ND Football 2005Issue 6: USC

USC Rush Offense vs ND Rush Defense

USC has not one but two runners averaging 120 yards per game. LenDale White has hit the end zone 10 times on the ground. He doesn't do much dancing in the backfield - he only has 4 yards in the "loss" column this year. White averages "only" 7.6 yards per carry, compared to Reggie Bush's 8.6. Bush has reached the endzone 6 times on the ground, with a long run of 76 yards. As a team, USC has averaged 291.2 yards rushing a game. Their low mark this season was 177 yards against Hawaii.
Notre Dame, lead by a trio of fine linebackers and two hard-hitting safeties, is giving up 116 rushing yards per game. Brandon Hoyte is leading the team in tackles with 42, including 10.5 in the backfield. Hoyte and the rest of the front seven will have to step up and make tackles in this game. If those safeties to have to creep in to help out the run, the corners will get burned all day long. This game will be a spotlight of Maurice Crum at the Apache Linebacker - a position created to control hybrid backs like Reggie Bush.

ND Rush Offense vs USC Rush Defense

One of the keys for Notre Dame will be the ability to control the clock and keep USC's offense off the field. Darius Walker has topped the 100 yard mark four times this year, and his per game average is 105.6 yards. Notre Dame's number 2 back in terms of carries is Rashon Powers-Neal, who has gained 100 yards on 31 attempts. RPN, the short-yardage back, has also picked up 6 touchdowns along the way. Quarterback Brady Quinn has been an effective weapon this year when he chooses to run. Not counting sacks, Quinn has picked up 123 yards on 20 carries.
USC is said to have an inexperienced front 7, so that is something the experience ND offensive line (which should include a healthy Bob Morton) will have to take advantage of. The Trojans' leading tackler is MLB Oscar Lua. Lua has made 32 tackle, but his 0.5 sack is his only backfield stop. USC is giving up 90 yards per game on the ground. However, that number is a bit deceiving. WAC/PAC-10 opponents averaged 64 yards rushing against USC. Arkansas, the one team with a run-based offense, rushed for 197 yards against the Trojans.

USC Pass Offense vs ND Pass Defense

Returning Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart is averaging 329 yards per game. Leinart also has 12 TDs to only 3 interceptions. His primary targets are his two wide receivers. Dwayne Jarrett has been the go-to guy, with 35 catches for 467 yards, an average of 7 catches and 93.4 yards per game. Jarrett has also found the endzone 9 times this season. While Jarrett is the reliable option, Steve Smith is more of a big-play guy. Smith is has picked up 575 yards on only 27 catches, which calculates out to averages of 115 and 5.4. Even with his 21.3 yard-per-catch average and long gain of 67 yards, Smith has only one touchdown. After the two receivers, the ball has been spread evenly to Reggie Bush (13 catches), fullback David Kirtman (12), and tight end Dominique Byrd (10). One noticeable thing - when LenDale White is in the game, he isn't much of a threat in the passing game. White has only 3 catches on the season.
Once again, Notre Dame will have to play ball control on offense to keep their defense off the field. The Irish secondary has shown that it has the talent to be good in the future, but in the present they're still shaky. ND is giving up 305.6 yards per game in the air. Notre Dame has played five good passing teams this year, and for the most part they've been able to rely on their own offense's production and opportunistic turnovers (in addition to Wannstedt's stubbornness and Breaston's hands of stone, of course). One thing that has been missing is a good push from the defensive line. Of ND's 11 sacks, only five have come from lineman. With the linebackers preoccupied with Bush and White, the likes of Victor Abiamiri and Trevor Laws will have to step it up big in this one. Otherwise, this game will be the fourth straight "Heisman Showcase" for a Trojan QB.

ND Pass Offense vs USC Pass Defense

Two thoughts, which may or may not be related to this game. I read a comment over on Fanblogs that considered the Heisman a two-year process: first comes the "hype year," then the year when the trophy is one. Think of it: two years ago, Leinart got tons of hype, while Jason White took home the hardware. The next year, Leinhart won, while Reggie Bush got the hype. This year, Bush is again a favorite, but Brady Quinn is starting to pick up some hype. He's still a longshot, both in this year and the next, but "I'm just sayin'." Thought two: Carson Palmer looked flat-out overmatched for years against ND, until 2002, when everything clicked and he won big. Quinn (along with the rest of the team) has looked overmatched for two years against USC....
OK, enough of that. Back to the analysis. Quinn has numbers eerily similar to Leinart's at this point (Leinart's numbers in parentheses): 1621 yards (1646), 324.5 per game (329.2), 65.3 completion percentage (65.1), 13 TDs/3 INTs (12/3). Rhema McKnight "might play" in this game, but his absence hasn't been too noticeable as of late. Jeff Samardzija has become a manchild, picking up 499 yards and 8 TDs on 28 catches (99.8 yards, 5.6 catches per game). After him, Mo Stovall has become (usually) a reliable posession receiver. Stovall has 388 yards and 1 TD on 23 catches (77.6 yards, 4.6 catches per game). Also with 23 catches is tight end Anthony Fasano. Fasano also has 249 receiving yards, or 49.8 per game. After the big three, Darius Walker has 17 catches and 116 yards out of the backfield and Matt Shelton has 159 yards on 14 quick slants.
I would predict Jersey Boy Fasano to have a big game based on the rumored guests for this Friday's pep rally. However, he and John Carlson may be preoccupied helping tackles Ryan Harris and Mark LeVoir with defensive ends Frostee Rucker and Lawrence Jackson, who have combined for 8 sacks and 12 backfield stops on the season. Overall, USC has 16 sacks, which breaks down to 3 by the linebackers, 1 by a cornerback (Justin Wyatt), .5 by a safety (Josh Pinkard), and 11.5 by the line. The Trojans also have 10 picks, led by CB John Walker and S Josh Pinkard with 2 each. The breakdown on INTs is 3 by corners, 5 by safeties, and 2 by linebackers. What that tells us about USC's coverage schemes, I don't know, but hopefully Rick Minter does.

Special Teams

USC walk-on kicker Mario Danelo has made two field goals from 36 yards, and missed from 42. He is, however, perfect on 36 PAT attempts. Counterpart DJ Fitzpatrick is 6 for 7 on field goal attempts, including 1 for 2 from 48 yards. DJ is also perfect on 23 PAT attempts.
USC has punted 13 times this year, 12 by Tom Malone. Malone has an average of 42.8 yards with a long of 60, 2 touchbacks, and 4 kicks inside the 20. DJ Fitzpatrick has punted 19 times, with an average of 40.7 yards, a long of 60, 1 touchback, and four inside the 20. Fitzpatrick has also been blocked once.
USC's kick returners are running backs Reggie Bush and Desmond Reed. Guess who's having the better season? Bush is averaging 17.5 yards per on 8 returns, with a long of 30. Reed is averaging 40.8 yards per, with a long of 51. I still wouldn't kick to either. DJ Fitzpatrick and Carl Gioia have shared kickoff duties for the Irish, although it is usually Fitzpatrick who is called upon in key situations. Fitzpatrick is averaging just under 58 yards per kick, which translates to an average start at the 12 yard line. Gioia is just behind at 56 yards per kick. DJ has 4 touchbacks to Gioia's 2. ND coverage teams are surrendering 19.5 yards per return, giving opponents an average start between the 30 and the 35. Lately, coach Charlie Weis has lived by the philosophy of kicking it high and placing it well to avoid a big return - so taht is something else to take into consideration.
Notre Dame's kick return duties have been shared between Justin Hoskins, Brandon Harris, and David Grimes. Grimes has taken over the primary role with his long of 40 yards and 31 yard per return average. Comparatively, Hoskins has an average of 23 and long of 24, while Harris has an average of 17.7 and long of 22. Freshman Troy Van Blarcom has been the kickoff specialist for the Trojans. Van Blarcom has a 63.6 yard average with 12 touchbacks and 2 kicks out of bounds. His average gives opponents a start at the 1.4 yard line. From there, the coverage team is giving up 26.6 yards per return, meaning opponents start around the 28 yard line.
Reggie Bush has been USC's punt returner, but he has been less than impressive. On 7 returns, Bush has an average of 5.7 yards, including a long of 24. Opponents have punted the ball 28 times, which means 75% of the time, they just avoid Bush. Notre Dame's punt coverage team has been great this year - yielding 5.4 yards per return.
Safety Tom Zbikowski is the Irish punt returner. On 7 returns, he has averaged 13.5 yards, with a long of 25. The Trojan punt coverage team is yeilding a mediocre 17 yards per return.


