Notre Dame’s Running Back Depth Decimated by Dismissals

Notre Dame had a nice little string of good news going so obviously it had to stop.  After learning that both Tevon Coney and Jerry Tillery were coming back for their senior seasons and that Jonathan Bonner had a change of heart and will return for a 5th year, Notre Dame announced the dismissal of four players: Kevin Stepherson, CJ Holmes, Deon McIntosh, and Brandon Tiassum.  Dismissals that have left Notre Dame’s running back depth chart decimated.

The dismissal of Stepherson should hardly be a surprise.  After being involved in last summer’s highway arrest that led to Max Redfield’s dismissal and his early season suspension that was never officially announced, Stepherson was on the thinest of ice.  So when he was picked up for shoplifting and speeding with a suspended license all in a two day period, his fate was sealed.  And honestly, a dismissal was the only option here.

As for Tiassum, his dismissal comes as a surprise as there has not been any reports of issues with him in the past, but from a pure football standpoint, the dismissal will have little impact on the Irish.  If Tiassum saw the field next year, Notre Dame was in trouble to begin with.

Losing Holmes and McIntosh, however, are big losses that destroy Notre Dame’s depth at running back.  Without both on the roster, Notre Dame is down to just Dexter Williams, Tony Jones Jr, and early enrollee Jahmir Smith.  That’s three healthy running backs for the 2018 season as the roster sits now.

Yikes.

McIntosh showed in 2017 that he can be a pretty good college running back too.  As injuries to Williams, Jones, and Adams mounted this season, McIntosh played much more than anyone anticipated.  When he played, he also played well.  McIntosh racked up 368 yards on 65 carries (5.7 ypc) and 5 touchdowns highlighted by a 12 carry 124 yard 2 touchdown performance against North Carolina.  His season came to a crashing halt though when he was sent home from the Citrus Bowl days before the Irish took the field.

Holmes didn’t play much in 2017 but did have his redshirt burned late in the year.  Holmes was arrested along with Stepherson for shoplifting in early December and had been indefinitely suspended ever since.

Ok, so the only glimmer of good news here is that there are reports that CJ Holmes has a path back to the team depending on what he does to get back in the good graces of Kelly ala Michael Floyd in 2011.  Remember, Floyd was arrested for a DUI, dismissed from the team for the spring, but had an outline given to him of things he needed to display to be welcomed back on the team.  It worked for Floyd, so there is hope it works for Holmes too.

If it doesn’t, Notre Dame will need to get creative here.  Playing with just three scholarship backs is a dangerous proposition – especially when two of them spent much of 2017 injured with various nagging injuries.  Notre Dame does have some options though.

First, Notre Dame could give incoming freshman Tariq Bracy a look at running back.  He was a dynamic high school running back and was recruited to play offense by some schools.  With Notre Dame adding Joseph Wilkins and Houston Griffith at corner and still heavily pursuing Noah Boykin, they could afford to look at Bracy at RB.  At 6’2′ and just 170 lbs currently though, Bracy would need to hit the weight room hard this spring to add some weight to hold up at running back.

Notre Dame could also look to the current roster for a position change.  One name that comes to mind is Isaiah Robertson.  It doesn’t make much sense to move a player who will be in the two deep already but Robertson played some offense in high school and might have a tough time cracking the two deep at safety.  At 6’1″, 195 lbs, he has the size to hold up.

The Irish could also look at add another running back in the class.  Even with the early Signing Period come and gone there are still some backs out there.  It’s tough to get a recruit this late in the game, but remember, Notre Dame made a huge push last February and ended up with Jafar Armstrong, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and Kofi Wardlow so it is not unheard of.  Expect to hear Notre Dame being mentioned by some new recruits the next few weeks.

The last option, would be to go the graduate transfer route.  Offering a running back Notre Dame isn’t fully in love with late in the game just to fill out the depth chart ends up taking up a roster spot for four years.  If they can find a stop gap back via graduate transfer, the Irish could load up on backs in the class of 2019 instead to compensate.

Just to end on a positive, perhaps this will put to end all of the in-game tweets pleading for Dexter Williams to get more carries as there really will be no other option but to feed Williams the ball more in 2018 and pray he – and Jones – stay healthy.

