Your weekly dose of Notre Dame news, opinion, and other stuff.
Top News
So, Nick Saban retired. Thus far, Dan Lanning is reportedly staying at Oregon and not taking the Alabama job.
The Irish have added grad transfer receiver Jayden Harrison from Marshall. He’s caught 72 passes for 794 yards and 4 touchdowns in his career with a hefty 1,522 yards and 3 touchdowns as a kick returner.
Later this week, Notre Dame also added Northwestern safety transfer Rod Heard. This will be his 6th and final season in college after starting a ton of games for the Wildcats.
Notre Dame finished the 2023 season at no. 14 in the AP Poll.
Two years probation and dissociation from their NIL collective are some of the big punishments handed down to Florida State on Thursday night following a NCAA investigation into NIL recruiting offenses.
Texas starting quarterback Quinn Ewers is returning to Austin for 2024.
Ohio State star wide receiver Emeka Egbuka announced he’ll be returning to college and playing another year with the Buckeyes.
Former Kansas State quarterback Will Howard has transferred to Ohio State.
Former 5-star quarterback Malachi Nelson transferred from USC to Boise State.
Oregon quarterback Ty Thompson has transferred to Tulane.
Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa has entered the transfer portal.
Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins transferred to Ohio State. The Rebels later added former Notre Dame and LSU running back Logan Diggs this week.
Former Texas A&M receiver Evan Stewart is transferring to Oregon.
Oklahoma is hiring Jacksonville State’s Zac Alley as defensive coordinator.
Auburn has fired offensive coordinator Phillip Montgomery. The play-calling duties will be taken over by head coach Hugh Freeze.
Alabama defensive coordinator Kevin Steele is retiring. He beat his boss by a couple days.
Uniform of the Week
Remember when Notre Dame wore white pants this year? Somehow, I missed UCF going with this so-called “Light Mode” uniform when they visited Kansas earlier in 2023. This looks a lot like the white uniforms the Irish basketball team have been using in recent years. I noticed recently the gold Notre Dame is using in hoops is pretty dark. It has to be against all that white, and it looks decent indoors.
UCF played on a bright sunny day in Lawrence and while I gave you a good shot of their gold numbers there were times during the game when they were hard to see. The helmet logo also looked washed out at certain angles (you can kind of see that above) but there is also a reflective-like trim (look at the helmet stripe) that made it look like there was black outline. I don’t like this look for UCF as black is too much of their identity.
Recruiting
Notre Dame added 2025 edge rusher Christopher Burgess (0.9405) this past Saturday. The Irish also added safety Ethan Long (0.8990) on Monday night.
Alabama landed both safety Zavier Mincey (0.9718) and running back Daniel Hill (0.9263) at the All-American Bowl. The Tide lost 5-star receiver Ryan Williams (0.9956) with the departure of Nick Saban.
The top recruit for the 2025 cycle in quarterback Bryce Underwood (0.9999) committed to LSU.
5-star cornerback Devin Sanchez (0.9979) committed to Ohio State. The Buckeyes also added edge rusher Zahir Mathis (0.9787) this week.
Washington added linebacker Zaydrius Rainey-Sale (0.9349).
Tight end Jack VanDorselar (0.9116) committed to Tennessee.
YouTube Channel
Does your significant other enjoy video games? Not mine! She is however, rather obsessed with airplanes, airports, and all things air travel. For a couple days I mulled over extending an olive branch and buying Microsoft Flight Simulator. I thought that would be a cool idea to get her involved in something related to the XBox that now sits rather drearily unused most of the time on our TV buffet. Who has time for video games when top 50 iconic uniform formulas need to be created? Still, I wanted to see if this game would hold her attention and at least get her comfortable touching a damn XBox controller.
Then, I checked out the price. Nope! It looks like a new version is coming out sometime this year and who knows how much it’ll cost. Today, the standard version will run you $90.00 and if you want to unlock more planes and airports (I guess, I didn’t really look too deeply into it) the premium edition goes up to $120.00 total. I don’t want to be a pilot that bad, or watch someone else fly an aircraft for that price.
