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Fighting Irish Basketball Schedule
Next 5 Games
Connecticut
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Tue 01/04 | 7:00 PM EST |
| St. John's | Sat 01/08 | 8:00 PM EST |
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@
Marquette
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Mon 01/10 | 7:00 PM EST |
| @ St. John's | Sun 01/16 | 12:00 PM EST |
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Cincinnati
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Wed 01/19 | 7:00 PM EST |
Last 5 Games
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@
Syracuse
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Sat 01/01 | L 58 - 70 |
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Georgetown
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Wed 12/29 | W 69 - 55 |
| UMBC | Wed 12/22 | W 93 - 53 |
| Stony Brook | Sun 12/19 | W 88 - 62 |
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Gonzaga
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Sat 12/11 | W 83 - 79 |
Big East Conference Standings
(updated 1.2.2011 at 2:02 AM EST)
| Conf | Overall | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | W | L | |
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Syracuse Orange
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2 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
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Cincinnati Bearcats
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2 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| St. John's Red Storm | 2 | 0 | 9 | 3 |
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Pittsburgh Panthers
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1 | 0 | 13 | 1 |
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Marquette Golden Eagles
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1 | 0 | 10 | 4 |
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Georgetown Hoyas
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1 | 1 | 12 | 2 |
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Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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1 | 1 | 12 | 2 |
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Connecticut Huskies
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1 | 1 | 11 | 1 |
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Seton Hall Pirates
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1 | 1 | 7 | 7 |
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Villanova Wildcats
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0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
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Louisville Cardinals
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0 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| Providence Friars | 0 | 2 | 11 | 4 |
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Rutgers Scarlet Knights
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0 | 0 | 9 | 3 |
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West Virginia Mountaineers
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0 | 2 | 8 | 4 |
| DePaul Blue Demons | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 |
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South Florida Bulls
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0 | 2 | 6 | 9 |
Notre Dame Thumps Miami (FL) 33-17, Wins Sun Bowl to Close Brian Kelly's First Season
by CW on Dec 31, 2010 6:12 PM EST
in Notre Dame Football
The Hurricanes got a couple of touchdowns late to make the score respectable, but Notre Dame had leads of 27-0 and 30-3 as the Irish won their second consecutive bowl game and earned their eighth win of the 2010 season. Playing in what will likely be his final game as a member of the Fighting Irish, Michael Floyd sparkled, grabbing two touchdowns and coming awfully close to two more.* He finished the day with 6 catches for 106 yards, helping Tommy Rees to keep the Irish offense humming. The running game was a one-two punch of Cierre Wood and Robert Hughes, who combined for 169 yards on the ground, including a nice 34-yard touchdown run by Wood.
*I'm preparing for the worst, people. It helps the grieving process.
On defense, it was the Harrison Smith show, as he had three first half interceptions as Bob Diaco's defense chased Miami starter Jacory Harris from the game. Miami could never really establish the running game, averaging 3.4 yards per carry over the course of the game and achieving a game-high carry of eleven yards. A Manti Te'o injury dampened the second half, but he was walking around on the sideline and it didn't seem too severe.
The last four games for Notre Dame were a joy to watch, and now they head into the 2011 season with all kinds of momentum. Everyone have a safe and fun night, we've got all next week to recap how fun this win was.
15 commentsSun Bowl Open Thread: Fighting Irish and Hurricanes
by CW on Dec 31, 2010 12:01 PM EST
in Notre Dame Football
The final Notre Dame game of 2010. The final game for Brian Smith, Chris Stewart, Robert Hughes, Ian Williams, Kerry Neal, Darrin Walls and potentially Michael Floyd. The first time Notre Dame has played Miami in twenty years. Are you ready?
Go Irish, Beat Hurricanes.
Notre Dame vs. Miami (FL) - The 2010 Sun Bowl Preview
by CW on Dec 30, 2010 8:00 AM EST
in Notre Dame Football
It seems like both yesterday and forever ago that Notre Dame walked off the field in the Coliseum, soggy and triumphant, terminating the Trojans' dominance of the rivalry and capping a perfect November. Now the final game of the 2010 season is upon us, as we say goodbye to so many quality seniors (and likely a certain dynamic junior wide receiver) in an early preview of the 2012 Soldier Field game with the Miami Hurricanes. It's the Sun Bowl, it's El Paso with a chance of snow and drug cartels, and it's Verne and Gary on CBS. Time to get excited, boys and girls.
