. Games have ranged from “well, yeah we won, it’s Purdue” to “that was far too close for playing Purdue” to “HOW IN THE BLUE HELL DID WE LOSE TO PURDUE?!” and “Ty lost to Purdue twice, fire his ass.”

I know we’ve pretty much kicked you in the balls with the Purduzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz joke ever since HLS has been in existence. I promise that we tried to be more creative.

Take this Roundup for instance. I thought about re-writing the lyrics for “Runaway Train” as a farewell ode, but that got really depressing really fast. I could’ve dug into Train’s catalog, but I’d rather not have my ears bleed. I thought about making a “Crazy Train” joke, but that’s a ND joke now and you can’t have it.

I thought about some kind of Thomas the Train Engine story. That failed rather miserably. My memories of the show are more or less like good Purdue teams: long gone.

I could make fun of your drum really not being that big. I feel like that’s a step too far though because I got to leave something for you to hold on to. Plus, I’d have to bring up Texas and I can’t stand the Longhorns.

So, yeah…I’m left with the good ‘ol Purduzzzzzzzzzzzzz standby and realizing that the most exciting part of the game will probably be Notre Dame’s alternate uniforms. I’m really sorry about that. I promise I tried.

Chin up, though, Purdue, I’m sure there are people that can get really excited about you:

See you tomorrow, old friend. Apologies in advance for using you as a launching pad for the Everett Golson Heisman campaign*.

*Full disclosure: I’m not sorry about this. At all.

The Roundup

Hatin’ Ass Spurrier has some words for Michigan and they are beautiful (as are all the other words).

No one cares about Boston College football. Including sideline security.

I move for more profiles of awesome mascots. Although I think it only goes downhill after Puddles.

Are trademarks a requirement for Texas A&M QBs? Johnny Football’s successor is following in his footsteps.

And now, your moment of Nix… This was only missing “pucker, pucker, pucker!”

The Booze

I mean, a Boilermaker is the obvious choice here, right? Doubly so because the game is in the capital of Indiana which is the state that houses our good friends at the Indiana Whiskey Company. You know, that thing I’m going to claim this Saturday we give away to the #HLSRecap MVP.

And if you want to step it up with your beer, might I suggest the Indiana local brewery Three Floyds.

Sadly, I’m stuck in Texas, so I will not be able to enjoy these things until I win a bottle of whiskey in the #HLSRecap this weekend. Please, enjoy them for me.

The post Friday Roundup: The “Adieu to Purdue” Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

I suppose that makes sense in some way. While I’m sure all of us will rewatch Michigan over and over again with glee, the 2014 season still has 10 more games and, at some point, we have to look forward.

So with that all being said, let’s get to it.

(My question) Since Michigan still hasn’t scored, let’s talk about the defense: who stood out for you against Michigan?

(Answers linked as they post)

NDNation sees a mullet

Subway Domer has a few standouts

Official ND Blog reminds you of mental errors

UHND

(Aaron Horvath, Official ND Blog) It seems as there is always talk about how the current head coach at Notre Dame is not the right man for the job, however in the past five years Brian Kelly has created a system of consistency and led the Irish in the BCS Championship Game. What do you say to the people out there who still think Coach Kelly is not the man for the job?

I have a couple of issues with the premise of this question in general. Before I get into that, here’s a disclaimer: I love that Brian Kelly is our current head coach and I’ve felt it was the best hire we could make since day 1.

That being said, let’s recognize a couple of things:

1. The head coach of any major program is likely under fire by someone, somewhere. That’s just the nature of the beast and sometimes, those reasons have zero to do with the result on the field, but moreso their vision of what an ideal coach would be.
2. I’m not willing to say BK has “created a system of consistency” at this point. There’s been a lot of changes, moving parts, and square pegs in round holes that have led to 7 & 8 win regular seasons for all but one season of his tenure.

Now, the above isn’t to say this is proof Kelly shouldn’t be here, I just think there is a broad stroke being painted here that isn’t totally realistic. I believe that we are just now, in year five, seeing more of Kelly’s overall vision for ND football, especially on offense with a mature Golson. To put it another way, the real litmus test has begun in earnest.

