Visit the Tiki Bar!

You know, every now and then you run across something that's just totally brilliant...

Great comedy.
And Lala? She ain't no Teletubbie, friend.

God, I hope so!

“I don’t come here to leave and take a job in the NFL in three years. This is
not a stepping stone. This is an end-all for our family,” he said. “When we come
to Notre Dame, we come here with the intent of retiring here.” - Charlie Weis

Yes indeed!

Ah, the good old days. The cover of Sports Illustrated from October 24, 1988.

Bandwagon

Just watched the tape of the Purdue game (finally!) last night and Bob Davie (who was doing the color commentary for ESPN) said at least twice "I'm on the Charlie Weis Bandwagon"... just thought that was interesting coming from a guy who took a talented Irish team 7 years ago and helped them to underachieve so badly....

Also.. and maybe more interestingly, Davie made the remark (something like) "Charlie Weis is giving a clinic here tonight. And he'll be giving a clinic again next year... and I'd like to attend that clinic..." I don't doubt it that you would, Bob. Don't doubt it for a second.

Heisman voters: please take note of the Mighty Quinn...

The Irish beat BYU 49-23.. and Weis puts on another clinic.

Well, Kirk Herbstreit said it-- what we've kinda hoped might possible be true (but never really believed anyone outside the NotreDameNation would notice)-- that next year, Brady Quinn will be the man to beat for the Heisman...

But this year, Quinn is staking his claim.
Today's numbers-- 32 of 41, for 467 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Stovall caught 4 TDs-- a school record.
Samardzija picked up 2-- his seventh straight game with a TD catch (also a school record, I think)... so although he didn't catch the three I'd hoped for him, you won't hear me complaining.

You know, watching ND games now-- someone said Weis' post-game press conferences are like coaching clinics-- well, I think watching his games are like watching football experiments. Today, it was as though Weis said to himself, "Let's see what happens if we don't try to run at all." The book on BYU was that they were all about the passing game.. so Weis decided to fight fire with fire and just let Quinn get pass-happy today... and it worked beautifully.

Half-time note

One quick note from half-time...
Irish lead 21-10 at the half.
During the half-time show, they did a little segment on the USC-ND game and they quoted an officiating source (unnamed) with the NCAA who said that although the 'assisting the runner' rule is on the books, "it will never be called."

Well then.. sounds like the rule books needs some revising, doesn't it?
I move for an amendment!

Go Irish! Beat Cougars!

I don't really have a lot to say about this game. Haven't had a lot of time this week to read much about BYU. The Irish come into the game ranked #9 by the AP (who didn't drop them an inch after the hard-fought loss to USC) and #16 by the newly released BCS... and while I have defended the BCS in the past, I am truly perplexed by this year's first poll... I think the whole thing lost a balancing force (and the credibility to go with it) when the AP subtracted itself from the equation. This Harris Poll or whatever is just not a good or reasonable substitute, from what we've seen so far.

So BYU has this 'Air Raid' offense, from what little I've read. The only problem with that for the Irish... our one weakness on Defense is our secondary... so unless the D-line can really break through and create havoc for the BYU Quarterback before he can throw the ball, this could be another shocker for the Irish... but this time, not in the positive way it was last week. And that's the last thing we need is a 'let-down' week after teh strong showing against USC. We've finally got people believing the Irish are for real-- they're finally playing like they're for real. We don't need to let that slide away with a poor performance this afternoon.

So please, Defense. Be swift and merciless. Get to the Quarterback and don't let him 'air it out' as they're fond of doing.
And on offense, I'd love to see Jeff Samardzija have a 3-TD day... maybe another couple of TDs for Darius Walker.. and let's have the two of them join Brady Quinn in the Heisman balloting...
Wishful thinking? Why not!

So glad I'm not an SEC fan...

Thank God I'm not a UT or Alabama fan. For that matter, I'm glad I'm not an SEC fan.
How bad must it feel to be a fan of either school with these images splashed across the front page at ESPN?

Images aside, the story is pretty good-- if you like sordid stories about highschool coaches 'selling' players for $150,000 payoffs.. and then the kind of sleazy sting operation orchestrated by Tennessee boosters (and one former US. Attorney General-turned-liquor-store-owner-- no kidding) to bring the whole ring down.

So where does that leave us now? With UT's coach Fulmer being escorted by THP into Tuscaloosa... and an ESPN story that revels in the ramblings of every drunken booster it can find...

Not Top 5 for me...

Okay.. all I'm going to say about the ND-USC game is this:

1) Green Jerseys: Nice move, Charlie. Even with the outcome, I like the choice.

2) why should a team benefit by fumbling the football? (how you can fumble backward to the 1/2 yard line is beyond me as well, but we won't go there). Why should the clock stop for this if the player remains in bounds?