Look for a big game from Quinn, the O-Line, Samardzija, BHoyte, Laws, Fitzpatrick, Weis.

ND 41, USC 38: Samardzija, RPN, Walker, Fasano, Zbikowski, and two by DJ. Wanna fight about it?

USC Blogs

TrojanWire
HeismanPundit
Boi from Troy
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Irish Trojan
Tribute to Troy
USC Trojan Football
Fanblogs USC

KankaNation Top 15How they voted

	Andy	Dave	F-Bomb	Kanka	Pete
1	USC	USC	USC	USC	USC
2	Texas	Texas	Texas	Texas	Texas
3	Va Tech	Va Tech	Va Tech	Va Tech	Va Tech
4	Georgia	Georgia	Georgia	Georgia	Georgia
5	Alabama	Alabama	FSU	Alabama	Alabama
6	Penn St	Penn St	Alabama	FSU	FSU
7	FSU	FSU	Miami	UCLA	Miami
8	UCLA	UCLA	Penn St	Penn St	UCLA
9	Miami	Notre Dame	LSU	Florida	Penn St
10	Notre Dame	Miami	Notre Dame	Miami	Mich St
11	LSU	LSU	UCLA	California	Notre Dame
12	Texas Tech	Texas Tech	Florida	Notre Dame	LSU
13	Florida	Mich St	Ohio St	LSU	Texas Tech
14	Boston College	Florida	Mich St	Minnesota	Florida
15	California	Boston College	Texas Tech	Mich St	California

Rumor Mill Smells Like a Newark Factoryby Dave's brother, aka Michael Schmitt

I got a late e-mail from my Dad last night asking about that Bon Jovi rumor. My Dad seems to know everything about sports, and I seem to know everything about everything else. So, I think we can deconstruct this rumor down to a good logical guess about whether or not ND booked everyone's favorite composer of Backer Ballads for this Friday’s pep rally. Let's take a look at the facts, shall we?

All rumored celebs for this next pep rally include:

1) Bon Jovi
2) Joe Montana
3) Lou Holtz
4) Vince Vaughn
5) Jesus
6) The Beatles

Scientifically speaking,

1) Bon Jovi

The last big rumored guest was Ara and Ara showed, but due to typical slow/rude service at CJ’s and the added tension of David about to pop the question, David and Ellen as well as hundreds of other undergrad students were locked out of this Pep Rally. I however, ran and broke in through the Hockey arena, went up the back stairs, lapped through a dungeon-ish locker room, burst up through a Men’s Fencing practice that was taking place, stopped to ask directions, and then went through another passage way that put me right out in front of the Heismans. I caught the last second of Ara’s speech wherein he guaranteed victory (as most speakers who played or coached before Lou Holtz tend to do at pep rallies) thus jinxing that incredible defeat. I don’t know what any of that has to do with Bon Jovi.

The result of so many people turning up for the last rally was that they decided to move the USC rally to ND Stadium for the first time in ages. Bon Jovi is an arena rocker fond of playing open air stadiums in such exotic locales as the Meadowlands Arena. South Bend has a larger appropriation of mullets per townie than a Parisian café has mullets per latte. Score one for Bon Jovi.

The marching band has been practicing "Living on a Prayer" for two weeks now. Having played this tune for the last three or so seasons in a row, one should think that by now they would want to save it for a very special occasion... e.g. the composer of said Backer Ballad decides to rock the USC pep rally. Score two for Bon Jovi.

7 layers of truth:

1) We had Carson Daly at last year’s USC pep rally. Carson Daly dated Jennifer Love Hewitt. 2) Jennifer Love Hewitt’s career right now consists of making it onto absurd VH1’s hottest countdowns. 3) VH1 used to play lots of Bon Jovi before they traded 80’s music videos for a celebrity format similar to the E!-channel. 4) ESPN and most sports networks have lately adopted a similar celebrity format to keep girlfriends from switching the channel on their pussy-whipped boyfriends. 5) USC quarterback Matt Leinart and boy-band extraordinaire Nick Lachey are tremendously pussy whipped boyfriends who love to 'chill' and watch Jessica Simpson’s latest classics. 6) The vomit inducing 'classic' Dukes of Hazzard remake starring Jessica Simpson was executive produced by Bruce Berman. 7) Bruce Berman produced a few good movies, one of which was Mystic River starring Kevin Bacon.

Score 7 for Bon Jovi.

Charlie W is a Jersey boy who attended college right around the time that groups like REO Speedwagon were making way in the music biz for acts like Jon Bon Jovi.

The conversion is good! Score 8 for Bon Jovi.

All signs seem to point to the Jersey Kid.

This would be a terrible rumor to be false—not to mention a terrible rumor to miss if it’s true. I’m hedging my bets on this one being true.

2) Joe Montana

I saw Joe Montana on “Best Damn Sports” show last night doing a Niners/Joe/Jerry sycophant special. He wouldn’t admit whether or not he would be speaking at the pep rally when asked—so that means he definitely will be. Reggie Bush was in the audience instead of doing push-ups in his room, whereas Ronnie Lott who is retired and probably only plays golf now, was so busy that he had to phone in to the show to speak with Joe.

3) Lou Holtz

Lou will probably be there, but I’m guessing he won’t speak. Just a hunch.

4) Vince Vaughn

Vince did a stand-up show here last Saturday. I missed it, “Big whoop, do you wannda fight aboud it?” Someone probably should have tried to sit Vince down at the Backer and keep him drunk until the pep rally, but I’m guessing he won’t be back in South Bend for a while.

5) Jesus H Christ

No seriously folks, I got an official e-mail from student affairs informing me that the guy who learned Aramaic and smattered himself with fake blood for our beloved Mel Gibson's Passion will be speaking at the grotto on Thursday. The topic will be his spiritual journey or some other business that nobody but writers for Advocata Nostra and the Irish Rover would sincerely care about. I’m definitely going to Tivo that one out of my weekend.

6) Fab Four

I heard somewhere that they’re bigger than Jesus. Must be a rumor.




Thanks for reading all this garbage, can somebody write my midterm paper for me now??????????????????? Ellen??????

GO IRISH BEAT TROJANS

2005 Baseball Awards

Inspired by the great work Tom Verducci does at Sports Illustrated, including his under-25 team, here are my year-end awards. For each position, there are multiple categories of winners: the overall category, the "rising star," and the no-name. The "rising star" is a player under 30 with less than 3 years of playing experience. The no-name is someone that most people haven't heard of, and who usually doesn't fit into the rising star category. For each category, there are three winners: the Verducci winner, the Gammons winner, and the Kanka winner. Tom Verducci seems to be quite into statistics, so the Verducci winner is the person with the best statistical year, according to CBS Sportsline's Player Rankings. Peter Gammons goes more on gut feeling than numbers, so there I went with whomever he may pick. Then, since this is my site, I also threw in a Kanka winner, based on my own criteria.
Without further ado, here they are:

Catcher

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Victor Martinez, Indians. .305 AVG, 20 HR, 80 RBI. Martinez proves that it's not how you start, but how you finish. Early in the season, Jason Varitek was flirting with .350 while Martinez was struggling to stay above the Mendoza line. After an incredibly hot August and September, Martinez, who shared the catcher Silver Slugger award with Pudge Rodriguez last year, will likely be the sole recipient of that trophy this year.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Martinez
Kankaly Speaking: Martinez
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Martinez
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Martinez
Kankaly Speaking: Martinez
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Bengie Molina, Angels. .295 AVG, 15 HR, 69 RBI. Wait, this guy is batting 5th for a playoff team?
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Ramon Hernandez, Padres. .290 AVG, 12 HR, 58 RBI. Injuries have slowed his progress, but he's a good hitting catcher.
Kankaly Speaking: Javier Valentin, Reds. .281 AVG, 14 HR, 50 RBI. Jose's brother put up those numbers in a mere 76 games as a backup catcher/first baseman. He may never be a star, but he'll be a solid catcher.