Breaking down the X's and O's is important, but honestly, a majority of the time these bowl games come down to who wants to be there. West Virginia looked like they would have rather been anywhere else but Orlando for the Champs Sports Bowl. Maryland was positively psyched to send the Fridge out with a victory. On one side, I don't think Notre Dame will be lacking in motivation. After a rough first nine games of the season, they've seen the results of buying into Brian Kelly's system, with the cathartic beat down of Utah, the joyous conquering of Army in Yankee Stadium and then the punting of the monkey from their back in Los Angeles. Just in case the team had forgotten, winning is really fun, and all of the hard work is worth it.
On Miami's side, I don't know. They just lost their head coach, but they weren't spurned by the old guy (think West Virginia taking its anger over RichRod out on Oklahoma) nor does a beloved interim coach have a chance of taking over (Bo Pelini's Nebraska wailing on Michigan State in the Alamo Bowl, or that same WVU team). The new guy is already picked, but he's not there yet. They started the season ranked, but they ended with a loss to little brother South Florida in a sparsely attended home game. On top of all of that, it's likely going to be sort of cold for them, whereas 40 degrees is going to seem downright balmy for the Irish. But then again, when is the last time a team wasn't jazzed for a chance to knock off Notre Dame? It's possible that after a few haymakers early the Hurricanes might fold, but it seems silly to think they will start out disinterested.
Miami's secondary is nasty, full of four and five-star athletes, ranking third in passing yards per game, second in pass efficiency defense, second in completion percentage allowed and eighth in sacks. It seemed very unlikely Notre Dame was going to attempt to ride Tommy Rees to victory in its bowl game regardless of opponent, but the Hurricanes lining up on the other side of the field almost guarantees that we're going to see a lot of Robert Hughes left and Cierre Wood right. The Cane rush defense is decidedly more pedestrian, ranking 81st in yards per game and 59th in yards per carry. Not terrible numbers, but not exactly intimidating either. If Notre Dame can get the sort of push they were getting late against Southern Cal while mixing in some Michael Floyd, Tyler Eifert and Theo Riddick, the Irish offense should be able to muster enough points to put Notre Dame in position to get its eighth win.
On defense, Miami likes to establish the run out of I-formation and then play action, as noted here earlier in the week. The trick will be to bottle up the running game - just as Notre Dame did against nearly every traditional offense they played this year - and force Jacory Harris to try and make plays. With backup Stephen Morris gimpy, a lot of pressure will be placed on Harris, the starter at the beginning of the season and a Heisman candidate before things started going very, very badly. Harris threw 12 picks in only 263 pass attempts (to compare, Dayne Crist tossed 7 in 294 attempts), and was benched for much of the final part of the season. The line I've seen used to describe Harris a few dozen times since this matchup was announced is that he is more than capable of keeping both teams in the game, tossing dazzling deep touchdowns on one possession and then giving the defense ample opportunity to be involved on the next. I have faith in the Irish secondary, which played very well most of the season, including holding Heisman finalist Andrew Luck to his worst game of the year (season-low completion percentage of 59.4%, tied his season-high with two picks).
Trying to look at this without my shamrock-hued glasses on, it really seems like this lines up pretty well for Notre Dame. Their strength on offense plays right against Miami's weakness, and with the Hurricanes sporting a traditional offense, I don't see why Manti Te'o and company would suddenly struggle to contain them. They'll need a relatively clean sheet from Rees (at least cut down on the turnovers from USC, which were the main reason USC stayed in the game), but the Hurricanes should provide chances for the Irish defense with opportunities to make plays as well, as they lead the country with 23 interceptions thrown and have fumbled the ball an additional nineteen times. There's no doubt that Randy Shannon left the cupboards full of potential gamebreakers, so the Irish will have to play smart football, tackle well and protect the quarterback, but this is a game Notre Dame can definitely win.
Go Irish, Beat Hurricanes.
Notre Dame Downs Georgetown 69-55 to Open Big East Play
by CW on Dec 29, 2010 9:20 PM EST
in Notre Dame Basketball
In a tussle between two top fifteen teams, Notre Dame's defense forced Georgetown into a woeful shooting night while Tim Abromaitis was white hot, leading the Irish to a fourteen-point victory with 20 points while going 5 for 7 from 3. Notre Dame had four players in double figures and were lights out from the foul line down the stretch, re-extending the lead after Georgetown sliced a fourteen lead in half midway through the second half. Austin Freeman showed some flashes early, but neither he nor Chris Wright really ever got on track.
