Category: Featured Article

Irish face urgency, and a pivotal matchup, but does ‘Notre Dame’ really have a “must-win” game with Texas A&M? Only if the Irish become good enough for the playoff

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File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

It may be true, at least at the moment, that #16/17 Texas A&M is the only remaining top-25 Irish opponent. Yet it seems a bit silly to couch “must-win” game status within the notion that an 0-1 ‘Notre Dame’ is somehow a playoff contender.

Nevertheless, there still should be a sense of urgency to “right the ship” addressing weaknesses and making strides. And an 0-2 start would make it mathematically impossible to rise above .500 before October, and mathematically impossible to become bowl-eligible before November. That’s not playoff-eligible. That’s bowl-eligible.

But it might not be timely to analyze, as a playoff contender, an 0-1 Irish team with spotty play-calling, a somewhat tentative rookie quarterback, weak and inconsistent line play, UFO-like clock management problems, and other weaknesses.

Their inflated ranking is a residual after-effect of a preseason ranking influenced by last season, as is their inflated reputation. Their season-opening opponent looked lackluster as well, and, themselves, might well be destined to lose this weekend.

Their undoubtedly will be ebbing and flowing with the records and rankings of the mostly solid Irish opponents across the season, several of whom already in the “also receiving votes” category.

Time will tell whether this year’s Irish club will “find its feet” or, instead, turn out to be like some of those Florida State and Southern Cal teams in the past who struggled to stay above .500, yet were stocked with elite talent that would step up to do something fancy once in a while.

Bob Davie

Late in Bob Davie’s ‘Notre Dame’ tenure, late in a season with some losses accruing, the news media apparently thought it might be interesting to ruminate about whether the Irish would be interested in “just” going to a minor bowl game.

They even got Bob Davie, whose low-key affability and verbosity later helped him become a TV commentator, to go along with the imaginary exercise. He responded, why yes, they would be happy to go to a minor bowl.

The problem was *ahem* at the time of the article, they were not even bowl-eligible.

Sure enough, when the regular season was complete, they still were not bowl eligible, winding up with a losing record.

Texas A&M Only Remaining Currently-Ranked Opponent

As mentioned before, in 2025, #16/17 Texas A&M is the only remaining regular-season opponent still currently ranked, at least heading into their game in The House That Rockne Built. After an early season softening of ‘Notre Dame’s’ remaining strength of schedule, the Aggies momentarily seem like they might be the best remaining opportunity for a “quality win.”

Only Matters for the Playoff

On the other hand, that might only matter for the playoff, which, these days, is one and the same with the “major bowls.”

Being 0-2 against ranked opponents might be a label that loomed over the Irish for the duration, even if they manage wins against programs that are solid but unranked.

But unless the team improves, they are not really good enough for the playoff regardless.

With the team presently at 0-1 and looking a bit lackluster, it might not be timely to project, presume and assume about whether the Irish might be a playoff contender.

For any other bowls, including ACC-connected sub-major bowl games close to New Year’s, the Irish “resume” against ranked opponents might not really turn out to be all that pertinent.

All that matters might be the win-loss record; TV popularity and ticket sales; head-to-head matchups with ACC teams, a partner in bowl selections; and perhaps some vague sense of being able to put on a decent game.

The last time the Irish went to a sub-major bowl game, with a decent purse, it turned into a glorified exhibition game. The starting quarterbacks and a host of other quality players sat out, resting up for the NFL combine and draft.

Of course, ironically, the starting quarterback for the Irish, who was a bit of ringer to begin with as an older transfer, ended up going undrafted after playing hooky from the bowl game.

As an aside, for his part, the replacement starting quarterback, played well and they won, with a number of backups against backups, almost like a strike replacement team in the NFL.

One of the multiple reasons the Irish are in a mess right now, of course, is that the replacement quarterback from that bowl game, more recently, would go on to get a bit sandbagged and nudged out by the coaches in the current year. So the Irish entered the season without any scholarship quarterbacks with meaningful game experience, going up against a front-loaded schedule.

If the quarterback who left, Steve Angeli, hangs onto his current starting job at Syracuse, the potential NFL prospect could end up coming back to haunt the Irish when he goes up against them in the regular season finale.  Last week he threw for more than 400 yards in an overtime win.

Strength of Schedule Ebbing and Flowing

As for rankings and records among remaining 2025 opponents, as always, a lot of ebbing and flowing can still occur across what can be a long season.  Several remaining Irish opponents are already in the “also receiving votes” category.  And at least some of the opponents who picked up losses early, even ugly losses, are actually solid programs making strides to regain their footing.

Urgency

Even though it is rather early to think of a game as a “must-win” game, it still might be helpful to think of the matchup with Texas A&M as “must-win,” to lend a needed sense of urgency.

In a broad sense, the Irish have looked lackluster while being winless, and the chance to go 1-1 against ranked opponents instead of 0-2 does make the game pivotal. That is the especially the case, given that the first opponent also looked lackluster, and seems destined to lose this weekend.

From a purely mathematical standpoint, if the Irish start 0-2, but go on to find a way to win against unranked opponents, it still would be mathematically impossible for them to rise above .500 until early October.  And that would only be possible if they can beat a decent SEC team on the road as well as a 2024 playoff team.

As mentioned before, generally speaking, if the Irish start 0-2, and then somehow start “running the table,” it still would be mathematically impossible to become minimally bowl-eligible, for even a minor bowl, until early November.

If they picked up another loss along the way, November could get a bit dicey, counting down the weeks left to gain bowl eligibility.

That would especially be the case if either the Boston College game or Pitt game, with kickoff times still to-be-determined, turned into night games, followed up by tough games the following week, against, respectively, Navy and Syracuse.

The program has had a poor record the week after long-distance night games, raising suspicions that the institution is still have players take red-eye flights back, disrupting a sound training regimen and leaving lingering physiological deficits from sleep disruption and sleep deprivation.

Even back in the Charlie Weis era, the four-game losing skid that cost Weis his job included going 0-2 to unranked opponents the weeks after long-distance night games and apparent red-eye flights.

There are actually a few parallels.  In Weis’ last year, they took a red-eye flight back from a good win, at night, in San Antonio, and lost a close game the following week to Navy.  Later, they had a night game at Pitt.  Presumably they took a red-eye flight again, and lost the following week to an unranked opponent.

This year, if they end up with a night game at Boston College, it is Navy they have to play the following week.  If they might end up playing a night game at Pitt, as well, just like in Charlie Weis’s final season.  This time it would be followed by a tough game hosting Syracuse, led by a quarterback on a mission.

In any event, future strength of schedule is not as clear as some might like to think. And it is a bit silly to make playoff predictions for a lackluster team sitting at 0-1, no matter how inflated their ranking.

