May 30, 2007

3's Company




There is an odd man out for the starting quarterback position at Notre Dame. And that guy is Zach Frazer.

Irish fans were expecting a twosome to contend for the starting job this fall, as was told to us by Coach Weis, but the tricky Chuck named three potential gunslingers yesterday per a press release.

Zach was the first quarterback recruited by Weis and a 4 star prospect according to Scout.com. There has been a lot of speculation on Zach's future in the last few weeks and his father let it be known that Zach did not want to transfer. Now there is an article out that may prove otherwise...

Frazer's future at Notre Dame appears in doubt
By
Eric Thomas, May 31, 2007
Last updated: Thursday, May 31, 2007 1:53 AM EDT
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Mechanicsburg alum Zach Frazer has been loyal to the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame, but if a statement released by head coach Charlie Weis on Wednesday afternoon is any indication, then Frazer's Irish eyes may no longer be smiling.Weis released a statement through the media relations department at Notre Dame stating that the quarterback competition is open into the fall, and only three quarterbacks are gunning for the top spot.Frazer is not one of them."After concluding spring ball evaluations, Evan Sharpley, Demetrius Jones and Jimmy Clausen remain as the main contenders," Weis said. "Each of these three men brought something unique to the quarterback competition. Evan ran the operation the best, Jimmy threw the best ball, and Demetrius made the most plays. For these reasons, they will compete for playing time."And so the dream of running out of the tunnel in front of "Touchdown Jesus" as the top dog on the South Bend campus could come to a screeching halt for Frazer.


His father, David, hinted that a transfer could happen if Zach does not gain any opportunities in South Bend."If the opportunity is out there and they (other schools) come calling, he wants to play," David Frazer said. "He's a kid that wants to play. He's not going to run the scout team or do mop-up duty, he wants to play."Zach Frazer, home on break from school, is unavailable to the media per university rules. He received a phone call from Weis Wednesday afternoon and was informed of the decision with his parents by his side."We were with him when Coach Weis called," said David Frazer. "Coach Weis called at about 1:30 p.m. and informed him that he did not see Zach having any opportunities to be the No. 1 quarterback at Notre Dame (this season.)"
Frazer was the only one of the four quarterbacks who did not complete a pass in the annual Blue-Gold game earlier this spring, but got the starting nod for the game based on a coin flip with the coaching staff."At this point he's a little disappointed," said David Frazer. "He's worked very hard in the last year and a half and he's been extremely loyal to Notre Dame. He loves the university."Frazer's name has been tossed around as a possible transfer since the Irish recruited Jones and Clausen. For the upcoming season, the Irish landed four-star prospect Dayne Crist from Sherman Oaks, Calif.Frazer, who did not see time a season ago, has four years of eligibility remaining. Should he transfer to another Division I school, he would be required to sit out a season, but would still have three years left. A transfer before the fall, to a Division II or III school, means he could play all four years."If he could fulfill his desire to be a starting quarterback at a Division I university, he might look at that," David Frazer said."We owe a lot to Charlie Weis. He is a phenomenal coach. The coaches are putting together an offense that will match the talent on the team. The style of play of Zach as a quarterback might not match the other players or the scheme the coaches need to develop the offense that's there."Frazer chose the Irish back on April 14, 2005, over Penn State, Duke, Connecticut, Syracuse, Louisville and Georgia Tech. Schools such as West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Boston College, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and other southern-based schools that showed some interest during Frazer's recruitment may all be interested if he indeed does seek a transfer from Notre Dame.Should he decide to leave the Irish, any school that would be willing to accept his transfer must go through the Mechanicsburg coaching staff. Wildcats assistant coach Tony Rivito would act as the go-between according to David Frazer. Schools may not have direct contact to Frazer since he is under scholarship with the Irish and may not have contact until he is released from that scholarship.Frazer was named the Class AAA Associated Press Player of the Year after his junior season in which he threw for 3,674 yards and 27 touchdowns.

May 29, 2007

Everybody Else Is Doing It...Part One

The Brooklyn Bridge. How many times in your life have you heard this bit of wisdom; "If all your friends go jump off the Brooklyn Bridge, would you jump too?".

Well, the Subway Domer is ready to jump in with all the ass-clown making these huge preseason predictions (this is never more blatant than at CFN.com). Well here goes Subway Domers Why The Hell Not, 2007 Predictions. This is the first part in a five part series. Please Enjoy!


