The Official Notre Dame Thread

[Tankjeep]

I'm excited to see what Cierre Wood will do in the run game. He had a great game in the Sun Bowl and I think that will spill over this season...I Love those cool, crisp fall Saturday afternoons having Tom Hammond blaring on my TV, Is it fall yet?

dude....stop.....i'm getting a chubby....

[Tankjeep]

The offense is some worry, but the run game should be improved barring injury. Crist is a much better QB then Rees. Crist did throw for over 300 a couple times in a row. The defense is senior led. That's great news. Plus year 2 in the Kelly offense should be much improved. The reason the offense is a concern is because it was tamed so down because Rees couldn't do much. Now with Crist and packages for Golsen and Hendrix, I'm not to worried. Floyd is still there, TJ, we are stacked at defense, and the Oline is good.

USF remember is coached by Skip who will be supercharged coming to ND. USF isnt' a pushover at all.

the only real worry on the offensive side of the ball is running back. if cwood goes down, we are screwed. the talk has been that theo would move to running back for depth, but i think he's going to stay in the slot....which is where i love him to stay put. i'm just hoping that cam mcdaniel can come in ready to play to give us the depth we need.

as far as qb.....that's a toss up. i watched the spring game and between crist & rees....no one stoodout. i think crist has the physical tools to be the better qb than rees, but rees, imo, has the preparation/mind/understanding of bk's offense better than crist. i really hope crist is 100% and has a much better understanding of the playbook than last season. although his numbers weren't horrible, his situational play where touch was needed or a more accurate pass was needed to get that 3rd & long converted....was poor. i think bk heaped too much of the offense on crist's plate and he couldn't handle it.

plus, rumor has it that the defense lost respect in crist when he was hurt against michigan. sorry don't have a linke....just information that i got on another forum i'm a member of (irishenvy). i'm thinking that it's been a while, so that issue has been over and done with....but you never know.

the biggest plus this season.....defensive depth and talent galore. if not this season, next season's defense is going to be down right nasty. something we've missed since lou holtz's days.

well, that's all i can add....i truly can't wait for the season to start.

[Tankjeep]

USF is mediocre but they always have some solid NFL talent on the roster (unlike some programs). 3 scores sure but if you're talking 3 TD's the offense will have to come out firing on all cylinders. I hope you're right though.

usf has athletes and a great coach....that's a good combination to worry about. but here are some numbers to consider: one from a sharp ND fan (whiskeyjack) & another from a long time/knowledegeable (BGIF; this guy knows his stuff).

USF's defense ranked 29th last season, and returns most of their starters; should be respectable on that side of the ball.

Their offense ranked 74th, and they only return 4/11 starters. Even if Skip Holtz is a brilliant coach, it's going to be a task just ensuring this unit doesn't a step back from last year's weak performance.

--Whiskeyjack


I'm puzzled by the need for this thread seeing as we just discussed our opponents in the Ranking Notre Dame Opponents thread 4 days ago. There was one poster, whose opinion I value, who pointed out there were 3 ways to look at rankings:

1) simple excellence
2) physicality plus rivalry
3) national psychology

He ranked USF the 5th Best Team, the 8th most physical/rivarly, and the 3rd "most important to win". That averages out to a 5.3. When I averaged the 3 sets of rankings the poster provided it showed the ranking of our 12 opponents from 1 to 12. USF was 5th tucked close behind SU who is forecast as Top 10 Team.

1) USC average score 1.0
2) MSU 3.3
3) UM 3.0
4) SU 5.0
5) USF 5.3
6) PIT 6.3
7) UMD 7.0
8) BC 7.3
9) USN 8.0
10) AF 9.7
11) PU 10.0
12) WF 10.3

In that same thread I posted:


Quote:
Steele likes USF. He pegs them as his #5 Surprise Team in '11 (ND is #2). Holtz like Kelly is in his second year there. And like Kelly at previous stops, UCon and ECU, he got players to overachieve. USF graduated some people but Steele has them as his #25 Preseason Team. Holtz's and his OC will be in their 7th year together.

IF we have a QB out of the gate hitting receivers rather than hitting their feet, the decent running game we expect, AND the Defense continues the way it ended last season, ND could roll in this game. USF isn't USC but then, neither was Tulsa.

And for clarification Steele Preseason Ranking is his PREDICTION for the Final Rankings, i.e., USF at #25. That's not based on power alone but includes the schedules.

Steele's Power Poll lists ND and our opponents in this Top 120 as:
7) ND
14) SU
17) USC
22) MSU
34) PIT
35) USF
44) UM
47) BC
48) AF
53) PU
59) UMD
74) WF
86) USN

Once again USF falls into the 5th toughest, this time ahead of UM.