Yet there certainly should be a sense of urgency about the Texas A&M game, perhaps more to do with the urgency of remedying multiple weaknesses and subpar execution.

(Steve Welsh – SCW 9.12.25)

Winless ‘Notre Dame’ rises in AP and Coaches Poll during bye week; Irish now only winless team in Top-25; Reminiscent of unranked Irish jumping into top-20 after losing Lou Holtz’s first game

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U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

Another week into the season, ‘Notre Dame’ is now the only winless team in the top-25.The Irish rise to #8 in both the AP and Coaches Poll, still sitting at 0-1 after an early bye week.

One recalls how, in Lou Holtz’s first game at ‘Notre Dame,’ the Irish became the first, possibly only, team to open the season unranked, only to jump into what was then the top-20 after losing their first game.

However, that Irish team, after a losing record under Gerry Faust in 1985, played quite well in Lou Holtz’s 1986 debut, only to lose 24-23 to a #3-ranked, Bo Schembechler-coached Michigan team.

By contrast, the 2024 Irish and their opening-game opponent looked decidedly lackluster.

As a residual carryover from last year’s achievements, they both still enjoy inflated rankings carrying over from the preseason, at least thus far.

The Irish improvement from #9 to #8 during a bye week was due to 1-1 Clemson dropping multiple places after struggling against Troy.

– AP –

1 Ohio State 2-0
2 Penn State 2-0
3 LSU 2-0
4 Oregon 2-0
5 Miami (Fla.) 2-0
6 Georgia 2-0
7 Texas 1-1
8 Notre Dame 0-1
9 Illinois 2-0
10 Florida State 2-0
11 South Carolina 2-0
12 Clemson 1-1
13 Oklahoma 2-0
14 Iowa State 3-0
15 Tennessee 2-0
16 Texas A&M 2-0
17 Ole Miss 2-0
18 South Florida 2-0
19 Alabama 1-1
20 Utah 2-0
21 Texas Tech 2-0
22 Indiana 2-0
23 Michigan 1-1
24 Auburn 2-0
25 Missouri 2-0

Also receiving votes:  Arizona State 94, BYU 92, Georgia Tech 78, Florida 70, USC 64, TCU 58, Mississippi State 52, Louisville 49, SMU 26, Nebraska 10, Tulane 9, Baylor 7, UNLV 5, Pittsburgh 3, Navy 2, Vanderbilt 1, Memphis 1

 – AFCA Coaches Poll –

1 Ohio State 2-0
2 Penn State 2-0
3 Georgia 2-0
4 LSU 2-0
5 Oregon 2-0
6 Miami (Fla.) 2-0
7 Texas 1-1
8 Notre Dame 0-1
9 Illinois 2-0
10 South Carolina 2-0
11 Clemson 1-1
12 Florida State 2-0
13 Iowa State 3-0
14 Ole Miss 2-0
15 Tennessee 2-0
16 Oklahoma 2-0
17 Texas A&M 2-0
18 Alabama 1-1
19 Indiana 2-0
20 Texas Tech 2-0
21 Utah 2-0
22 Michigan 1-1
23 South Florida 2-0
24 Arizona State 1-1
25 BYU 2-0

Also receiving votes: Missouri 142, Louisville 88, SMU 87, USC 87, Florida 68, Auburn 57, Tulane 55, TCU 36, Georgia Tech 26, Nebraska 19, Navy 16, Mississippi State 15, Washington 15, Memphis 11, Baylor 9, Vanderbilt 7, Kansas 4, UNLV 3, Pittsburgh 1, NC State 1

 

Marcus Freeman almost always loses the week after a long-distance night game, including against Northern Illinois; This year’s early bye week is a stroke of luck for the Irish

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Marcus Freeman file photo adapted from defense.gov image with credit to Kamran Chotalal

During his brief head coaching tenure, Marcus Freeman has gone 2-4 the week after a long-distance night game, 1-3 against unranked opponents. More than a third of Freeman’s total career losses as a head coach have come the week after a long-distance night game, 4 losses out of 11.

Curiously enough, the only opponent he has beaten the week after a long-distance night game is Southern Cal.

One wonders if the university might still be “ignoring the science” by having red-eye flights back in the middle of the night. There have been multiple studies over the years showing sleep deprivation after-effects persisting a number of days, even after someone thinks they have “caught up” on their sleep.

One of the biggest strokes of luck for the Irish in 2025 has been an early bye week after their lackluster nighttime showing in Miami Gardens.  In contrast, last year, after grinding out a nighttime win at Texas A&M, back home a week later they had their infamous loss to Northern Illinois.

Another stroke of luck is that their game with Arkansas in Fayetteville is the same day Georgia hosts Alabama in Athens. So instead of the SEC-hosted game with the Irish being in primetime, it is Alabama-Georgia in primetime.  The Irish and Razorbacks help kick off the day at 11 a.m. local time, 12 noon Eastern.

The following week the Irish host Boise State.  Even though Boise State seems a bit less daunting than their playoff team last year, that matchup still would have meant even bigger trouble if the Irish were taking them on the week after a red-eye flight.

Multiple studies, including by the military, have shown that the physiological effects of sleep deprivation can linger on for days, even after someone imagines that they have caught up on their sleep.

According to the Sleep Foundation:

“Research has shown that it can take up to four days to recover from one hour of lost sleep and up to nine days to completely eliminate sleep debt. A full recovery from sleep debt returns our body to its baseline, reducing the negative effects associated with sleep loss.”

Of added concern would be whether the players ever really do actually get “caught up,” given both academic and athletic demands upon their time, and whether those suffering from sleep deprivation do not realize its full effects.

The Sleep Foundation warns:

“Research has demonstrated that people can cognitively adapt to chronic sleep restriction without feeling particularly sleepy, even though their body is showing significant declines in physical and mental performance.”

(emphasis added)

The situation presumably could be even more precarious for college-aged student athletes facing academic demands, social demands, noisy dorms, and a young-guy feeling of invincibility, while also playing in sport that traditionally valued “shrugging things off.”

Yet the issue is not simply whether or not the players and coaches finally get back into form in time for a game a week later.  There also is the question of squandering valuable, limited practice time with sub-par practices throughout the week. That is especially the case, if the intensity of practices has to taper off closer to game day, making the practices earlier in the week even more valuable.

2022 – losing twice in a game coming one week after a long-distance night game

In 2022, Marcus Freeman’s first year as head coach, the Irish led off with a night game at #2 Ohio State.  Even though ‘Notre Dame’ lost by 11 points, 21-10, they still played well enough to look reasonably competitive.

But the week after the long-distance night game, the Irish lost at home to unranked Marshall 26-21.