Tunes
Who are some of your favorite rhythm guitarists of all-time? I have to put Stone Gossard from Pearl Jam way up there. I was watching a YouTube video of the top rhythm guitar tracks of all-time and “Dissident” from Pearl Jam’s second album Vs., the third of an epic run of consecutive songs on this album that includes “Daughter” and “Glorified G.”, made the list. Obviously, the lead guitar highlights the intro to today’s song:
Gossard is strumming away with some power chords over the intro, just waiting for the spotlight. When the song hits the verse he really shines. I don’t have a deep knowledge of Pearl Jam but I believe Gossard was a huge part of the songwriting within the band, no? When you break down this song it’s incredibly simple but it’s the rhythm guitar during the verses that really carry the tune and give it a unique sound from the grunge era.
Trivia
What was Nick Saban’s career record against Notre Dame?
The Other Football
What is going on at Chelsea? They lost the 1st leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final 1-0 to Middlesborough. Manager Mauricio Pochettino has won just 12 out of his 26 matches with the club. Liverpool beat Fulham in the 1st leg of the other semifinal.
Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid 5-3 in extra time during a thrilling Spanish Supercopa.
Tottenham have signed Leipzig forward Timo Werner on loan with an option to buy. They also signed Genoa central defender Radu Dragusin while sending Eric Dier to Bayern Munich on an initial loan. Some tidy business!
LA Galaxy are paying a club record $10 million fee for attacking midfielder Gabriel Pec from Vasco de Gama.
San Jose winger Cade Cowell is head to Chivas on a transfer.
USWNT defender Emily Fox is signing with Arsenal from the North Carolina Courage.
German soccer legend Franz Beckenbauer passed away this week at the age of 78.
TV & Movies
Did you know they are coming out with a second Beetlejuice movie this year? My immediate reaction is not to do this. This was one of those movies that was so original and fun that surely it can’t be topped. However, Tim Burton is directing and it looks like most of the original cast are also coming back with Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, and Winona Ryder. Now I’m intrigued!
They also have Jenna Ortega signed on and the early reports from the press state this will be a full sequel taking place in the current day. For me, Beetlejuice was a Hall of Fame HBO re-run movie and one of the first films in my life that spawned a bunch of repeatable lines and quips that we used among friends and family. I look forward to Michael Keaton (criminally underrated) being back in the spotlight, too.
A Look Back
I know next to nothing about darts. I’m not even sure I’ve thrown a real dart since I was in college. And I definitely don’t remember many occasions at a bar when I would’ve been throwing darts. Who among our readers are into darts and have a board at home? Key us all in on the dart world! The most exposure I’ve had in recent years is seeing Spurs soccer players at events in London, enjoying some beverages as the culture is want to do.
Did you see the recent PDC World Darts Championships, though?
The championship made international headlines because darter (thrower?) Luke Littler made it to the final round at just 16 years old. This boy is the oldest 16 year old that the British Isles have ever produced. Sixteen! It’s so hard to believe. My main professional dart gripe is that the games move way too quickly. In the first 30 seconds of this embedded video there are 7 darts thrown. Hey, Littler won the first round the announcer said. Unfortunately, he ended up losing the championship.
18S Paddock Club
Reviewing the 2023 season for each team on the F1 grid…
Aston Martin
Place: 5th/10
Points: 280
Fernando Alonso: 206 points
Lance Stroll: 74 points
What an up and down year for this team! Fernando Alonso made his much publicized move from Alpine and immediately took an improved car to 8 top 5 finishes in the first 9 races with a total of 6 podiums. The veteran former champion was bagging so many points it allowed him and Aston Martin to hang around in 2nd place until summer break.
It was a season to forge for Lance Stroll who began the year nursing a broken wrist and never came close to competing against his teammate or scoring enough points to allow Aston to stay high up in the Constructor’s chase. By the time the 2023 season ended it was pretty grim–Stroll was dominated by Alonso and his career in F1 has never been challenged as much as it has been in recent months.