First Base

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Mark Teixeira, Rangers. .301 AVG, 43 HR, 144 RBI. Both Derrek Lee and Albert Pujols hit in the .330s and had more runs and stolen bases. (Lee also had 3 more HR.) But, apparently RBI are the most important to CBS Sportsline.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Pujols. Just a natural baseball player. He can flat-out hit, and he's excelled at every position he's been put at.
Kankaly Speaking: I'm a huge Pujols fan, but you have to give Lee some credit here. He did lead first basemen in home runs, and led the entire league in average. Plus, he's always been a Gold Glove first baseman. No need to punish him just because his team fell out of the playoff picture.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Teixeira, assuming Pujols is an established star.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Teixeira, for the reasons above.
Kankaly Speaking: Teixeira
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Teixeira
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Chad Tracy, Diamondbacks. .308 AVG, 27 HR, 72 RBI.
Kankaly Speaking: Shea Hillenbrand, Blue Jays. .291 AVG, 18 HR, 82 RBI. Not bad for a guy who was driven out of Boston for not taking enough pitches.

Second Base

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Brian Roberts, Orioles. .314 AVG, 18 HR, 73 RBI, 92 R, 27 SB. Started the season like gangbusters, before an injury took him down for a few weeks. Somehow, Roberts' numbers edge out Chase Utley's .291 AVG, 28 HR, 105 RBI, 16 SB.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Utley.
Kankaly Speaking: Ron Belliard, Indians. .284 AVG, 17 HR, 78 RBI. The numbers don't look like much, but what he did for the Indians this year can't be put on paper. Of course, his defense can be put on "Web Gems," and his clubhouse and on-field antics can be put on audio tape.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Roberts barely still qualifies for this category.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Utley
Kankaly Speaking: Roberts. He had shown glimpses of greatness while sharing time with Jerry Hairston. In his first full season, he showed how great he is.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Placido Polanco, Tigers. .331 AVG, 9 HR, 56 RBI. Don't look now, but that .331 average led the league.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Jorge Cantu, Devil Rays. .286 AVG, 28 HR, 117 RBI. Big potential to move into the "Rising Stars" category next year, and big potential to pick up some Rookie of the Year votes as well.
Kankaly Speaking: Cantu. People talk about Robinson Cano because he plays for the Yankees, and Cantu because he's a great hitter. If they changed teams, no one would be talking about Cano.

Third Base

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees. .321 AVG, 48 HR, 130 RBI, 124 R, 21 SB. There's still a huge difference from playing heads-up baseball and cheating, Alex.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Morgan Ensberg, Astros. .283 AVG, 36 HR, 101 RBI.
Kankaly Speaking: Chone Figgins, Angels. .290 AVG, 113 R, 62 SB. Led the league in steals by a slim margin over Jose Reyes, Scott Podsednik, and Juan Pierre. Plus, did you really expect me to not pick the utility guy? (And yes, split infinitives are now gramatically acceptable. I don't think starting a sentence with the word "and" is, however.)
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Figgins
Gammonsesquily Speaking: David Wright, Mets. .306 AVG, 27 HR, 102 RBI, 17 SB. Again, not bad for the first full season of work. Plus, he turned in two of the best defensive plays of the year.
Kankaly Speaking: Wright beats out Hank Blalock in an off year by Blalock.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Ensberg
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Ensberg
Kankaly Speaking: Ensberg

Shortstop

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Michael Young, Rangers. .331 AVG, 24 HR, 91 RBI. Tied for the highest average in the AL, and second only to Miguel Tejada (26) for home runs by a shortstop. Not bad numbers for a natural second baseman.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Young.
Kankaly Speaking: Not Derek Jeter.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Felipe Lopez, Reds. .291 AVG, 23 HR, 85 RBI, 15 SB. Not bad for his first full season in the bigs.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Jhonny Peralta, Indians. .292 AVG, 24 HR, 78 RBI. In spring training, he was fighting Brandon Phillips for a roster spot. Then, he was hitting 9th and not playing every day. By the end of the season, he had worked his way up to the third spot in the lineup, and he proved that he can be an every day Major League shortstop. Honorable mention to Clint "Deer Meat" Barmes of the Rockies.
Kankaly Speaking: Peralta. Yes, I know he "can't" spell his first name. Have you seen him turn a double play with Ronnie Belliard? And how clutch is he in the late innings?
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Jimmy Rollins, Phillies. .290 AVG, 41 SB, 115 R. He shouldn't be a no-name by any sense of the imagination. But, for some reason, no one talks about him.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Julio Lugo, Devil Rays. .295 AVG, 39 SB, 89 R. Plus, he finally learned how to play defense consistently.
Kankaly Speaking: Jack Wilson, Pirates. .257 AVG, 8 HR, 7 SB. OK, so 2004 was the only season where he hit above .260. But, have you seen what this guy can do on defense?

Left Field

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Manny Ramirez, Red Sox. .292 AVG, 45 HR, 144 RBI. Hey Ellen, here are some pictures of Manny being huggy.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Miguel Cabrera, Marlins. .323 AVG, 33 HR, 116 RBI. OK, so it's hard to top Manny. But Miguel certainly tried.
Kankaly Speaking: Cabrera. Still some mention should go to Jason Bay, whose .306 AVG. 32 HR, and 21 SB somehow wedged him between Manny and Miguel in the Sportsline rankings.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Bay
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Cabrera
Kankaly Speaking: Carl Crawford, Devil Rays. .301 AVG, 15 HR, 46 SB. Let's put it this way: If you're building a young franchise, and you can't get Cabrera, don't be too upset if you're left with Crawford.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Pat Burrell, Phillies. .281 AVG, 32 HR, 117 RBI.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Carlos Lee, Brewers. .265 AVG, 32 HR, 114 RBI, 13 SB. In the hunt for the HR and RBI titles for a while.
Kankaly Speaking: Randy Winn. .306 AVG, 20 HR, 63 RBI, 19 SB. Why not. You only hear his name when he gets traded, but he is a career .288 hitter who can play all three outfield positions. (Which is approximately three more positions than Carlos Lee can play.)

Center Field

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Andruw Jones, Braves. .263 AVG, 51 HR, 128 RBI. He still can't hit for average, but this year he made up for that. Plus, even if he's starting to lose a step, he's still ahead of most center fielders defensively.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Jones
Kankaly Speaking: Jones
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Grady Sizemore, Indians. .289 AVG, 22 HR, 81 RBI, 111 R, 22 SB. Not bad for a guy who didn't even break camp with the team. Verducci even put Sizemore at #7 in his list of AL MVP finalists.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Sizemore. The Tribe lineup gelled when Sizemore was moved to the leadoff spot.
Kankaly Speaking: Sizemore. When the Indians Team Shops started selling pink "Mrs. Sizemore" t-shirts, they sold out in one day. The women in Cleveland love him, and most of the men have man-crushes on him.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Vernon Wells, Blue Jays. .269 AVG, 28 HR, 97 RBI. Don't know why he's still a no-name, but here he is.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Brady Clark, Brewers. .306 AVG, 13 HR, 94 R, 10 SB. A breakout year for Clark, buried by Carlos Lee's surge and the Brewers lack of success.
Kankaly Speaking: Clark, but only because Jim Edmonds' .263 AVG/29 HR/89 RBI season is an off year for him.