At mid-season, ‘Notre Dame’ had a night game against a good #16-ranked BYU team, at a neutral site in Las Vegas. The Irish played well and won 28-20.

But the week after the long-distance night game, the Irish lost at home to unranked Stanford, 16-14.

2023 – going 1-1 the weeks after long-distance night games

In 2023, the Irish had an unusual three-week sequence at mid-season, all involving night games.

First, they played well in a night game at Duke, winning 21-14.

But the week after the long-distance night game, they had to play a Louisville team barely ranked #25. The Irish trailed 24-13 early in the fourth quarter, falling to 33-13 with a few minutes to go.

They had to rally, not to win, but just to mitigate the humiliation, scoring with a minute-and-a-half to go, to close the gap to two touchdowns instead of three, 34-20.

Yet the game at Louisville was itself a long-distance night game, followed by another game a week later.  This time the Irish did temporarily break out of their pattern, beating a then-#10-ranked Southern Cal 48-20.

Although it did turn out that Southern Cal would finish the season unranked.  Strangely enough, it was Louisville that Southern Cal beat by two touchdowns in the Holiday Bowl.

2024 – loss to Northern Illinois the week after a long-distance night game; holding off Southern Cal

In 2024, the Irish returned to their losing ways the week after a long-distance night game, with seismic repercussions.

They opened the season playing well in a grinding nighttime win at Texas A&M.

But the week after the long-distance night game, back home the Irish had their infamous to unranked Northern Illinois.

That loss loomed large in later attempts to estimate where they really deserved fit in amongst the upper echelons of the rankings.

At the end of the regular season, Freeman very nearly lost again to an unranked opponent the week after a long-distance night game.

The Irish played a night game against Army in the Bronx, which they played well and won.

If they did, presumably, take a red-eye flight back, they at least had a few logistical advantages. The game started a half-hour earlier than some night games, and, even though service academy Army had been trying to diversify their offense, the game still ran about a half-hour shorter.  Although Freeman himself squandered that half-hour, by talking for a half-hour at his press conference. Thankfully at least it can be a quick bus ride from Yankee Stadium to LaGuardia.

Nevertheless, a week after that long-distance night game in the Bronx, the Irish had difficulties facing an unranked Southern Cal struggling to stay above .500.

Despite winning by 14  points on paper, the Irish easily could have been taken into overtime, or lose in regulation, giving up four medium-to-long drives in the fourth quarter that totaled more than 230 yards.

Two individual big plays by two Irish defensive backs, historic proportions, caused a 28-point swing.

Instead of Southern Cal scoring 28 points off the four drives, they scored only 14, while the Irish defensive backs had two pick-six interceptions returned for touchdowns, one for 99 yards and the other rounded down to 100 yards.  The latter tied a nearly-century-old school record and the first one missed the record by a yard.

So, even though the Irish pulled out a win the week after their second long-distance night game of the year, they still struggled and could have had things turn out a lot worse without two plays of historic proportions. What was, in the Al Golden era, one of the best defenses in college football gave up 557 yards to a team hovering around .500, including four long drives in the fourth quarter.  And that was while the offense also underperformed, being outgained and scoring the same points as the weaker opponent, without factoring in the defensive return touchdowns.

Longtime issue

The issue of having trouble after long-distance night games, of course, did not start with Marcus Freeman.

Brian Kelly had his issues as well, from time to time, including just a year before Freeman took the top job.

After beating Florida State in overtime in Tallahassee on a Sunday night, Kelly’s 2021 team struggled mightily the following week against Toledo, nearly losing. They had to come from behind multiple times, including in the fourth quarter.

This author wondered, at the time, if they would have pulled out the win if they did not, in a positive way, have an old warhorse of head coach who knew how to cobble together wins, whether his team deserved it or not.

The following year, of course, with a rookie head coach, the opposite happened.  They did not pull out the win against an unranked team, the week after a night game on the road, losing the Marshall.

Charlie Weis era ends after long-distance night games

Yet the most consequential red-eye flight issues that originally drew this author’s attention were the red-eye flights that were pivotal in the Charlie Weis era coming to an end.

After going 6-2 and being ranked #19, Charlie Weis was fired after a 4-game losing streak that included going 0-2 to unranked opponents the week after long-distance night games. In one of those instances, a loss to unranked Navy, it was clear that they had, indeed taken a red-eye after the previous game.

In Weis’s final season, the Irish played well in a 40-14 win over Washington State in the Alamo Dome in San Antonio.  That win pushed them to 6-2 and a #19 ranking.

After the game, players posted photos of the team sitting on a red-eye flight in the wee hours of the morning, flying back right away instead of sticking to a sound training regimen by returning to the hotel for a good night’s sleep.

The very next week, the Irish lost to unranked Navy 23-21 at home. They plummeted out of the rankings and dropped to 6-3.

Given Navy’s tenacity, and how they regard games with ‘Notre Dame’ as a test of character dovetailing with their military training, they are probably the last opponent one would want to face after a week of subpar practices trying to climb out of the ill effects of sleep deprivation.

The following week, the Irish played competitively against a #8 Pitt, albeit losing 27-22, dropping to 6-4.

But, even worse, that was a night game, on the road at Pitt.  And the Irish had to play just a week later.

Coming a week after that long-distance night game, presumably with a red-eye flight back, the Irish lost yet another close game at home to an unranked opponent. This time it was Connecticut. That dropped the Irish to 6-5.

The week after that, of course, they lost a fairly close, competitive game at then-juggernaut Stanford. The athletic director reportedly told Charlie Weis before the game that he was recommending Charlie Weis’s firing regardless of the outcome.

After firing Weis, the school sat out the bowl season, despite being bowl eligible at 6-6.

When asked if there was one moment that tipped the balance, or something to that effect, the athletic director reportedly referenced the loss to Navy

So, with Weis’s job on the line, the Irish were sitting at 6-2 with a #19 ranking.

They then went on a four-game losing skid, going 0-2 to unranked opponents the week after long-distance night games. In at least one instance there was clearly a red-eye flight involved.

Lou Holtz

Broader sleep deprivation issues certainly came up back in the Lou Holtz era, when one of his losses to Stanford came about after some players reportedly were going on five hours of sleep some nights. The reason apparently was poor planning relating to mid-terms.

Squandering opportunities

One recalls an obscure in-house video interview with a positions coach years ago, who had a long string of All-Americans across multiple programs, as well as multiple future NFL players. That success continued with the Irish, even with a depleted roster, until he had to step down for health reasons,

He said that one reality that he stressed to his players was that they had to get everything they possibly could out of every single rep; that they only got a certain number of reps, and that once a rep was gone, it was gone forever. So they had to make sure that they learned everything they could, and make every effort, and get everything they could out of each and every rep.