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80 Comments

  1. Tweet from Pete Sampson of Irish Illustrated:

    “Bit of a sobering thought when looking at raw talent among other college football heavyweights. Here’s the number of Top 40 prospects signed the past five years by… Alabama 27 Georgia 16 USC 16 Ohio State 13 Clemson 12 Notre Dame 1 ”

    Brian Kelly is a poor game planner, a downright terrible game day coach, a shi++y playcaller, has a rapidly diminishing circle of potential ass’t coaching hires, and is a very weak recruiter.

    But ND thinks he’s adequate, and you clearly think he’s fine.

    So I guess it’s just me.

    1. That writer (Pete Samson) just quantified one of the first things I posted on this site 2 years ago…that BK never has gotten that dominant defensive “impact” player to come here that everyone of the great coaches during my lifetime had…Stock and Page for ARA…later Browner and Bradley (who played for ARA and DEVINE), then Golic, and finally Zorich et al recruited by HOLTZ. We need that guy to be recruited successfully.
      But it does not follow from that recruiting deficiency that BK is a “weak” recruiter. The cupboard is not bare here at ND, the way it was trending to be when Coach Willingham left. Now there was a “weak” recruiter, though I do not know why TW had trouble filling spots. Recruiting certainly was TW’s Achilles heel, and it was becoming critically alarming.
      BK has filled our roster with 4 star recruits (though very few 5 stars admittedly).
      This coming year will be pivotal for that strategy to either pay off with a playoff berth, which we had runs at in 2015 and again 2017, or flop again, which would probably a defining moment for the whole 9 year old program. The question is: can ND compete against those teams Pete Samson listed with mostly 4 star recruits? We played Clemson close in 2015 and Georgiavery close in 2017…but beat neither and fell short of the playoffs both years. It’s interesting.

      BGC ’77 ’82

    2. Well here we go #1 KELLY does not call the plays Chip Long does! #2 We all know ND doesn’t get the top players because of Academics, SAT Scores, and the fact these kids don’t want to worry about grades there 3 and out guys!! #3 Kelly is just an average coach, but he has won 10 games 2 of the last 3 years. how bad were the COACHES he game planned against? #4 So much for the rapidly diminishing list of ASST. coaches, ND WILL hire a top O-LINE coach!! #5 IRISH are now the #6 team in recruiting this year!!!! #6 CRYING DAVEY : why don’t u say who should b next coach? Because you know nothing!! YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT ONE THING DOPEY……. IT IS YOU!!!

      1. NDcrazymike,
        Everything you said is exactly right.
        Add this: (1) The two “D” coaches who stayed are more important than the ones who left. It reminds me of Kelly and Yonto staying after ARA retired. It was huge. AND (2) Coney will be playing like a “5” star dominant impact player next year…like a Lynch or a Stock or a Golic type LB. Tranquill will be right behind him; both will make somebody’s AA team, and I’m thinking that Tillery MIGHT pan out into a Boo Williams/Chris Zorich type factor in the middle of that line. Plus, the secondary now has both experience and help on the way! And the edges look set to me as well! Watch out ND haters and ND deniers! This could be a VERY depressing year for you guys.

        BGC ’77 ’82

      1. The latest update was that Saban offered Long the position of co-OC with Locksley, but Long declined.

  2. Duranko, thanks for listing me as a finalist in such select company. Very flattering. Very tough competition to win this distinction. Poor David, it hurts the hater more than the hatee.

    1. You know, Mr. Greg Kelly, I THOUGHT you were a scrapper. Yeah, it’s tough competition, sort of the BCS.

      Now there are some tough contenders Like Bruce Gregory Curme and “Truth in Labelling” NDCRAZYMIKE.

      Brian Kelly is the Nick Saban of the group.

      I’m sort of the UCF of the group, just a ham and egger. but I try, I try

      Greg, you just gotta buckle that chin strap! Victory requires sacrifice! Don’t let Curme and CRAZYMIKE outtough you!
      suck it up!

