But anyone, ANYONE that wants Urban Meyer as coach at Notre Dame is NOT a Notre Dame man, or a Notre Dame woman. FACT.

Anyone that wants him here, for any reason whatsoever, PLEASE, email us and let’s debate it. I’ll give you the platform to tell me why it’s a good idea. I’ll give you a fair shot at explaining your reasoning. I’ll give you thousands of readers. SERIOUSLY. Happy to do it. And then I will crush you in the debate. Because there is not a COACH IN THE WORLD worse for ND than Urban Meyer. NOT ONE. Not Weis. Not anyone.

I’m not defending Weis here, I’m just saying STOP with the Meyer nonsense. The guy is a 100% scumbag that has no scruples and could give a shite about his players carrying AK-47s and trying to blind people. I know ND winning is important. But not at the expense of who and what we are/should be. Notre Dame. Can someone please remember this?

So please, just stop with the Urban garbage. Call for anyone else. Call for Weis’ head. But no more Urban. It makes you look like a rudderless Grade-A d-bag when you hope a guy like that would come to ND.

Moral compass? Eh, winning is more important.

Figure yourselves out NDNation. Don’t be satisfied with tonight, ever. But don’t hope for a guy like that. Ever.

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One of the biggest question marks out there pre-season was ‘CAN the ND O-line get better?’. Wasn’t even ‘will’, just CAN. Well, they can, and they have.

Frank Verducci came in with a big task, and he’s been up to the challenge.

“It was a concern when I got here, because I know they were like — for lack of a better term — abused,” Irish offensive line coach Frank Verducci said. “It was like they’d been locked in the closet. They did have issues that were very evident in their approach. Just little things they would say, you could tell they were damaged goods in some way.

“So the first thing you try to do is build up their confidence — if you do these techniques, if you buy into this, good things are going to happen.”

Good things have happened.

Is our O-line amazing? Nope. But they’re serviceable in the running game. And when you have all-american caliber players at WR (multiple), TE and QB, and a decent and deep squad of RBs, that’s good enough. And it’s a HECK of a lot better than the past few years (coughcoughgoodlord2007lordylordylordycoughcough).

A few stats to highlight the improvement in some areas, and, well, slim improvement in others. Note: Sacks, which distort all of the rushing stats (especially 2007), are included.

Rushing Yards Per Game/Yards Per Carry:

2004 – 139/3.3
2005 – 160/3.6 +15% and +9% increases respectively
2006 – 136/3.9 -15% and +8% respectively
2007 – 75/2.1 -45% and -46%. UGH.
2008 – 119/3.3 +58% and +57%. 08 wasn’t great, but it was a vast improvement over 2007.
2009 – 148/4.0 +24% and +21%.

2009 is showing marked improvement in our running game, and we’re finally ranked about average nationally (58th rushing attack or so). Again, not amazing, but not bad either. With a passing attack like ours, this is pretty solid.

Also note that ND has just gotten into 4 yards per carry territory, which is generally where elite teams fall (maybe a bit higher, but we’re knockin on the doorstep). Weis hasn’t had a 4 YPC year yet at ND, though he came close at 3.9 in 2006. (Not coincidentally, the last year we were any good.)

What’s surprising to me is that our Sacks Allowed Stats actually aren’t looking great this year, and there’s actually a slight decrease in performance vs last year. You’d think that with another year under their belt, and a better fit with the coaching staff, and a decent run game to take some of the pressure off Jimmy, etc that the Sacks Allowed numbers would improve. Nope. And it’s also strange because it doesn’t FEEL like we’re getting sacked a lot. And we’re not, a lot. But more than last year.

Sacks Allowed per Game and National Rank follow:

2006 – 2.31 ranked 89th
2007 – 4.83 and DEAD LAST
2008 – 1.69 and 51
2009 – 2.13 and 68

Really? We only gave up 1.69 sacks per game last year? That’s MUCH better than I thought we were. I guess a lot of that perception about ND having sack issues last year was just hangover from 2007 when OH MY GOD DON’T LOOK OH YOU LOOKED THE HORROR THE HORROR!