Against that context, why would anybody want to squander multiple of days of limited practices on the after-effects of sleep deprivation, and perhaps even carry some of the ill effects into the next game itself.

2025

If ‘Notre Dame’ is still “ignoring the science” and using red-eye flights back from night games on the road, they still are potentially vulnerable on two occasions later this season.

Their road game at Boston College that still has not set a start time.  The very next week they play, of all teams, Navy.

If the network tries to set the road game at Boston College for primetime, and the Irish take a red-eye flight back, that might bode well for their game a week later hosting Navy.

Then the Irish have another road game that has not set a start time, at, of all places, at Pitt.

If the network moves the road game at Pitt to primetime, the Irish would end up playing yet another game a week after a long-distance night game.

The week after Pitt, ‘Notre Dame’ plays a Syracuse team quarterbacked by Irish transfer Steve Angelli, who just threw for more than 400 yards against Connecticut.

So, if the Irish end up having to come off another long-distance night game, and perhaps a red-eye flight with lingering after-effects of sleep deprivation, they would be doing it against a solid Syracuse team.  And they would be facing a quarterback who is a potential NFL prospect with special reason to put on a special show against the Irish.  He likely thought he might be starting for the Irish in The House That Rockne Built, before being effectively nudged out by treating him as an equal two unproven rookies, despite his years of quality experience, including leading the Irish to a sub-major bowl win and contributing in last year’s playoff.

Time will tell, whether the Irish will end up with late-season road games in primetime, with potential red-eye flights back, followed by struggles the following week.

NEW YEAR’S DAY FOOTBALL: When Notre Dame Played a Regular Season Game on New Year’s Day — 8 Years Before the First Rose Bowl

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Notre Dame’s first New Year’s Day football game was not the 1925 Rose Bowl, when Knute Rockne, the Four Horsemen and the Seven Mules beat Stanford to cap off a 1924 National Championship season.

According to the Notre Dame Football Media Guide’s game-by-game history, Notre Dame’s first New Year’s Day game was on January 1st, 1894, in a regular season game rounding out the 1893 season.

A Notre Dame team that did not even have an officially listed head coach traveled to, of all places, Chicago, to take on a University of Chicago team coached by the legendary Amos Alonzo Stagg.

That was eight years before the first Rose Bowl, which would not take place until January 1, 1902.

For the record, the Chicago Maroons won, 8-0, handing Notre Dame their only loss of an 1893 season when Notre Dame went 4-1 and Chicago finished 6-4.

Notre Dame Jumps Into Top-4 after Close Win Over Pitt, While Half of Top-10 Loses

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U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

[click here to jump to polls]

After undefeated Notre Dame (7-0) rallied to beat Pitt (3-4) by a score of 19-14 — and half of the previous top-10 lost — the Irish jumped into the top-4 in both the Coaches Poll and the AP. The Irish rose to #4 from their previous #5 spot.

This threshold, of course, will grab the attention of those already caught up in College Football Playoff prognostications, since the playoff, in its present form, is limited to four teams.  The first official College Playoff Rankings, however, will not come out for two weeks, on Tuesday, Oct. 30.File Photo of Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., from Super Bowl, adapted from image at defense.gov by Steven C. Welsh www.stevencwelsh.com :: www.stevencwelsh.info

Most interesting for Notre Dame’s strength of schedule purposes, Notre Dame opponent Michigan climbed into the top-10 at #6/#7 after beating Wisconsin. Michigan’s only loss was to Notre Dame in the season opener.  Notre Dame opponent Stanford remained at #24 in the Coaches Poll, with the Cardinal in the “also receiving votes” category of the AP. Southern Cal is “also receiving votes” in both the AP and Coaches Poll, while Virginia Tech is only receiving votes in the Coaches Poll.

Meanwhile, West Virginia, Washington, Penn State and Wisconsin all dropped out of the top-10 in the Coaches Poll after losing. Georgia remained in the top-10 in both polls. (Wisconsin dropped in both polls, yet had only been in the Coaches Poll top-10 the previous week, not that of the AP.)

At this point, only eight teams in the top-25 are still undefeated, just five in the top-10 — Alabama, Ohio State, Clemson, Notre Dame and Central Florida.  Central Florida, the only Div. I-A/FBS team to go undefeated last year, now sits at #9/#10.

Further down in the rankings, North Carolina State also remains undefeated, as do future Central Florida opponents South Florida and Cincinnati.  Indeed, the American Athletic Conference currently has three undefeated teams, while the ACC has two, plus ACC partner Notre Dame.

If current trends continue, looming large will be a regular season finale between undefeated #2 Ohio State and #6/#7 Michigan, whom Notre Dame beat at the start of the season.



(first-place votes in parentheses) (Notre Dame opponents marked in dark blue)

AP

Rank Team Record Points

1 Alabama 7-0 1,524
2 Ohio State 7-0 1,457
3 Clemson 6-0 1,392
4 Notre Dame 7-0 1,355
5 LSU 6-1 1,244
6 Michigan 6-1 1,146
7 Texas 6-1 1,144
8 Georgia 6-1 1,085
9 Oklahoma 5-1 999
10 UCF 6-0 979
11 Florida 6-1 931
12 Oregon 5-1 917
13 West Virginia 5-1 700
14 Kentucky 5-1 678
15 Washington 5-2 640
16 North Carolina State 5-0 592
17 Texas A&M 5-2 551
18 Penn State 4-2 523
19 Iowa 5-1 266
20 Cincinnati 6-0 243
21 South Florida 6-0 242
22 Mississippi State 4-2 231
23 Wisconsin 4-2 226
24 Michigan State 4-2 199
25 Washington State 5-1 136

Also receiving votes: Stanford 71, San Diego St. 53, Southern Cal 53, Appalachian St. 51, Colorado 49, Utah St. 38, Miami 38, Utah 33, Duke 17, Texas Tech 8, Fresno St. 7, Houston 3, Maryland 2, Virginia 2.