ND VS. Georgia Tech 27-10 IRISH

The home opener for the Irish turned out to be a passing of the torch scenario. With Brady Quinn gone the head honcho now is Jimmy Clausen. The first half was a little tough on the true freshman, he went 8-15 with 1 TD and 2 INT. There was a lot of pressure put on by GT and their front 7/8 with blitz after blitz. The second half started with an Armando Allen kickoff return for 97 yards and a TD. After that the Irish used a steady diet of running plays which freed up J.C. for some nice playaction throws. The Irish D was stout in Corwin Browns first game and held the Yellow Jackets to 92 yards rushing and only 186 yards passing. The only scores for G.T. came in the first half off of the 2 INTs.

MVP- Travis Thomas 148 yards on 22 rushes and 1 TD (47yds).

ND (1-0) @ Penn State (1-0) 33-20 IRISH

A lot of trash talking by the Nittany Lions through the week led to a scuffle on the opening kick. Armando Allen was hit while CLEARLY out of bounds and a small fight broke out. No one was tossed but, Joe Pa did sit Dan Conner out for the first series. It made no difference. The game turned out to be a close replica of the 2006 battle. J.C. was 22-37 for 3 TDS (all to John Carlson) and no INTs. Morrelli struggled all day and threw 2 picks and fumbled twice as well. It was 26- 6 at the start of the 4th quarter when Demetrius Jone made his first appearance of the year and made a nice 54 yard run to the 5 yard line. Two plays later, Junior Jabbie made a tough 3 yard run to grab his first TD of the year. The D was solid all day until the last 5 minutes when Morrelli hit Williams for a 68 yard bomb and then PSU recovered the onside kick and 3 plays later Austin Scott ran in for a 8 yard score.

MVP- John Carlson 9 rec. 123 yards and 3 TDs.

ND (2-0) @ Michigan (2-0) 27-24 Wolverines

Kicking game woes. It killed the Irish. This could of been a steal. With Mario Manningham in Jail awaiting trial for cocaine trafficking, and Mike Hart going out quickly in the first with an undisclosed injury by a hit from Toryan Smith, the Skunkbears seemed less potent. But with 2 redzone turnovers by the Irish and an 0-4 field goal performance by Burkhart and Whittaker, the Irish could not pull off the upset. Kevin Grady carried his team and the Irish for all 3 scUM TDs. The Irish had the ball on 4th down on Michigan's 30 yard line with 6 seconds to go. Weis opted not to try a field goal and called for a pass that was completed on the 4 yard line, but Parris could not make it in because of a big hit from Morgan Trent.

MVP- Travis Thomas 17 carries for 122 yards 1 TD. 5 rec. for 32 yards and 1TD.

Next Up: Sparty, Purdue, and UCLA.

Ranking: 23 A.P. / 20 Coaches

May 27, 2007

Bizarro And Commitment #13


Brandon Newman is Irish. The 6'1" 305 pound nose tackle informed Coach Weis this weekend that he was coming to ND in 2008. This was during a scheduled visit to ND and a sleepover at Braxton Cave's home. Captain Caveman has been as involved in recruiting other top talent as the Irish staff.

The Pleasure Ridge Park High (Louisville, Kentucky) standout chose ND over a host of other schools, including in-state rivals Louisville and Kentucky. There is no doubt he will be receiving even more offers now that he has committed to Notre Dame.

What makes this a truly extraordinary commit, besides being a top talent, is the fact that this is the 3rd DT committed to the Irish. O.K., the other two project more as defensive ends, but none the less this is HUGE for ND which has struggled in the past to attract top talent on the d-line, despite offering early playing time.

What world are we living in? Is this Bizarro World. Things are changing for the Irish and the hiring of Corwin Brown seems to be the catalyst. Of the 13 commits, 6 of them are on the defensive side of the ball. This is a long ways away from Ty's days of losing out on these guys, and not filling out the depth chart. Another bizarre point; Our 13th commit last year was Taylor Dever...on December 16th. Next someone will be telling me that at the end of the season, ND will have a top 10 defense and, despite their youth and a EXCRUCIATINGLY tough schedule, the Fighting Irsh will make back to a BCS game... and win. I think I might like this world, which is looking like the glory days of old.

I need a Beer. I'm Irish.
Welcome To ND Brandon!!!

May 25, 2007

A Thought From The Tracks

I found this over at NDNation. If you don't know, these are a few of the incoming Freshman for Fall 2007. Steve Paskorz (front row left) looks like he has been eating a lot of Skunkbears...raw. I like the plaid shorts. Brandon Walker (front row middle) might turn into a psycho at kicker. What? It can happen.
Can you name all the guys pictured? BTW- What the hell is that usher doing?