It was so bad.

So ND currently sits in the lower 60’s in ranking, at just over 2 sacks allowed per game. 2 ain’t bad, but I’d like to see us get under 2 again by the end of the season. It’s a reachable goal, especially without any more USC-caliber defenses on the schedule.

The boys up front are largely running low, under the radar now. That’s a good thing. Let’s see if they can get just a little bit lower.

How low can you go, boys? You want to be a Limbo Star or what? Keee keeee keeeee keeeeee!

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Now, you hear a lot of things people say about [Weis] that aren’t always so good. And what I have to say about that is this: If you met the guy and interacted with him and come away with that impression, then that’s that.

But if you are 7,000 miles away and you spout all this stuff and feed the brush fire of murmuring and complaining and you haven’t even picked up the phone and you haven’t asked what you can do to help the man, that just adds to that system of unbelief.

If you say you love the university, don’t be the complainer. Come in and say, “What do you need? What can I do for you?”

People forget about the spirit of Notre Dame. We’re supposed to handle these issues differently. Pray for that man. Light a candle at the Grotto. That what makes us special. Then let God do the work. How about that?

Doesn’t mean you have to love everything Weis does. Doesn’t mean you have to think he’s God’s gift to coaching, or that you even have to like him. But if you call yourself a Notre Dame fan, well then you Best Damn Well be Supporting him and his Team.. Either for the next 10 years, or until it’s another guy in the job that you need to support.

Just listen to the Rocket. Too many of us have forgotten that Notre Dame spirit he refers to, and that’s a shame.

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Congrats to Mike Anello for his academic and athletic performance. It’s a great achievement to graduate early with such high grades, and to continue that academic performance as a grad student and football player.

But how about Chris Stewart? Awesome, awesome turnaround for a guy that was thinking about transferring a few years back. Remember back when Chris left? And we weren’t sure if he’d come back?

Chris has gone from questioning his time at ND – potentially wondering if he fit in, wondering if the academic and athletic challenges were worth it, missing home – to being a solid starter on a vastly improved offensive line, and on his way to a serious degree with great grades. 3.8 GPA last Spring? At Notre Dame? While playing Spring ball, as a starter? That’s a serious accomplishment.

Congratulations on the accolades Chris, they’re very well deserved.

But even more, congrats on having the guts and fortitude to stick it out, making both your football and academic career something special. Here’s to another year, an MBA, and THEN the NFL!

Note: Chris Stewart’s head is not this tiny, but I suck at this stuff so whatever.

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“This is not a lobbying effort,” [WAC Commissioner] Benson stressed. “We are not lobbying pollsters, we’re not doing anything direct to the coaches poll or to the Harris poll voters. We’re simply trying to maintain a message that brings attention to what Boise State has done over the course of the last six years. They certainly have established themselves as a credible, legitimate, bona fide top 10 team.”

Sigh. Poor BSU. They ripped up now-amazing-looking Oregon and have played no one since. They’re a Top-10 team, but with TCU jumping them in the polls recently it’s unlikely they’ll be ranked high enough at the end of the year to ensure a BCS berth. They’ll be qualified, but they won’t be picked. At least, not without…a PR firm push?

Uh, sorry fellas, that just ain’t gonna work.

In today’s world, beyond the automatic bids (and even that’s questionable) it’s not about “deserving it”. It’s not about what the national media thinks. And it’s certainly not about what a PR team you pay tells the national media to think.

It’s about economics. It’s one big popularity contest with dollars as the applausometer. Who will sell the most seats and who will drive the highest ratings? Plain and simple.

Hiring a PR firm is a fairly desperate act, but I get why they’re doing it. What else can they do? They can’t change the voting and they can’t hire a fan base.

But until anyone really starts to care about Boise State, you’re in for a long, uphill battle. Any other BCS at-large qualifier from a major conference is going to get the nod over you guys. Once they qualify, you’re done. PR firm or not. Any SEC team that qualifies? Yep, gonna take them over you. Any Big 12, Big 10 or ACC? Yep, sorry. Probably even a Big East team, and DEFINITELY a qualifying Notre Dame. It doesn’t mean any of those teams, including ND, DESERVE it more than BSU.

