Sitting In My Living Room On A Beach Chair

The Captains talk about the impending Hawai'i Bowl and its impact on them and their families.

Maurice Crum

I saw this on the Irish Illustrated board (poster: cfuentes) and thought everyone should see this. It's a little story about Mo Crum, and I thought it would be very fitting for today as the fifth year senior closes out his Fighting Irish career at Notre Dame Stadium.

In the aftermath of the 2005 USC game, it had yet to hit me what had really just
happened. I was among the few in the student section that never thought we had
won the game when the clock hit 0:00. Everyone else around me is charging the
field and I just stood there, knowing more time would be put backon the clock.
After we lost, I was devastated, but it didn't really hit home to me how close
we were and how bad this one hurt until later that night back in Siegfried (my
hall). I was standing in the hall talking to a few other kids when Mo Crum came
down the hall, tears in his eyes. He looked like he had just lost his closest
friend. His parents were already there, and when Mo Crum saw his Dad, he lost
it. He broke down in one of the worst fits of anguish I have ever experienced.
Crum Sr. Basically held him up as they hugged. It was then that I understood
what we had missed on in the stadium that day. Mo knew that winning that game
would have changed everything. It was also then that I knew ND football would
matter again under Weis. It would only be a matter of time...

Whatever you opinion of Weis is, it doesn't really matter. Cheer for your seniors today and be thankful at the way they have represented the University and the family that is Notre Dame.

WE ARE N D!!!

Link-O-Rama 11/18/08

I haven't done one of these in a while, but after a day of surfing the web, I have a few links of interest to you all.

• Need that special Christmas present to give to a loved one? Look no farther than what this Michigan fan is willing to do for the current low bid of $22.00.
• Speaking of Michigan, look who's leaving town.
• The Great Satan now has the rights to our blackened soul.
• Troy Nunes Is A Magician has moved, and he is predicting some coaching changes.
• The Fighting Irish are going green this weekend for the Syracuse game.
• Feel free to use this information and destroy this man.
• The 900 billionth sellout at Notre Dame still lacks homes for some of its tickets.
• I urge you to keep voting for Maurice Crum.
• Now that the Irish are bowl eligible, The Great Satan has spoken. His minions belittle themselves and call themselves bloggers, when they are actually idiots behind a keyboard that get paid. The appointed ND blogger has us in the Gator Bowl, while her ACC counterpart has Florida State heading their as well. Other evil-doers have the Irish in the Gator, but against either Maryland or Miami (FL). Boy, that ACC is really predictable.
• One last note on that awful Michigan team that is heading straight into a 3-9 record. Dick Rod wants you to worry about the economy. He's doing just fine with his loot.

Crum Has Class

Lowe's is sponsoring an award that recognizes Senior players with the 4 C's: Classroom, Character, Community, and Competition.

Classroom:Maurice Crum Jr. followed in the footsteps of 98.7 percent of football players at Notre Dame since 1962 and became another scholarship player to earn his degree. Crum graduated in four years in good academic standing with a degree in sociology and is currently enrolled in the graduate studies program at Notre Dame. Crum was in good academic standing all four years of his undergraduate career and chose to enter the graduate studies program at Notre Dame and return for his fifth year as opposed to enter the NFL draft and begin his professional career.

Character:The character of Maurice Crum Jr. can best be quantified by the fact he was elected team captain of the Notre Dame football team as a senior and again as a fifth-year senior. Crum became just the 17th two-time captain in the 120-year history of Fighting Irish football. As one of just three fifth-year seniors on the team, it was virtually a given that Crum would be selected team captain for the second straight season. Perhaps the bigger honor came in 2007 when he was one of five captains on the football team but the only captain who was not a fifth-year senior.

Community:From June 10th-18th, Maurice Crum Jr. traveled with eight other people to Ghana to help establish a new computer lab and library at an orphanage in the town of Koforidua about 2.5 hours outside the capital city of Accra. He was part of the team that helped deliver 14 computers, two printers and an LCD projector into an air-conditioned computer lab with seating for 24 students. The group also presented the orphanage with approximately 2,000 donated books in the new library that had seating for 16 students.

Competition:On the field, Maurice Crum Jr. has won three monograms and enters the 2008 season with 241 career tackles, needing 54 stops to enter Notre Dame's top-ten list for career tackles. He is on pace to pass former teammate Tom Zbikowski who sits eighth all-time with 300 career tackles. He has started every game during his career and holds the team's longest active streak for both consecutive games played and started at 37. Crum was named an honorable mention All-American in the 2008 preseason by The Sporting News and was selected to the preseason watch lists for the Nagurski Trophy, Bednarik Award and Lott Trophy.

Follow this LINK and vote for Maurice.

Wu-Banga Tuesday... Golden Arms

Welcome to the first real edition of WU-Banga Tuesday. Basically this is a congratulatory post to what I believe was the MVP of the previous week and my prediction for this weeks MVP.

Golden Tate. Was there any doubt about it? Tate looked spectacular on an otherwise unspectacular day. The best thing about Tate's emergence Saturday, was that he was running ALL types of routes. He worked hard in the off-season to become a more polished WR and it looks as though the hard work is paying off.

Maurice Crum. Mo has played in 3 previous Skunkbear battles and he will be looking to lead the defense to victory in a game that might just be decided by a big defensive play.

Here's to you boys...

Crum and Corwin...

Mo Crum

Corwin Brown

Trophy Watch...Tick-Tock

If you haven't already heard, several Notre Dame players are on the watch list for some post-season hardware. Center John Sullivan is being stalked for the Outland Trophy, that goes to the nations best interior lineman (no Laws...WTF). Also, Maurice Crum and Tommy Zbikowski are being put on notice for the Bronco Nagurski Award, which goes to the nations BEST defensive player.
Good Luck Gentleman!

Trophy time always reminds me of a former Irsh player that got completly screwed for a bronze statue. Guess who I am talking about....