  3. HEY EVERYBODY,
    Let me be clear here: I sure don’t believe that the sins of the father should be visited upon the sons. Let Chunkie Charlie’s son find his own way in the world….and let BVG’s son finish the education he deserves at ND in peace. But that doesn’t make what CW with his contract right in my eyes. Just because you CAN do something does not necessarily mean that you SHOULD do it. And as far as I’m concerned, BVG got criticism that he deserved…maybe not even soon enough! They are big boys in a big league…if you do well there are accolades (not to mention a lot of money). But if you fail as a coach, you drag a whole team and support staff down with you. I know these days in our country we have a “zero consequence” type of mentality that seems to pervade. To me, that’s sad…but maybe it’s just the way the culture has to evolve – I don’t know. A lot of it started with that 2008 Wall Street bailout…the warnings that “investments can and do lose money” became a farce. And it seems like nobody has been held accountable for anything on any level since then.
    well, some of us hold Chunkie Charlie accountable – and BVG too – and David, for that matter, for his shotgun approach at using insults and slurs. Of all the “names” he has called me (quite a few, soon he’ll need a Thesaurus to keep going) the one that I like the most is “ARROGANT”…all my career, especially in the face of incompetence, injustice, and corruption, I’ve always been ARROGANT. And it never helped me. Close friends, family and co-workers will tell you this for sure. Everyone has flaws – it’s just a matter of degree, isn’t it.

    BGC ’77 ’82

    1. Yeah, but

      Charley Weis STOLE from Notre Dame. I don’t care about contracts. Fatso looted his alma mater’s treasury.

      But on “Arrogant>” Well

      Consider Danton

      De l’audace, encore de l’audace, toujours de l’audace et la Patrie sera sauvée!
      Some audacity, more audacity, always audacity and the Fatherland will be saved!
      Speech, Assemblée legislative, Paris (1792-09-02), reported in Le Moniteur (1792-09-04)

      The quote on audacity was anglicized to “Audacity, Audacity, Audacity!” and
      was used and cherished by both General George Patton and Glenn E. “Bo” Schembechler

      So, BGC, are you ARROGANT or AUDACIOUS?????????????????????

      1. Weis committed financial matricide, taking money under false pretenses.

        Mere contract is the last refuge of scoundrels, including obese ones who blaspheme God during their Notre Dame press conferences.

        But here is the rub, and you will not understand this.

        It’s a lyric from Pretty Boy Floyd

        “Some people rob you with a six gun, some people with a fountain pen.”

        Let me repeat Weis STOLE and robbed Notre Dame with a fountain pen. He ripped off his alma mater.

      2. DURANKO, as I said, just because Chunkie Charlie had a contract that said he COULD hit ND for 20 million, that does not mean that he SHOULD have hit ND for all of that. The night he started for us as coach, addressing a dejected bowl losing ND team at the site of the bowl, he said something to the effect that “you guys are a 7-6 team and that’s not good enough” or something like that. I agreed and was glad to hear it. But 5 years later, after he ran the program for 5 long years, Chunkie Charlie’s team was guess what…about 7-6! So how did that 7-6, just 5 years later, magically become “good enough” for him to have the gall to collect 20 million from the University?!?
        I was teaching HS Physics here in Indiana, coaching Academic Competition Teams, and heavily involved in union negotiations during that period. You would not believe how much CW was detested and resented by some of the Indiana HS football coaches and assistant coaches I knew…all across the northern (at least) part of this state. It was telling, to say the least. Some of them did not want ANYTHING to do with Charlie Weis. They certainly did not want him, or his associates, visiting their schools. Is that ever a good sign for a college coach…when instate football coaches don’t even want you around?

        BGC ’77 ’82

    1. Addendum: ….as well as some completely uneducated, truly embarrassing, and mentally deficient.

      Apologies to NDcrazymike for the oversight.

  4. Mr. Curme, you are in good company being mocked by our board strange presence.

    He recently on one of his rants used Rockne as a throwaway line.
    ‘Coach Rockne says “they’re swell!”’

    So if he’d toss in an irrelevant Rockne quote just to feather his own nest, why would he not mock you.

    Remember this, BGC, “You can tell a lot about a man by the nature of his enemies.”

    1. Greg, you, as being naturally curious, are probably interested in this quote, and its background.

      Once upon a time I was in the District of Columbia, in an intense, but marvelously cordial, meeting/negotiation with a guy who had part of the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission, not Bama’s conference) team which went after Fifth Avenue Bus lines, whose counsel was pederast McCarthyite Roy Cohn. The SEC won, Cohn lost.