3) Reggie Push. The guy doesn't even know it's illegal to push the runner over the goal-line...
Picture two guys from Southern California, lisping behind mouthpieces:
"Hey dude, I just scored."
"Yeah dude. I like totally just SHOVED you."
"Thanks, Dude."
"Dude."

Dan Patrick says guys get pushed across the line all the time without it being called. That's the group-think now-- it happens all the time. Gotta call BS on that one, Dan. If it happens every Saturday, then give me the name of a Div I player who assisted a runner across the goal line last week? or the week before?
And in a game-deciding touchdown?

That said-- Charlie Weis says he'd have done it if it were him.
Speaking of Charlie Weis.. the guy is just class, out and out.
Went to the SC lockerroom to congratulate the Trojans and then used what he said to them as a lesson for his 12 year old son-- that it's easy to be nice when you win; it's a whole lot harder to be nice when you lose.

Gotta say, it was a fabulous game, from what I hear.
Yeah, I didnt' actually get to see it because I was out of town for my college Homecoming and the current members of my fraternity preferred to watch the Louisville game. Dickheads. And they bought crappy cheap beer and only had one bottle of Maker's Mark. Who teaches these kids these days? I guess they won't be getting my usual check for the 'house fund' this year.

Positive notes from the game:
1) Oh my God, for all practical purposes, we just beat USC!
2) ND is back! No question. And the media is jumping all over themselves to announce it.
3) It just gets more and more clear every week: Jeff Samardzija is the man!
4) Were it not for SC's game-saving drive in the final minute, we'd all (well, okay, maybe just me around here) be talking about Brady Quinn's final drive.. and his drive for the Heisman. See this from the Sporting News story on the game:

Weis had a short chat with Brady Quinn before Notre Dame's
last possession, when the Irish were behind 28-24 with 5:09.
"I said, 'Hey,
buddy, this is the type of drive that legends are made,"' Weis said. "He looked
at me and he knew exactly what I was saying to him."
Weis told Quinn he was
going to call a bunch of three-step drops and quick slants.
"We're going to
get them reeling, we're going to get some yards and runs after catch," Weis told
Quinn. "We're going to go down there and score. I go: 'Be patient, we have
plenty of time."'
Quinn was 4-of-4 passing during that drive for 53 yards,
while Darius Walker ran the ball three times for 29 yards. Quinn capped the
drive with a 5-yard run, scoring a touchdown when he stretched his right arm
into the end zone as he was being tackled.

The other thing the national media is jumping up and down to do is call this game 'the greatest college football game of all time.' Well, I must say, I'm with Coach Weis on this one: this won't be one of my Top 5 games.. because we lost. It was a great game, no question about it. But ask a Kentucky fan how they feel about the '92 Christian Laettner game-- think they call that one of the greatest games in college basketball? Not likely. I'll take ND's victories over Miami (31-30 in 1988) or Florida State in 1993 any day...

That said, Gene Wojciechowski did write a really nice story about the game.. and from what I saw, he was the first to dub the game the 'Greatest of All Time'.

Oh.. and let's raise a toast to Tommy Zbikowski for knocking a cocksur Reggie Bush on his ass as he tried, literally, to waltz into the end-zone:
[this from the Wojciechowski article]

It takes arrogance to do what Bush did during that same drive: bolting through the line, sprinting into the open field, grandly gesturing with one hand as he neared the end zone, and then slowing down just as he crossed the goal line. That's when Notre Dame safety Tom Zbikowski, who never gave up on the play, popped Bush with a hit the USC tailback so richly deserved.

Future opponents take note: Zbikowski never gave up on the play.

This much is certain: I'll be in LA for the game next year.

Sick week...

Have had no time for blogging this week.. too much work, sick family, then sick me...

But I did want to login just long enough to say two things:
1) no I didn't get to see the SC game last Saturday (that's a story I will have to tell).
and
2) Holy Cow, the "Shark" is the MAN!

California Dreaming...

Who can resist it? What would it be like if the Irish could pull of the upset this weekend and beat Southern Cal? Impossible. Too crazy to even be imagined. I won't allow myself.

But...

Southern Cal is, of course, ranked #1. The Irish come into the week at #9, benefiting from a couple of losses by Top Ten teams over the bye week.
And the national media seems split. Papers out west like the LA Times seem to be talking up some of the (virtually invisible) weaknesses of the Trojans-- pointing to the weak first-half performances USC has put up in its last three games. Then again, in each of those games, the weak first-half was followed by a dominant second-half performance. So who knows what Trojans team will show up. First half or second?

Likewise for the Irish, who've had some games (especially early on against Pitt and Michigan) in which strong first-half performances were followed-up with underwhelming (at best) second-halves. And how will the Irish Defense really stack up against that vaunted USC O-line. We know the defensive secondary will have to play way over their heads. And finally-- if USC has a weakness, it would appear, similar to the Irish, to be the defense. So the intrigue, as all the pundits are saying now, will be to see how Weis's Offense matches up against Carroll's defense.