Right Field

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Gary Sheffield, Yankees. .291 AVG, 34 HR, 123 RBI. Hey, he does have great badspeed and a Stan Musial-esque ability to keep his bat level.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Vlad Guerrero, Angels. .317 AVG, 32 HR, 108 RBI. The numbers speak for themselves.
Kankaly Speaking: Guerrero
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Craig Monroe, Tigers. .277 AVG, 20 HR, 89 RBI. I kid you not.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Jeff Francoeur, Braves. .300 AVG, 14 HR, 45 RBI. That's in only 70 games.
Kankaly Speaking: Francoeur.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Geoff Jenkins, Brewers. .292 AVG, 25 HR, 86 RBI. Hmm... good veteran outfield, three Baseball America Top 100 infielders, a proven #1 starter, and a solid closer (see below). Can the Brewers start to turn it around?
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Jermaine Dye, White Sox. .274 AVG, 31 HR, 86 RBI. Hey, it doesn't look like much, but it was enough for this team.
Kankaly Speaking: Jenkins

Designated Hitter

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: David Ortiz, Red Sox. .300 AVG, 47 HR, 148 RBI. An MVP candidate, and very worthily so.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: It's hard to argue with Ortiz.
Kankaly Speaking: ...unless you're an Indians fans. Travis Hafner, Indians. .305 AVG, 33 HR, 108 RBI. Pronk is an absolute manchild. Even after missing almost a full month thanks to a Mark Buehrle curveball to the face, Hafner was still third in Verducci's list of AL MVP finalists. Verducci has a great point - Hafner is a very valuable member of the Tribe lineup.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Hafner
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Hafner
Kankaly Speaking: Hafner
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Raul Ibanez, Mariners. .305 AVG, 33 HR, 108 RBI. That's a great season that went almost entirely overlooked.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Ibanez, although special mention goes to Dave Dellucci, who hit 29 HR out of the leadoff spot for the Rangers this year.
Kankaly Speaking: Ibanez

Starting Pitcher

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Dontrelle Willis, Marlins. 22-10, 2.63 ERA, 170 K. Let the debate begin.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Chris Carpenter, Cardinals. 21-5, 2.83 ERA, 213 K. I believe that Verducci actually placed Carpenter just ahead of Willis in his NL Cy Young finalist list.
Kankaly Speaking: Carpenter, although I honestly just flipped a coin to decide that.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Willis
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Willis, but only because Johan Santana doesn't qualify, and Jake Peavy's 13-7 record is an off year for him.
Kankaly Speaking: Clifford Lee, Indians. 18-5, 3.79 ERA, 143 K. Bartolo who?
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Carpenter
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Roy Oswalt, Astros. 20-12, 2.94 ERA, 184 K. Is he only a no-name because he plays in Houston, or because he plays along side Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte?
Kankaly Speaking: Carpenter. I had Carpenter, Jason Marquis, and Rodrigo Lopez as finalists for my last fantasy baseball roster spot. Of course, I took Lopez.

Relief Pitcher

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Mariano Rivera, Yankees. 43 SV, 1.38 ERA, 80 K.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Chad Cordero, Nationals. 47 SV, 1.82 ERA, 61 SV. By the way, he's the Major League saves leader this year.
Kankaly Speaking: Bob Wickman, Indians. 45 SV, 2.47 ERA, 41 K. He wasn't fun to watch, but the Tribe wouldn't have been knocking on Chicago's door if it wasn't for him. Wickman tied for the AL lead in saves.
Rising Star
Verduccily Speaking: Derrick Turnbow, Brewers. 39 SV, 1.74 ERA, 64 K. How he beats Brad Lidge's 42 SV, 2.29 ERA, and 103 K, I'm not sure.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Huston Street, A's. 23 SV, 1.72 ERA, 72 K. Project out over a full season, Street would likely beat Turnbow, Cordero, Lidge, and Frankie Rodriguez (45 SV, 2.67 ERA, 91 K).
Kankaly Speaking: Lidge. Does that make me a "Domer Homer?" Lidge and BJ Ryan were the only closers to top the 100 K mark. Lidge is said to have one of the best sliders in baseball.
No-Name
Verduccily Speaking: Turnbow
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Todd Jones. 40 SV, 2.10 ERA, 62 K. It was a great comeback season for the not-so-openminded Jones.
Kankaly Speaking: Jason Isringhausen, Cardinals. 39 SV, 2.14 ERA, 51 K. Why has no one heard of this guy?

Manager

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Tony LaRussa, Cardinals. The Cards' 100-62 record was a game better than the White Sox 99-63 record.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: Ozzie Guillen, White Sox. Everyone thought he was crazy bringing small ball to US Cellular Field, but he made it work, and he's still making it work.
Kankaly Speaking: Eric Wedge, Indians. He's still learning on the job, and his teams can be downright terrible at small ball, but he's managed to turn a bunch of youngsters into a pennant contenders.

General Manager

Overall
Verduccily Speaking: Ken Williams, White Sox. He somehow managed to make the Esteban Loiaza for Jose Contreras and Carlos Lee for Scott Podsednik deals look good, and added key pieces in Tad Iguchi and Jermaine Dye.
Gammonsesquily Speaking: John Schuerholz, Braves. Normally, teams have to rebuild to get the young talent the Braves have. Eighteen rookies! Where did they all come from?
Kankaly Speaking: Mark Shapiro, Indians. Technically, Shapiro should be the Gammonsesque pick as well, but someone deserves credit for what the Braves have done. But, even more credit goes to Shapiro. The cupboards were bare when he came in, and he traded away the present to restock them. In the Bartolo COlon trade, Shapiro got two players who may be All Starts as early as 2006 (Lee and Sizemore). His philosophy of using players with good character led to the trade of Milton Bradley, for whom Franklin Gutierrez was acquired. The Bradley trade also allowed Coco Crisp, and eventually Sizemore, to play every day. The Indians have a bright future for years to come.

KankaNation Movie Reviews

Saw a few movies this weekend. Here are the mini-reviews:

• Waiting: Went to see this in the theater with F-Bomb. Good choice, considering the characters in the movie were basically me and F-Bomb's friends. There's not much of a plot - it's more of a "day in the life" movie. But, the one liners and random moments more than make up for plot. It was a good show, if not raunchy. Overall, it's the type of movie you enjoy, but maybe don't want to admit to enjoying.


• Family Guy Presents: Stewie Griffin, The Untold Story: Basically three successive episodes combined into one story. If you only watch the show for Quagmire or Cleveland, you're out of luck. But, if you're a fan of the main characters, prepare for many laugh out loud moments.


• Napoleon Dynamite: I've only seen this once, so technically the jury's still out. But, I think I know now why so many of my readers suggested this to me: like my writing, this movie is just very absurd. Funny, but absurd.


• Team America, World Police: Hilarious if you're not easily offended. As you can expect from the creators of South Park, it's a great social commentary as well.


• Monty Python's The Meaning of Life: OK, actually haven't seen this one yet. It's next on the list.

Rumor Mill

Judging by the Google searches that have been leading to my site lately, there must be a rumor going around campus (ND's campus, that is) that Bon Jovi will be at this weekend's pep rally. Has anyone else heard this?

...and some randomness

Check out Five Bucks to Friday, a comic by a Notre Dame grad. Do these two strips remind you of a certain group of friends?

Second Kankaversary

Sunday, October 9, is KankaNation's second anniversary. The shark jumping all began here.

It's been said before, but I couldn't do it without my readers. Actually, I wouldn't do it without my readers - it'd be kind of pointless then, wouldn't it? So, whether you're an occasional reader, a longtime lurker, or a "loyal KankaManiac," please post to the message board to let us know who you are and what you think of the site.