May 24, 2007

Ouch...And Thank God



The earlier reports of D.J. having been arrested were true. However, it appears that they failed to mention that the charges were dropped. The South Bend Tribune reported this today.

This is great news. However I kind of feel cheated. I mean, now our Fulmer Cup points will be rescinded. Looks like Penn State, Purdue, and the like will not have the Irish to battle in this one.

Jones Arrested. Oh Dear Kyle!



It has been reported by WSBT that Notre Dame Quarterback, Demetrius Jones, was arrested on Marijuana possession.

Notre Dame Quarterback Arrested
Demetrius Jones was picked up in LaPorte County May 17th on a marijuana possession charge. He bonded out of jail that night.
The LaPorte County prosecutor's office says he has been charged with a misdemeanor possession charge. A university spokesman says Jones remain enrolled, and to his knowledge, is currently in good standing.
Last year, ND basketball player Kyle McAlarney was arrested for marijuana possession. He was suspended from the team and kicked out of school with the chance to return. St. Joseph County drug charges against him were dropped if he met certain conditions.
He's supposed to be back in class this fall and could be back already.

I will not go into wild speculation about this arrest but I can guarantee you a few things...

  1. ND now has points in the Fulmer Cup.
  2. The QB race is down to 3 with less than a week to go.
  3. The Kyle McAlarney incident will have a huge effect on this matter.

Stay tuned for more.

May 21, 2007

Happy Birthday Dad



Happy Birthday to the man that gave me Notre Dame Football. One of the greatest joys in life is sharing something special with loved ones and freinds. ND is that something special. I remember the first game we went to together, a comeback win versus Oklahoma at home. I remember the win versus Michigan in 2004 and 2005 (we traveled to the lions den and the old man almost didn't make it out alive). Happy Birthday dad and thanks for Our Lady of the Lake and all that comes with her.

"You failed your highness, I am a Subway Alum. Like my father before me." Screw you Pete Carroll... We hate you!

May 20, 2007

Copycats, Copybucks, Copymakers And So Forth

You saw this coming, right? Have you been saving up the comebacks? For as long as Notre Dame has had its T.V. contract with NBC, the fans of the Big Integer have dogged ND about it. Well, maybe their contempt was out of pure jealousy.
On Friday the 18th, The Big Ten network sent out a letter to bloggers intergerwide. Here are the contents:

Hey Everyone,On Monday, May 21st, I will be sending you an open letter from Mark Silverman, president of the Big Ten Network regarding some key questions/answers that Big Ten fans have about the network. Also, we are planning an open Webchat with Mark Silverman on the www.BigTenNetwork.com site on Thursday, May 24th at 1:00 p.m. EDT. I hope you can join us.
If possible, will you please share this letter and promote the Webchat on your individual sites, it would be much appreciated. Also, we are planning something special for you all in support of the network. If you have any questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact me.
Take care and have a great weekend!
-Alice


Bribery. Get the word out and get some treats. The best news about this new network is that the great games of Indiana VS. Northwestern or Illinois VS. Minnesota will now be seen on their network and not on ESPN. Now ESPN can fill its slots up with Duke VS. East Carolina or Baylor VS. Rice.
This is of course, an obvious cash grab for another greedy conference. Yes, this network is going to show more than just football, but let's face it...football is king and the nucleus. This is another direction the big conference schools are going to further line their pockets with dough. This is why you will NEVER see a playoff in 1A or even a plus one game.
Say what you will about ND and NBC. The fact is, is that ND goes with the flow of the other Universities and does what it must to survive as an independent. The conferences are trying to do all they can to destroy that. Their money means control and to do things their way. If it weren't for the NBC contract, ND may be forced into doing things it doesn't want to do as far as scheduling and so forth.
Try as they might, no Big Integer school will EVER have the draw or the prestige of ND... but they will try.

May 19, 2007

I finally made it

Well It finally worked and I am in today.

May 14, 2007

Major Kudos To You Sir


Link-O-Rama...I Just Got Off Of Work Edition.





Here is a list of some good links to check out.






  • Corwin Brown impresses Gator Nation. (BTW- If you haven't checked out EDSBS, you are either a tool or uninformed).
  • Blue-Gray Sky stalks Charlie Weis, and proves once again that Weis is the Emperor.
  • OC Domer professes his love of Our Lady and of the Grotto as an ode to Mothers Day.
  • The "men" of BC bring us a story about Tom O'Brian. We knew he was a douche for a long time...what took you so long?
  • This is an excerpt from a real moron. Look at the date...now read the article...WOW. This guy is an idiot.I truly hope this was an error by Blogger. In any case however, I will be removing him from my blogroll and replace him with a Spartan that is worthy to be called an enemy. (If the guys at BGS don't know about this let them know. They are being dealt with 7 months later and somehow the game hasn't happened yet in "Spartan Bobs" head.BTW- The spelling errors in his piece are his not, mine. I noe ware my spelchek butun is at.