In his USF review he notes:
QB - 'I look for much improved QB play in the 2nd yr of Holtz's system."
RB - "I predict USF will have their most productive leading rusher since Andre Hall's 1,374 in '05."
WR/TE - "Despite the loss of the top guy, this is a much more exp'd unit with the ret. of Love and Griffin."
OL - "New LT Popek has 9 career sts and while less exp'd with just 2 st'rs back, they are in the 2nd year of Holtz's offense and colud be more productive."
DL - "This group is just as exp'd as '10 and is now in the 2nd yr of Holtz's system.
LB - "They basically had zero st'rs back LY and this year return 2 plus add JUCO Jeune and should be stronger."
DB - "They lost CB Raymons ... but this time have 7 of their top 8 back incl 3rd TM BE SS Lejiste, and the Bulls should make significant strides.
ST - "USF was only #67 but this yr with everyone back this should be one of the BE's top ST units."
Coaches - "The DC is Mark Snyder who was the HC at Marshall for 5 yrs. He was also tOSU's LB coach '01-'03 and DC '04.
Phil's Forecast - "Holtz 2nd ssn but has just 11 ret st'rs and only 3 BE HG's. This is still a very talented tm and they only lose 15 letterman (fewest BE). Two of my 9 sets of power ratings call for 11 wins, and 1 will call for them to top last year's 8 win total."


ND and USF had two common opponents last year PIT and MIA. Both beat MIA, USF 23-20 in OT at MIA; ND 33-17 neutral site. USV lost to PIT 10-17 at home; ND beat PIT 23-17 in SB. Both teams has close games that could have gone either way. ND had the far tougher schedule Steele #6 while USF was his #62. (In '11 he has ND #14 and USF #64 Toughest Schedules).

I don't know of anyone who thinks USF is our toughest game. But it is one of the toughest. The people who take USF lightly are the same people that took Navy and Tulsa lightly last year. And as that sage poster noted in the other thread this is one of most important games from a national PR viewpoint

--BGIF, irishenvy.com

[Tankjeep]

^take the numbers for they're worth. in college football, any opponent can create problems for ND.....why you might ask? cuz we are ND.....it's their worldseries/superbowl/stanley cup finals. meaning, ND usually gets the best of everybody.

[behindmydesk]

the only real worry on the offensive side of the ball is running back. if cwood goes down, we are screwed. the talk has been that theo would move to running back for depth, but i think he's going to stay in the slot....which is where i love him to stay put. i'm just hoping that cam mcdaniel can come in ready to play to give us the depth we need.

as far as qb.....that's a toss up. i watched the spring game and between crist & rees....no one stoodout. i think crist has the physical tools to be the better qb than rees, but rees, imo, has the preparation/mind/understanding of bk's offense better than crist. i really hope crist is 100% and has a much better understanding of the playbook than last season. although his numbers weren't horrible, his situational play where touch was needed or a more accurate pass was needed to get that 3rd & long converted....was poor. i think bk heaped too much of the offense on crist's plate and he couldn't handle it.

plus, rumor has it that the defense lost respect in crist when he was hurt against michigan. sorry don't have a linke....just information that i got on another forum i'm a member of (irishenvy). i'm thinking that it's been a while, so that issue has been over and done with....but you never know.

the biggest plus this season.....defensive depth and talent galore. if not this season, next season's defense is going to be down right nasty. something we've missed since lou holtz's days.

well, that's all i can add....i truly can't wait for the season to start.

I honestly don't think Rees has a better understanding, because they dumbed down the offense so much under him.

We have Jonas Gray who was a HS all american who needs to put it together, and GAIII (I think it's George, maybe his brother) has been taking snaps at RB.

[Forte22]

Alot of our success on offense, IMO, depends of Braxston Cave (Center). Last year he was solid, but inconsistent at times. He seemed to get confused as to who to block, but according to Kelly, he is MUCH Improved.....Goooooooooooo Irish........

Anyone know if fall camp is open to public? I remember when Weis was there, it was on lock down.....

[Tankjeep]

I honestly don't think Rees has a better understanding, because they dumbed down the offense so much under him.

