The Irish ground one out last week against a decent Wake Forest team and now it is on to Maryland. A team most famous for having the ugliest uniforms in college football this season, no small task. The Terps have some talent but they are a three touchdown underdog and so there viability as an opponent really didn’t come up much at this week’s IBG. Instead the focused turned to uniforms, and the other chatter of the week that was.
Enough jibba-jabba get ready to get into the saddle, strap on your seat belt and turn your hearing aids up, it is time to IBG. On to the questions shall we? LEGHOOOOOOOOOO!!
1. This year more than most, there seems to be an inordinate amount of attention spent on peripheral topics like the jumbotron, field turf, and apparel. Kelly is responsible in large part because he’s so candid about his take on them during his press conferences, making it perfectly clear his preferences that stoke the NDNation’s ever-burning fire. Do you think he’s going too far to push for these "enhancements" or do you think he’s doing what’s necessary to push Notre Dame’s program into the modern age.
Lady Leprechaun
Am I stating the obvious when I say these things would hardly be a blip on the radar (perhaps the jumbotron excepted) if we didn’t blow chunks 4th Quarter Michigan and beaten USC? We have been wandering in the desert for so very long without the sweet taste of winning nectar that these issues are becoming just that – issues. I have to admit, all the build up going into the USC game – new helmet, piped in music, Kelly interviews, etc. made the loss that much more embarrassing and worse, gave credibility to Lame’s comment “It’s their Super Bowl”. Did I answer the question?
1960s Leprechaun
He’s doing what he thinks is necessary, which is appropriate to his position. If he’s going too far, Jack will tell him to put a cork in it.
Disgruntled Leprechaun
I’ve never understood the opposition to a jumbotron. As long as it’s not bloated with ads, I don’t know some fans hate the idea. How many games have you watched where a controversial replay seemed to maybe have an effect on the refs? I’m not saying that it definitely does or definitely should, but I think the jumbotron is a part of the home field advantage that ND doesn’t currently enjoy. It also adds to the in-game experience. Gone are the days when people listen to games on the radio. It’s a visual world, and clinging to “tradition” for no other reason than inertia doesn’t cut it.
Quite frankly I’m glad that Kelly is exercising some influence. And if the turf helps attract better athletes and/or yields greater results on the field, I am all for that too. Of course, it would help Kelly’s position if he’d win a few more games
2. Coach Kelly made it clear today in his press conference that he couldn’t care less what you think about the helmets and uniforms…but I care what you think. Give the world your take on the helmets we’ll be wearing this weekend.
Lady Leprechaun
Garish.
1960s Leprechaun
For one week, as long as it’s basic gold, and the adornment has something to do with “ND” or “Irish,” it’s tolerable. Silly, but tolerable. But, one and done
Disgruntled Leprechaun
Made in China? I don’t know…they are the cheapest looking 24k gold I’ve ever seen…
3. The Irish are starting to incur some injuries that are forcing new players to emerge and contribute. Identify one guy who hasn’t made a big contribution thus far that will show up big over the next three games.Â
Lady Leprechaun
Wishful thinking, but I am hoping BK comes up with such a dazzling array of packages from our QBs (yes, that’s plural for Crist and Hendrix) that Stanford’s players will wish they had stayed home and studied for their Quantum Physics exam instead.
1960s Leprechaun
John Goodman
Disgruntled Leprechaun
Well, the easy answer is Mike Golic, Jr. Losing Cave would’ve looked like a much bigger loss before the start of the season, but Golic acquitted himself nicely against the Demon Deacons. I have to admit that I thought his was a token Weis scholarship, but he has a chance to make a statement the rest of this season, and we need him to bring his best.
4. There was a short time during the Notre Dame coaching search when it appeared current Maryland head coach Randy Edsall was the front runner. How different would things be for the Irish program right now if he was chosen in front of Kelly?
Lady Leprechaun
I don’t really know a lot about Edsall, but at the time, I thought Kelly was the better choice and I still do.
1960s Leprechaun
He would be second-guessed even more. It’s nearly impossible to rewrite history in this fashion. The obvious answer for most is that Kelly is more dynamic and has a higher profile that has helped in recruiting and had more success at a comparable level, so he would be more of a success. But, what’s to say Edsall couldn’t have gone 9-4 last year? About the only meaningful ways you can talk about them being different is the kinds of offense and defense they would install. Beyond that, you’re writing fiction.
Disgruntled Leprechaun
What’s Maryland’s record again? I don’t think Edsall had the same pedigree as Kelly, and even Kelly makes some boneheaded mistakes after doing this for over 2 decades. The HC job at Notre Dame is the toughest in CFB, and I don’t think Edsall was ready for it. Who knows, he might’ve done just fine, but I think we’ve got the right man for the job.
5. Let’s briefly step away from South Bend and address the talk of college football right now: the mind-boggling Penn State scandal. What’s your take on the entire situation and what do you think needs to happen moving forward in Happy Valley?
Lady Leprechaun
JP is saying he never knew the graphic details of the incident until the Grand Jury report. I just don’t understand the graduate assistant/now coach guy. How do you not go into that shower and take that pervert out right then and there? Or at the very least, call 911? I just can’t get my head around that one. And what can JP possibly say to defend himself? What was he told at the time? Based on what’s being reported, he should be canned – but first, make him clean up the stadium after a home game.
1960s Leprechaun
Sad, tragic, deplorable, disgusting. No shortage of words to describe it. Moving forward, they need to hold the university president’s toes to the fire for his initial support of the two administrators involved in the cover up. JoPa needs to go. No easy way to do that, now. He should fall on the sword and resign, saying he doesn’t want all the negative attention to detract from the program, but that’s probably not his style. The vultures are circling, and won’t likely disappear, so they may have to ask him to step down right away. The search for a successor starts with Urban Meyer. Rumors are very strong that this was a done deal for next year, even before the poop hit the fan. There’s a taint on the program, but with house cleaning, it will pass. It’s hardly unlikely that if Urban wants to get back in the game, he’d relish the opportunity to ride in on a white horse, and write himself in as the hero of this drama.
Disgruntled Leprechaun
Well, I guess I can just comment on what happened after last night. I think the BoT made the right decision in firing Paterno. Obviously, I don’t know all the specifics, but I think the right course of action should’ve been to tell JoePa that his choices were 1) resign immediately (i.e., no big farewell Nebraska game) or 2) get fired immediately. I do think he earned that courtesy, and if it wasn’t extended to him, I think that is a casualty of the enormous pressure that PSU is facing right now.
However, I am disgusted by the people (mostly PSU students) demanding that he finish out the year…or at least his final home game. This isn’t a sendoff because he now sucks as a coach and needs to be put down with dignity. He’s not being put out in the pasture because he’s just a little bit slower and not quite all there. He’s being fired because he failed to do his part to protect children. It’s unfathomable to me that he let this big question remain unanswered for so long…or worse, he didn’t question it at all and put the football program ahead of what’s morally and legally right. The one thing the students have right, though, is that the former GA (now coach) McQueary who actually witnessed the act should be fired too. Immediately.
Alright, now it is your turn. Sound off on these questions or our responses in the comments section below.
Go Irish!