Saturday, April 28, 2007
"A nice long look..."

Michigan State is no stranger to weird phobias and hard shit to put behind them. So it is with great amusement that I have followed the development of the image at right into a Leprechaun Lodestar for the game this Saturday. Blue-Gray Sky is a typical example. They dedicate a medium-sized column (by their standards) to warding off all of the counter-motivationals that Michigan State is allegedly imagining so as to mitigate the supposed talismanic power of "The Flag" to wake the echoes and restore some balance to the 2-7 slide against Michigan State. The Flag, you see, was a crime! No act of bad form on the Irish side may be cited to detract from the power of Flag. BGS did exhaustive research and found all the evidence wanting: No dissing about missing megaphones and certainly no pouting about pillowtalk between Charlie and Mrs. Charlie about never again surrending to Spartans. Lost in it all is an interesting question: What if Michigan State wins?If, after making such a big deal of this flag matter (which few Spartans ever cared about anyway), the Irish fail get the job done, then the flag becomes a self-inflicted monkey on the back of Notre Dame and Charlie Weis. A symbol of failure that will resurface year after year until they beat Michigan State. When and if the "Fire Charlie" websites spring up, that picture becomes worth a thousand words of evidence.BGS tries some rally-round-the-flag moments in the posting:
"I would certainly hope that each player on the Irish roster takes a nice long look at this before heading out onto the field Saturday night." Indeed, take that look. You created this mountain out of a molehill in your own minds. You earned that look. You've worked hard for that look. And if you don't get the job done, you'll get a whole lot better view of it in the year to come.
10:41 PM 0 comments

May 11, 2007

Fitzy's Wicked Pissah Webcast 5/1/2007

This has nothing to do with ND football, except, I think our head coach worked with the kicking team in New England. This is NOT WORK SAFE. So don't even effing try! Laugh more, bitch less.

May 6, 2007

Hindsight Is 20/20 And What Could of Benn

The Irish are rolling right now. May is barely starting out and Notre Dame already has 12 verbal commits for the incoming class of 2008. The future is looking very bright, and the future is being widely discussed about for the next few years. It has me really thinking. People are asking each other; Who's next? How many slots are left? What are the positions of need? These are very excellent questions and the answers could have been "we already got 'em." What am I talking about? The ones that got away. Sorry, I can't help but look at last years class at what we lost and the parallels to what we need with this class. Let me explain....


Wide Receiver. This is a position that is in dire straights right now. ND has no real stud at this position. David Grimes is a heck of a player and probably our number 1 wideout, but he might be better in the slot. It is a safe presumption that the Irish would like to take 2-3 WRs this year. John Goodman, A.K.A. Walter, has already pulled the trigger and ND is looking to a host of other WRs such as Floyd, Butler, etc. Two recruits that ND really missed out on last year was Arrelious Benn and Greg Little. Benn was a soft verbal to ND in June. For a wide array of reasons Benn felt as if he was feeling pressured into making his commitment public. He began looking elsewhere and elsewhere is where he landed. He got Zooked. Another prospect was Greg Little. Greg was a verbal commit and let Weis know he changed his mind, hours before National Signing Day. He never seemed 100% on ND and proved that with a commitment to North Carolina. These two players gutted what could of been one of the best group of receiver commits ever, along with Kamara and Tate. Without a doubt these two would have impacted the Irish this upcoming year and beyond. ND is now left looking and waiting on this years group of wide receivers to make that call to Coach Weis and commit.

Linebacker. Obviously, ND has been doing very well this year at this position. With commits from 3 kids already; Posluszny, Flemming, and McDonald the Irish are going hard after a very big NEED position and are almost done. 1, maybe 2 slots are left and Domers everywhere are pining for Filer and/or one of a host of others that are very highly ranked. Remember that ND did get 3 backers last year in Brian Smith, Aaron Nagel, and Steve Paskorz. (Paskorz may have a different future on campus however). But quantity never seems to match quality. The one that slipped away was Chris Donald. Donald is a violent player that screams dominance. The late word is that ND led up until the Sugar Bowl Fiasco. (He committed to Tennessee which lost to Penn State in their bowl game... we smoked PSU. So, logic may not be his strong suit.) This was a hard pill to swallow.

