A knock out in the first.

Nearly a week has passed and the swelling has subsided (a bit) after being punched in the mouth by the Alabama Crimson Tide on Monday night.   When Brian Kelly arrived in South Bend, he instituted a 24- hour rule for his team - you have a day to celebrate a win or a day to mourn a loss.  I extended that a bit after the National Championship debacle.  Although most of the Irish faithful took the loss in stride, being thankful for a great season and believing Kelly has this program truly returning to glory, it is hard to dismiss the true domination Alabama had over Notre Dame.  Some fans are sour on some early officiating, bad bounces and mistakes, but there is no question that this was a one-sided effort from start to finish.   Here are some statistics that I didn’t expect to see, which demonstrate the tale of the tape.  We’ll use some boxing terminology since the Irish took such a beating.

Halftime Score:  Alabama 28 – Notre Dame 0

Rushing First Downs:  Alabama 12 – Notre Dame 3

Net Rushing Yards:  Alabama 265 – Notre Dame 32

Average Per Rush :  Alabama 5.9 -  Notre Dame 1.7

Time of Possession:  Alabama 38:13 - Notre Dame 21:47

Defensive Stats: Alabama 2 sacks, 5 tackles for loss (26 yards), 1 interception, 4 Pass breakups, and  quarterback hurries – Notre Dame 0 sacks, 3 tackles for loss (7 yards), 0 interceptions, 1 pass break up, and 0 quarterback hurries.

Special Teams Stats: Touchbacks: Alabama 4 – Notre Dame 1

Oh yeah, Alabama reached the Red Zone five times and scored touchdowns each time.  And as for the officiating complaints, Alabama had more penalties called against them for more yardage than the Irish.

Even though the season ended in disappointment, the Irish seem to have a bright future.  Talking Irish will take the weeks leading up to National Signing Day in February to look at the positives moving forward.

Initial reaction and feelings

First and foremost, hats off to the Alabama Crimson Tide for a tremendous performance, secondly congratulations to the Irish for a very successful season.  We will dive more into the game itself in the upcoming days but for now I will characterize my feelings during the game in three phases.

At the start of the game the Fighting Irish looked like the Italian Stallion fighting Clubber Lang; too fast and too strong. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTbF5B1mlNw

At halftime we were coming to the realization that 12-1 with a loss in the championship game was inevitable, but still we didn’t like it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSQxtMWJzGQ

After the game we knew it had not turned out as we had hoped and things actually turned pretty bad but in the end we were thankful to our boys.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLoEkt-hI0o

Former Notre Dame Basketball Star Keith Friel Interview

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrnMRzAW40Q&feature=youtu.be

Open letter to Coach Kelly

Dear Coach Kelly,

Please accept and pass along to your players, coaches and staff our most sincere and heartfelt gratitude for providing us with a season of hope and happiness.  We realize your job is not done yet and we are looking forward to celebrating Notre Dame’s latest Championship Monday night.

We are sure you know as well as anyone from fans, alumni, donors and the media that Notre Dame Football means an awful lot to many people.  The season starts in January with early enrollees getting a jump start on their college careers and our first insight to how they adjust to college life.  Then will come February with National Signing Day brining new hope and players to South Bend.  Spring brings practices and of course, the Blue and Gold game, which will give us our football fix through the summer.  Fall comes with debate and expectations, hope, and until recently, disappointment.

Each Saturday, we gather in front of televisions and radios all over the country - actually, around the world - to pull for the Irish.  The reasons vary as to why…our family’s influence, raised Catholic, Irish descent or we just like the fight song…but the one thing we all have in common is our loyalty to the team.

We realize that each coach and player has been chosen by Notre Dame for individual reasons and you will never meet or know 99.99% of us.  We realize that our passion can become ridiculous and even silly at times and that although we may not always show it, there are more important things in our lives such as our families and jobs than a football team and the game they play.  However, this team gives us not only a distraction from the trials in our lives, but gives us an opportunity to gather with friends and family to cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame. 

 

Sincerely,

The Irish Faithful

 

Keeping things in perspective

I am very fortunate to be married to a woman who is a bit of a sports fanatic in her own right when it comes to her beloved Duke Blue Devils, as well as her hometown Bills and Sabres, none of which I care for.  Early on in our relationship she inquired as to which of my favorite sports teams I would most like to see win a championship.  Like a good parent, I would love to say that I love all of my children equally, but that is not the case.  The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame and her Loyal Sons hold a special place in my soul.  She first saw my Celtics win their latest championship and the results of my celebration with fellow fans.

With my wife being a Sabres fan, we have had a tumultuous relationship when it comes to hockey as I am a Bruins fan.  When the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011, it was the first time in my life I was able to celebrate a Bruins’ championship as I was one in 1972 when they had last won it.  At that time, my wife realized that I was a much more gracious loser than winner (I was apparently unbearable when the Bruins won game 7).  As we approach Monday night, she is a combination of curious and anxious about how I will either celebrate or mourn the game’s outcome.

I have been asked about a million times my take on the game and how I feel.  I have done my best over the past six weeks to keep things in perspective, but as we inch closer it has gotten surreal.  Looking back at my pre-season expectations for the Irish and now being undefeated at 12-0 playing in the BCS National Championship game, there is no way I could be happier.  If in August I was told Notre Dame would finish 12-1, I would have taken that all day long, no matter how they got there.  At this point, for most Irish fans, 12-1 won’t be good enough.

In my view, Kelly has this program a year ahead of schedule, which leaves us in a couple of dilemmas.  First, a loss Monday night will bring tears of disappointment to millions of the Irish faithful who have not been to the pinnacle in over two decades.  We should all be reasonable and look back at this season as a success and look to the future with great optimism.  Yes, it will be little of comfort if they lose, but true nonetheless.  If by the grace of God Her Loyal Sons win, won’t the expectations for next year be overwhelming?  Anything less than another undefeated and another championship would be a letdown.  Well, I will take my chances with possibly being disappointed next season going 12-1… and winning National Championship.

Previewing Incoming Talent

Upcoming High School All Star Games

U.S. Army All-American Bowl Saturday January 5^th 1pm NBC

Notre Dame Verbal Commits Greg Bryant , Steve Elmer , Torii Hunter Jr. , John Montelus, Doug Randolph,  Corey Robinson and Jaylon Smith.

 

Under Armor Game Friday January 4^th 6pm ESPN

Notre Dame Verbal Commits Alex Anzalone, Colin McGovern and Hunter Bivin

 

Semper Fidelis All American Bowl Friday January 4^th 5pm NFL Network

Notre Dame Verbal Commits Cole Luke, Devin Butler, William Fuller, Mike McGlinchey and Malik Zaire

Shamrock Jacks Notre Dame Interview Podcast

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTb7yvuazN8&feature=youtu.be