We have Jonas Gray who was a HS all american who needs to put it together, and GAIII (I think it's George, maybe his brother) has been taking snaps at RB.

can't argue there. they did dumb it down comparatively speaking of course in relation between college and high school. what i meant to say and i didn't do so well in explaining....is that rees came from a spread offense in high school. even though the play book was dumbed down....he still had a grasp of this particular offense. it showed in his play. he released the ball quicker and read defense with better efficiency than crist. granted rees didn't look so good against michigan, imo, he wasn't really given a chance.

crist had to adjust going from cw's pro style offense to the spread. i guess kelly may have felt that crist (having been in college the last couple of years) should've been able to handle the entire playbook. clearly, he couldn't.

as far as jonas, he's been a bust. i'm with you on him and wish he'd gather himself to be an impact player....but i'm not holding my breath. and i forgot about GAIII. nice point.

[Mudvayneowns91]

Sure, the playbook may have been dumbed down, but considering Rees was a freshman that wasn't expecting to play, I still think he did very well. I can't say I dislike Crist though. Whoever puts on those gold helmets is who I am going to support

As for USF, I'm sure they'll be pumped up. However, don't discount that this will be the season opener for ND as well. South Bend will be going nuts.

[Jerry34]

the only real worry on the offensive side of the ball is running back. if cwood goes down, we are screwed. the talk has been that theo would move to running back for depth, but i think he's going to stay in the slot....which is where i love him to stay put. i'm just hoping that cam mcdaniel can come in ready to play to give us the depth we need.

as far as qb.....that's a toss up. i watched the spring game and between crist & rees....no one stoodout. i think crist has the physical tools to be the better qb than rees, but rees, imo, has the preparation/mind/understanding of bk's offense better than crist. i really hope crist is 100% and has a much better understanding of the playbook than last season. although his numbers weren't horrible, his situational play where touch was needed or a more accurate pass was needed to get that 3rd & long converted....was poor. i think bk heaped too much of the offense on crist's plate and he couldn't handle it.

Some of the things you bring up about the QB position are pretty much worries to me. Rees looked good at the end of last season but with his arm strength I question whether he could lead this team to a BCS game? I assume he's spent the off season in the weight room and matured a little as well.

Crist to me looked like an athlete that had trouble making the transition from sitting on the bench for 2 years. Some athletes have trouble playing football there whole life and then waiting for their opportunity and not getting game experience for a few years. The problem is he should have got that needed experience down the stretch of last season. I hope he can step up this season because his accuracy was questionable in some key situations last year that cost ND.

[Tankjeep]

Some of the things you bring up about the QB position are pretty much worries to me. Rees looked good at the end of last season but with his arm strength I question whether he could lead this team to a BCS game? I assume he's spent the off season in the weight room and matured a little as well.

Crist to me looked like an athlete that had trouble making the transition from sitting on the bench for 2 years. Some athletes have trouble playing football there whole life and then waiting for their opportunity and not getting game experience for a few years. The problem is he should have got that needed experience down the stretch of last season. I hope he can step up this season because his accuracy was questionable in some key situations last year that cost ND.

can't blame ya for worrying, but i guess we just have to trust bk and his assistants.

[Forte22]

Anyone been to an Irish game? I havent....yet.....though I am strongly considering it this year....



Ive been to South Bend/ND a few times in August, and it is an AMAZING Campus....anyone ever tried Brunos? I Love that place

[Mudvayneowns91]

Anyone been to an Irish game? I havent....yet.....though I am strongly considering it this year....



Ive been to South Bend/ND a few times in August, and it is an AMAZING Campus....anyone ever tried Brunos? I Love that place

Nope, but that is sincerely #1 on my bucket list. I've loved Notre Dame since I've been five. I was trying to go to Ireland (Irish Catholic here) when they play Navy, but I won't have the cash. But yeah, that's my dream.

[Forte22]

Tickets are ridiculously expensive.....My Bro and I (hes an Irish fan too) were thinking about going to the ND game at Michigan State last year, but we decided not to because we want to see our 1st ND game in South Bend...I dont think anything could beat that.

[behindmydesk]

Anyone been to an Irish game? I havent....yet.....though I am strongly considering it this year....



Ive been to South Bend/ND a few times in August, and it is an AMAZING Campus....anyone ever tried Brunos? I Love that place

Yea many. But I live closer then you

Yea bruno's is pretty good, it used to be a lot better. I'm currently infatuated with Rocco's pizza down the street from ND.

[Tankjeep]

Anyone been to an Irish game? I havent....yet.....though I am strongly considering it this year....



Ive been to South Bend/ND a few times in August, and it is an AMAZING Campus....anyone ever tried Brunos? I Love that place

i've been to two games. '04 (loss to pitt) & '06 (loss to scUM). even though they were lossess, the campus, grotto, cathedral, main building & bookstore were awesome.