As regular readers know, I don't have much of a life, but I do have an active imagination. In that spirit, here's a look at what the KankaNation Second Anniversary Party might have been like:

The scene is the Fisher 1B quad. Kanka, Andy, and Scovil are present.
"Wow, it sure was nice of Fr. Rob to let us have the entire 1B hall for this anniversary party.
"It sure was," answers Kanka. "But, do you think it was too much to make this a Halloween party, too?"
"Not at all," replies Andy. "By the way, how do you think my Strongbad costume turned out?"
"Every time I look at it, I can't believe how awesome it is!"
"Hey, thanks," says Andy. "By the way, what are you going as?"
"Not sure yet. Hey Chris, nice Christmas tree costume. Come over here so I can get a better look."
"I can't," Chris responds. "Yonto put up all these Christmas lights, and now I can't move!"
"Speaking of which," says Kanka, "where is Yonto?"
"He went to pick up his uncle, The Coach," says Andy.
Just then, Mike and Meg Hatton enter. "Mike! Meg! Thanks for coming," says Kanka. "How's 'Charlotte' doing?" he adds, lining up to yell "Football!" into Meg's belly.
"Very funny," answers Meg.
Mike quickly changes the subject: "Hey, Kanka, we brought you a present!"
"Let me guess, it's a woman," Kanka says, with a mixture of sarcasm and hopefulness.
"Nope."
"Is it Woman?" Kanka asks with must trepidation.
"Wait, what, no!" Mike replies, giving his best Klondike impression. "It's a 'Best of the Backer' CD."
"Well, great, throw it in!" Kanka says excitedly. Then, in the roundabout way of thinking and talking that only he has mastered, Kanka adds, "Speaking of Klondike, as we were... kind of... well, not really. Did we remember to invite him?"
"No," replies Mike. "We need to call him. Who has a phone?"
"I do," Kanka quickly answers. "Oh, wait, no, nevermind."
Andy asks, "do you think he'll come? He is at least two hours away."
Mike and Kanka simultaneously reply, "Of course."
Mike remembers that he himself has a phone, so he calls the erstwhile Alaskan to invite him to the party.
Klondike begins with his familiar excuse: "I don't know; I have work to do."
"Brittany can come, too."
"We'll be right there."
Just then, an ominous figure fills the room. "Hey guys, can I borrow your computer?" asks KankaNation Hall of Famer Darrell Campbell.
"Do you have to talk like that?" Andy reflexively answers.
Realizing the possible trouble, Kanka quickly changes the subject. "Hey Darrell, how would you like to be Securitah for the party?"
"Dude, securitah? Sweeeet." Darrell rips a sleeve off his yellow shirt and places it on his head, then takes post at the door.
Just then, a train whistle is heard. Everyone rushes to the window to see what's going on. (Well, everyone except Scovil, of course. He still can't move.) A giant train had pulled into the courtyard between Fisher and Pangborn! Just then, Yonto and The Coach (another KankaNation Hall of Famer) walk out.
"Hey guys," Yonto starts, sheepishly. "Sorry I'm so late. The train broke down. I tried to get the Leprechaun Legion to pull it, but they were no help."
"I told you," Coach Yonto says.
"So, wait," asks Mike, "when did you learn how to control a train?"
"I can't," replies Yonto. "But Aflac can. He's an engineer, duh."
At that moment, Aflac steps out of the train carrying Dave's Katie Holmes poster. "Hey guys!"
As if on cue, Dave and Ellen come in the door. Ellen looks awkwardly at Dave. "Um, I need to use the bathroom."
"Um, me too," replies Dave, as they slowly move away from each other.
Right behind Dave and Ellen enter F-Bomb and Sarah Paulson. Kanka greets them at the door. "Hey, Sarah, good to see you here! Wasn't there a sax party going on right now?"
"Oh, yeah, um...." mumbled Sarah.
[At this point, F-Bomb goes off on a 45 minute rant. The only words I can print here are "man," "saxes," "mother," and meatloaf." I'm still not sure how meatloaf came up.]
Breaking up the rant, Dave walks up. "Hey Kanka."
"Hey Dave."
Seconds later, Ellen walks up. "Hey Kanka Love!"
Dave gives Ellen an odd look. "Wait, did you just ditch me for Kanka?"
Ellen replies, "Um, maybe. Wait, did you just ditch me for Kanka?"
"Um, yeah."
"Hey, I'm hungry from all that ranting," F-Bomb interjects. "Does anyone know where I can get a turkey hot dog?"
"Turkey hot dog? Do you know what you're getting yourself into?" Yep, it was Jon Byrer.
Meanwhile, at the door, Darrell is inspecting the jacket of a certain suspicious ne'er-do-well. "Is this gin or vodka in this flask?"
"It's gin," replies Klondike. Then, reaching into another pocket, he pulls out a second flask. "This is the vodka. I have rum and whisky, too, if that's what you're into."
"Oh James," sighs Brittany in mild disappointment.
"Hey guys, look who I found!" Klondike exclaims while walking through the door. "It's Scott and Kim!"
Conveniently, "Techno" comes on the stereo at that very moment. Calls rise for the piccs to shimmy. Reluctantly, those calls are answered.
Mike suddenly comes to a realization. "Hey Klondike, you've been here for 3 minutes, and you haven't called Amber yet!"
"You're right. Hold on a second." Klondike takes out his phone and punches in his #1 speed dial. (In case you were wondering, Brittany is #3 behind a killer cigar shop in downtown Aurora.)
"Hey Amber."
"..."
"We're having a party, and you're not here."
"..."
"Well, gotta go!"
"Look, Klondike, I'm really sick of the whole '...' joke. It's old. I do talk! Oh wait, I shouldn't have yelled. I'm sorry. I need to get back to living in LA and being on TV. I'm sorry."
Just then, F-Bomb comes tearing by Klondike. "You guys. Seriously. You guys. Cronk's sister and Pete's sister are making out right now in the other room!" Kanka and F-Bomb rush into the other room, while a spattering of the other guys slowly follow. The group enters the room to find that, in fact, Cronk and Pete, and not their sisters, are the ones that are making out. Lisa, Cronk's sister, and Pete's sister stand in the corner, each wearing the Cronk Face. Kanka turns to leave, only to be greeted by F-Bomb giving him "the goat."
A car pulls up outside the window of this side room. Inside the car are Emily and four random blonde women. "Pete! Pete's sister!" Emily yells. "Hurry up, we have to get back to the Amazing Race."
"Wait," Pete says. "Are we actually related?"
Emily looks at each of the girls in the car, then to Pete and his sister. "I have no idea."
As Pete and his sister crawl out the window, everyone heads back to the main party room. In the hallway, they're greeted by Marcus Barlow and Gary Godsey. Marcus, of course, is flanked by a group of hot Corby's girls.
"Hey Marcus," says Gary, "this isn't the Backer."
"I told you, I have to hit this party. That's how I roll."
Upon entering, Gary sees Jessi and Ellen (but not Ellen's butt). Realizing that this place must be cool after all, he grabs a beer and finds a seat in the corner where he can just be Gary Godsey.
While Kanka and F-Bomb were in the other room, Kanka's Lorain friends my buddy Matt, Fired Up Friend Todd, and Infamous Cousin joined the party. Just wanted to point that out.
The next person to enter is Dave's brother Michael. Kanka spots him and says, "Hey, Mike, great Jeff Samardzija costume - love the hair!"
"Uhh... that's not a costume...."
"I can take care of the hair," said Nick Schumacher, entering in full fencing gear.
"Uh, no, I'm good," replied Michael.
Kanka compliments Nick on his costume. "Oh, yeah, costume, right...."
Changing the subject, Michael mentions the guy he saw lying on the ground on his way in. "He was wearing a Packers #4 jersey, and he was really beat up."
"Wow, I knew Brett Farve was having a rough year, but..." said Kanka, trying to make a joke. "Wait a minute, that's the Catholic Packer Fan! I warned him to stay away from Mike; we all know how much Mike hates the Packers."
"Um, yeah," said Michael, "I also saw someone in a #22 women's basketball jersey."
"Alicia?!" Kanka excitedly exclaims.
"No, it was a dude."
"Oh. Hey, that must be The Backer!"
"Wait, wasn't Pat Quill coming to this?" F-Bomb asks Dave.
"Nah. He's either hanging out with random hot girls or designing state quarters."
Just then, Andy's voice comes over the stereo system. "It's karaoke time!"
A voice comes from the crowd. "ND band play 'Fins!'"
"Chad!" exclaims Ellen, running over to give him a huge hug. "Wait a minute, I have something to do."
As Enrique Iglasias's "Escape" blares through the speakers, Ellen and Kanka put on the most spectacular singing and dancing exhibition EVER.
As "Escape" ends, Dave comes up to the microphone. "It's our turn now." Dave and Kanka begin to reprise their performance of "Gin & Juice" from the FSU trip.
After about the seventh "BIATCH," a cool figure slinks into the room. The music gives the traditional "record player screeches to a halt" sound, which is odd, considering the song was on a CD. "Now wait just a minizzle," says Snoop Dogg. "Let me show you how it's done." Pulling out a microphone he just happened to keep in his jacket pocket, Snoop starts laying down the lyrics to his early hit.
Just as the song ends, Fr. John I. Jenkins, CSC walks into the room. "I am releasing the following statement. The University has determined that Kanka will not be retained as writer of this blog. The success of this blog consists of three things: Writing with integrity, giving the readers superb information, and excelling at humor. Meeting all of these goals is a tremendous challenge. But I believe we have found a person in Bill Simmons who can lead us to such multifaceted success."