Coaches Poll

Rank Team Record Points

1 Alabama(61) 7-0 1597
2 Ohio State(1) 7-0 1518
3 Clemson(2) 6-0 1484
4 Notre Dame 7-0 1408
5 LSU 6-1 1303
6 Georgia 6-1 1163
7 Michigan 6-1 1149
8 Texas 6-1 1138
9 UCF 6-0 1034
10 Oklahoma 5-1 1019
11 Oregon 5-1 927
12 Florida 6-1 918
13 West Virginia 5-1 768
14 Washington 5-2 682
15 NC State 5-0 637
16 Penn State 4-2 604
17 Kentucky 5-1 589
18 Texas A&M 5-2 501
19 Wisconsin 4-2 399
20 South Florida 6-0 346
21 Cincinnati 6-0 248
22 Iowa 5-1 218
23 Washington State 5-1 211
24 Stanford 4-2 147
25 Colorado 5-1 141

Also receiving votes: Miami 124, Mississippi State 110, Michigan State 98, San Diego State 71, Duke 60, Appalachian State 55, Utah State 33, Utah 32, Southern Cal 25, Houston 7, Fresno State 6, South Carolina 5, Army 4, Virginia 4, Auburn 4, Virginia Tech 3, North Texas 3, Iowa State 3, Boston College 1, UAB 1, Texas Tech 1, Buffalo 1

University of Pittsburgh Trains Abortionists and Notre Dame Should Drop Them, Even If It Means Leaving the ACC

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File Photo of Basilica of the Sacred Heart and Golden Dome at University of Notre Dame, with Trees in Foreground

The Catholic Faith regards abortion, the deliberate killing of innocent human life in her mother’s womb, as such a serious evil that Catholic Canon Law provides automatic excommunication for abortion.
 
Yet Notre Dame’s football schedule and conference affiliations are riddled with open and notorious abortion providers and trainers of abortionists.
 
The University of Pittsburgh is one of them.
 
In just one example, Pitt’s website for a fellowship program in the University of Pittsburgh’s “Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Services” explains that they offer training in the actual performance of first- and second-trimester abortions:

“… The fellow will receive specialized training and become very experienced performing first trimester abortions including manual vacuum aspiration and medical abortions. In addition, the fellow will have similarly specialized and intensive experience with second trimester abortion by dilation and evacuation (D&E). …”

[from obgyn.pitt.edu/fellowships/family-planning-fellowship-programs/family-planning-2-years, accessed on Oct. 12, 2018]
 
As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops explains, the dilation and extraction method is particularly brutal and involves dismemberment. The Pitt website does not indicate whether additional methods are used to kill the unborn child inside the womb before the dismemberment occurs.
 
Additionally, abortion bans focusing on pain-capable unborn children seem to focus on 20 weeks in the womb (roughly 4.7 months) as one threshold for considering when the unborn child can feel pain. The Pitt website does not indicate how far into the second trimester (months 4 to 6 of pregnancy) for which Pitt trains abortionists.
 
A partial screenshot from the Pitt website is embedded below:
 

 
By scheduling such an institution in athletics, the University of Notre Dame is lending wealth and prestige to an abortion provider.
 
In this case, Pitt also apparently has dedicated itself to the ongoing propagation of Abortionism as a whole by inviting physicians-in-training to come receive training as abortionists.
 
By scheduling abortion providers like Pitt, Notre Dame, directly or indirectly, also is contributing to the complacency and “business as usual” quietism that has resulted in nearly 60 million abortions in the United States.
 
Indeed, the University of Notre Dame might also never know whether specific individual deaths have occurred because a woman, perhaps under pressure, lapsed into having an abortion in connection with the University of Pittsburgh because Notre Dame acted as if Pitt was a reputable institution instead of a violent human rights violator, and that contributed to a haze of complacency with America’s biggest and bloodiest human rights violation.
 
The University of Pittsburgh has chosen to be open and notorious with their participation in this deadly evil, while the University of Notre Dame seems to have failed to speak out Pitt’s malevolence. Instead, Notre Dame partners with them by joining their conference and scheduling them as an athletic opponent.
 
“Notre Dame” is French for “Our Lady,” referring to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus and a model for all mothers.
 
Abortion kills human life and is an assault on motherhood itself.
 
Abortion kills children in the womb, harms women, disproportionately targets female children in their mother’s womb, and, in the United States especially, disproportionately targets Blacks.
 
Notre Dame famously has an engraving over a side door at its Basilica of the Sacred Heart honoring “God, Country and Notre Dame.”
 
Since abortion has killed more Americans in the womb than the numbers of Americans killed in all wars, it would be difficult not to consider abortion as anything other than anti-American, the biggest threat to the security of American lives and a form of treason itself, especially considering its magnitude.
 
Surgical abortion alone, by approaching roughly 60 million dead, also is getting close to the number of votes needed to win the presidency. As a result, abortion poses an existential threat to the legitimacy of American democracy. For example, consider the prospet of a pro-abortion candidate getting elected President with 60 million votes, while 60 million voted against him and 60 million additional Americans have been killed in the womb by policies that the pro-abortion candidate has pushed. That would be akin to Hitler murdering 6 million Jews, having 6 million opponents vote against him, getting 6 million votes (compared with 12 million either voting against him or killed by policies he supports) and then claiming that he was the duly elected leader of a democracy. (One major difference, of course, is that, when Hitler did originally stand for election, not as many understood just where it would lead.)
 
For Notre Dame to schedule an opponent institution that performs abortions is anti-God, anti-Blessed Mother, anti-Catholic, anti-American, anti-woman, anti-child and anti-Black.
 
Doing so also creates a hostile climate for Catholics, Woman, Blacks, loyal Americans, faithful Christians, Jews, Muslims, other persons of religious belief and persons of decency, and anybody who can think straight.
 
(As an aside, a cursory check reveals that the Pitt student newspaper already has even featured at least one anti-Catholic op-ed attacking a local Catholic hospital for following Catholic teaching by refusing to perform prenatal child-killing, referenced by the euphemism of “abortion.”)
 
The University of Notre Dame and those who want to help Notre Dame better itself as an institution need to “draw a line” in the sand, to ensure this kind of thing does not happen again, and to find ways to undo the harms that result.
 
Pitt, of course, is part of the Atlantic Coast Conference, the “ACC,” which Notre Dame joined in most sports, instead of joining with the predominantly Catholic institutions of the new BIG EAST. Partnering with the ACC in football, Notre Dame is required to play Pitt every few years, roughly twice each half-decade. The partnership is in exchange for Notre Dame getting access to ACC minor bowl games, in those seasons when Notre Dame does not make the College Football Playoff, and apparently also facilitates Notre Dame playing in the ACC in basketball and other sports.
 
(Notre Dame tainted itself further by joining the B1G/Big Ten in hockey, with that conference also including abortion providers.)
 
The fact that Notre Dame continued to schedule Pitt as an independent, and joined conferences like the ACC and the B1G/Big Ten that include abortion providers, calls into question the leadership and diligence of university officials at Notre Dame — who either apparently do not care enough about Notre Dame’s Catholicism or fail to conduct due diligence to understand whom they are dealing with and the implications of the University of Notre Dame’s own conduct with scheduling and conference affiliations.
 
Pitt is not the only abortion provider in the ACC. Yet even if it was, Pitt would be reason enough for Notre Dame to leave the ACC, if the University of Pittsburgh fails to clean up its act and if the ACC fails to kick them out.