Again, I say: Remember the Pats of the mid-90's. Those were the Pete Carroll Pats... can he really be such a genius?

I'll be out of town on Saturday at my college homecoming.. no idea what the internet connectivity situation will be over the weekend, so the blog may go silent.. but I'll have my eye on the game as much as possible. May have to have a pledge come bring me scoring updates every 10 minutes or so.. hehe!

Musings for the week

1. Bryce really is a good sleeper. I don't really have anything to complain about, given what a light sleeper Aidan was. Bryce has spent much of his baby-hood sleeping on my shoulder.. but I'm doing what I can to gradually change that, moving him to the bed earlier and earlier. He's taking to it pretty well. And I find that we don't have to worry about him waking nearly as much as we did with Aidan-- who could be woken by the sound of the cat padding down the hall outside his door. In fairness, Sylvie is not all that quiet a cat, though.

2. The best show on television is, without a doubt, Battlestar Galactica-- but it's on hiatus until January (!)-- so my guilty television pleasure of the moment is Boston Legal. The stories aren't all that great... but Allen Shore and Denny Crane are just too much fun to watch.

3. Looks like this may be the end of the road for the Yankees. In their 5-game Divisional series with the Angels, they took the first game (with a great performance from Mussina) and looked like they were in pretty good shape. But then the Angels took game 2. And last night, as Chicago was completing their sweep of the Red Sox in their series, the Yanks gave up 11 runs (after rallying from 5 runs down to take the lead 6-5)-- and Randy Johnson got chased in the 3rd-- to lose again 11-7. So now they're on the ropes.. and the only way to win is in 5 games.. which, even if they wind up winning, spells certain doom in the ALCS...
(photo: nydailynews.com)

Missed another one..

Irish win! over #14 Purdue, 49-28... but most of those 28 points came in the last part of the game, when it was already well out of reach for the Boilers...

So the Irish are 4-1 going into the bye week before the biggest game of the year against Southern Cal.

That said, again this week, I missed the game.. not because of regional coverage (or lack of it), but because I was out of town at a friend's wedding.

Another ND grad at the wedding and I kept going back to the bar in the back room at th reception hall to catch glimpses of the game and get the updated score.
I was stunned each time I saw the score in the first half-- 14.. 21... 28.. to nothing? Can it be true?

And Samardzija made yet another SportsCenter- worthy one-handed grab at the one-yard line to setup a touchdown...
The national media is really starting to pick up on him.

So I've got the game on tape and will try to watch it this week...

Montana

This has me almost in tears this morning...
From Ivan Maisel's "3-Point Stance" this morning...

1. On the day before 10-year-old Montana Mazurkiewicz, named for Joe, died of brain cancer Friday, Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis visited him and let him call the first play vs. Washington. Even from the Irish 1, Weis sent in Montana's pass. Brady Quinn completed it. Yesterday, Montana's family got a game ball. God bless Charlie Weis.

It's Over.

Irish win 36-17...
and finally, all the Ty Willingham talk can end... hopefully.

Half-time

A few half-time stats:

Irish lead 12-3.

First downs: ND leads 17-9
Turnovers: Wash leads 2-0
Total Offense: ND leads 246-231
Time of Possession: Irish 17:39, Wash 12:21

Quinn: 15-21, 146 yards.
Walker: 11 rushes, for 73 yards.

Samardzija: 5 catches for 62 yards
Fasano: 3 catches for 33 yards

Touchdown Walker!

2nd and 2 on the 17 - WALKER rush for 17 yards to the WASH0, TOUCHDOWN, clock 04:47.

Miss the extra point (was it blocked?).
Irish lead 9-3.

Thank you WLS!

Well, it only took me until about the end of the 1st quarter to find WLS-AM radio out of Chicago for a live stream of the game broadcast. Listening to it now through iTunes.

About 10 minutes left in the 2nd quarter. ND and Washington are tied, 3-3.
Quinn is 10-14 with 87 yards.
Walker has 44 yards on 7 attempts.

ND at Washington

Bummer... looks like the game isn't on TV locally.. so we'll be treated instead to VA Tech vs. GA Tech. Lovely. According the ABC's coverage map, it looks like everyone from San Diego to the northern tip of Maine will be watching the ND game.. while we in the southeast corner of the country will get our regional game.

In past years, I think the local ABC affiliate has been so overrun with phone calls that they've decided to change the feed. Maybe that'll happen again. But I won't hold my breath.

So instead, I guess I'll be listening to the streaming radio broadcast, if I can find it.

Pretty mellow this morning. Was up late last night watching BattleStar Galactica (Oh my! "Pegasus" might be the best episode so far!).. and Bryce was pretty restless during the night. So forgive me if I'm not my exuberant self for gameday today.

Still reeling..

