Vol.161No. 8
"I didn’t think we’d have more ACL tears than losses"
The second-to-last home game of the 2016 season, the final contest at home for Notre Dame’s seniors, felt eerily similar to most of the team’s previous 10.
After a thrilling finish at home against Miami, Notre Dame hit the road to take on perennial rival Navy at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida on Saturday Nov. 8. The Irish looked to continue their five-game win streak against the Midshipmen and get their season back on track after a shaky start.
With the way Notre Dame’s defense had been playing before its game against Stanford — allowing nearly 30 points per game through its first six contests — holding the Cardinal to 17 might have been good enough for a win.
When describing the formidable environment of the Notre Dame-NC State game on Saturday Oct. 8, “harsh conditions” is an understatement. The Irish (2-4) took on the Wolfpack (4-1) hoping to make a statement and revive their season. Unfortunately for them, Mother Nature had other plans.
In a season of disappointments for the Notre Dame football program, the game against Nevada early in the season on Sept. 10 stands as a stark reminder of what could have been.
It looked like a Michigan State blowout early, but the game turned into a thriller after a furious rally by the Irish on Saturday, Sept. 17. Notre Dame came into the game as 7.5-point favorites, but ultimately lost by eight points, with a final score of 36-28.
The Irish fell to 1-3 Saturday, losing 38-35 to a Duke squad they were favored to beat by 21-points heading into the contest. It was a shocking loss for Notre Dame, but maybe it shouldn’t have been so surprising, as the game followed a familiar narrative.
Following a disappointing loss to Duke and the firing of Defensive Coordinator Brian VanGorder, Notre Dame headed to East Rutherford, New Jersey to take on the Syracuse Orange in MetLife Stadium.
The 2016 Fighting Irish football team kicked off their season with a thrilling yet ultimately heartbreaking primetime battle against the University of Texas.
Between the time that sophomore Brandon Wimbush started studying for his final exams last semester and sitting down in his first class in the new semester, he had moved up two spots on the depth chart — presumably occupying the role of starting quarterback for the Irish once spring practice arrives in roughly two months.
Oct. 29 saw the addition of another thrilling chapter to one of the most storied rivalries in college football. The 25th meeting between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Miami Hurricanes was filled with many twists and turns, though it ultimately finished with one of the best — if only — Irish victories from the season with a 30-27 victory in South Bend.
Most Notre Dame students know Malik Zaire as the senior quarterback who wears the number eight, a dynamic athlete with strong running skills and a passion for his sport. Throughout his career with the Irish, he has played in 17 games and represented Notre Dame on a national level both on and off the field.
The fire-Kelly firestorm is premature and illogical. Admittedly, the 2016 season was one of the worst in ND history. But it was also Kelly’s only losing season in seven years at the helm in South Bend. He’s an NFL-caliber coach, adept recruiter and proven winner — he has more career wins than any active Division-1 coach.
The Fighting Irish finished the 2016 football season with four wins and eight losses, one of the worst Irish performances in fifty-some years, and only the second losing season in Head Coach Brian Kelly’s 23 year career.
After a disappointing 2016 season and with several key players departing, Notre Dame needs a strong 2017 recruiting class to reestablish itself among the college football elite.
Of those who follow Notre Dame football, few would argue 2016 was the team’s finest year. Maybe it is the poor football season, or perhaps frustration with Head Football Coach Brian Kelly has reached an all-time high, but alumni are expressing their disappointment through media.
Nineteen letters. Three lines of text. One of the most talked-about college football games in history. All because of a t-shirt.
The 2016 Notre Dame football season certainly was a memorable one.
Brian Kelly’s head coaching winning percentage, which places him 16th among active NCAA Division-I coaches. His overall record is 230-88-2 through stints with Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati and Notre Dame. Just one year removed from a 2015 campaign, in which his team went 10-3 and was a contender for a playoff spot, Kelly finds himself on the hot seat. His 2016 team, ranked as high as 9th in the nation in preseason polls, finished 4-8 and failed to reach a bowl game. …
In a hard-fought, third-round NCAA tournament matchup on November 27, the Irish men’s soccer team lost 3-1 over the Thanksgiving weekend at Louisville. That match was Louisville’s second win over Notre Dame this year; in September, the Cardinals handed the then-top-ranked Irish their first loss of the season. Louisville joins four other ACC squads in the national quarterfinals.…
The second-to-last home game of the 2016 season, and the final contest at home for Notre Dame’s seniors, felt eerily similar to most of the team’s previous ten.
Skating into its final season in the Hockey East Conference, the Fighting Irish hockey team looks to its juniors to lead a team of young talent.
In their regular season opening two-game series, Notre Dame defeated Arizona State at home 9-2 and 4-2. The ninegoal tally is the highest the Irish have scored since scoring 10 against Canisius on Dec. 29, 2010.…
Not often will the head of a university publish an article in a nationally syndicated newspaper questioning the actions of an association of which it is a member. But Notre Dame President Reverend John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. did just that, and it has sparked an ongoing national conversation.
Jenkins wrote an opinion piece this September in the Wall Street Journal entitled “The NCAA Isn’t a Moral Arbiter — Nor Should It Be.” He questioned the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s decision to move seven championship games from North Carolina in response to the state’s House Bill 2 (H.B. 2), which restricts the use of public restrooms to a person’s biological sex, rather than gender identity.…
Before the 2014-15 season, Mike Brey had never reached the Elite Eight as a head coach, and Notre Dame had not been since the 1978-79 season under Digger Phelps, when the Irish were still independent. Brey has since guided the team that far in two consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, losing to Kentucky in 2015 and North Carolina in 2016.…
6 The Irish hockey team’s ranking in the latest poll, released by USA Today and USA Hockey Magazine. The Irish won three of their first four games in 2016, but have since lost to and tied with Penn State before earning a split with Connecticut, which dropped them two spots from fourth to their current position.…
It’s simple: Notre Dame fans expect championships and dominant defensive performances.
Since 1991, Notre Dame has enjoyed one of the most lucrative television deals in college sports: NBC airs a national live broadcast of every home football game. On Sept. 13, a press release issued on UND.com stated that the NBC deal has generated $100 million in financial aid for students. This headline is refreshing when you consider other universities’ allocation of funds: In essentially a reverse move, the University of New Hampshire put a quarter of their longtime campus librarian’s $4 million posthumous donation towards a new football scoreboard. Programs at schools like UNH sap money, while ND football’s cup runneth over.…
A dance on the dock to her favorite song. “I Am a Champion” signs affixed to the rowing machines. A challenge to see how many miles can be rowed in her memory. These are just some the ways that Ailish Sheehan, Notre Dame class of 2015, is being remembered.
1500 - The number of fans that will be able to fit into the Harris Family Track and Field Stadium, currently under construction on the southeast side of campus near the Compton Family Ice Arena and the Melissa Cook Softball Stadium. When completed, this state-of-the-art facility (located outside ND’s existing nine-lane track) will boast a nutrition station, locker rooms, meeting rooms, a training center and a scoreboard. The stadium, subsidized by College of Science alumnus Bob Harris and his wife, Mary Ellen, is expected to be finished by February 2017.…
With many strong performances already, the Irish are hoping to carry that momentum forward in the coming weeks. Here’s a quick glance at some key things to know about each team and how each has performed so far.