All Things Notre Dame - The Clashmore Mike Memorial Thread

[lineygoblue]

You could play off a 16 team field in 4 weeks. Not hard to do. And, the bowl sites could be incorporated into the last two rounds.

The problem lies with the bowls and the networks.

[WingsFan]

NO!! We need chaos. What would college football be without = NFL no fun league - watch football on Sundays :-)

[Sanders Fan]

Actually, the problem with college football has always been the polls, not the bowls. When you allow human beings to determine the rankings, you will have issues with bias and objectivity. The NFL determines the winners and losers on the field, not on paper.

[WingsFan]

Notre Dame in the NC would actually be great for college football. Rating would be an all time high.

[lineygoblue]

Well, they're going to be there as long as they don't lay an egg against USC ...

[WM Wolverine]

My proposal was a 4-team playoff after the bowl games. It's really disguised as an 8-team playoff.

[iam416]

One too many teams lost last night for ND. Now they're squarely in SEC country.

[hack]

Remarkable. It's said that the Big Ten is that weak this year, but ND's not in the position they're in without Al Borges being as stupid as he was that day.

[Clashmore Mike]

A couple quick comments:

1. To be clear, I really don't have a good sense if ND is "back" or not. What I do know is that being "back" for ND is a higher standard than for most schools. If you asked me whether ND was back to being a perennial top 20 program, I think the answer is far more likely yes. But that isn't being "back" for ND.

Apologize if I already told this story?but I think it epitomizes the ?higher standard? that you are speaking to?and it?s entirely true?

The last time my mother attended a Notre Dame game with my (late) father was Air Force ?77. At some point in the 3rd qtr., with the Irish up by 3-4 touchdowns?some 2nd stringer did something sloppy that set Dad (ND Law ?72) off. ?god damnit?GOD DAMNIT! PROTECT THE FOOTBALL (insert name) YOU PANSY MOTHER FUCKER!?? The ushers kicked him out of the stadium and escorted him to the gates, humiliating my mother. When asked why he went into a ballistic rage, his answer was simple and sincere: Notre Dame should have been winning by 5-6 touchdowns. Despite being season ticket holders, and living in the South Bend area for another six years, that was it for Mom. I ended up being main beneficiary.

Point is that the higher standard of back, typically expressed as ?we?re competing for the national title every season? exists only among two groups 1) Those who still think cell phones are a new phenomenon and specifically look to buy cars with a column-shift transmission. 2) Clueless, fair-weather fans who emulate the former group because they think it makes them sound legit and old-school.

If the balance of the fan base still believes that annual contention for a title is Notre Dame?s proper place by default, then they haven?t learned anything in the last 20 years. Obviously winning a title would qualify as ?back? by any standards...but then what? I?d have to think about it?

2. ND doesn't have to apologize for who they scheduled. But, as it turned out, it wasn't such a great schedule. Those are the breaks.

Obviously a lot has happened since this was written?sorry for the delayed follow-up btw. Agree that our schedule was a legitimate discussion topic when we were comparing & contrasting with other undefeated teams?but now I think it?s pretty much moot. Notre Dame is now in control of its own destiny. You recently wrote up-thread about how ND was unlucky in that one too many teams lost on Saturday. I understand and probably agree with your point, but there is a flip-side to it?meaning that, assuming we beat USC, under whatever circumstances and whatever margin, we are playing for the title and are pretty much beyond reproach in terms of legitimacy.

By that, I mean that ND?s presumed opponent will be the one who will have to address issues of ?fair? / ?deserve? / ?legitimate? / etc. It looks like Alabama just has to keep winning and they are in (?so within a week of a November loss at home, followed up by a scheduled game against Western Carolina, Alabama finds itself right back in it? That?s fine, but I certainly don?t expect to entertain conspiracy theories about Notre Dame favoritism from SEC fans in the foreseeable future?). What if Stanford loses to UCLA and Oregon wins out? They would be conference champs with a single loss to a top team in OT? What about Fla. St.? If they win out, it?ll be against top five Florida and then a CCG?crappy loss, sure, but that was how many months ago? A number of these one-loss teams are going to be able to make an argument, some more compelling than others. Nonetheless, only one can contend. I?m thankful that (assuming we win in the coliseum) ND isn?t subject to that shit?