Still reeling from yesterday's loss... I couldn't believe my eyes when Teague when scampering into the end-zone in Overtime...
Then again, I couldn't believe that the Irish came back from a 3-touchdown deficit to tie the game in the 4th quarter.
Makes the loss all the more heartbreaking.

Quinn threw for close to 500 yards and five touchdowns...

And Samardzija caught three touchdowns..

But, as Weis said after the game,

"I'm not a stat guy. I play the game to win. We didn't win and that's the bottom line."

But about Samardzija, it does my heart good to see him making those catches this year. After seeing a guy like Samardzija be so under-utilized last year-- then see him catch three touchdowns yesterday, five on the year...

He's got great hands-- can catch just about anything thrown near him. And Quinn was not real consistent with his accuracy-- throwing behind open receivers a number of times. Samardzija seemed to be the only one among them able to reach back and make the grab under pressure. Impressive.

As the 'Rock' says in his report on ndnation.com, by USC week, this team will be a much improved squad. They're learning and building chemistry each week. They don't have that bewildered expression the way they did last year.

All is not lost.
And it's not like we were honestly expecting to go undefeated this year. It just would have been nice to end this ridiculous streak of MSU wins at ND Stadium...

Rock-n-Roll lifestyle...

I don't know how Bryce does it.
Up all night. Up all day.
Up until 1:00am last night.. then up at 7:17am this morning, and still going.
As I write this, he's furiously climbing all over the Kangaroo climber we've setup (after a 2-year hiatus) again downstairs.

Amazing.
I'll have what he's having...

A beautiful morning...

It looks like a beautiful morning in South Bend!













And South Quad is, as always, the place to be. I'm sure they've been grilling outside the KofC hall since early this morning...

And O'Shaughnessy Hall, my old haunt, is awash in people.. I'm sure they're not there to get Seamus Deane's autograph.

Home Opener! Go Irish!

Go00000000 Irish! Beeeeaaaat Spartans!

#10 Notre Dame welcomes unranked Michigan State to Notre Dame Stadium...

Like many Irish fans, I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to go into the Michigan State game without a sense of dread. For a seeming eternity now, the Irish have appeared to be completely unraveled by Michigan State in the closing quarter. No matter the score at half-time, you can trust the Spartans will be within a touchdown of the Irish by the 4th quarter...

...and that's about the time the Irish Defense forgets how to defend against the pass over the middle... and Smoker slings the ball to a slanting receiver cutting across the middle and goes for 50..60..70 yards and a game-winning touchdown...

oh, sorry.. having a flashback there...

So here we are. with the Spartans coming to South Bend.. and that sense of dread comes with them.

Then again.. Weis seems to have changed the whole equation. The defense, a big weakness in many minds this year, has been a pleasant surprise. Linebackers Brandon Hoyte and Corey Mays -- we might have expected good things from them.. But Ambrose Wooden, and Tommy Zbikowski are off to great starts, as well ("Crazy" Zbikowski has been all over the papers this week) and it's clear that this defense is just better coached than any Irish squad in recent memory.

What a difference a coach can make?
What a difference 5 coaches can make!
Hiring Weis got the buzz going...
but when people saw the assistants he brought on board in the months that followed... that's when everyone really started to believe, I think.

And who could have guessed that that great collection of coaches could have such an impact so quickly? So where are they now? The pundits who insisted that Notre Dame's talent was inferior? That the University would, as Paul Hornung infamously (and wrongly) asserted on camera last year, have to reduce admission requirements to bring in 'difference makers.'

And let's be honest-- when you hear people talking about 'difference makers' in college football.. you know they're not talking about kids that look like Jeff Samardzija.

This assumption-- and it's an assumption made by college athletics top to bottom, from the NCAA on down-- that a kid can't be smart, athletic, and black is most troubling. It gets more troubling when you consider how much MONEY the NCAA and these universities make on the backs of kids brought in on athletic scholarship-- kids with little or no preparation for post-secondary academics who will almost certainly fail out of school (as soon as the football coach allows them to fail out, that is)...

NCAA makes its money.
College makes its money.
But where's the kid left? Without a pro football contract. And without an education.

A lot of pundits make hay, talking about how athletes in revenue sports should be given a portion of that revenue the University takes in.

What's wrong with making sure those athletes receive that education first?

#11 hangs 'em up..

You know, you can't exactly call yourself surprised when a pro athlete who's been in the league for 25 years retires...

But, all the same, it took the wind out of my sails a little bit yesterday when I heard that Mark Messier-- the Mess-iah; the Jaw; the toughest man in hockey; most importantly (to me at least) the man who brought a Stanley Cup to the New York Rangers-- has retired.

I grew up a casual hockey fan-- but even I knew, watching those Edmonton teams in the 80's, when everyone was talking about Gretzky (and why wouldn't they?), Messier stood out as the tough, gritty skater who just always seemed to be in the right place at the right time-- whether it was to deliver the puck, or to deliver a hit.