      As you faced this guy your eye was drawn to a framed letter on his wall just over his right shoulder. It was a scathing missive from the pederast banshee Cohn, accusing the guy behind the desk of all sorts of badinage including constitutional ururpation, and denial of due process of law. It first seemed odd, until you noticed the small engraved plaque just above it.

      It was from John Fitgerald Kennedy and said “You can tell a lot about a man by the nature or his enemies.” Our mutual enemy not only mocks Rockne but thinks John Fitgerald Kennedy is pompous.

      I wonder who he hates more, BGC, you, Rock or JFK? Heck, it might be a photo finish!

      1. He hates Brian Kelly more than I hate Satan, but I don’t know why. BK can be arrogant and he can be annoying…and when he first got here I had some real questions about his “style” dealing with players, at least in public on TV…but I don’t see anything he’s ever done that is worthy of hatred. Perhaps David will explain.

        BGC ’77 ’82

  5. What, Charlie Weis Jr. stolen by Lane Kiffen at Fla Atlantic. He would have made a great OC learning in His Dads misfoot steps.

    1. He might— just might — turn out be a good coach.

      With 100% certainly, he’d love to come back to ND as a visiting team, and put 100 points up. With starters playing to the final whistle. Hard.

      1. Holtz son has already done exactly that – in a rare home opening loss – less the “100” point thing.

        BGC ’77 ’82

      2. I, and I suspect everyone else here, would surely already know that.

        As far as having any relevance, are you implying that the motivations and feelings of Lou Holtz’s son and Charlie Weis’ son towards ND on the occasion of their returns as opposition coaches would be similar?

        …Really?!?

        If so, you continue to prove you are as smart as a bag of hammers.
        Apply for a well-deserved refund on that degree.

      3. No, David, I do not see their returns as “similar”…because I do not see either Lane, with or without Chunky Charlie’s son, having any chance of winning the game.

        BGC ’77 ’82

      4. I guess now your gonna tell us what a great job that FAT SLOB did at ND!! His kid gets a job at NOBODY UNIVERSITY with LAME KIFFIN wow DAVEY! I can see why u like WIDEASS WIESS u both are long winded full of shit losers! YOU SIR ARE A DOPE!! DAVEY find another team to rant about everybody on this site knows your a little WHINEING BITCH!!!

      5. The guy who GOT the (contractually obligated) (professionally humiliatiing) $20 million sure holds a grudge.

        But you believe his son would side with ND over his dad.
        Sure.

  6. Well, I knew the period of no player drama wouldn’t last. Looks like we’re back in the old player suspensions/dismissal/leaving for the NFL/QB controversy mode. Last offseason was nice for a change in the sense there was a lack of all that. I guess this is our default position anymore. I’m not well versed enough in the entirety of CFB to say whether this is a BK problem, or just the way of things in this day and age of CFB.

    I guess one piece of good news we should see more Dexter Williams on the field this year. I honestly don’t know why he spent so much time warming the bench this year (outside when he was hurt). Tony Jones looks like he can be a contributor as well. But this puts even more pressure on Wimbush because we are going to need a QB that can pass the ball more than 50%.

    In an ideal world, the coaches would talk Wimbush into taking other roles on the team as a RB running direct snaps, and even straight up RB plays, and have a regular QB in their who can throw accurately. Now that’s about as likely to happen as pigs are about to fly. It’s rare for a QB to accept any other roles, but it would be the best case scenario. Unfortunately that means Wimbush will be warming the bench much of the year before he becomes the next in a long line of ND QB’s to finish their career elsewhere under BK. By this time next year I wouldn’t be surprised if Book is the next one benched in favor of the next ‘big QB’, but I digress.

  7. David,
    The weather has broken, my wife is better, and I’ll be heading to South Bend tomorrow. While there I’ll stop by Notre dame on other business and if the Development Office is open I’ll see if I can get a minute with a senior official on the matter of the Bookstore paying federal taxes on sports apparel sales.

    I know, I’m only relying on faculty from Notre Dame’s Graduate School of Business and staff from the Fund Raising and Development Office at Notre Dame. What would they know about it compared to that world renowned expert in the field of Not-for-Profit Finance, Fund Raising, Structure and Strategy, Bloomberg’s Magazine? I’m hopelessly outclassed, right?

    But I’ll check it out anyway, David – just for a hoot! I’ll get back to you Friday night.

