Signing day has come and gone, leaving a clearer picture of the 2009 recruiting class for the Fighting Irish. Head coach Charlie Weis and his staff reeled in the 20th ranked class according to Rivals, and 24th ranked class as judged by Scout. The writing staff here at Clashmore Mike weighs in on each recruit.

Offense

Alex Bullard

OG, 6’3″, 275 lbs
7th ranked OG …

The Fighting Irish limped through their season finale against USC last Saturday. The game proved to be a resounding exclamation point to a dismal second-half season and sparked a frenzy of conjecture over the future of embattled head coach Charlie Weis.

Media pundits, Irish haters, and loyal fans all have opinions. The pundits compare his record to that of his predecessors as ample evidence to …

For most Irish fans, including myself, this year was quite a let down for the Notre Dame Football team. At the beginning of the season, many analysts touted the Irish as a team with more cohesiveness and more experience. Gone were the days of poor technique and poor execution. However, most people still felt that this year’s squad would be one or two years away …

pro⋅gres⋅sion
Pronunciation [pruh–gresh–uhn] – noun
1.    the act of progressing; forward or onward movement.
2.    a passing successively from one member of a series to the next; succession; sequence.

Progression—in football, it’s used to describe two things. First, it’s used to describe the mental and physical process a quarterback goes through on a passing play to “check off” his …

Yes, you read the title correctly. The Notre Dame Football program is at a unique crossroads this week as it recovers from a marathon loss to Pittsburgh and is preparing to face Boston College. This week is more crucial to the outcome of the season for the Fighting Irish than their bye week was two weeks ago. Why? Because this week, as Notre Dame Football …

Charting the Irish offense from Saturday’s game against Washington leads to some interesting results. Namely, the Irish still frequently give away their run/pass intention prior to snapping the ball.

While offensive coordinator Mike Haywood had arguably his best play calling game of the year, the Irish are extremely predictable based on personnel grouping and formation. In other words, Saturday’s contest against the Huskies was more …

This past week, the Notre Dame Football team found themselves at a very unique crossroads. For a long while, the Irish have yet to field a football team that could be so enjoyable to watch and yet, with a split second and a mental lapse, could be so frustrating to watch. When they are clicking on all cylinders, this football team has the ability to …

You Call That A Tendency?

Charting the Irish offense from Saturday’s game against North Carolina leads to a painful—yet obvious—conclusion: Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Haywood telegraphs the pass. It is puzzling how the Irish still managed 383 yards through the air, a testament to the talent Notre Dame has on offense.

Disclaimer: The following analysis excludes the first two drives of the game …

The Notre Dame kicking game the past two years, featuring the first two kickers that Charlie Weis has recruited, has had one signature trait: inconsistency. And we’re not talking about your typical college gamble on a 40+ yard field goal attempt either. This inconsistency is marked by the sound of every Notre Dame fan in the country collectively biting their fingernails whenever a 4th down …