jarious

I expect to see the 'Golson runs around in the backfield and then throws it a mile' play, at least a couple times. Btw, i really hate that Gardner wears 98. This moment of hatred is brought to you by, Michigan Week.

I thought he was fine. His physical traits will always limit him at the point of attack, and would not be surprised to see teams run right at him. In terms of playing in space, whether tracking a ball carrier at an angle or in coverage, I think he is above average relative to non-Teo middle linebackers we have seen.

This list begins and ends with Michigan and USC for me. Sparty is a distant, distant third.

November 8th. Winning.

Myerberg just featured ND at #18. Figure this ranking was pre-scandal as noted, but pretty representative article. http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/08/17/notre-dame-fighting-irish-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/14159541/ Will fill-in other ranked Irish opponents later, but Michigan notably came in at the mid-30s.

Meh. Lesar is awful. Correlation does not imply causation.

I get the optimism in trying to muscle through this issue, and the overall effect on the remaining players could go either way (they galvanize or they fall apart). But talent wins games, and you are talking about your #1 CB, #1 WR, and #1 DE. Even if you think there are viable replacements at those positions, the impact on depth is undeniable. If you get an injury at CB, now you are rolling out Devin Butler vs Cole Luke. At WR, you are now rolling out a true freshman. With an injury at DT, you are now rolling out Jacob Matuska vs Rochell (if Rochell truly slides to getting starter reps at DE).

On the ASU front, they were decimated on the defensive side, losing their top 7 starters. Tons of uncertainty there, which is solely why they are in this neighborhood. Navy? I dunno, this seems optimistic, but they have lately gone as their QB has gone.

Added Navy and Arizona St at #48 and #47, respectively. By this author's estimate, ND will face 9 top 50 teams.

It's still July, but Stanford looks like a problem match-up on paper. Of course, no idea how our front 7 will play, but it is certainly not a strength. You have to figure that Stanford will come in and grind it out, forcing ND to overcommit into the box...and well, we have seen that show before. Not sure where Stanford's D is at, so expecting ND's offense to simply outscore Stanford is a little ambitious for me at this point. But, that said, ND doesn't really play a road game before Tallahassee. Michigan and UNC are winnable games at home, and you have to expect they go 3-0 in the other games. So, beat Stanford, and yes, they can go 6-0.

Yeah, I think the OL losses will be most problematic with Martin/Watt, just based on establishing some continuity on the left side and across the line in general. On the DL, there are no real replacements for Tuitt/Nix, but just need to stay healthy and look for guys to step up situationally within a rotation.

With college football's worst month (July) and the worst 4 days in sports (AS break) upon us, no better time to bust out the annual college football countdown by Paul Myerberg. The author used to roll this website on its own, but now writes for USA Today. Myerberg counts down the top 128 with a new entry everyday (or so), and the analysis is pretty insightful for the amount of coverage that he performs. He is currently at #58. The main link is below, and will link ND opponents as they appear. I was surprised at the offensive optimism with Rice, and Purdue is bad (which means we will certainly play them to a one-score game). http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/05/08/college-football-countdown-directory/8819991/ #62 Rice http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/07/02/rice-owls-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/12072583/ #35 Michigan http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/08/06/michigan-wolverines-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13630431/ #108 Purdue http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/05/12/purdue-boilermakers-big-ten-2014-countdown-preview-roster-schedule-football-four/8962207/ #75 Syracuse http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/06/18/syracuse-orange-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/10708113/ Stanford #27 North Carolina http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/08/11/unc-north-carolina-tar-heels-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13817587/ Florida St #48 Navy http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/07/25/navy-midshipmen-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13083911/ #47 Arizona St http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/07/25/arizona-state-sun-devils-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13144773/ #42 Northwestern http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/08/01/northwestern-wildcats-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13414069/ #29 Louisville http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/08/10/louisville-cardinals-2014-countdown-preview-roster-depth-chart-schedule-football-four/13791109/ USC Enjoy.

Definitely not a 3*.

Love how this kind of thing deconstructs into breaking down a teenager's academic standing, with, well, no substantive information validating the supposition.

True that, great way to put a bow on the Tommy Rees legacy. Great post.