    BGC ’77 ’82

    1. BRUCE don’t waste your time with DAVEY! Every time this JACKASS comes online its to say something so stupid nobody can believe it!! DAVEY doesn’t watch the games because of his dislike of KELLY!! Let me tell you this dope watches every game! The only thing he knows about football is that he was AFRAID to play!! GO IRISH!!!!!!!!!

      1. NDCRAZYMIKE, I know, but it’s not really about JACK ASS. It’s about (1.) making sure of my facts for all of our readers, AND (2.) It’s about FEDS from the swamp skunking around and floating a scheme to tax Not-for-Profits under the guise of sensationalizing the amount of money college football makes (News Flash – medical NFP’s make cash amounts that dwarf college football…should we tax them too?). TAXING NFP’s IS A VERY BAD IDEA, IT’S BAD PUBLIC POLICY, AND IT’S BAD POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY. Let’s STOP IT IN ITS TRACKS. Of course, we have only David’s sources to know that this might be going on, and that begs this question: Why didn’t those reporters know that in the past (at least) Notre Dame’s Bookstore has been obliged by federal law to pay taxes on sports apparel sales? That would certainly be “precedent” perhaps even “legal foundation” for what the articles seem to allege the swamp creatures are up to here. So why did those “crack” reporters leave that out?
        You know, David called Notre Dame degrees “worthless” and mocked my Master’s of Science of Administration in Not-for-Profit Institutional Management. I took that personally for several reasons, not the least of which is that NOT taxing NFP’s is right down my alley – and I was trained by the BEST people in NFP Structure and Strategy in the country…not by some reporter at Bloomberg’s who did a half-assed job on what’s really going on behind the scenes with the FEDS (and the political parties) long range plans to tax NFP’s. It’s about a money grab, of course, it always is, BUT IT’S ALSO ABOUT THEM TRYING TO GET IRS POWER OVER EACH OTHER’S PACS, THINK TANKS, EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, ETC.

        You see, it’s important CRAZYMIKE…and the taxing of college football in all this is just a convenient foot in the door, and red herring, all in one, that those complicit in this think they can rouse public support for…”Yes, we’ll straighten out those rich, corrupt football people by taxing them…we’re from the government and we are here to help.” It’s a ruse for a much bigger scheme.

        BGC ’77 ’82

    2. Didn’t you recently say how you weren’t concerned at all about me or my opinion? Yet here you are, posting these pompous tomes of BS.

      You’re a laughable, long-winded hypocrite, “Bruce Gregory Curme, BGC ’77 ’82”.

      College football is tax free. For realz.

  8. Keith,
    In an earlier post David called a ‘ND sheepskin” worthless and said our players depart with a worthless degree, “bitter and with bad knees.” WHICH IS SO FAR FROM THE TRUTH I ACTUALLY ANSWERED IT WITH A TESTEMONIAL ABOUT THE VALUE OF AN ND DEGREE FROM MY OWN LIFE! HE EVEN MOCKED MY MASTER’S DEGREE FROM THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AT ND. So don’t feel sorry for him when someone wants to know who the hell he thinks HE is! Keith, even though I am with you 100% on your statements about non-alums following ND, and the value of other college degrees, in short, I say to DAVID – you sir are a JACK ASS. His mouth runs off over the top crap, then he whines and insults people, institutions, and lifestyles of others to “defend” his positions…all anonymously, of course. So I think Duranko’s comment was meant specifically for DAVID, not for you, or say Damian, or thousands of others who follow here. You guys are always welcome…as is DAVID when he bothers to write something that makes sense.

    BGC ’77 ’82

    1. Sarcasm. A direct response to someone who posted that college football players are getting “ripped off”.
      Are you just thick, or sorta smart but being purposely deceitful?
      Pick one.

  9. Frankie V.: I love the POSITIVE ending to your article ?. Way to stick the landing, my friend, in a very , might I say, Paul Hamm fashion ?‍♂️?‍♂️?‍♂️. Totally Nailed it my friend ???. Here is my view on the subject. ND has plenty of people that have been recruited for another position that can be moved to add depth or become a starring role. Think Keivarie Russell ??? move in the opposite direction to the Defense Needs a few years back. He turned out all right!!!!! We will survive this as a team!!!!! GO IRISH!!!!!!!!!!!!! LETS GO AFTER IT IN 2018 and FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE LIKE FRANKIE V. His positive spirit is just what the doctor ordered ☘☘☘☘. Love the article DR FRANKIE V. ☘☘☘

    1. One more note, I think D-Will is going to be a player of the year candidate next year. His numbers will be off the charts!!!! GO IRISH!!!!