When he came to the Rangers in 1991-- he'd already won 5 Stanley Cups in Edmonton-- his hometown, no less-- so you'd think winning one more would be an anti-climax. But Messier seemed to flourish in New York. When he came to town, he guaranteed a Cup. And New York became his adopted hometown. But he never seemed to relish the limelight-- even when he fulfilled that guarantee in 1994. He led by example. He gave gracious interviews. And he always attributed the success of the team to his teammates. And then he hung up his skates and went home.

Rangers fans everywhere wept the day he signed with Vancouver-- and, strangely, even he never seemed happy to go. It was like a short, bad dream. And then he was back in uniform with the Rangers. And we could hope that all would be well with hockey again.

But Mess was slowly starting to give into injuries and his time on the ice was more and more limited... you knew in the back of your mind that this day would come

But what a leader. Toughness through and through. Hardly seems possible he's Canadian!

It's a Starbucks morning..

Two straight light-sleeping nights from Bryce... So when we all got up at 7:00 this morning (a scant 5 1/2 hours after I got to bed), I brewed up some good stiff Gold Coast for breakfast..

Then again, I was up too late reading college football websites last night...

What's Bryce's deal? I don't know. He's got some allergies maybe.. been having trouble with some snottiness (sorry.. there's just no better way to say that).. so he just hasn't been sleeping very deeply.

And with the pterodactyl scream he's developed over the last few weeks, when he doesn't sleep well, none of the rest of us sleep well. That's for sure.

Play of the game

Zbikowski's interception in the 3rd Quarter has to be the play of the game.
Michigan was driving for its first touchdown.. with plenty of time left to tie it up..
And Zbikowski makes a key interception at the goal-line...

Key play at a key moment..

Party in 'The Big House'

Trevor Laws and the Irish celebrate their first victory in 'The Big House' since 1993.

Lloyd Carr...

Just watched Lloyd Carr's press conference on ESPNNews... and all I can say is.. wuh.. huh..

Oh, sorry, I dozed off there..
The guy just puts you to sleep.
No wonder he can't get his players fired up.
And then there came the double-talk:

"…we have no excuses here. We've never made excuses and we never will, but have been a very unlucky football team from an injury standpoint right from beginning of this fall training camp."

Team stats

Team Stat Comparison
1st Downs	19	15
3rd down efficiency	4-15	5-18
4th down efficiency	0-0	2-4
Total Yards	247	335
Passing	140	224
Comp-Att	19-30	19-44
Yards per pass	4.7	5.1
Rushing	107	111
Rushing Attempts	44	28
Yards per rush	2.4	4.0
Penalties	4-20	4-27
Turnovers	1	2
Fumbles lost	1	1
Interceptions thrown	0	1

2-0

Irish win it!
They're 2-0...
but only 47 total yards in the 2nd half. They got very very conservative.. plus the Michigan Defense really stood up..
But Quinn just didn't look as sharp this week...

Weis, in his post game remarks to Lyn Swann said:
"Defense played great; Special Teams played great; Offense played well enough."

The DUKE!

Ndukwe makes such a heads-up play grabbing a fumbled ball on the goal-line!
Of course, the officials on the ground make the wrong call.. and the Review box has to call down with the proper call and give the Irish the ball on the touchback!

And the Michigan fans start throwing junk on the field... classy!

Go Irish!

Zibby gets away with one..

Irish go three and out..
Then Zbikowski gets away with touching Manningham, the Michigan receiver, when he gets beat on a deep route...
These officials really are bad.

Prevent?

What is this prevent defense.. Irish let Michigan into the end-zone for the first time all day..

Irish up 17-10.

Michigan comes up empty!

4 downs. No points.
Henne chokes on 4th and goal and throws to the band.

8 minutes left and Quinn throws from his own goal line on 1st down.
I love it!

Nessler and Griese are now talking about what will happen to Michigan's No. 3 ranking if they lose this game.



From the ESPN.com front page:

Looks like the Fighting Irish are legit. Notre Dame leads No. 3 Michigan 17-3 in the fourth.

Fumble

Walker fumbles the ball.. Michigan is inside the red-zone.
Crap.

Irish D: So impressed

I'm so impressed with the Irish Defensive line...
Outweighed by an average of 50 pounds by the Michigan O-line.. but they're controlling the line of scrimmage and not letting Michigan get any kind of run game going...

Irish up 17-3, 4th quarter...

And..

And here's why strength of schedule matters...

McKnight
Wooden
Walker

All have gone down with one kind of injury or another... and who knows how many others on both sides will come out of this game with knicks and dings...

And if the Irish can pull of this win.. and beat Michigan State next week.. those tough games you play should count for something more than the meaningless wins over hapless I-AA creampuffs...

Irish are up 14-3, in the 3rd quarter.

And Walker is back. Not sure what happened, but he was down there for a while, but they've got him back in..

Playoff?

