by Leprechaun Express & Steve Welsh
“… It’s not that he doesn’t believe the Fighting Irish can continue excelling as a College Football Playoff-caliber program after producing a 22-4 mark the past two seasons and finishing No. 11 (2017) and No. 5 (2018) in the final Associated Press poll. Those have been the best consecutive campaigns by Notre Dame since 1992-93. More pertinent is how they go about doing it this season. …”
“Notre Dame had a calm offseason, a blessing when dealing with a physical sport played by 18- to 22-year-olds. Despite the recent attrition in the receiving corps — headlined by Monday’s reports of a season-long suspension for Irish sophomore receiver Kevin Austin — the drama, concern and unknown has not exceeded its normal level. …”
“This space has admittedly been harsh in its assessments of No. 9 Notre Dame’s season-opening opponent. In an attempt to be fair to Louisville, let’s pepper Mark Ennis with some questions. Mark serves as the publisher at CardinalSports.com. …”
NCAAF Scoreboard
Date: Monday, September 2
Time: 8:06 p.m. ET
Site: Cardinal Stadium
Louisville, KY
61,000 (Field Turf)
TV: ESPN (National) | ESPN App
• Chris Fowler (play-by-play)
• Kirk Herbstreit (analysis)
• Maria Taylor (sideline)
Radio: JMI/Legends (54 Affiliates)
SiriusXM (Channel 129)
96.1 FM, 101.5 FM & 960 AM (South Bend)
Tickets: Notre Dame Ticket Exchange powered by VividSeats.com
Louisville Cardinals Football vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football, Mon • Sep 02 • 8:00 PM, Cardinal Stadium (University of Louisville), Louisville, KY
“… Notre Dame named seven team captains for … 2019 …. ‘I think it has much more to do with their ability to act as a unified group than it does anything else,’ … Brian Kelly said. ‘They operate so much easier together as that group.’ Six of the seven are seniors, though two of those seniors could return in 2020. … they cover the spectrum of career trajectories leading to a starring one, meaning every player on the roster should be able to relate to at least one of the seven. …”
“… Remember when Kelly’s face turned purple as he undressed a quarterback after a foolish turnover? He wants Book to be more willing to roll the dice with downfield flings. That’s one change at Notre Dame, where the vibe is unlike previous fall camps. The Irish are coming off back-to-back seasons of 10 or more wins for the first time since Lou Holtz prowled the sidelines. Both coordinators are in place. There’s a new indoor facility. The strength program is, well, strong. And they have a terrific — and prudent — returning quarterback. …”
“… For those who want to believe the Fighting Irish are all hype and not close to joining Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State atop the sport’s hierarchy: The two times Notre Dame got itself to the big stage, it was humiliated — 42-14 by Alabama in the 2013 BCS title game and 30-3 by Clemson in last year’s CFP semifinal played at the Cotton Bowl. And, stuck in the middle of that four-out-of-five-year run of making the AP top five, the Fighting Irish had a 4-8 stinker that was one of their worst seasons of the modern era. Kelly has never been truly on the hot seat in South Bend, but he has also never been beloved because he hasn’t done that one thing the Irish haven’t accomplished since 1988. …”
“… Remember when Kelly’s face turned purple as he undressed a quarterback after a foolish turnover? He wants Book to be more willing to roll the dice with downfield flings. …”