Duranko
151 articles
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Instant Maturity: KeiVarae Russell and Avery Sebastian
Two vintage wines recently arrived in South Bend from West Coast vineyards. Avery Sebastian came in from Berkeley and KeiVarae Russell from Tacoma. Last Spring Brian Van Gorder…
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Brian Van Gorder’s Revamped, Comfortable Staff
A year after inheriting the defensive coaching staff of Bob Diaco, Brian Vangorder enters the 2015 with a completely revamped staff. Will it help?
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Duranko’s Digest: Notre Dame Football’s Spring Forward
Spring practice is now concluded. What did we learn? Better than expected: Jerry Tillery at Defensive tackle. Tillery’s move from “left tackle of the future” to defensive tackle…
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Autry Denson and Todd Lyght: Deep Impact
The nearly simultaneous hiring of two Notre Dame legends will have a powerful long term effect on all aspects of that dynamic organism we call “Notre Dame Football.”
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Notre Dame Defense Yesterday, Today, & Tomorrow
YESTERDAY Last Spring was Brian Van Gorder’s first coordinating the Notre Dame defense. As Spring practice unfolded, there were some intriguing personnel groupings. These Four: Ishaq Williams, the…
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Notre Dame’s 1988 National Championship
Here we celebrate the Silver Anniversary team, Holtz’ champions of the 1988 season. 1987-Pre-Championship year Deja vu 1987 had ended with the taste of ashes. Stirring victories over…
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John Huarte
NOBODY saw this one coming! John Huarte was from California, a prized prospect from an emerging Catholic prep school, Santa Ana Mater Dei, which would later produce Heisman…
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Paul Hornung
Paul Hornung’s path to the Heisman Trophy was filled with intrigue, surprise and adventure, and finished in what is arguably the most controversial Heisman Trophy Award. Hornung was a…
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Notre Dame’s 1977 National Championship
“All animals are equal but some are more equal than others.” George Orwell, Animal Farm Well at Notre Dame, all national championships are different but some are more…
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Ranking Notre Dame’s ’15 Offensive Starters: Pre-Spring Practice Edition
To have 11 players we had to take a flyer at quarterback. Wiser men would wait and see, but occasionally, the job description of a fool is to…
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A Pre-Spring Ranking of Notre Dame’s Starting Defense
We take a pre-Spring Practice look at the putative defensive starters. This may well change during Spring practice or in the Fall. The middle linebacker situation remains fluid,…
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Notre Dame’s Unusual 2015 Football Schedule
It’s different this time, with no Big Ten teams on the schedule. There are six ACC teams on the schedule. The Irish departure from the Big Ten is…
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At Long Last, Depth for Notre Dame
To understand the extent and the spacing of Notre Dame's current depth, let’s jump past the 2015 season and go right to the Spring of 2016, some 14…
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Notre Dame 2015 Offense: An Early Glimpse
In the first four years of the Kelly hegemony, the Fighting Irish offense averaged 27.1 points per game. The Irish averaged 161 yards rushing and 246 yards per…
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2015 Notre Dame Defense – An Early Glimpse
Three overarching factors will impact the 2015 Fighting Irish Defense. First, it is the second year of the Brian Van Gorder defense. While Van Gorder and Kelly, for…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against LSU?
Hard by the banks of the Cumberland River, and in easy walking distance of the cathedral of country music, the Ryman Aauditorium, the Fighting Irish defeated those long,…
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2015 Irish opponents in the Bowl Games
Eight of Notre Dame’s scheduled opponents for 2015 are playing in bowl games. Virginia, UMass, Temple and Wake Forest are not. We list them chronologically, with some possible…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against USC?
Ugliness, embarrassment, second disaster of the year. USC, resisting the temptation to run up the score, buried the Irish 49-14, sending the Irish to its first four game…
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For Notre Dame, It’s Often Darkest Before Dawn
NOTRE DAME has won four national championships in the post-Leahy era: 1) 1966, 2) 1973, 3) 1977, .and 4) 1988. There were myriad near-misses: ’64, ’70, ’80, ’89, ’93, ’12. While…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against Louisville?
The Fighting Irish lost their third straight game as the Louisville Cardinals befouled Senior Day, 31-28. It is axiomatic to football’s unforgiving math that a team’s stronger units…
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Duranko’s Digest: Paul Hornung, Notre Dame’s 1956 Heisman Winner
With Louisville coming in on Saturday, the 22d, Louisvillians will mark this as their first visit to South Bend for football purposes. But over 60 years ago, in…
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Duranko’s Digest: What did we see against Northwestern?
Northwestern beat Notre Dame 43-40 in a game that was as repulsive in its unfolding as the result. It was a bad loss to a bad football team,…
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Duranko’s Digest: Notre Dame’s Disaster in the Desert
On a weekend when the sports media bubbled over with Veteran’s Day references, Notre Dame’s offense, in whole and in part, was simply overrun by Arizona State’s blitz…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against Navy?
The Fighting Irish squeaked past Navy 49-39 in a weird affair that more closely resembled a Halloween House of Horrors than a first rate triumph by an outstanding…
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Duranko’s Digest: Notre Dame Football Program-Semi-Annual Report
With seven games behind us it’s time for the Midyear Report. ASSETS/LIMITATIONS: THE UNITS We rank the units according to three categories: FINAL FOUR MAJOR BOWL BOWL This…
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Duranko’s Digest: What did we see in Tallahassee?