 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Undefeated Notre Dame Sustains #8 Ranking; College Football Playoff Implications Next Week

College Football Rankings, Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football News
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

[click here to jump to polls]

After their strong road win over Wake Forest, Notre Dame sustained their #8 ranking in the AP and Coaches Polls, as the Irish head into a two-game gauntlet against the only ranked opponents still looming on their schedule.

In the next two weeks, Notre Dame has #7 Stanford at home before taking on Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. Incredibly, Virginia Tech is still ranked in the Coaches Poll, at #24, even after losing by two touchdowns to previously winless Old Dominion. Meanwhile, Stanford rallied from a multiple-touchdown deficit to knock off a strong Oregon team in overtime in Eugene.

Interestingly, after falling out of the polls previously, end-of-the-year opponent Southern Cal is now clawing back, getting votes in the Coaches Poll. Meanwhile, one of the reasons that Notre Dame opponent Florida State fell out of the polls was a big loss to Syracuse (as well as an earlier Seminole loss to Virginia Tech.) Syracuse also is on Notre Dame’s schedule, for a neutral site game at Yankee Stadium. Syracuse is getting votes in both polls, at de facto #28 in the Coaches Poll and a bit further down in the AP.

Notre Dame Stadium FacadeNotre Dame has not won a major bowl game in a quarter-century, and attempting that feat is probably the most important goal they can have this season, especially after winning a second-tier sub-major New Year’s bowl last year when they beat LSU in the Citrus Bowl.

Yet, the College Football Playoff also still beckons, at least on the Irish Wish List, even if their trip to the unofficial BCS title game six years ago was wiped off the history books by NCAA sanctions.

With five power conferences, for Notre Dame to get into the College Football Playoffs, at least two power conference champions have to be left out.

Stanford is currently the highest-ranked team in the PAC-12, and Notre Dame plays them next week. Notre Dame and Stanford, as mentioned above, are clustered together at #7 and #8. Ranked above Notre Dame and Stanford are three SEC teams, an ACC team, a B1G/Big Ten team and a Big 12 team.

Golden Dome in Bright SunlightIf Notre Dame can survive Stanford (as well as Southern Cal later in the year), they would have an argument for surpassing the PAC-12 champion for a playoff berth. (Washington is knocking on the door of the top-10 again, yet Washington already has a loss, to a one-loss Auburn.)

The SEC can only produce one champion, although that might not preclude boosters from arguing for multiple SEC berths. While last year’s results have no bearing, it still might be interesting to see how #5 LSU ends up, considering that Notre Dame did beat them in last year’s bowl game.

Notre Dame partners with the ACC, of course, but their partial ACC slate does not include #3 Clemson. A key consideration might be how Clemson fares against ACC opponents that they share in common with Notre Dame. Ohio State, at #4 still has to play the rest of their B1G/Big Ten slate, including a top-15 Michigan team that Notre Dame already beat.

Of course, seasons tend to unfold in unexpected ways, as Virginia Tech just demonstrated. And, for Notre Dame, just continuing to win from week-to-week will be their most immediate challenge.


(first-place votes in parentheses) (Notre Dame opponents marked in dark blue)

AP

Rank Team Record Points
1 Alabama (60) 4-0 1523
2 Georgia 4-0 1422
3 Clemson (1) 4-0 1409
4 Ohio State 4-0 1363
5 LSU 4-0 1238
6 Oklahoma 4-0 1201
7 Stanford 4-0 1143
8 Notre Dame 4-0 1067
9 Penn State 4-0 1001
10 Auburn 3-1 987
11 Washington 3-1 946
12 West Virginia 3-0 923
13 UCF 3-0 727
14 Michigan 3-1 698
15 Wisconsin 3-1 662
16 Miami 3-1 571
17 Kentucky 4-0 541
18 Texas 3-1 308
19 Oregon 3-1 297
20 BYU 3-1 270
21 Michigan State 2-1 256
22 Duke 4-0 244
23 Mississippi State 3-1 241
24 California 3-0 118
25 Texas Tech 3-1 106

Others receiving votes: Colorado 83, Boise State 58, Virginia Tech 55, South Florida 50, Oklahoma State 44, Texas A&M 41, Iowa 31, South Carolina 31, Florida 29, NC State 28, Syracuse 25, TCU 24, Cincinnati 10, North Texas 10, Utah 9, Missouri 7, Ole Miss 7, Maryland 6, Buffalo 6, San Diego State 5, Arizona State 4

Coaches Poll

Rank Team Record Points
1 Alabama (61) 4-0 1597
2 Clemson (2) 4-0 1497
3 Georgia 4-0 1473
4 Ohio State (1) 4-0 1431
5 Oklahoma 4-0 1300
6 LSU 4-0 1234
7 Stanford 4-0 1206
8 Notre Dame 4-0 1135
9 Penn State 4-0 1108
10 Auburn 3-1 997
11 Washington 3-1 959
12 West Virginia 3-0 946
13 Wisconsin 3-1 776
14 UCF 3-0 705
15 Michigan 3-1 603
16 Miami 3-1 554
17 Kentucky 4-0 531
18 Michigan State 2-1 376
19 Mississippi State 3-1 311
20 Oregon 3-1 281
21 Oklahoma State 3-1 199
22 Texas 3-1 171
23 Duke 4-0 170
24 Virginia Tech 2-1 160
25 Boise State 2-1 145

Others receiving votes: BYU 141, South Florida 113, Syracuse 83, Colorado 73, TCU 67, NC State 61, Texas Tech 56, South Carolina 52, California 38, Washington State 34, Florida 29, Texas A&M 29, Appalachian State 25, Iowa 23, Cincinnati 22, North Texas 17, Missouri 14, Maryland 9, Boston College 8, USC 8, Arizona State 8, San Diego State 6, Troy 5, Army 4, Arkansas State 3, Virginia 3, Utah 2, Buffalo 2


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PRESEASON TOP-25: Notre Dame Has Top-11/12 Perch For Plausibility Run, Perhaps Not a National Title Run

College Football Rankings, Featured Article, Headlines
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

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Notre Dame’s preseason #11/12 ranking should be enough of a perch for them to attempt what has become an annual Road to Plausibility. (By comparison, it might be a little hard to think of Notre Dame making a would-be “national title run” since, according to the official record books at least, they have not made a national title run for a quarter-century.)

Meanwhile, their quasi-solid, quasi-soft schedule includes five respectable opponents starting out in either the top-15 (Stanford, Michigan and Southern Cal), or lower in the top-20 (Florida State and Virginia Tech), as well as unranked Northwestern also receiving votes in one poll.  However, there are no elite top-10 opponents, at least in the opening rankings.