    2. I agree with you posters , that the coaches will find running backs already on the roster. Who knows what talent will surface ? In 2015 going into spring Tarean Folston was the only RB with playing time. Josh Adams was an unknown freshmen and CJ Procise was a receiver.

      1. Further,
        Southside, I take some cold comfort that Autry Denson is the running back coach. He has seen the “rise and fall” of many, as a player and as a high school coach and at USF. I am highly confident that he has already had some intriguing discussions with Dexter Williams and Tony Jones.

        The following comment will only make sense to Curme:
        Does Ole Galloway have any eligibility left???????????????

  10. Discipline reduction of the RB troops doesn’t help. I remember CJ Prosisse converted well into a RB position a few seasons ago so it certainly can be done.

    Interesting reminder Duranko from 1974 about those suspensions that occurred. Browner and Fry, man they were terrors in their day. Wish we had their equivalents in this day and age.

    Go Irish

    1. Not to mention Luther Bradley!!! (From right here in Indiana). All three of those guys started for ARA as freshmen if I remember, on a NC team, and came back after the suspension, finishing for Devine as seniors on another NC team! I was once talking to George Kelly in his ACC office years later when he called that 1977 bunch of seniors (who graduated in 78) “the cream of the crop” and rattled off what about a dozen of those guys who played on that team were doing with their degrees in life long after football was over for them. He was especially proud of Fry, as I remember.

      BGC ’77 ’82

      1. What is intriguing, and lost in history, is that Bradley was named a starter shortly before Ross Browner was.

        Fry was highly successful in the investment business, but died at a young age.

        The (unfair) joke in those days, but uttered only in reverence to Browner’s alter ego at defensive end was:
        Willie Fry?
        Will He Fry?
        Will He Bake?
        Will He taste good?

        One of my favorite parts of the ’77 defense was Dike and and Calhoun at DT. They are an object lesson in the architecture of
        a defense. They were not dominant players but they “ate” after the table was set by the two crashing ends.

      2. I remember watching the ND-SC game when Bradley hit SC WR Swann so hard after SC’s first pass that Swann’s helmet went flying.
        Ara had them ready and focused that day vs. SC.

    2. Storespook,
      Discipline of the troops always helps in the end, though it can be painful at first. We’ll find somebody to run the ball for old Notre Dame; wait and see. And the shoplifters and DUI boys can watch it with us on national TV.

      BGC ’77 ’82

  11. Ahhhh, chump change. You want to know what SIGNIFICANT suspensions FEEL LIKE

    Go back to the sullen Summer of ’74. Fry, Hunter, Browner, Henry, Knott, and the great Luther Bradley.

    Pressure makes diamonds.

    Crises do not BUILD character. They REVEAL it. We know this about Dexter, Tony, Jahmir (and whoever else they will add it will be someone, even if soybean filler) They can not hide behind “But Adams gets all the carries!”

    What’s intriguing here is that the remaining 80 or so (last we checked) now know that no more shenanigans or hijinks will be tolerated.

    PSSSSST This is Notre Dame

    How many of you have degrees from schools who had a QB QUIT the team in midseason, win the Heisman Trophy and still see that school win the National Champinship?

    Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?

    1. This episode of Notre Dame Nostalgic Moments brought to you by Chesterfields. Coach Rockne says “they’re swell!”

      1. There are people on this board who, like me, have had to endure what most call “cataclysms” in their business life.
        Whining and moaning solve nothing.

        I had one boss, now deceased, who used to lick his chops each time there was an industry, market or similar crisis.
        “Chaos is our friend.”

        Now, for you David, you remind me more of the “Princess on a Pea” type. Gosh I loved competing against those people. It was almost too easy.

        By the way, what’s your alma mater?

      2. @Duranko

        Where’s the value in taking a jab at someone’s ama mater?

        I love the high standards at Notre Dame and the focus on true student athletes and integrity—it’s one of the reasons that Notre Dame football is special.