It’s just that they’ll all draw more eyes and sell more tickets. So if you want to get in there, do a few things. Schedule harder teams. Keep winning. And build the fan base. Maybe your PR firm will help with some of that. I don’t know, guess it can’t hurt. But don’t hold your breath.

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Everything is all over the freaking place…

Brandon Spikes pokes out eyes. (Boo). The dude who’s eye he tried to poke is 100% COOL WITH IT.

WTF?

Blount gets a season-long suspension for a punch that, at worst, could make a dude a little woozy. Spikes gets a half-game suspension for trying to blind somebody.

WTF?

Florida is #1 (Boo), even though they have a crappy offense and just don’t look that great. WTF?

Cincy is a Top 5 team? Really? After playing the 75th most difficult sked in the country? Boise State plays the 81st most difficult and they’re up there too. WTF?

People mock ND for playing (6-3) Navy, when teams like those two and PSU (83rd most difficult Sked) get a pass? WTF?

Rich Rodgriguez is still employed in football? And NOT behind bars? WTF?

Michael Floyd is back. (Yay!). Robinson and Allen are hurt, and Crist is out forever (Boo). WTF?

Jimmy has developed like crazy (Yay), is leading this team and putting up Hesiman numbers, but will probably go pro (pending the CBA results most likely). Tate may or may not go, he’ll probably be fighting Jimmy for the Heisman by year end, and he’ll most likely go pro if Jimmy does. WTF?

ND’s offense is ridonculous (Yay), but our defense is still confusing (probably – unless we ‘turned the corner’ against WSU, which, who knows?) WTF?

Before WSU, ND fans everywhere are fretting – are we that good? Do we really suck? Should Charlie be canned? And 1 week later after beating a high school JV team, everyone’s happy? WTF with the whining before, and WTF with the sudden calm? WTF in general.

WTF? I just don’t know.

Why the Face?

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Both guys should lead for these awards right now. Let’s take a look at the lists, and stats, along with SOS (general reading of each candidates’ competition) and team performance thus far to get a read on where everyone stands.

O’Brien List

Jimmy should have a huge lead at this point in the season for Best QB. Course, using logic isn’t typically the way these things work, but it’s what should be going on when you look at team performance vs. relative SOS and QB stats. To do this across teams, I created a combined score based on ranking within the 15 candidates for the O’Brien award. This score equally weights record rank and SOS rank (vs other players’ teams’ SOS). I also included QB Rating, Yards, YPC and TD/Int ratio – I ranked all the QB candidates on all of these, and then averaged the rankings. Jimmy comes out #1, and it’s not really that close.

As you can see, among the 15 Finalists for the award, Jimmy comes out as #1, 2 or 3 on all the individual stats on the board. Because team somehow seems to matter in individaul awards now-a-days, I included a team metric here as a factor, and this drags Jimmy down a lot. ND’s 5-2 record hurts us, giving Jimmy a rank of 9 out of 15. #2 on QB Rating, #3 on Yards, #1 on TD/INT ratio (and that ratio is 8 to 1 – #2 rank on this metric is Case Keenum at 5 to 1), and #3 on YPA. Clausen dominates this group in stats. He should be favorite for the award just based on this. But take into account that he’s played against the 5th toughest SOS among the candidates, and without his #1 WR Floyd, and they should just give it to him now.

Biletnikoff List

Golden Tate leads for the Best WR award as well.

I used the same methodology here, but looked at Yards, YPC and TDs as the individual stats.

Golden is churning out crazy stats too, against the 17th most difficult Sked in the country according to Sagarin. Tate is 2nd on the list in Yards, 4th in YPC, and 2nd in TDs. When you average across these and his team stats (which again bring him down), he averages a ranking of 3.3, a full place ahead of the #2 candidate Vincent Brown of SDSU. And if a guy with the name Golden, with crazy stats, at ND in a prolific offense can’t win this award over an SDSU player, it ain’t never gonna happen. Golden should take this down if he keeps up this pace.