The ABC crew got into it a little bit about a college football playoff...

I look at it this way.. if the top college programs all had to play a minimum number of other top programs-- for one thing you wouldn't wind up with 2 or 3 undefeated teams at the end of the year.. and it would be much clearer who the rightful champion is.

The regular season should be the playoff... but it won't be as long games like Nebraska-Maine (last week) and VA Tech-Duke (this week) count in the Win-Loss records at the end of the year...

Bring back the Strength of Schedule-- make it a PRIMARY component of the BCS-- and incent schools to schedule the big intersectional opponents...

Tom Brady Quinn

Okay.. without a doubt.. ABC is wearing out the freakin' "Tom Brady Quinn" quips..

Shuddup already.

Oh Rhema!

2nd Quarter. 7-3.. the Michigan defense has stood up and ND hasn't been able to put together much of a drive until now..

Rhema McKnight goes down with an AWFUL looking knee bent sideways...
AND the Big Ten officials say he didn't catch the ball!

Thank God, McKnight walks off the field (with some help)-- there's still hope.

Darius Walker shows he is still the man! Has 93 yards...

Irish inside the 10..

Tipped pass... Samardjiza TOUCHDOWN!

Watching GameDay

ND is ranked #20.
Michigan is #3.

Wow. The Gameday guys just can't stop talking about Weis and the Irish.
How irrelevant does the OSU-Texas game seem? regardless of the rankings...

Herbstreit even calls Brady Quinn his "Game Changer"...
Much more of this and OSU will be taking back his Buckeye...

Herbstreit and Corso both pick ND (and the OSU crowd goes crazy..)

ND vs. UM: a little history

Through the years

Year	Site	Score	Rank
1887	ND	UM 8, ND 0	-/-
1888	ND	UM 26, ND 6	-/-
1888	ND	UM 10, ND 4	-/-
1898	UM	UM 23, ND 0	-/-
1899	UM	UM 12, ND 0	-/-
1900	UM	UM 7, ND 0	-/-
1902	N*	UM 23, ND 0	-/-
1908	UM	UM 12, ND 6	-/-
1909	UM	ND 11, UM 3	-/-
1942	ND	UM 32, ND 20	6/4
1943	UM	ND 35, UM 12	1/2
1978	ND	UM 28, ND 14	5/14
1979	UM	ND 12, UM 10	9/6
1980	ND	ND 29, UM 27	8/14
1981	UM	UM 25, ND 7	11/1
1982	ND	ND 23, UM 17	20/10
1985	UM	UM 20, ND 12	-/13
1986	ND	UM 24, ND 23	3/-
1987	UM	ND 26, UM 7	16/9
1988	ND	ND 19, UM 17	13/9
1989	UM	ND 24, UM 19	1/2
1990	ND	ND 28, UM 24	1/4
1991	UM	UM 24, ND 14	3/7
1992	ND	UM 17, ND 17	6/3
1993	UM	ND 27, UM 23	11/3
1994	ND	UM 26, ND 24	6/3
1997	UM	UM 21, ND 14	6/-
1998	ND	ND 36, UM 20	22/3
1999	UM	UM 26, ND 22	7/16
2002	ND	ND 25, UM 23	20/7
2003	UM	UM 38, ND 0	5/15
2004	ND	ND 28, UM 20	-/8
2005	UM	ND vs. UM	20/3

Nano? Oh yes!

Alright.. I'm a geek. I admit it.
But when I saw the first pictures of this new iPod Nano... it flat took my breath away.
Lightweight (1.5 ounces) and just beautiful!

Am I gonna buy one? Well, no. Not this year anyway.
But one analyst I read mentioned that he thinks Apple will sell 12 million of the things in the 4th quarter alone!

Oh. And the Apple/Motorola iTunes phone was released. Ho hum.
Just like Steve Jobs to show up his own new product release with another debut that a) took everyone by surprise ; and b) totally blows the main event out of the water!

Patriot Games

From Herbstreit's article on ESPN.com:

The best thing I saw from Notre Dame last week was the confidence that was
growing as the game progressed. The Irish have become a confident team after
being beat up for so long. The other thing I noticed was the offensive variety:
formations, play calling, getting the running backs involved, throwing to the
tight end … it was the New England Patriots' offense. Variety and
diversification are two things that are tough to prepare for because there
aren't any tendencies. And it's going to take a similar effort in Ann Arbor this
weekend...
...
Back to Weis for a moment. Everybody wondered how Weis would do as a head
coach in South Bend. I know it's only one game, but I'm telling you right now he
is going to recruit like a madman. Offensive skill-position players will take a
hard look at going to South Bend if that is the kind of offense Weis is going to
play on the collegiate level. You will see a lot of recruits want to play for
him for one reason: Not only are you going to win -- and maybe win championships
-- but you have a great shot at getting to the NFL. In the process of gathering
a lot of talent, Weis is going to be competing within two to three years for BCS
bowl rights, there's no question in my mind.