Jameis Winston led three excruciating, Heisman-quality drives of 70 yards or more to lead Florida State to a comeback 31-27 victory over the Fighting Irish, extending the Seminole…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against North Carolina?
Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish overcame potentially fatal offensive turnovers and the first signs of vulnerability from the hitherto impregnable defense to survive North Carolina 50 -43. Though the tilt was…
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Duranko’s Digest: What did we see against Stanford?
The FIGHTING IRISH validated their nickname in a tense 17-14 win over Stanford. Everett "Two Minute Drill" Golson floated a sweet 23 yard pass to the steadfast Ben…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against Syracuse?
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was a display of genius, it was a display of foolishness- for Everett Golson. (Apologies…
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Notre Dame Football First Quarter Report
With three games behind us it’s time for a quarterly report, even if qualitative. ASSETS/LIMITATIONS: THE UNITS We rank the units according to three categories: (1) FINAL FOUR…
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Notre Dame Defense – Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
As Notre Dame enters its first bye week of the season, we take a close look at the revitalized Notre Dame defense led by a ground of talented…
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Duranko’s Digest: What Did We See Against Purdue?
Rallying from the season’s first deficit, the Irish tightened the screws defensively and scored the Shamrock Classic’s games last 20 points to beat Purdue 30-14, moving to 3-0…
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Duranko’s Digest – What Did We See Against Michigan?
31-0. You seek eloquence? This is eloquence: 31-0. Analysis? Analyze this: 31-0. You desire numbers? Try ZERO. Notre Dame ZEROED in on Michigan , won 31-ZERO, has ZERO…
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Duranko’s Diget: What did we see vs. Rice?
After a brief acclimatizing warmup with two 3-and-outs, the Irish offense exploded early and often, the refurbished Notre Dame defense held down the refurbished Rice offense, and the Irish…
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Leon Hart
Leon Hart was a big player for Notre Dame. He was actually the BIGGEST Heisman Trophy Winner of all time. Hart was born in Pittsburgh, and was recruited…
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Johnny Lujack
John Lujack was born and raised in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh. Lujack was a four sport athlete at Connellsville, and was an RKG, graduating as both the Valedictorian…
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Angelo Bertelli
The Heisman Trophy was first awarded in 1935 by New York’s Downtown Athletic Club as the “Downtown Athletic Club Trophy.” John Heisman, the former coach at Georgia Tech, was…
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4 Pivotal Notre Dame Players for 2014
There are many players who will be important for Notre Dame in 2014, but today we identify four Irish players who, individually and together, may well determine the…
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Duranko’s Digest: Coaching Matters, Notre Dame’s 2014 Faculty
It is timely to examine the reconstituted coaching staff or "Football Faculty" as their primary function is to teach. Ah yes, we love our mantra "it's not the…
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Notre Dame Post-Spring 2014 Defensive Outlook
In high school algebra we learned that the difficulty of solving an equation increases in relation to the number of unknowns in the equation. That lesson is applicable to…
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2014 Notre Dame Offense: Where Are We?
The whole, ideally, should be greater than the sum of the parts. But let’s start with “parts.” OFFENSIVE LINE Were Notre Dame to have corporate sponsors for units,…
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For Notre Dame Defense: 3-4 or 4-3… Both?
Bob Diaco unequivocally installed and stayed with the 3-4 as Notre Dame's base defense when the Kelly regime began in 2010.
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Duranko’s Digest: Kain Colter and the Unionization of Northwestern players
In large things and small, war games and the sports and games people play, in government, in society, there occur tipping points that mark the beginning of a…
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Duranko’s Digest: 6 Focus Areas for Notre Dame Spring Practice
Spring practice comes early this year, starting the first week in March. There are significant coaching changes on both sides of the ball. Mike Denbrock was named offensive coordinator.…
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Duranko’s Digest: Ranking Notre Dame’s 2014 Opponents
Please note that this post-signing day ranking rates the opponents as we expect them to finish 2014 overall. Not preseason rankings, but where they would rank on a “true…
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Duranko’s Digest: 10 frosh likely to play for Notre Dame in 2014
Brian Kelly plays freshmen. Last year 10 frosh saw significant minutes and some were key contributors-on both sides of the ball. the 10 were Elmer, Folston, Fuller, Robinson, Onwualu,…
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Duranko’s Digest: Ranking Notre Dame’s Projected ’14 Defensive Starters
As we did last week with the offensive starters, today we rank Notre Dame’s projected defensive starters from top to bottom. Dog LB Jaylon Smith – The Golden…
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Duranko’s Digest: Ranking Notre Dame’s Projected ’14 Offensive Starters
Obviously, a prediction, not a guarantee. Change happens!! And, both healthy and after injuries, depth is more important in this era of football than ever before. QB Everett Golson…
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Duranko’s Digest: Ranking Notre Dame’s 2014 Units – Winter Eval
We’ll take an early glimpse at the component units of the 2014 Irish. Obviously, such predictions are perilous: (1) injuries occur (2) departures occur (3) players develop, sprout…
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Frank Leahy, College Football’s Greatest Coach
On Saturday, November 30th, Nick Saban fell short in his attempt to win a third consecutive national championship at Alabama, and his fourth in five years