But, Stroll’s dad owns the team so alas!
After taking some Red Bull personnel, Aston came out strong with a 2023 car that looked awfully similar to Red Bull. Funny, right? What wasn’t so funny was Aston’s inability to develop the car throughout the season while the mid-season technical directive about flexible bodywork reportedly nerfed their car more than any other on the grid.
The team moved into their new $300 million factory in Silverstone last year so this will be the first full season with all of their new technology at their fingertips. Alonso isn’t getting any younger (he’ll turn 43 this upcoming season!) and the team will realistically be held back with Stroll in the other seat. It’s difficult to imagine a better start to what they experienced in 2023 and if they are unable to replicate that success it could be a very frustrating 2024.
Trivia Answer:
5-0-0
Was that dart kid sitting next to Madders at the last Spurs game?
Dayne Crist and Gunner Kiel didn’t work out so well, but maybe it’s third times the charm for Kelly and 5 star quarterback recruits.
I’m guessing his draft stock slid a bunch? NIL money is probably enough to entice him back but I saw him listed as roughly a mid 1st rounder early in the year then he seemed to disappear.
Yea I was a bit surprised. I think The Athletic still had him mocked (or was it PFF?) in the first round still (late 1st round). I wonder if he thinks with better QB play he might be a top 10 pick next year and the NIL money was good too making it a worthwhile gamble for him to take.
What a rambler!
A good article on the violations and all of the sanctions on Florida State. (linked)
Florida State’s NIL collective that was sanctioned was Rising Spear, which combines two entities: Garnet Spirit Inc. and Gold Standard. Garnet Spirit is a non-profit and Gold Standard is a for-profit. One goal is to partnper with local businesses, which probably use their contributions to Garnet Spirit for tax-deductions. The IRS has warned that many NIL collectives do not qualify as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) because they operate primarily to benefit private interests. Whether a new 501(c)3 is started or Gold Spirit will be able to divest itself will be of interest. Certainly with FSU trying to leave the ACC and with this potential case with the IRS, their attorneys will be busy. In June, Rising Spear reported $1.2+ in donations for 2022 to distribute to their athletes. Whether those athletes that received Rising Spear donations will have tax implications is speculative.
Tommy Rees, Mike Norvell, Kalen DeBoer emerge as top Alabama candidates: Sources (The Athletic)
If it’s DeBoer, he’ll want Ryan Grubb as his OC.
Beetlejuice does hold up well, just watched it with the kids. I’ll give Tim Burton the benefit of the doubt.
No Geena Davis though? I definitely had a crush on her from that movie. But what I thought was amazing was that she saw the US Olympic archery team winning golds in 1996, so she decided to try archery at age 41. Three years later she just missed qualifying for the Olympic team in 2000! Some people just have crazy good athletic genes.
You could tell from A League of Their Own, great athlete!
Also, ditto with a crush on her back then.
Trivia: 3-0 at MSU, 2-0 at Bama
FSU just threw an extra $2-3 million per year at Norvell… it’s not actually going to be Tommy right?
Word is now DeBoer is talking with them
Sounds like they offered and he accepted
Will be interesting if it’s Kalen. Culture fit? Is there a more different place than Seattle vs Tuscaloosa?
If? They’ve hired him.
Washington is getting severely depleted of scholarship players. Counting the 2024 class who have signed, they have seventy-seven scholarship players at this time. Due to the thirty day window, Will Rogers, QB transfer from Mississippi State, has re-entered the Portal. Their second string QB behind Penix in 2023, Dylan Morris, transferred to James Madison after Rogers transferred in.
There now are only two QBs on scholarship – Austin Mack from ’23 and their ’24 commit Demaricus Davis. Mack redshirted last year. Mack is eligible to enter the Portal and, if Davis enrolled early, he can.
At this point, two starters on offense and three on defense return for 2024 with losses due to no eligibility left, declaring for the Draft, Portal commits and those currently uncommitted in the Portal, the Decommits from those who just transferred in and from the ’24 and ’25 classes.
