by Leprechaun Express & Steve Welsh
“The mission is clear, and it is critical. Win a football game, or stare a school record for futility straight in the eyes.”
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: “… when it comes to having profound and lasting impact on an entire sport, it’s tough to argue that any rivalry matched the Notre Dame-Army rivalry of the 20th century. The two teams met for the first time 103 years ago, when the upstart Notre Dame team traveled east to play the powerful Cadets at West Point. To counteract Army’s superiorities in size and strength, Notre Dame coach Jesse Harper unleashed a potent passing attack, facilitated by new rules intended to make the game safer. …”
“… immersed in … the worst of his 27 seasons as a … head coach, it would be easy for … Brian Kelly to make wholesale changes within his program. He did so last month by firing … Brian VanGorder, but from a personnel standpoint, Kelly has decided to stay the course even after losing for the sixth time in nine games …. ‘If you look at the six games that we’ve played,’ Kelly said, ‘what needs to change is a little bit better play calling here, maybe a little bit better execution there, and the players just maturing.’ … To Kelly’s point regarding the ‘maturing’ of his team, the Notre Dame depth chart listed 39 players out of 59 that were either in their first or second season of being on the field. …”
[featured image is file photo]
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: “Notre Dame is hoping that its second game against the triple option goes better than its first. The Irish are coming off a 28-27 loss to Navy, but Army has put up better numbers on both sides of the ball than has their arch-rivals at Navy.”
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL:
“The vision Brian Kelly is selling to recruits of how Notre Dame’s defense will evolve … ‘Quite frankly, we’re going to be in both (3-4 and 4-3 fronts), because I’m not going anywhere,’ he said. ‘So it’s going to be a three-down, four-down defense, and they’re going to have to be somebody that can do both.’ They are the eight defensive recruits already committed in the 2017 class, the four defenders in the 2018 group, and … prospects Kelly and his staff are still chasing [for 2017]. The nuances and even some of the basic tenets of the next scheme … attacking vs. read/react, how much man vs. zone — will and should likely have to wait until Kelly makes perhaps the most momentous hire of his head coaching career, deposed defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder’s permanent replacement. Interim Greg Hudson … remains in the running.”
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: The Fighting Irish return to the field with a matchup against the Army Black Knights. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. (ET) in San Antonio, Texas.
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL #NotreDamevsArmy:
1. Expect minimal possessions (again). … 2. Quarterback play will be critical. … 3. Another Notre Dame-Army connection. … 4. Notre Dame might be one of the better opponents Army has faced. … 5. Check out the military angles. Anytime Notre Dame plays one of the service academies, the military connections are front and center … Joining the captains and officials for the coin toss will be former standout Notre Dame running back and 1967 team captain, four-time Super Bowl champion with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Vietnam veteran Rocky Bleier. Retired U.S. Army Major General Patrick H. Brady will be recognized at the end of the opening period and presented with a framed Irish jersey. … the only living Notre Dame alumnus to receive the Medal of Honor, Brady commanded an ambulance helicopter in Vietnam. He flew more than 2,000 combat missions and helped evacuate more than 5,000 injured soldiers stranded near enemy lines …
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: “When Army battles Notre Dame on Saturday, Black Knights head coach Jeff Monken will be looking across the field at a head coach he knew a long time ago. And it can’t help but trigger a trip down Memory Lane.”
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: It was 1958 when Notre Dame lost most recently to the Army West Point Black Knights in football, a 14‑2 setback. That was the final season Army had under coaching legend Earl “Red” Blaik, who led the Cadets to an 8‑0‑1 record and a No. 3 finish in the Associated Press poll, with Heisman Trophy winner Pete Dawkins leading the charge.
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: Notre Dame vs. Army, 3:30 p.m. ET; Saturday, Nov. 12; Alamodome (72,000); San Antonio, Texas.