The middling schedule could leave Notre Dame in a bit of a hole if they get upset by Michigan in the season opener and drop like a stone while half the country wins.  They do not have another ranked opponent until the end of September, and the lack of more elite opponents would not give them as strong an argument to climb back up the rankings later.  However, if their goal is simply to portray themselves as plausible, and “part of the deal” — and tolerate a decade of a head coach who has never won a major bowl game — then the rankings and their schedule should be enough to provide opportunities to make another good faith run to stay at least mildly plausible in the top-25.

(first-place votes in parentheses)

(Notre Dame opponents marked in dark blue)

AP

1 – Alabama (42)
2 – Clemson (18)
3 – Georgia
4 – Wisconsin (1)
5 – Ohio State
6 – Washington
7 – Oklahoma
8 – Miami
9 – Auburn
10 – Penn State
11 – Michigan State
12 – Notre Dame
13 – Stanford
14 – Michigan
15 – USC
16 – TCU
17 – West Virginia
18 – Mississippi State
19 – Florida State
20 – Virginia Tech
21 – UCF
22 – Boise State
23 – Texas
24 – Oregon
25 – LSU

Others receiving votes: South Carolina, Florida, Utah, Oklahoma State, Florida Atlantic, Arizona, NC State, Texas A&M, Boston College, Northwestern, Kansas State, Iowa State, Houston, Memphis, Iowa, Troy, Fresno State, Arkansas State, Kentucky

Coaches Poll

1 – Alabama(61)
2 – Clemson(3)
3 – Ohio State(1)
4 – Georgia
5 – Oklahoma
6 – Washington
7 – Wisconsin
8 – Miami
9 – Penn State
10 – Auburn
11 – Notre Dame
12 – Michigan State
13 – Stanford
14 – Michigan
15 – USC
16 – TCU
17 – Virginia Tech
18 – Mississippi State
19 – Florida State
20 – West Virginia
21 – Texas
22 – Boise State
23 – UCF
24 – LSU
25 – Oklahoma State

Others receiving votes: South Carolina, Florida, Oregon, Utah, Texas A&M, Northwestern, Kansas State, Florida Atlantic, Memphis, Boston College, NC State, Arkansas State, Troy, Appalachian State, San Diego State, Kentucky, Iowa State, Iowa, Washington State, South Florida, Duke, Fresno State, Louisville, Arizona, Houston, Army, Northern Illinois

 

Notre Dame’s would-be national title run in Brian Kelly’s third season, 2012, of course, ended in a blowout loss.  Yet it also was wiped from the history books by the NCAA, although Notre Dame themselves seems to have difficulty parsing that reality, if one looks at how the latest media guide handles it.  Notre Dame turned out to have failed to adequately police a coed tutor and some academically dishonest players.  Yet the institution additionally, apparently somewhat obliviously, botched how they handled their own university disciplinary process and its repercussions, teeing it up for the NCAA to point out that that it was the institution itself that had de facto declared the retroactive ineligibility.

So, despite period anachronistic PR about playing for national championships, Notre Dame’s unspoken goal appears to be to be playing for plausibility — to be just enough a part of the gang to justify the big money revenue and not shuffle out of the college football picture entirely.  The preseason #11/12 ranking, and a smattering of top-20 opponents might be just enough to “keep hope eternal” and pretend to be “part of the deal.”

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IRISH & OPPOSITION DEPTH CHARTS: Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest – Dual-Column Depth Charts

Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football Depth Charts & Rosters, Notre Dame Football Game Day, Notre Dame Football News, Notre Dame Football Players, Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest
Saint Joseph's Lake with Golden Dome and Basilica of the Sacred Heart in the Distance

[click here to jump directly to depth charts]

Notre Dame and Wake Forest depth charts follow below in a responsive layout, with parallel dual columns on a regular desktop or laptop view; with smaller screens, columns might jump down and stack up.  Keep in mind that Brian Kelly sometimes features extensive rotation at some positions.  This year, right tackle, especially, is a shared position.  … Alizé Mack is still listed at tight end, even though he reportedly is out with a concussion. … There has been some minor reshuffling at wide receiver for Notre Dame …. Notre Dame has some size advantage, especially where their offensive line faces Wake’s defensive line (although, even within the same team, an offensive line often might be a bit bigger than their defensive counterparts ) …. However, Wake is still a moderately good-sized team, appropriate to a winning program from a power conference …. like Notre Dame, Wake has some decent height in the secondary …. Wake might be a bit small at tight end …. like Notre Dame, Wake does not have especially tall quarterbacks, except for a back-up … Notre Dame’s running backs are not necessarily quite as big or tall as during the power running days of the Lou Holtz era, yet they are getting closer …. while there is no Flanker position on the depth chart, one interesting feature to watch might be whether Brian Kelly and Chip Long can work any wide receivers into the running game ….
 

NOTRE DAME OFFENSE

QB
7 *Brandon Wimbush 6-1 3/4 228 Jr./2
12 Ian Book 6-0 1/8 208 So./1
4 *Montgomery VanGorder 6-1 3/8 222 Sr./3

RB
33 JOSH ADAMS 6-2 1/8 225 Jr./3
2 Dexter Williams 5-11 215 Jr./3
or 34 Tony Jones 5-11 225 So./1
38 Deon McIntosh 5-10 5/8 193 So./1

WR
6 EQUANIMEOUS ST. BROWN 6-5 203 Jr./3
81 *Miles Boykin 6-4 225 Jr./2

WR
83 *Chase Claypool 6-4 3/8 228 So./2
10 *Chris Finke 5-9 1/2 181 Jr./2
or 15 Cam Smith 5-10 1/2 202 Gr./4

WR

29 Kevin Stepherson 6-0-1/4 185 So./2
15 Cam Smith 5-10 1/2 202 Gr./4
87 Michael Young 190 Fr./1

TE
80 DURHAM SMYTHE 6-5 1/2 257 Gr./4
86 *Alizé Mack 6-4 3/4 251 Jr./3
82 Nic Weishar 6-4 3/4 243 Sr./3
or 89 Brock Wright 6-4 1/2 254 Fr./1
or 84 Cole Kmet 6-5 1/2 256 Fr./1

LT
68 MIKE MCGLINCHEY 6-8 315 Gr./4
74 Liam Eichenberg 6-6 300 So./1

LG
56 QUENTON NELSON 6-5 330 Sr./3
75 Josh Lugg 6-7 300 Fr./1

C
53 SAM MUSTIPHER 6-2 1/2 305 Sr./3
57 Trevor Ruhland 6 -4 302 Jr./2

RG
71 ALEX BARS 6-6 312 Sr./3
70 Hunter Bivin 6-6 315 Gr./4

RT
78 Tommy Kraemer 6-6 314 So./1
72 Robert Hainsey 6-5 290 Fr./1

WAKE FOREST DEFENSE

CB
4 Amari Henderson 6-1 185 R-So.
24 Ja’Sir Taylor 5-10 180 Fr.

