by Leprechaun Express & Steve Welsh
“In the nine seasons from 2007-15, Notre Dame has consistently gone through what has been referred to as ‘The Navy Hangover.’ …”
“THREE KEYS TO VICTORY FOR VIRGINIA TECH 1 Get going early … easy for outsiders to say this game means nothing. … a nonconference game … next week, Tech takes on its rival, Virginia, with a chance to clinch the ACC’s Coastal Division …. The Hokies say they’re focused on this game, but minds will wander if Notre Dame jumps ahead early. 2 No big plays: Georgia Tech ripped off two touchdown runs of more than 50 yards against the Hokies. The Fighting Irish have much more offensive firepower than the Yellow Jackets, especially on the edge at wide receiver. 3 Get the offense back on track ….”
“On the whole, #NotreDame hasn’t gotten the job done on the field this season. But the Irish’s 4-6 record doesn’t mean coach Brian Kelly will be without one once the season ends. … Nonetheless, barring a sweep of the final two games — Saturday against Virginia Tech and Nov. 26 at USC — this will be the first season Kelly won’t finish with a winning record at Notre Dame. …”
Inside #NotreDame #Football covers some of the latest news, featuring Brian Kelly, Jack Nolan and some Notre Dame players, including a Notre Dame vs. Army recap and Notre Dame vs. Virginia Tech preview.
“Virginia Tech has a very good football team. Justin Fuente, head football coach and Bud Foster, the defensive coordinator, put together a very good year, some really good wins; North Carolina I really thought probably as complete a game as they played all year. Turned the ball over a few times, but a really good football team. Defensively it’s what you expect from Bud Foster’s team, they keep the pressure on you.
Experience in the back end of their defense I think is the key to their defense, returning starters across the board can play man, can mix it up, play some zone coverages. They’ve lost some guys up front, but Eron and Edmunds, extremely productive tackles. What you see with Virginia Tech is negative plays. And most offenses get into long yardage and Virginia Tech is one of the best in the country on third down. ….”
Notre Dame vs. Virginia Tech: Senior Day Marks First-Ever Meeting With Hokies; Kickoff set for 3:40 p.m. ET on NBC ….
“A brief recap of Notre Dame’s 44-6 win over Army at the Alamodome ….”
ND’s 44-6 victory over Army on Saturday … broadcast in the 3:30 p.m. ET time slot, earned a 1.0 overnight rating, according to SportsMediaWatch.com. That’s lower than last year’s Shamrock Series game (1.3) on NBCSN that ended in a sloppy 19-16 ND win over Boston College and aired on [cable’s] NBCSN in primetime. Two late November games broadcast on NBC in the same time slot–ND’s 28-6 win over Wake Forest last November and a loss to Northwestern in 2014–delivered ratings of 1.4 and 2.0, respectively. SportsMediaWatch.com believes the 1.0-mark could be ND’s lowest overnight rating on #NBC in the 25 years since it signed a contract with the television network.
“… 8 Players in Notre Dame history who have returned two kickoff returns for a touchdown in the same season, with sophomore C.J. Sanders the most recent after his 92-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff. The others were: Paul Castner (1922), John Lattner (1953), Nick Eddy (1966), Tim Brown (1986), Raghib “Rocket” Ismail (1988 and 1989), Allen Rossum (1997) and George Atkinson III (2011). …”
“Someone forgot to tell all these folks Notre Dame’s football team is struggling …. More than 45,000 fans amped up the energy of the Alamodome – and the rest of the city of San Antonio … – as the Irish (4-6) celebrated their Shamrock Series event Texas style, with a bigger-than-life 44-6 victory over Army (5-5) …. The Irish exploded with 38 points in the first half, their biggest production in the first 30 minutes in five years, and coasted the rest of the way. …”