Welcome to the IBG y’all! It seems like everyone is trying to get back into the groove of things after that dominant performance against Michigan last Saturday night. The Irish hit the road for the now annual Shamrock Series game to play the last game of the annual series against Purdue.
The Scroll of Answers:
You know the drill, so here’s the questions…
Ryan Ritter, Her Loyal Sons : Since Michigan still hasn’t scored, let’s talk about the defense: who stood out for you against Michigan?
Guys like Jaylon Smith and Sheldon Day are givens, but Mathias Farley stood very tall despite only having 3 tackles for the game. Farley has found another home on this Irish defense and has played extremely well in the first two games. Against Michigan, he played with a passion and fire that I haven’t seen from him since Stanford in 2012.
Elijah Shumate was another standout from a unit that shined brightly last Saturday. Shumate tied for the team lead in tackles against Michigan with 10 (Jaylon Smith also had 10). Shumate also had that interception return for a touchdown with no time remaining that despite any b16 officiating decision; these eyes will never unsee.
Aaron Horvath, FIDM: It seems as there is always talk about how the current head coach at Notre Dame is not the right man for the job, however in the past five years Brian Kelly has created a system of consistency and led the Irish in the BCS Championship Game. What do you say to the people out there who still think Coach Kelly is not the man for the job?
Really though, what do you say? For all of those that think Brian Kelly isn’t up for the job, I would guess that around 80% of them will never change their mind, and you can’t talk any kind of sense with people like that. As far as the other 20% are concerned, I think they are waiting for a better return in terms of wins and losses than every season that has happened during BK’s era that wasn’t 2012. There’s nothing we can tell them, it’s just a matter of the team performing up to a high standard.
Personally, I think Kelly is the man for the job and as much as I would love for the entire fanbase to embrace him, I know that isn’t realistic.
Mike Coffey, NDNation.com, While it will be difficult to make many definitive statements about the team this week due to the poor quality of opponent, what is one thing you really want to see them do against Purdue?
Shutout #2. I know a lot of people will want and demand a lot of points from the Irish offense, and a large portion of those people will demand 250+ yards rushing to go along with that offensive performance. I’m really not that concerned and honestly, the best thing we could see would be another shutout. That’s D O M I N A T I O N.
Frank Vitovich, UHND: Notre Dame has struggled against Purdue the last two years even though the Boilers have had back to back down years. 1) Why has Purdue given Notre Dame such problems the last two seasons 2) what does Notre Dame have to do avoid a similar fate this weekend and 3) will Notre Dame be able to keep this game from being too close for comfort this year?
There is a term that’s used by coaches to describe when a far superior team struggles against a lowly grunt, “conference game.” It’s a poorly worded phrase that just basically means that the teams are very familiar with one another. When that happens, a lot of weird shit can change the courses of games. I think with this game being a Shamrock Series game this year, it will break the monotony of what is the Notre Dame vs Purdue series.
Not only am I expecting a blowout, I am demanding a shutout- or at least a near-shutout. Combine everything we saw from the Rice and Michigan games, and that’s what we will see.
BONUS: Rank the Shamrock Series unis.
I kind of did this a few weeks ago in a story about alternate uniforms, but here is the rankings for just the Shamrock Series:
- 2013
- 2014
- 2012
- 2011
- 2010
- 2009 hahahahahahahaha
My question this week for the group and for you is:
Can you remember a time when you got excited for Notre Dame vs Purdue? Did you just get a color television? With all of this recent talk of different series ending and scheduling issues, what are your opinions on scheduling b16 teams? How does Notre Dame keep a strong regional presence while continuing to live nationally?
Have fun!
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