Husky Portal/Draft Player Tracker
Due to the timing, the options for obtaining players through the Portal once they hire a new coaching staff are limited. Grad transfers are still a possibility and QB will be the top priority. The Alabama players seem to be staying put. DeBoer could pick off a few of his former players who just entered the Portal. Their 2025 class has two verbal commits.
As much as I love portaling and the laissez Faire attitude I could see situations like this really frigging a program up
Yeah that’s what some of us have been saying for a long time.
It demonstrates that the model for building a team is along the lines of Notre Dame’s – recruiting and developing players within, transfers that compliment and fill holes in the team, promote from within if appropriate and commitment to the university not individuals. Washington added a lot of transfers and was top-heavy with Seniors and recruiting classes that ranked in the 20s. But they’ve got that BIG media money.
A Husky blog estimates they are at seventy-three scholarship players for 2024 now even with the sixth year options. (article includes number of players a each position). Michigan with a Harbaugh departure to the Chargers or whomever may suffer less transfer losses similar to Alabama or or what ND’s could be in such a situation.
It appears DeBoer is hiring Ryan Grubb as his OC. Rees’s buyout is $4.1 million. Three of Saban’s coaching staff have left or retired. DeBoer is also bringing Washington’s general manager/director of player personnel and others.
So basically TFR got paid like $5-6 million (I think his salary was $1-2mil/year) to coach for 1 year and do little more than help UM win a championship?
Does Tobias want back in?
I believe he and Aidan transferred to Cal where Justin Wilcox between recruits and transfers for ’23 and ’24 classes total sixty-one players. Wilcox will be on Washington’s coaching search list, coached mostly on the West Coast and spent three years at Washington. If so, then their thirty day transfer window opens and their may be mutual interest by Washington and Wilcox in taking a lot of his coaching staff. Or Cal is signing him to a long-term extension to keep him there.
Might the guy to wonder about be Jeremiah Hunter, the Cal WR that transferred to UW in Dec. ??
Dang. I don’t know where Kalen is from but part of why saban did so well was his down home energy that they love in the south east. I have a feeling it’s gonna be a rough go for bama and kalen
He’s from Sioux Falls SD. I think he’ll be able to adjust.
When Saban went to LSU there was a ton of “how the dickens can this here Yankee fit in” complaints, remember? I mean, he’d been at Michigan State. Him winning in the bayou helped a bit when he went to Tuscaloosa, which makes the point that winning most often trumps cultural fit. None of you remember this, but when we hired Ara there was a lot of cultural concern, he was the first coach we’d had since forever who was both non-Catholic and not from the Jess Harper-Knute Rockne tree. But he’d beaten us four straight years and we were kinda desperate, so the concerns went away when we beat the Badgers to start his first season.
Saban was from west Virginia. Not exactly deep south but deep south adjacent
As in he grew up in WV and has a “accent”
The Deep South folks had him tagged as Midwest
Correct. To Alabamians, West Virginia is Yankee.
WV was part of the Union, so not incorrect.
Right on, and bravo (said the former West Point history prof). Good for them back in the day.
Maybe
What was the opinion of Michigan uniforms during the natty? I really liked them. Especially the all blue components of the helmet – face mask, chin strap, and lining pads. It’s like getting black rims on a black car. It shouldn’t work but it does
This post is so unfair to “totally into unis” Eric, who couldn’t even watch the natty because of his justified nausea over the Skunkbears getting there…
Austin Mack, Washington’s last remaining QB on scholarship, has entered the Portal. New coach, Jedd Fisch from Arizona, has his work cut out for him. Since the Huskies lost the CFP championship, twenty-six players or prospects have entered the Portal, asked for a scholarship release or de-committed. They need enough QBs just to play the Spring Game. I don’t see that their ’24 QB commit, Dermaricus Davis, is an early enrollee.
Arizona fans are not happy. At this point, Arizona has eighteen of twenty-two starters returning. At Arizona Fisch was set to make $3.4 million in 2024 with an extension on the table. He signed a seven year contract with UW for $7.75 million a year.