That's my story the end.

F-Bomb's Words of Wisdom

Television

Well TV has certainly disappointed me once again. This time it comes in the form of “Nanny 911.” If you haven’t seen it, this is the show where Nannies help discipline children who were never parented correctly in the first place. So in essence we are sending the message to America that it is alright to not parent because someone somewhere will help you out. This is pure bullshit. Why should someone who wanted to be their kid’s friend instead of a parent get rewarded with help? Actually their reward is the fact that their kids run all over them. It just bugs the crap out of me that we put up with this in our society. Maybe I should somehow get in a position to declare martial law and then get a shotgun and kill these people.

Politics

It has become apparent that all politicians do is put up smoke screens. One of the biggest smoke screens like this was put up by the Republican Party who claimed to take the moral high road. Well this illusion has come crashing down in the fall of one of the conservative party’s figure heads, Tom Delay. Delay has been linked to money laundering of sorts to help other republicans, his wife, and himself. Now is this the worse crime? The straight answer is no! However it is reprehensible that when these crimes surfaced the “moral” party did not remove him from office, nor did he remove himself. You are all welcome to read about it yourself at the link below:
Story Link

Football

There have been a few surprises this year in the NFL. Patriots are up and down like a yo-yo, Charles Rodgers didn’t break his collar bone but he did get suspended for four games for violating the NFL substance abuse policy, and the Bengals are 4-0. Now am I happy that the Bengals don’t suck? Yes, very much so. But I cannot put up with this crap that the Bengals are that good. Look who their schedule has been: Cleveland, Minnesota, Chicago, and Houston. Well Cleveland sucks, no offense Kanka, Minnesota has underachieved all year so far, for Chicago see Cleveland, and Houston hasn’t played that well. Really my anger comes from the fact that ESPN has the Bengals ranked at number 3. Do you think that beating Houston 16-10 really warrant this ranking? No, hell the Steelers beat Houston 27-7 and they are ranked sixth and the Bengals only scrapped together a 16-10 victory. So let’s not suck off the Bengals just yet, wait till they beat someone good like the Steelers, Jaguars, or Indianapolis.


That’s all I got.

Later Bitches!

Alumni UpdateA look at former Notre Dame players now in the NFL

Major credit for this goes to NFLPlayers.com, the official site of the NFL Player's Association. There, you can view stats, bios, interviews, video clips, and even email the players. Speaking of interviews, here are some of the highlights:

• John Carney's favorite movie is Valley Girl.


• Marc Edwards was the lead in his high school musical.


• Paul Grasmanis was a honors student at ND and listens to Run DMC before games.


• Growing up, Julius Jones admired Bo Jackson.


• Rick Mirer enjoys spending time on the Internet and hopes to learn how to surf well.


• Mike Rosenthal would title his autobiography The Biggest Jewish Dude You've Ever Seen.


• Allen Rossum's dream is to win the NBA dunk contest.

Arnaz Battle: In his third year with the 49ers, Battle has been promoted to San Francisco's #1 receiver. Battle has caught 15 passes for 2 TDs, run the ball three times for -2 yards, and completed 1 of 2 passes before knee strain sidelined him last week.

Bertrand Berry: Arizona's Pro Bowl defensive end has recorded 14 tackles and 4.5 so far this season.

Jerome Bettis: Bettis hasn't played yet this season, but he should be healthy enough for short yardage situations next Sunday. Duce Staley is healthy as well, so that may limit the Bus' carries in his 12th and final(?) season.

Jordan Black: Black is now a full-time starter at tackle in his third season with Kansas City.

Rocky Boiman: After seeing some starts at linebacker for the Titans in 2004 due to injuries, Boiman has settled back into his reserve role this season. In four games, he has 8 total tackles.

Tim Brown: Recently retired after a 16-year NFL career, Brown is now focusing on his position as a special assistant at Notre Dame and making a name for himself in NASCAR.

John Carney: Now in his 16th season, Carney has already made 9 of 11 field goals for the Saints. That of course includes the emotional week 1 gamewinner.

Deke Cooper: Cooper is now in his third season in the NFL. An injury has made him a starting safety for the Jaguars. In three games, he has 14 tackles, an interception, and a fumble recovery.

Brennan Curtin: Curtin would be going into his third season with the Packers, had he not been released in August.

Glenn Earl: A sometimes-starter for Houston in 2004, Earl has had his playing time greatly reduced in 2005. In only two games, Glenn Earl has recorded only one tackle.

Marc Edwards: In his 8th season in the league, Edwards was picked up by the Bears to be their starting fullback. Edwards has yet to carry the ball, but he does have 4 receptions for 14 yards.

Jeff Faine: Cleveland's first round draft pick in 2003 is now in his third season with the team. Despite criticism from his former offensive line coach, he has started every game he's been healthy for. Faine added a reception for -1 yard on a ball that bounced of a ref's head. (Technically an illegal touch, bu the penalty was declined.)

Mike Gandy: After being released by the Bears, Gandy signed with Buffalo, where he is now a starting lineman for offensive coordinator Tom Clements. Gandy is in his fifth season in the league.

David Givens: In his fourth season with the Patriots, Givens is becoming more and more of a go-to guy (in addition to being a clutch playoff performer). In four games, including three starts, he has caught 22 balls for 283 yards.

Joey Goodspeed: A year after he started at fullback in front of Marshall Faulk, Goodspeed was cut by St. Louis on the final roster cutdown day.

Paul Grasmanis: Grasmanis, now in his 10th year in the league, has suffered an Achilles' tear in each of his last three years with the Eagles. Grasmanis had one tackle in two games before going down last weekend.

Deveron Harper: Harper apparently last played for the Saints in 2004.

Craig Hentrich: Hentrich is in his 11th season, now with the Titans. He's averaging 43.3 yards per punt this year. Notre Dame's last full-time kicker/punter before Nick Setta, Hentrich has hit 11 for 18 field goals in his NFL career.

Grant Irons: Irons went into his fourth season as a starting outside linebacker in Oakland's 3-4. He had one tackle in that game. He hasn't started since, and he also hasn't recorded a tackle since that first game.

Jim Jones: Jones has spent his entire five year career on practice squads or in NFL Europe. This year, he's in his second year on the Steelers' practice squad.

Julius Jones: Julius burst onto the scene in 2004, picking up 819 rushing yards in eight games. In four starts this season, he has picked up 335 rushing yards and 82 receiving yards. At his current pace, he will gain 1340 yards on the ground this season.

Lance Legree: Legree is in his fifth season in the NFL, now with the Jets after four years with the Giants. In four games as a reserve defensive end, he has 6 tackles.

Sean Mahan: In his third season with Tampa Bay, Mahan has become a starting guard for the Buccaneers.

Rick Mirer: Mirer spent the 2004 season, his ninth in the league, on Detroit's practice squad. He was last seen hanging out at Corby's with his parents and a lady friend.

John Owens: In what would have been his fourth year in the league, Owens was traded from Miami to the Bears, never to be seen again. Mike, and leads?

Luke Petitgout: Ellen loves him. According to Klondike, "He really likes football for some reason." Luke is a starting tackle now in his sixth year with the Giants.

Mike Rosenthal: Also in his sixth year in the league, Rosenthal is a starting tackle for the Vikings.

Allen Rossum: Rossum is in his eighth season in the league, and his fourth with the Falcons. Listed at cornerback, his is primarily a return specialist. This year, Rossum has returned 5 punts for 14 yards, 3 kickoffs for 89 yards, and made two tackles.

Gerome Sapp: Sapp is now in his third season in the NFL. A reserve DB for the Colts, he has recorded 8 tackles in four games.