Defensive Line. This seems to be a break through year for the Irish at this position. With Cwynar and Williams already committing, and guys such as Newman and Goebel in the mix, The Irish are doing very well. Last year was almost a complete disaster. The biggest commit was from Justin Trattou. He later decommitted and ended up at Florida. Before I go any farther, I hold no animosity towards Justin, he saw a different defensive coordinator coming and a new defense. This was not what he thought it was going to be at ND. So...whatever. Ian Williams gave us all a heart attack, and then a sigh of relief when there were rumors of him wavering on his commitment. Nuss was added to the DL, but he is a crossover from the OL. Another name that was floating around was Ben Martin. He ended up at Tennessee with Donald and followed the same logic. He didn't like the blowout against LSU. I never figured him to go to ND, but a lot of insiders down in Cincy pegged him 50/50 O$U and ND. This could of been a great class for 4 years; Justin, Ben, and Ian. Damn!

So what am I getting at? Five recruits. Four 5*s and One 4*(G. Little). That is a lot of talent. That is a lot of LOST talent. If we would have landed these guys, we would be basically done with this years recruiting. Would all of these guys this year have said yes to ND if the circumstances were different? Who's to say. But this is an indicator that the Irish are on the right path. Done with recruiting in May! I never thought I would see the day, and maybe we never will. The point is that Weis and the staff are gunning for the best, and they seem to be doing a very good job at it. Just look at the pictures of all the guys I mentioned. All of them were Army All-Americans. Now take a look at the guys we got with the 2007 incoming class. What could of been the greatest class EVER, wasn't. But the talent is there to make the National Title runs a very serious discussion in 2009. Hell, maybe we'll surprise ourselves sooner.


Editors Note: I left Chris Little off the list, because his word is as strong as jelly.


BELIEVE THE PROPHET!!!

Another Notch, Another Fist Pump



The Irish landed their 12th verbal commit. Lane Clelland is jumping on board with a lot of enthusiasm. The 6'5" 265 pound tackle chose the Irish over Florida, Florida State,Michigan, Maryland, and a host of other schools. The announcement came as a surprise to many, as Clelland has not been a hot topic for discussion amongst Irish fans. This, in retrospect, is a HUGE commit for ND. The Fighting Irish have been whiffing on quite a few prospects on the offensive line as of late. This can add to the momentum that can only be described as Longhornesque.

Welcome To Notre Dame Lane Clelland!!!

May 4, 2007

Link-O-Rama And The Hatred of Alabama

Well Irish fans, and you haters who stop by, this now becomes a very dead period for our beloved Fighting Irish. The NFL Draft is over, Signing Day was back in February, and Kickoff against Georgia Tech is 120 days away...ugh. What to do? Never fear Subway Nation, Your Emperor is here to help fill the void, all praises due.


For you enlightened few who only get your football knowledge from this site, I will now start providing Links to all that is happening in the world of Professional College Football. (Every school pays their players...except ND.) With so many sites dedicated to the REAL national pastime, I shall save you the time of endlessly scouring the net for all the gems. (Yes, Her Loyal Sons blog does the same...but only on Fridays. I'll even do it on A Tuesday, even though today is Friday). How else are you going to find out about all the offseason arrests at Florida, Penn State, etc.?



Here is an example of the gems to be found. Nippert Stadium, one of the few College Stadiums to serve alcohol at the games, was visited by a college kid who is trying to hit all 119 stadiums in Division 1-A. This is the picture he took while visiting. Great right? Well this douche then goes on to say...oh yea, hit the LINK.


BTW- The Hatred of Alabama title is due to a few things that have nothing to do with this post.

  1. They just claimed their 48th National Title for a 1960s team that was voted on by a redneck magazine. In reality they have somewhere between 6-11. It changes every day. ND by the way now has 3 more. I claimed '93, '90, and 2005 (Rick Minter was a mole and destroyed us from the inside. Cheater.)
  2. Alabama rhymed with Link-O-Rama.
  3. Nick Saban.
  4. Their best coach and our worst, came from a school that thinks its 12th man is better than Rudy. (I'm talking about Texas A&M, Bryant, and Mr.Footbaw-Boobs Davies)

May 2, 2007

11th Heaven



Hafis Williams becomes the 11th verbal commit for the 2008 incoming freshman class at Notre Dame. He is a defensive tackle, but projects more as a defensive end in college. The 6' 4" prospect is a beast. His profile has him listed as 260 lbs., but word is that he has hit the weight room hard and is up to 285-290 lbs. ND is raking in the defensive talent, thanks in part to new defensive coordinator Darth Brown. To put this into context, we had 4 commits at this time last year.

Welcome to Notre Dame Hafis!!!