        But another reason Notre Dame football is special is that it reaches out and becomes important to people well beyond its alumni. There are factory workers with no degrees who are drawn to the ideals, the tradition, and faith represented by the Fighting Irish.

        I was born and raised about 5 miles from campus and knew I could never afford it. But it was financially and socially important to my family, and I don’t think we ever missed more than a handful of tailgates in the 18 years I lived at home. I’d bet I’ve attended more games than the averag alumn. But I went to IU and am pretty pleased with the quality of my education—I just drove home most fall saturdays instead of wasting my time at Memorial Stadium.

        It’s awesome to be proud of being an alumn, and I’ve always enjoyed the “I’ll get the corner office” swagger that comes as part of the Notre Dame mystique (we had something like that at Kelley, but it wasn’t the same). Still, using alumni status as a trump card in a comment section for fans risks undervaluing a great number of those fans—and that undervalues a big part of what makes ND so great.

        BTW, I don’t think these suspension hurt the team, I’m with you on that.

      3. I flunked out of truck driving school.
        C’mon, pops. Really?

        You’re straight outta Monty Python’s Four Yorkshiremen.

    2. Ranko
      Thanks for bringing it!!!! U r darn tooting that this ND and we have a higher standard!!!!!! Love IT!!!! YOU THE MAN???? Lets concentrate on Graduating Students before sacrificing everything to win Championships!!!!! It is the foundation of what we love about UND!!!!!

    3. Well, Keith let me explain, even if not asking for forgiveness.

      For the record, I knew AT LEAST 50 subway alums before I had met a single Notre Dame student. They were true “subway alums” in that they subscribed
      to the mission and football of the school. Their dedication trumped for example, the clowns who run ndnation. Now, many alums
      are gravely concerned about the school, its mission, its greed and its football. I get that and them. I understand,
      partly, where Cdog is coming from. His concerns come from deep roots in tradition from both an inside and experiential
      place.

      But David is simply strange. His hatred for Notre Dame is not just unusual, but it appears to come from an unknown place.
      He further has committed a very dumb offense. HE PRESUMES to lecture all of us on what our attitude should be. People who try to CONTROL
      the thoughts of others are in a very bad place.

      Nobody else here does that. And anybody who did that at Corby’s or Nickie’s………….

      David is tortured, and his venom against Notre Dame, Kelly and most of us
      is a mere outlet for some deeper disfunctionailities.

      Education maketh not the man.
      For my own part, and it is monumentally irrelevant, my parents only got to the 9th grade.

      And I have a lot of close friends who are truck drivers.

      But David’s repetitive whining is just weird. Perhaps his dysfunctions at home and in the office make him come here for attention, even if
      negative.

      I mean here, he just tried to mock Rockne. Rockne? Shouldn’t be the butt of anyone’s jokes. Sure, the mods don’t restrict
      posts, which is fine. but why, Keith, do you think David does what he does?

      1. For you to think, or just intentionally deceitfully claim that I mocked Rockne, then you’re just an a-hole.
        I mock you.

        That a ND education can produce people with such capacity for intellectual dishonesty, or low personal character (or both) is an indictment of ND.
        “The education maketh the man”……a glib, pompous slogan for country club zeroes.

      2. further for keith
        Let me offer a homely metaphor. For the moment let us assume that this site were not about Notre Dame football, but instead about “Red wine.” It would gather drinkers ranging from Barolo to Spanada.

        All of a sudden, like a diavolo ex machina, would appear a poster, miserably mocking red wine and saying to both Barolo and Spanada drinkers that “you should be ashamed of yourself!” You shouldn’t drink it you should avoid it! And you should hate everything about it!

        Now one might ask:
        Have you ever drunk red wine?
        Did you get a headache from it?
        Do you drink white wine?
        Have red wine drinkers bothered you?
        Are you either a lush or a teetotaler, having never drunk either red or white wine?

        But at the end of the day, why are you here?

      3. Thanks for filling me in on the backstory.

        And I don’t know why David is the way he is—sometimes I think he’s a troll, and other times I think he’s a disgruntled fan that lashes out at the very thing he loves in order to distance himself from the pain of disappointment. He does seem to love attention.