Here's hoping...

If all goes well tomorrow..

Nerd TV

Don't miss Robert Cringely's latest venture-- an online 'TV' interview program called Nerd TV.
One-hour, wall to wall interviews with some of the seminal figures in the history of IT.

This week, episode 1, is Andy Hertzfeld, the first Mac programmer.. ever.

Two weeks from today, Bill Joy! Co-Founder of Sun, father of Berkeley Unix.. and all around big-brain.

Tom Brady in an ND Cap?

From today's South Bend Tribune:

That's not to say Brady doesn't have a rooting interest and something on the line other than pride for Saturday's clash between the 20th-ranked Irish and No. 3 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Oh we have a friendly agreement," Weis said. "Well I'm not going to tell you what I would owe him, but I can tell you (that) if he loses, he's going to be wearing a Notre Dame football hat to his next press conference."

Another Shot..

.. of the Samardzija catch..

The catch...

Here's a shot of that fantastic Jeff Samardzija catch

We Torched Them...

Clip from The Rock 9/4:

Turns out that it doesn't take three years to install an offense. You can win a night game. Notre Dame players do have talent. In-game adjustments are vitally important. And winning on the field doesn't mean you have to cut corners. You just have to coach them; nice game Ambrose...

It was by no means perfection. Brady still has some accuracy issues; his interception was a puzzler. Our defensive line pressure was almost non-existent in the first half. Our deep safety help was suspect as was our overall pass defense. Our punting was abysmal, though we were fortunate to get a few lucky rolls. Ten penalties are far too much....

We hit hard. We gang tackled. We were aggressive.

Most of all, the Irish finally looked like a well-coached, talented, motivated, football team. How much of a difference does coaching make? These were essentially the same teams that played last year, but with new coaches.

Except the challenge last night was greater. The intangibles were against us Saturday: we played on the road, at night, against a higher ranked team... and we torched them.

"Better than they thought they were..."

From Gene Wojciechowski's column (on the front page of ESPN.com) this morning:

You could see Weis' smudge marks all over this Notre Dame team, especially on offense. The Irish led 35-13 at halftime, scoring more points in two quarters than the Irish scored in 10 different games last year. So Patriot-like was the offensive efficiency that a Boston Globe writer, here to cover Weis's first game, couldn't help himself after the Irish scored their fourth touchdown.

"I saw this in January," said the writer, referring to New England's 41-27 win against the Steelers in this same stadium.

Even Weis was willing to admit that the Irish occasionally flirted with perfection in those first 30 minutes.

"I think by halftime the players started to realize they're better than they thought they were," he said.

It will take more than the Patriots' playbook and this stomping of Pitt to revitalize Notre Dame football. After all, the Irish haven't been in a BCS bowl since the 2000 season, haven't won a bowl game since 1993, and haven't won a national championship since 1988. That's when Lou Holtz still referred to one of the service academies as, "The University of Navy." But Saturday night's game is a pleasant start, though it's probably wise to remember that Tyrone Willingham won his first eight games as Notre Dame's coach, and look what happened to him: canned last season with three years remaining on his contract.

Final stats

a few notes from the Game Stats page:
ND had 503 total yards offense.
228 yards passing/275 rushing.
10 penalties-- I think 5 or 6 of them in the 2nd half.
Quinn went 18 for 27 with 2 TDs

Meanwhile, the Irish Defense held Pitt to 105 yards rushing.. and 219 passing.
Not great.. but not bad, considering what happened last year.

It's a ballgame...

It's official
The Irish win, 42-21.
And Charlie Weis has his first win as a head coach, his first win for the Irish...

The Panthers tacked on a late touchdown on a nice pass from Tyler Palko.

The Irish defense looked better after that lousy 1st quarter.
But the second half was pretty sloppy in general-- a number of penalties and a few mental errors.

But overall, I have to say-- this looked like the best-coached Irish team I've seen in years and years.. maybe the best I've ever seen. Then again, maybe I'm just still giddy with the excitement of witnessing it...

And it does look like Weis is going to be able to turn Brady Quinn into a star.
Last year, Quinn couldn't seem to throw a hard, accurate pass to save his life.
Tonight, he was zinging the ball in their and hitting his receivers beautifully.
10 for 10 for 100 yards, just in the second quarter.

And thank the Lord the coaches appear to have recognized that Jeff Samardzija can catch the ball!

Wake up the echoes! Shake down the thunder!

USC crushes Hawaii 63-17

Is it really any surprise that #1 USC (The University of Spoiled Children, as my old roommate used to call them) destroyed Hawaii today?
May as well pull a Spurrier and call it a 'pre-season' game...

ND is up 42-13, 3rd quarter.

ND-Pitt Half-time Stats

The Irish are dominating with 319 total yards on offense (to 154 from Pitt)..
198 yards passing!
and 19 first downs...
and (here's the biggie) only one turnover...

