Now that the voting is over, it’s time to present the results. First, thanks to all who participated. At the time of this analysis better than 200 people cast votes. For each game on Notre Dame’s 2009 schedule voters were asked to select their confidence in a win. Predicting the outcome of the 2009 season […]

Expectations for Notre Dame’s 2008 season were high. The majority of the offense returned and the Irish faced a pedestrian schedule. But after the two consecutive disappointing offensive seasons, many are grasping for answers. A 3-9 campaign followed by an underwhelming 7-5 season can cause even the most ardent fan to forget about quarterback Brady […]

Whether you saw the Blue-Gold game live or followed along with the reviews, the Irish have had a relatively eventful off-season. A solid recruiting class headlined by defensive stalwart Manti Te’o preceded three coaching changes. Rumors emerged from Spring practice sessions highlighting quarterback Jimmy Clausen’s continued development, defensive lineman Ethan Johnson domination of one-on-one drills […]

At times during the 2008 season the Irish offense looked like a passing juggernaut. Other times Notre Dame sputtered when faced with a short field, frequently failing to produce an effective rushing attack. This led to poor red zone and third down efficiency that cost the Irish more than one game. In fact, many of […]

As discussed before, three topics contributing to the success and demise of the 2008 Irish offense will be discussed this off-season. The first installment, Part 1, detailed the positives and negatives of head coach Charlie Weis’ offensive philosophy and play-calling approach. The second installment consists of three segments detailing Notre Dame’s struggles running the football. […]

A year ago, I wrote an article discussing who Notre Dame’s true rival is. It was an open and shut case and nobody can deny that throughout their respective histories, Southern California is Notre Dame’s biggest rival. However, with the instability of Weis’ tenure at Notre Dame, most people are pegging Charlie’s success this season […]

A relatively young off-season has brought a host of changes to the Notre Dame football program. The Irish landed a solid, albeit not great, recruiting class and three new coaches were hired to replace offensive line coach John Latina, defensive line coach Jappy Oliver, and offensive coordinator and running backs coach Mike Haywood. A more […]

After two of the most prolific offensive seasons in Fighting Irish history, the Charlie Weis-led Notre Dame offense produced two inconsistent and wholly underwhelming campaigns in 2007 and 2008. The efficient, passing-centric offense led by quarterback Brady Quinn has been replaced by a one-dimensional vertical passing attack that struggles against relatively average defensive units. As […]

The off-season is here, and, save a few recruiting tidbits and coaching changes, there isn’t much for Irish fans to talk about. In light of this, I’ve decided to dissect some of the offensive woes for Notre Dame the past two seasons. Even though Notre Dame’s offense exploded to destroy Hawaii in their season finale, […]

Better late than never I guess… The Fighting Irish played arguably the best 60 minutes of football in the past 24 games Christmas Eve, beating the Hawaii Warriors in all three phases of the game. Notre Dame dominated in time of possession (33 to 27 minutes), total offense (478 to 359 yards), average yards per […]