Hunter Smith: "Hunter the Punter" is in his 7th season as Indianapolis' punter. This season, he has averaged 43.6 yards on 19 punts.

Bobby Taylor: Taylor was released after spending the 2004 season, his 9th in the NFL, with the Seahawks. He reportedly has worked out for the Patriots at some point this season.

Justin Tuck: Quite possibly Michael Strahan's heir apparent, Tuck has made 10 tackles in his first four games as a Giant.

Kurt Vollers: After three seasons as a backup lineman for Dallas, Vollers was released on roster cutdown day September 3. Coach Bill Parcells said of Vollers, "I didn't think I wanted Vollers as a backup anymore. I think he served his time doing that."

Courtney Watson: Watson is now in his second season as the starting middle linebacker for the Saints. In four games, he has made 12 tackles and one sack.

Anthony Weaver: When not enjoying himself at the Class of 2003 senior formal, Weaver has spent the last three seasons as Baltimore's starting defensive end. Mistah Weavah made 11 tackles this season before dislocating a toe in last week's game. He's expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

Shawn Wooden: Wooden last played for the Dolphins in 2003, his 9th year in the league.

Renaldo Wynn: A starting defensive end for the Redskins this year, Wynn has made four tackles in three games thus far this year. 2005 is his 9th year in the league.

Bryant Young: Now in his 12th season in the NFL, Bryant has recorded 14 tackles and 6 sacks in four starts this year. Bryant has started and played for San Francisco his entire career. He has said he feels he owes a great deal of loyalty to this historic franchise.

Here's a breakdown by team:

New York Giants 3 (Legree, Petitgout, Tuck)
Indianapolis 2 (Sapp, Smith)
New Orleans 2 (Carney, Watson)
Pittsburgh 2 (Bettis, Jim Jones)
San Francisco 2 (Battle, Young)
Tennessee 2 (Boiman, Hentrich)
Arizona 1 (Berry)
Atlanta 1 (Rossum)
Baltimore 1 (Weaver)
Buffalo 1 (Gandy)
Chicago 1 (Edwards)
Cleveland 1 (Faine)
Dallas 1 (Julius Jones)
Houston 1 (Earl)
Jacksonville 1 (Cooper)
Kansas City 1 (Black)
Minnesota 1 (Rosenthal)
New England 1 (Givens)
Oakland 1 (Irons)
Philadelphia 1 (Grasmanis)
Tampa Bay 1 (Mahan)
Washington 1 (Wynn)

A Look at the FutureWho will the Cleveland Indians have back in 2006?

Pitchers

Rafael Betancourt: A solid reliever. Tried briefly at closer last year when Bob Wickman was injured. His 2.79 ERA was one of the reasons why this year's bullpen sparkled.

Andrew Brown: The 24-year old local product (Chardon, OH) was the throw-in in the Milton Bradley deal. The reliever did not see any Major League action after a solid season at AAA. He has a good shot at being a part of the future of this team.

Fernando Cabrera: Definitely a part of the future of this club, especially if there's a massive purge of the bullpen. He got a bunch of work in September, and sparkled with a 1.47 ERA.

Fausto Carmona: Didn't see any Major League action, despite a September call up. A top prospect at age 21, he may be a year or two away, but he should be a part of the future.

Jason Davis: Eric Wedge is in love with his velocity, but Davis' control leaves something to be desired. Davis very early lost his role in the rotation, and ended the season with an ERA just under five. Many self-appointed experts have said that he shouldn't have a future with this team. But, they're not the ones who make the decisions.

Scott Elarton: He pitched admirably for a number 5 starter, and that will probably get him a decent salary on the free agent market. Elarton has said he wants to come back to Cleveland, but his return may hinge on the resigning of Kevin Millwood. If the Indians can free up money for Millwood, Elarton may be let go in favor of Davis or Carmona.

Jeremy Guthrie: Once the top pitching prospect in the organization, Guthrie simply fell apart after his first promotion from AA to AAA a few years ago. How patient will the organization be with Guthrie?

Bob Howry: Howry is a free agent after this season. His re-signing is considered a top priority after a year in which he made the eigth inning a foregone conclusion. If Bob Wickman retires or can't be resigned, Howry will likely be Cleveland's number one choice for closer in 2006.

Cliff Lee: Bartolo who? The guy who was supposedly the second best piece of the Bartolo Colon trade put up Colon-esque numbers this year. An ERA of 3.79 and 18 wins to only 5 losses made the 27-year-old a dark horse for the Cy Young this year. Clifton Phifer Lee will be a staple of the rotation for years to come.

Kevin Millwood: Millwood is the key figure in Cleveland's offseason dealings. A question mark coming into the season due to his health, Millwood won the ERA title this year, beating Johann Santana by 0.01. Going into 2006, he and AJ Burnett are expected to be the top two starting pitchers on the free agent market. (Read: There is a 97% chance that Millwood and Burnett will be wearing pinstripes next season.) As stated above, it will likely be Elarton or Millwood back next year, but not most. Millwood already made $7 million this year, so his return isn't very likely.

Arthur Rhodes: Rhodes was acquired straight up for Matt Lawton. At the beginning of the season, as the top of the lineup struggled, everyone said that giving up Lawton was a bad idea. However, as the lineup gelled in its current state, and as Rhodes sparkled, it began to look like the Indians got the better of the deal. A lefty specialist, Rhodes actually did better against righties in opponents' batting average (.155 by righties vs. .286 by lefties). However, remember that LOOGIES (Lefty One-Out GuyS) often come in to turn switch hitters around to the right side. Rhodes did have to leave the team for at least a month due to an undisclosed family emergency. His contract has him around through 2006, so hopefully everything at home will be resolved for him.

David Riske: Riske is eligible for salary arbitration in 2006. If he files, there's a good chance Mark Shapiro will simply let him walk. Riske did have a 3.10 ERA in 2005, but he also had a bad habit of turning six run leads into save situations very quickly via the home run.

C.C. Sabathia: Already the cornerstone of this rotation, Sabathia is locked down for the next few years. Sabathia's year got off to a rocky start, and his emotions got the best of him. However, once it was discovered that he was tipping his pitches, and once he got his emotions in check, he was a new man. Sabathia ended the season 15-10 with an ERA of 4.03. His performance over his last 10 starts - 8-1, 1.79 ERA - is great momentum towards the 2006 season.

Scott Sauerbeck: Sauerbeck is a potential free agent. A bit inconsistent after a year out of baseball, he was able to log 58 games this season. He has hinted at a desire for more playing time, and with the popularity of left relievers, he could be fairly popular on the free agent market. This would leave Rhodes as the lone left-hander out of the bullpen.

Jake Westbrook: Westbrook is already locked up for next season. Like his sinker, his record was up and down this year. After starting the season 0-5 and 2-7, he finished with a record of 15-15. If he can keep the ball on the ground, he's a solid starter on any team.

Bob Wickman: I should have bought stock in antacid. Wickman had a career year - 2.47 ERA and 45 saves - but he always managed to make it interesting. But, his contract is up, and his return is in question. Wickman will be 37 next year, and he has considered retired. If he does come back, will his numbers cause him to ask for too much? All these questions will be answered in the months to come.

Catchers

Josh Bard: Bard has the talent to perhaps start on a bad team. However, he has remained unselfish, sacrificing at bats (only 83 this year) to be Vic Martinez' backup. He handles a pitching staff very well, and that may help him stick around.

Ryan Garko: A catcher by trade, the 24-year old is still a future prospect. Garko struck out in his only Major League at bat to date. Garko is a righty, and Cleveland has been longing for power from that side of the plate for the last few years. Garko has taken ground balls from first base, so a position change may be his future.

Victor Martinez: A definite cornerstone of this franchise, Martinez signed through the 2009 season, with an option for 2010. After a slow start (nothing out of the ordinary for him), Martinez went on a tear. When the dust settled, he was again one of the best hitting catchers in the game, with a .305 average, 20 HR, and 80 RBI.