Fingers crossed! that the second-half can live up to the first!

Willingham's first game in WA...

Oh yeah, and then there's this little piece of news:

Air Force beats Willingham's Huskies

0-6?

Where's Corso? Where's Reece Witherspoon, (or whatever his name is..)?
Wonder what the guys at Gameday will be saying now that ND is up 35-13...
against the first of 5 ranked opponents the Irish play this year...

Rashon Powers-Neale rumbled in for the latest touchdown a few minutes ago.

I know it's a long game.. and the Irish could well give this one up in the 2nd half-- we'll see what the Panthers do in the lockerroom to adjust.
But I'm overjoyed with what I'm seeing out of the Irish offense.
Defense still needs some work-- though they have responded since the first quarter..

Weis is reported to have told them, after the first terrible defensive series, that they'd "better play better or [Weis] will put in the 2nd string."

Go Irish!

What a beautiful layout catch by Samardzija.
I've got to try to get a picture of that...

Go Irish!!

2nd Quarter and ND is up 21-10 now.
Three pretty convincing offensive drives-- courtesy of our man Weis.
And man, is Darius Walker having an impressive half!

And it is soooo nice to see an actual Notre Dame offense on the field!
Then again, this Pitt defense is not exactly top calibre.
I still worry how the Irish will fare against the likes of Michigan or USC later in the season...

Irish kick off was just fumbled by Pitt-- ND Ball!
and Brady Quinn passes to Jeff Samardijzaijaihaiah, TOUCHDOWN!
28-10.

Go Irish!

Just an hour away!

In just about an hour, Notre Dame takes the field against Pittsburgh and the Charlie Weis era begins.
I'm not going to pretend to be some kind of college football pundit.. but I am a fan... and I'm guardedly optimistic, as I am every year at this time. We'll see how it goes.
I'm hopeful that Weis is able to put together a decent offense this year- something we haven't seen at ND in several years. There were glimpses of creativity under Willingham-- backs shifting around, sets moving to give the Defense something to think about... but none of it ever seemed to come together.
With Weis' reknown as an offensive mind, and his talent for making in-game adjustments (something else ND has been TERRIBLE at for many years).. I hope he's at least able to keep it interesting and keep the real pundits (especially those guys at ESPN) off his back.

Even MORE good news!

Word from the coast is that everyone's houses survived!
Some damage, of course, but even Grandma's house in Long Beach-- in an area that the reporters down there indicated was totally destroyed-- is still standing.

Amazing!

Still standing

If you can believe it, Ruth and Jackie's house is still standing.

Amazingly, they were on the opposite side of one of the levees that gave way.
As Ruth's brother David put it, "they were spared."

They went to a local hotel (I think) to weather the storm, afraid that their little trailer would be turned over in the winds. But it wasn't. And it isn't flooded either.
Unbelievable when you look at where they are on the map of New Orleans...

So now, they have a bathtub full of water and canned goods.. but not much else.
No word yet on whether they'll be required to evacuate. Not sure if Metairie is under the same orders as the residents of downtown New Orleans.

Good News!

Just a moment ago, the phone rang with news that Ruth and Jackie, Amanda's cousins down in Metairie are ALIVE!

Amanda's still on the phone, so more details will be forthcoming!

Must-read

For a must-read account of how it all happened down there, take a look at this blog called Eye of the Storm.

It's amazing stuff.

Two local news reporters down on the MS coast, hunkered down with some beef jerky and beer-- they start out cracking jokes and having fun... and now they're giving some of the best reports of damage, with pictures, neighborhood by neighborhood, that we've read anywhere...

Update on our Family in Mississippi...

Since we've been getting a lot of emails from all over asking about Amanda's family, let me take a quick minute to give an update:
The family in Long Beach and Biloxi-- Grandma, Aunt Martha, cousins Melinda and Adam and family are all reported to be safe, though we're afraid that, like so many down there, they have lost everything.

Still no word, however, on her Great Cousins Ruth and Jackie in Metairie, outside New Orleans. Given their age and what happened to Metairie, we can only hope that they made it to shelter in time. But there's not much hope of getting word from that area for quite some time...

Needless to say, we've been praying for all of them up here non-stop since last weekend..

He'Brew

He'Brew, the Chosen Beer...
http://www.shmaltz.com/index1.html

Relatives have got me in a rotten mood... it's not worth getting into.
So, although I'm not drowning my sorrows in a frosty mug of beer.. I am reading about it..

Memento Man

Short Term memory loss is a bitch.

People who didn't know me before I had kids say things to me now like "Were you always this forgetful?"
I feel like a thoughtless jerk sometimes, forgetting significant details of things that people have told me.

Today at work, someone sent out one of those 'helpful' little health notes-- today's was entitled "Is it Memory Loss, or Dementia?"
So now..

Oh never mind. I forgot what I was going to say.