That being said, if someone has their pitchfork out and torch lit outside the Gug, I’d tell them to calm down because we are only two years removed from a title run and the program still has loads of upside in its current trajectory. If they want Kelly gone for non-football reasons (and honestly, I think that’s the bigger criticism he’s faced), I’m just going to let them joust at windmills because that’s an argument in which everyone loses.

(Mike Coffey, NDNation) While it will be difficult to make many definitive statements about the team this week due to the poor quality if opponent, what is one thing you really want to see them do against Purdue?

Blow them out. We have consecutive 30+ point wins for the first time since the Holtz era and I want more.

We’ve been begging to have a team that blows the doors off bad opponents. That’s what the elite playoff contenders will do and that’s what I want to see.

If we’re going to be in that conversation, we can’t have a let down after Michigan and let Purdue hang around. Our schedule is far too tough to fall into that dangerous habit.

(Frank Vitovitch, UHND.com) Notre Dame has struggled against Purdue the last two years even though the Boilers have had back to back down years.  1) Why has Purdue given Notre Dame such problems the last two seasons 2) what does Notre Dame have to do avoid a similar fate this weekend and 3) will Notre Dame be able to keep this game from being too close for comfort this year?

There’s always someone with the multiple questions, but seriously all Purdue ones? Destroying Michigan really has thrown us off our center.

Anyways:

1. Everett Golson debuted and Tommy Rees was Tommy Rees. Further, Purdue, believe it or not, actually had some incredible talent on their defensive line the past couple of seasons. We had to attack the edges and spread the field the last two seasons and we failed to do so efficiently. That allowed Purdue to hang around for much longer than they should each game.
2. Execute and don’t turn the ball over. Plain and simple. This isn’t the same Golson and offense they saw two years ago and they don’t have the weapons to stop it.
3. I think so. I have a feeling that, much like Rice and Michigan, the game will be well in control, and likely over, by the half.

(The Subway Domer) Can you remember a time when you got excited for Notre Dame vs Purdue? Did you just get a color television?

ZING!

/falls back asleep remembering we have to play Purdue

With all of this recent talk of different series ending and scheduling issues, what are your opinions on scheduling b16 teams? How does Notre Dame keep a strong regional presence while continuing to live nationally?

Do what you can when you can. Sparty is back in 2016 and 2017 and Purdue returns in 2020 as of now. Then you have the home and home with Ohio State in 2023 and 2024.

And to be honest, a lot of the issues right now is that ND has to work through some older agreements they had pre-ACC. I have a feeling that after 2017 and 2018, things will be slightly more flexible to fit the more traditional regional rivals back in on a fairly regular basis.

But here’s the secret to ND’s regional presence: if they are good they have it. Will a regional game help? Definitely, but let’s not pretend like ND needs those games to secure it.

The truth is that ND has a larger focus on winning hearts in the other recruiting hotbeds like California, Texas, Florida, and . That’s a much harder thing for ND to do, even if they are good and they require an increased presence in those areas so recruits can get a taste of what the ND experience is like, especially since the SEC is the current king right now.

And you know what? I love that. It’s a different mindset than most of the B1G and I’m perfectly fine with it. We are playing a different recruiting game than they are.

Let’s be honest with something else as well, the B1G is trending downwards and Delany is screwing them. Last weekend was a disaster for the conference and was their last real chance to make an impact in their out-of-conference schedule. They are about to go into their B1G conference schedule shell in a couple of weeks and their OOC failures have completely devalued the impact of those games on a national level.

The funny part is that they aren’t even in their nine-game conference schedule yet, which isn’t going to help their chances to make OOC splashes and its amazing to me that Delany can’t see that.

So yeah, if we can get them on the schedule, great. If not, whatever, let’s go play the Texas and Georgia and the like.

The post Irish Blogger Gathering: Somehow We Had Questions About Purdue appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.