3. The 2002 Buckeyes were fantastic defensively...

...and then it would be on Golson. JMO.

Love the comparison to the ?02 Buckeyes. To draw contrasts where I can, I would say that we have neither an excellent punter or place-kicker. Our punter is decent and gets the job done. Place kicker has great distance, but is only mediocre in terms of accuracy?which is a further detriment to our poor red-zone offense. The original/starting field goal kicker who was excellent, was injured and is out. Even if he?s back for a presumed bowl, I?m not sure that Kelly should put him in. When I bitch about our special teams, it?s the coverage units in particular that I?m referring to. They just aren?t good. Haven?t given up a return for TD yet, but that?s only because some shoe-string tackles that went our way. We typically lose the field position game on special teams and that would be a killer against a team like Alabama.

You?re right?it comes down to Golson?which is not necessarily ideal, but it is what it is. Don?t know how much you?ve been able to watch ND lately, but there has been some improvement both generally and in Golson specifically. Part of that should be dismissed due to the weak stretch of the schedule, at the same time, it would be a mistake to dismiss it entirely. We have a consistent running game now. Going back to Miami, we?re averaging over 230 per game on the ground?and that includes some fairly stout defenses in Stanford, BYU & Oklahoma. We still perpetually stall in the red-zone, but we have become competent with regard to racking up yardage via sustained drives as well as time-of-possession. I?m not sure that ND will just be a bucket of 3 & outs, even against Alabama...I just don't have alot of faith that we'll be able to put points on the board.

[iam416]

I barely remember what I said, heh, but since you seem to be agreeing with most of it, I must have been wrong. Heh.

Re the 1-too many losses, I still think that's true, but what it also does is give ND a chance to thoroughly legitimize it's title. ND-KSU, e.g., would have been seen by some as a half-assed BCS Title game. Now you get to play the vaunted SEC Champ. Finish 13-0 beating the SEC Champ, and there's no doubt. Finish 13-0 beating KSU (while Alabama annihilates #4 or #5) and a fair number of folks would say ND was lucky they didn't have to play UAT.

Anyway, the season now has a remarkably predictable outcome. ND vs SEC Champ.

As an OSU fan, I wonder if OSU had been bowl eligible if the would be #2. Personally, I think not, though I think they'd be well-ahead of shitball Georgia.

[Clashmore Mike]

Sanders Fan, Thanks for keep up the place...nice to have a fellow Domer around...

[hack]

Admittedly very jealous -- lucky bounces and a slightly less moronic OC and Michigan could have been a 1-loss team -- but if that's how this ends up, please beat the freakin SEC.

``Back'' is another question though. Sustain success for a few years.

[WM Wolverine]

M should've never scheduled Bama, they are beatable but their loss to A&M appeared to me a team that didn't show up till the 2nd quarter. Saban will have them prepared to play you guys. I expect it'll be closer than expected as I think very highly of ND's defense. I think M's defense is better than it was in September...

You lose every game you give the ball to your opponent 6 times and it should be by more than 7 points. Denard was trying to hard and forcing throws that weren't there, lots of credit to Teo' and ND's d-line but Denard should've taken a couple sacks and thrown the ball away a few times.

Bellomy gift wrapped the Nebraska game once he entered, M was much better off punting on every first down. He couldn't complete a pass and Neb knew it and put 8+ in the box and stuffed the run on every 1st/2nd down... M was outplayed more by NW more than they were by ND & Neb, two of their three losses.

[hack]

M was outplayed more by NW more than they were by ND & Neb, two of their three losses

Agree very enthusiastically. Borges gave away one game with a disgusting game plan and another game in the offseason by inviting disaster at the backup QB spot. He can redeem himself Saturday by coming up with a winning game plan against the cheaters.

[WM Wolverine]

Most criticized Borges' conservative play calling (while M was winning) yet when he was aggressive against ND it costed him. Conservative was the way to go with Denard's likelihood of giving the ball back to the opposition and M's strong defense.