FS
2 Cameron Glenn 6-1 200 R-Jr. 37
Thomas Dillon 5-10 180 R-Jr.

SS
12 Luke Masterson 6-2 210 R-Fr.
20 Coby Davis 5-11 185 Fr.

CB
21 Essang Bassey 5-10 185 So.
13 Malik Grate 6-0 170 R-Fr.
5 Cedric Jiles 5-10 180 Grad.

BUCK
6 Jaboree Williams 6-0 245 Sr.
23 Justin Strnad 6-3 230 R-So.

MIKE
50 Grant Dawson 6-1 225 R-Sr.
35 Nate Mays 6-1 225 R-So.
42 Jake Simpson 6-0 210 Fr.

ROV
34 Demetrius Kemp 6-1 220 R-Jr.
30 Ja’Cquez Williams 6-2 210 R-Fr.

DE
53 Duke Ejiofor 6-4 275 R-Sr.
18 Carlos Basham, Jr. 6-5 275 R-Fr.

DT
93 Zeek Rodney 6-1 305 R-Jr.
54 Elonte Bateman 6-2 290 R-Fr.
56 Deon Young 6-1 315 Grad.

DT
48 Willie Yarbary 6-2 285 R-Jr.
90 Sulaiman Kamara 6-2 290 R-Fr.

DE
14 Wendell Dunn 6-3 250 R-Sr.
51 Chris Calhoun 6-4 250 Jr.

NOTRE DAME DEFENSE

CB
27 JULIAN LOVE 5-11 193 So./2
20 Shaun Crawford 5-9 1/8 176 Jr./2
18 Troy Pride Jr. 5-11 1/2 187 So./2

FS
24 Nick Coleman 6-0 1/8 192 Jr./2
17 Isaiah Robertson 6-1 1/2 195 Fr./1

SS
21 Jalen Elliott 6-0 1/2 205 So./2
or 14 DEVIN STUDSTILL 6-0 1/4 195 So./2

CB
7 Nick Watkins 6-1 207 Sr./3
8 Donte Vaughn 6-2 3/4 So./2

DE
9 Daelin Hayes 6 -3 3/4 258 So./2
or 98 ANDREW TRUMBETTI 6-4 263 Sr./4
42 Julian Okwara 6-4 1/2 240 So./2

BUCK
48 Greer Martini 6-3 5/8 236 Sr./4
or 4 TE’VON CONEY 6-1 1/8 240 Jr./3

MIKE
5 NYLES MORGAN 6-1 235 Sr./4
44 Jamir Jones 6-3 1/8 240 So./1

ROV
23 DRUE TRANQUILL 6-2 231 Sr./3
22 Asmar Bilal 6-2 230 Jr./2

DT
55 Jonathan Bonner 6-3 3/4 291 Sr./3
95 Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa 6-2 1/2 293 Fr./1
97 Micah Dew-Treadway 6-4 1/8 305 Jr./2

NG
99 JERRY TILLERY 6-6 3/4 306 Jr./3
41 Kurt Hinish 6-1 3/4 298 Fr./1
77 Brandon Tiassum 6-4 305 Jr./2

DE
93 Jay Hayes 6-3 5/8 290 Sr./3
or 98 ANDREW TRUMBETTI 6-4 263 Sr./4
53 Khalid Kareem 6-4 266 So./2
91 Adetokunbo Ogundeji 6-4 3/8 256 So./1

WAKE FOREST OFFENSE

QB
10 John Wolford 6-1 200 Sr
2 Kendall Hinton 6-0 195 R-So.
12 Jamie Newman 6-4 235 R-Fr.

RB
22 Matt Colburn II 5-10 200 Jr.
5 Arkeem Byrd 6-1 190 R-Fr.
21 Isaiah Robinson 5-10 220 R-Jr.
26 Christian Beal 5-10 180 Fr.

WR
7 Scotty Washington 6-5 225 R-So.
15 Cortez Lewis 6-1 205 R-Jr.

WR
1 Tabari Hines 5-10 175 Jr.
88 Steven Claude 6-2 195 R-So.

WR
9 Chuck Wade, Jr. 6-0 200 Jr.
17 Alex Bachman 6-0 190 Jr.

TE
85 Cam Serigne 6-3 240 R-Sr.
86 Jack Freudenthal 6-3 230 R-So.
41 Devin Pike 6-6 250 Sr.

LT
75 Justin Herron 6-5 290 R-Jr.
60 Taleni Suhren 6-5 290 R-Fr.

LG
74 Phil Haynes 6-4 305 R-Jr.
79 Sean Maginn 6-3 280 Fr.

C
70 Ryan Anderson 6-6 305 R-Jr.
71 Nathan Gilliam 6-5 290 R-So.

RG
68 Patrick Osterhage 6-4 290 R-Jr.
58 Tyler Watson 6-5 290 R-Fr.

RT
73 Jake Benzinger 6-7 295 R-So.
63 Je’Vionte’ Nash 6-3 285 R-Fr.

NOTRE DAME SPECIAL TEAMS

PK
19 **Justin Yoon 5-10 192 Jr./3
39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 193 Fr./1

KO
19 **Justin Yoon 5-10 192 Jr./3
39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 193 Fr./1

P
85 **Tyler Newsome 6-2-1/2 210 Sr./3
42 Jeff Riney 5-10-3/4 180 Jr./3

LS
54 John Shannon 6-2 230 So./1
82 **Nic Weishar 6-4-3/4 243Sr./3

HLD
4 *Montgomery VanGorder 6-1-3/8 222 Sr./3
85 **Tyler Newsome 6-2-1/2 210 Sr./3

PR
10 *Chris Finke 5-9-1/2 181 Jr./2
3 **C.J. Sanders 5-8 181 Jr./3

KR
3 **C.J. Sanders 5-8 181 Jr./3
87 Michael Young 5-10 190 Fr./1

WAKE FOREST SPECIAL TEAMS

PK
7 Mike Weaver 6-1 190 R-Sr.
48 Dom Maggio 6-3 185 So.

KO
7 Mike Weaver 6-1 190 R-Sr.
48 Dom Maggio 6-3 185 So.

P
48 Dom Maggio 6-3 185 So.
7 Mike Weaver 6-1 190 R-Sr.

H
48 Dom Maggio 6-3 185 So.
10 John Wolford 6-1 200 Sr.

LS
52 Dayton Diemel 5-10 215 So.
15 Garrett Wilson 6-3 210 Jr.

PR
1 Tabari Hines 5-10 175 Jr.
17 Alex Bachman 6-0 190 Jr.

KR
9 Chuck Wade 6-0 200 Jr.
1 Tabari Hines 5-10 175 Jr.

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