  12. It looks like a convention of BK haters below! I predicted 9-3 with a Citrus or Gator Bowl win in August. What were your predictions for last year guys? Amnesia?

    7-5 this year Sebastion? Really? And what 5 teams on our schedule can score enough points on our 2018 defense to beat us now that either Book (finally with the practice repetitions a QB needs) or Jurkovich is piling up points from the QB position?

    I’ll make another August prediction after I see how hard these guys work over the off season this year. But for now, just to aggravate you guys, I’ll predict ND over Michigan in a game we lead from start to finish. I’ll leave it to you to explain how it’s possible that a team coached by Brian Kelly can possibly beat a Michigan team coached by JH.

    Love,

    BGC ’77 ’82

  13. If Holmes and McIntosh have the door closed on them, three RBs obviously won’t be enough, especially since Williams and Jones have injury histories and the third guy is right out of HS and not regarded as an elite recruit, which might not be important.
    (As I recall, Williams was more highly regarded than Adams as recruits).
    Time to pull a Lombardi (Nitschke from FB to MLB, Taylor from LB to FB, Adderley from RB to CB, Heisman Hornung from QB to HB and others).
    Ara’s reshuffling was also well documented. With all the athletes ND has, finding a fourth RB in house shouldn’t be that difficult.
    With an abundance of DBs, one could come from that position group; I suspect several of them were star RBs in HS. Part of good coaching is finding the right guy already enrolled who can help out at a position of need. That’s on BK and staff to pull that off if they don’t get another elite recruit by NSD.

  14. There’s got to be some attractive RB/FB type guy out there that ND can flip before signing day. Doesn’t need to be Jerome Bettis but a tough runner who can provide some insurance.

    1. Yes. Play running back for Brian Kelly. A real chance to showcase your talent.

      Second and goal from the 2? Empty backfield.

    2. Joe I would love to see us recruit a big running back with a burst who likes to block as much as he likes to run…a fullback type, if you want, and I’ve said as much on a dozen posts…but I don’t think it matches BK’s style. Too bad. Now might be a good time to flip one who never thought he had a shot at ND before…bit I’ll bet our recruiting staff doesn’t even have data on that type of player, let alone grades or SAT scores! It’s probably hopeless. A graduate transfer would be the only way.

      David’s criticism of empty backfield on second and goal inside the five has been all too real – but if you watch film of the times we lined up in the “I” in that situation under Coach Long, you’ll see a TD by land or air every time last year! There is a reason for that, and I hope BK has learned from it, just in case Long does go somewhere else.

      BGC ’77 ’82

      BGC ’77 ’82

  15. I am sure brian kelly will use incident, the loss of some assistant coaches, and graduation losses as his next excuse of why he went 7 and 5 or 8 and 4 next season. of course jack will get his courtesy reach around and say he will return in 2019. notre dame has set the bar to the middle and brian kelly continues to reach it. fire kelly! fire swarbrick! fire jenkins!

    1. Fire SWARBACK!! During his time at ND SWARBACK has presided over and improved the athletics at ND!! THE graduation percentage has gone thru the roof!! The girls bb team has made it to 4 final 4;s!! THE MENS BB TEAM HAS MADE IT TO 4 sweet 16;s!! ND rated as top school for graduating student athletes!! The hockey team is #1 and has made to the frozen 4 twice!!! THE FOOTBALL stadium has had MASSIVE WORK DONE TO COMPETE WITH THE OTHER POWER 5 SCHOOLS!!! SOCCER, LACROSSE, FENCING ALL TOP PROGRAMS IN THE COUNTRY!!! THINK B4 YOU WRITE SOMETHING SOOOOO STUPID SEBASTIAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  16. Don’t need these people any way. As we move to east, west coast style offense. Jurkovec will be able to extend and get in with those long arms. Move a guy in to block in the pocket. See lots of rollout style. Book, will be able to hold the fort.

  17. Don’t understand why they bother to mention Williams. He never got to play more than a couple snaps in every game anyway. Kelly refuses to let him play for some reason.

    1. HEY DOPE ITS MORON NOT MOROM! WE KNOW YOUR A HATER BECAUSE AT NOTRE DAME IF U CANT SPELL SIMPLE WORDS U HAVE TO GO GET YOUR G.E.D AT NIGHT SCHOOL!!! HURRY UP DOPE!!!!!!

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