Georgetown is a very good team and Notre Dame just suffocated them on defense, contesting threes while avoiding the easy back door cut lay ups in one of the finest defensive efforts I've seen from a Brey team. On offense, the Irish had their rough stretches, but they took smart shots from distance, crashed the boards (eleven offensive rebounds) and shared the ball with proficiency. Eric Atkins had a rough introduction to Big East play and Jack Cooley maybe didn't get enough burn, but the starting five was dominant, as Scott Martin continues to impress and Ty Nash handled things down on the block.
I know it's early , and I know there will be tough stretches through conference play, but this is a good basketball team that is going to be fun to watch for the next few months. March is always a crap shoot, but just maybe we're going into this Big Dance with some loaded dice this time around.
Big East Game #1: Georgetown Hoyas at Notre Dame Fighting Irish
by CW on Dec 29, 2010 6:08 PM EST
in Notre Dame Basketball
This starts a ridiculous three-game stretch of top ten teams (Syracuse and UConn up next). Austin Freeman, Chris Wright and a very good Georgetown team stand between Notre Dame and a 1-0 start in conference play.
A Look at Da U’s O
by burger23 on Dec 27, 2010 12:52 AM EST
So I was all set to put together a preview of Miami’s offense when I found a veritable treasure trove of analysis already done for me. So without further ado, here are the links:
Smart Football does a profile of Miami’s (now former) offensive coordinator Mark Whipple.
Along the Olentangy breaks down the different formations Miami uses on offense.
AtO also takes a look at Miami’s play-action game.
Chris from Smart Football breaks down Miami’s passing game at Dr. Saturday. A little dated, but still relevant.
The cliff notes version and my take after the jump.
Merry Christmas!
by CW on Dec 25, 2010 10:22 AM EST
in Notre Dame Football
I was going to post something Christmasy here, but there a bunch of options just below for that. Instead, how about a video that's a little more Irish?
Have a great holiday, everyone. Go Irish, Beat Hoyas and Beat Hurricanes.
Rakes of Mallow Ultimate Christmas Playlist - 2010
by CW on Dec 20, 2010 10:01 AM EST
in Events
If you'll allow us to wander off of our normal topics for a post - I'll consider the tolerance of a Christmas music post on a sports blog your gift to Rakes - this may be useful for those of you still working to finalize your Christmas playlist before the big weekend is upon us. Randomly paired together through the miracle of Notre Dame dorm placement, my former roommate Sean and I share a mutual love for Christmas music that has resulted in some rather extensive (and awesome) playlists over the years. These are our humble suggestions for the start of your playlist, or to fill in any cracks that may exist in one you already have.
Now obviously there is a lot of great Christmas music, and we haven't heard everything, so please use the comments to add any suggestions you may have to contribute to the list. Obviously if you prefer the Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Muppets or Nat King Cole version to anything on this list, we aren't here to quibble. Christmas is all about traditions, and the version of "Silent Night" your grandmother played since you were a child will obviously be your favorite. We understand this, and are not saying that these versions are the best, but that they are certainly quality and worthy of any playlist. (Although in some instances, they are the best.)
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Fighting Irish Football Schedule
|
Purdue
|
Sat 09/04 | W 23 - 12 |
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Michigan
|
Sat 09/11 | L 24 - 28 |
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@
Michigan St.
|
Sat 09/18 | L 31 - 34 |
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Stanford
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Sat 09/25 | L 14 - 37 |
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@
Boston College
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Sat 10/02 | W 31 - 13 |
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Pittsburgh
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Sat 10/09 | W 23 - 17 |
| Western Michigan | Sat 10/16 | W 44 - 20 |
| @ Navy | Sat 10/23 | L 17 - 35 |
| Tulsa | Sat 10/30 | L 27 - 28 |
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Utah
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Sat 11/13 | W 28 - 3 |
| Army | Sat 11/20 | W 27 - 3 |
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@
USC
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Sat 11/27 | W 20 - 16 |
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@
Miami
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Fri 12/31 | W 33 - 17 |
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