Irish Nation:
As you may or may not know, last year was a little rough; but alas, many prayers have been cast, returning starters will be ready, and I believe that we will see a more humbler, skinnier Charlie Weis....let's break this down
Why Fall ’08 will be much improved over Fall ’07:
First and foremost, ND will have 16 guys returning who suffered through that horrid season last year and do not want to see a repeat; nine of those guys are from the offensive side of the ball. Notre Dame put up only 16 points a game last season, good enough for 117 out of 120 teams. The loss of tight end Jon Carlson will hurt a little, but look to Duval Kamera (32 receptions and 4 touchdowns in ’07) to pick up some of the slack. The Irish also bring back 3 solid running backs from last season, and junior James Aldridge will likely get the bulk of the carries.
Rumors have it that during the off season, Charlie spent many long nights on the phone with mentors Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick; so much so that he was forced to switch over to the AT&T everything plan as it got to the point in which only his monthly tab at Fazoli’s was outnumbering those anyimte minutes (gotta love those unlimited breadsticks). Conversations were on a plethora of topics including who should be handling play calling duties...and the winner is! Offensive coordinator Mike Haywood! It'll be interesting to see what he can do....
Key’s to the season
The Jimmy: Good news, Jimmy said that he’s not going to sport that stupid haircut this season, the bad news, last year Jimmy was ranked 114 out of 118 Division I quarterbacks …Iek If Jimbo isn’t performing by mid-October, don’t be surprised if we see ND number one recruit, 6-5 QB Dayne Crist (last name a coincidence, I think not) taking some snaps. Oh p.s., ND sill had the number 2 recruiting class this spring which includes one of the best WR in the nation 6-3 Michael Floyd, and a huge target for Jimmy in 6-6 TE Kyle Rudolph.
24: That’s how many point ND will have to average this season if they want to be playing in December.
The Season (Optimistic, Yes, possible, Absolutely):
Notre Dame will go 8-4, end up 24th in the polls and lock down a bid to the Pacific Life Holiday where they will capture their first bowl victory since….well….since a long time…here’s how they’ll get there:
San Diego State: Last year, the Aztecs finished 6th in a weak Mountain West conference on the way to a 4-8 year. They’ve done little to improve the team year over end, and ND should be able to work out some early season kinks and pick up a W all at the same time
Final Score: ND 34 SDS: 10 Record 1-0
Michigan: The Wolverines will have their own issues as they say adieu to some of the best talent they’ve had this decade in the likes of QB Chad Henne, RB Mike Hart, OT Jake Long, WR Adrian Arrington, and WR Mario Manningham. The new squad will struggle to adapt to Rich Rodriguez’s spread offense, and Michigan won’t be competing for any big ten championships until Rodriguez can recruit some big names. If the Irish defense can put pressure on redshirt freshman, QB Steven Threet, we should be able to get some revenge from that embarrassing loss last year.
Final Score: Close one, edge to ND 17 Michigan 14 Record 2-0
Michigan State: The Irish are
16-11-1 in games at Spartan Stadium and have won three in a row there: 2006 (40-37), 2004 (31-24) and 2002 (21-17).
But the Spartans will have an excellent team this season. Senior back
Javon Ringer will be all over Jimmy this afternoon, and the offense will struggle to put up many points.
Never easy playing Michicagn and State back to back...Final Score: ND 14 MSU 24 (mostly because if I predicted the Irish would be 3-0, I think most people would cast this blog as heresy and stop reading) Record 2-1
Purdue: No doubt the Irish will be looking to avenge that solid loss to Purdue last season as this intra-Indiana series continues again this year. Much like our theme that ’08 will be much different that ’07, so too will this game. Aside from their QB, Curtis Painter, who will have a very solid year, the Boilermakers have few big play makers. The Irish defensive line should match up quite nicely against their smaller ‘O line’
Final Score: ND 21 PU 3 Record 3-1
Stanford: One of the better upsets in recent memory as they took down USC last in an unbelievable 24-23 victory. They have two solid running backs and four seniors on the front line to pave the way for them. Defensive line for ND will be key. With that said, the Cardinals won’t end up over .500 this season again, and the Irish should make short work of these guys and send them back on a long flight with a lot to think about.
Final Score: ND 27 Stanford 17 Record 4-1
North Carolina: The Tar heels had a lousy season last year with QB Yates racking up 4 more interceptions that touchdowns, however, this team might be much improved over last year. If the Irish don’t go to Chapel Hill ready to play, they’re going to walk out with their tail between their legs. The heels return 18 guys – 10 of those which should anchor a very solid defense. Might be a tough one before Washington.
Final Score: I’m going to give the home field advantage to the heels: ND 14 NC 17 Record 4-2
Washington: With just two wins last season, Washington will have to rely heavily on it’s 25th ranked recruiting class over the spring. They will be looking good in 1 – 2 years, but the Irish should capture a nice ‘W’ this year.
Final Score: ND 31 Washington 7 Record 5-2
Pittsburgh: While Pittsburgh looks to have a solid all-around team this season, they don’t have many big play-makers that could be the difference in this game. It will be a three-horse race for the panther QB, but hopefully that lack of ‘O-line’ should mitigate the success of whoever comes out on top (senior LG CJ Davis will be pitts only senior on the line). Pitt will be the toughest team the Irish see before USC and traditioanlly we stuggle....
Final Score: ND 10 Pitt 26 Record 5-3
Boston College: The eagles had a stellar season last year going 11-3 but lose several key players including star quarterback Matt Ryan. With a spotty secondary on the defensive side of the ball, look for Jimmy to put up some big numbers.
Final Score: ND 28 BC 10 Record 6-3
Navy (11/15): If Charlie loses this game, I don’t think anyone would argue against a public tar and feathering. Before Navy won a 46-44 triple-overtime thriller in 2007, Notre Dame had a 43-game winning streak that was the longest series win streak between two annual opponents in the history of Division I FBS football. Navy's previous win came in 1963, 35-14 with future Heisman Trophy winner and NFL QB Roger Staubach at the helm. The midshipmen were so beside themselves, they cancelled classes that following Monday to savor the flavor…probably a good thing because it won’t happen again for another 43 years.
Final Score: ND 86 Navy 0 Record 7-3
Syracuse: Bottom of the barrel in the big east the last three seasons, and they’ve done nothing to improve since then. They’ll stay there for at least another year.
Final Score: ND 35 Orangemen 24 Record 8-3
USC (11/29): If Notre Dame wants to attend a bowl this season, they will have to wrap up the bid before heading out to Pasadena. USC looks good this season...as always....I despise Pete
Final Score: ND 17 USC 42 Record 8-4
We'll there you have it...a White
Sox World Series and an Irish bowl victory....life will be good
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