Conclusion

Our players rule.

Caveat: I know this isn’t perfect. I should’ve looked up Pass D rankings rather than SOS, etc etc. But I just wanted to take a look and see if there’s a legit argument that Clausen and Tate should be leading candidates for the awards at this point in the year, without taking 9 years to find the perfect metrics buried somewhere on the internets where I can’t find them quickly. So, sure, this is directional. But these directions point to our ND boys taking home some hardware post-season, assuming consistent performance in the 2nd half of the year.

There is.

Go Irish.

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1. The 7-4-1 scheduling model has been the subject of much heated debate amongst Irish fans since it was first announced back in 2006. This week the Fighting Irish will play the first neutral site “barnstorming game” in said model so now is as good of a time as any to weigh in on the controversial subject. What do you think about a) 7-4-1 as a whole, b) the neutral site/ barnstorming game in general and c) specifically playing Washington State in San Antonio.

   A) I think it’s not only un-Notre Dame. It’s un-American. b) This is only a neutral site game. It is most decidedly not a “barnstorming” game. Look up the word in the dictionary. Barnstorming requires theatrics. Barnstorming requires hype. This game doesn’t have theatrics or hype. It’s just a home game for the Irish where both teams have to make adjustments to their academic schedules in order to play. It’s just a dumb pain in the rear, and C) it’s against Washington State! In Texas! Hey, let’s go play the Japanese National team in Prague next!

2. I have personally had this game circled on the schedule for quite some time as the one “sure thing.” After the last few games I have really been looking forward to a drama free victory. As luck would have it I started looking at the Cougars more closely this morning and it appears that freshman quarterback Jeff Tuel went 28 of 42 for 354 yards and 2 TD’s in a losing effort against Cal over the weekend. With the Irish secondary still struggling to get it together what are the chances that yet another freshman signal caller makes this one way more interesting than it should be on Saturday night in San Antonio?

   Well, that depends. Notice the move of Kyle McCarthy to the starting Free Safety this weekend? Yep. That’s right. That’s not a typo in the depth chart. One of the surest tacklers on the team wont be creeping up to the line of scrimmage to help shut down the run anymore. But does that mean our woes in making sure Irish DBs are in the right place against the passing game will come to an end? Should this move work, look for the Irish DBs to look much, much better – not just against WSU, but for the remainder of the season. But pray it wont come to the humiliating detriment of the relatively strong Irish rush defense. That said, I think the coaches had to make this move. You either do it against the 116th ranked rushing offense in the country, and make it work, or the season is lost. Mark it: If this experiment looks like it’s not working, the Irish are in for 2 more losses this season. Anyway, to answer the original question: No. This QB wont get much done against the Irish.

3. Assuming that the Fighting Irish are able to take care of business and put this one away early what non-starters would you most like to see get some reps this week? Why?

   I want to see more of the linebackers who are waiting in the wings. I want to see what promise next year holds for that group whether or not T’eo takes his mission.

4. With the game being played on Halloween Night chances are that if you are not traveling to San Antonio you most likely have a scheduling conflict. Whether you are supposed to be at a party dressed as Fat Elvis, taking your kids trick-or-treating or just dealing with your doorbell ringing nonstop how do you plan to watch the game? If you are going what are you most looking forward to?

   I have a toddler, and after she started to yell and point at a television anytime she sees anyone playing football on it, I’ve stopped watching the games as they happen with such an active interest. I’ll be quite happy to answer the door while wearing my t-shirt that says, “This is my scary costume,” and hand out candy to the kiddies while intermittently checking on the score. Then once all is said and done, all the candy should be gone, and I’ll watch the entire thing dispassionately via the DVR. My heart will thank me.

5. Trick or Treat? Predictions please.

   Trick. We’ve been looking for the absolution of Charlie Weis since week 1 and haven’t found it. Why start now? WSU is probably the weakest team in a BCS conference this year. No good will come of this game. I predict an injury to a key player that will make us all hate that we played freaking WSU in freaking San Antonio. And I predict the Irish will win but wont reach 40 points.

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