Infielders

Ronnie Belliard: Another key player in the offseason free agent market. The club has an option on Belliard for 2006, and they should definitely take it. Belliard has become the Omar Vizquel of this year's team. Sure, his defense is spectacular, and he's become one of the best second basemen when it comes to turning the double play. But, he has also become an emotional leader of the team. He energizes the crowd with his hustle, and he keeps his teammates loose on the field. Omar always took it upon himself to keep Ronnie loose, and now Ronnie takes it upon himself to keep everyone else relaxed. For instance, when Bob Wickman starts putting guys on base, Belliard starts seranading Wickman in Spanish to get him to laugh. For many reasons, Belliard needs to be back on this team.

Aaron Boone: The Indians have already picked up Boone's option for 2006. Granted, his bat never got going after a year off, but his glove was clutch more often than not.

Ben Broussard: Broussard has a long swing, and this has caused him to be very streaky. His glove is OK, but he's prone to trouble on short hops. He may be expendable, but then who takes over at first? Hafner didn't play any games at first this season thanks to an injury during interleague play. Is Garko ready yet? Or will Broussard survive another year with the team?

Travis Hafner: Signed to a long term deal, Pronk is another cornerstone of the team. A darkhorse MVP candidate, the explosive and amicable Hanfer ended the season with a .305 average, 33 HR, and 108 RBI. The lefty farm boy with power to left center has at times reminded Cleveland fans of Jim Thome in his prime.

Jose Hernandez: Hernandez is a potential free agent. The versatile fielder ended up with 234 at bats in 84 games against righties, mostly filling in for Broussard at first. Utility infielders are often underappreciated as a commodity, so Hernadez may not be back next season.

Jhonny Peralta: It was a breakout season for young Jhonny. Peralta started the season hitting ninth in the order, and it wasn't sure if he was ready to be an everyday shortstop. By the end of the year, he was hitting .292 with 24 HR out of the three hole. The 24 homers were a new club record by a shortstop. He's definitely another piece of the puzzle to build around.

Ramon Vazquez: Vazquez will turn 30 next season. He was acquired from the Red Sox for Alex Cora. Cora was originally signed as insurance for Peralta. Once Peralta began to excel, the Vazquez-Cora trade was made to save $1.5 million. His contract isn't up, but he's by no means a member of the future of this club.

Outfielders

Casey Blake: A truly unselfish player, Blake was moved from 3B to 1B to 2B to LF to RF during the offseason. A natural athlete, he actually turned in a good performance in right this season, and he definitely had the arm for it. However, despite 23 HR, he hit only .241. Blake is already signed for 2006, but can he hit enough to be a starting corner outfielder on a pennant contender? Along with Broussard, don't be surprise if Blake is replaced by a free agent this winter.

Coco Crisp: Crisp has developed into a solid four tool player. He can hit (.300 average), hit for power when he puts a nice quick swing on the ball (16 HR, 69 RBI), field (Web Gem anyone), and run (15 SB, 86 R). The switch hitter is a solid #2 hitter. Traditionally, LF is a power position, but you can afford to put a top-of-the-lineup guy there when you're getting pop out of your shortstop. Crisp, who may be arbitration eligible, may also be in line for a long-term deal.

Jason Dubois: When the Indians acquired Dubois for Jody Gerut, it raised some eyebrows. Sure, Gerut was becoming a malcontent, and Dubois showed signs of power from the right side. But, the Indians need that power right now, and Dubois is still a few years off. Franklin Gutierrez is Cleveland's future in right field. So, unless Dubois has a great spring next season, he'll be at most a stopgap, and at least a pinch hitter.

Juan Gonzalez: It seemed like a good idea at the time: pay $600,000 to take a risk on a 400 home run guy. That $600k got the Indians one at bat before Juan Gone re-injured himself. His contract may have an option for 2006, but he likely won't be back.

Franklin Gutierrez: The 22-year old outfielder is a Baseball America Top 100 prospect. The five tool Gutierrez is a strong part of the Tribe's future, but he may still be a year or two off. He did get valuable Major League experience, pinch running in 7 games, and also picking up his first hit in The Show.

Jeff Liefer: A "what the heck" acquisition in the offseason for the AAA team, Liefer also saw 56 at bats with the parent club. His contract is up after this season; I doubt that he did enough in 2005 to warrant a re-signing.

Ryan Ludwick: When Juan Gonzalez became healthy, Grady Sizemore was playing too well to be sent down. So, Ryan Ludwick became expendable. He took the promotion with grace, but struggled in AAA. Former Indians GM John Hart seemed to have an affinity for mediocre pitchers when a great pitcher was needed; current GM Mark Shapiro seems to have an affinity for mediocre right-handed right fielders with potential for power.

Grady Sizemore: The women of Cleveland crush him; the men of Cleveland man-crush him. After a great spring, Sizemore didn't even break camp with the team. However, after a few months in Buffalo, he was called to The Show. Cleveland started the season struggling to find a leadoff hitter. Once Sizemore moved to that spot, and Crisp to the two hole, the lineup congealed. The very talented Sizemore would have run away with the Rookie of the Year had he qualified (he was just over the limit of 50 days on the Major League roster coming into this year). Sizemore finished the year with a .289 average, 22 homers, 111 runs, and countless jaw-dropping catches from center field. It's been said many times, but it bears repeating: Grady Sizemore knows only one speed: all out, and a blue-collar town can truly appreciate that. Sizemore would be the cornerstone of any franchise on the rise.

Later this week, look forward (possibly) to a guest column or two, and a look at ND players currently in the NFL. Until then, be sure to check out ND blog Bare Down, especially the two looks at potential record breaking performances by Irish players this season.

ND 49, Purdue 28

Quarterback: Coming into the 2003 season, Terry Hanratty had his name littered throughout the Notre Dame's passing records. I don't know if Brady Quinn has anything personal against Hanratty, but the current ND quarterback sure is doing his best to remove the former Irish star from the record books. Before Quinn, Hanratty's 366 yards vs. Purdue in 1967 stood second all time. Now, Quinn has passed the 400 yard mark three times. His latest effort, 440 yards to go with 3 TDs and 1 INT, is the most passing yards by an Irish QB in a win. On top of that, Quinn completed an impressive 80.6% of his passes. The effort earned him Sporting News National Player of the Week honors.
David Wolke, who entered a third of the way into the last quarter, completed his first career pass to receiver Rob Woods.

Running Back: Darius Walker was as close to an off day as he's been all season. On 23 carries, Walker was still able to pound out 80 yards and one touchdown. Meanwhile, Travis Thomas is turning the backup running back role into the easiest job in all of college football: show up for one drive, score a TD, and go sit back down. After Thomas, Jeff Jenkins added 30 yards on 6 carries.

Fullback: Rason Powers-Neal rushed for a tough 10 yards on 8 carries. But, he did hit the paydirt of the endzone twice, including once on fourth and goal from the one.

Receiver:

Courtesy AP/Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
Maurice Stovall had another big day as he grows into the receiver he was hyped to be. Stovall did have one key drop, but he ended with 8 catches for 134. Of course, guess who had an even bigger game. That's right, it was Jeff "The Shark" Samardzija, whose catch above made an (almost) entirely sober me fall off my bar stool in amazement. Last week, former ND coordinator Kent Baer said, effectively, "They said we couldn't recruit, but Notre Dame has some pretty good players over there." Yes, they do. But, look at Samardzija's case. During his freshman year, Samardzija only played in garbage time, but during that time he started to develop into a go-to receiver for Brady Quinn. So, come his sophomore year, he barely played at all. Now, under Charlie Weis, Samardzija is thriving. Anyone want to give me advice on how to dress as "The Shark" for Halloween?
Matt Shelton quitely added 7 catches for 68 yards. Shelton is being used primarily on quick slants, on the hope he will one day break one for a big gain. As mentioned above, Rob Woods caught a pass from David Wolke. The senior walk-on appeared in eight games on special teams last year, but this reception was the first of his career.

Tight End: It was a quiet day for the tight end position. But, once again, you have to go with what works. Stovall and Samardzija were open downfield all day, so there was little need to dump off to Anthony Fasano or John Carlson. As it is, Fasano ended with 2 catches for 30 yards, and Carlson with 1 for 22 yards.

O-Line: If Notre Dame handed out pride stickers, John Sullivan, Dan Stevenson, and Mark LeVoir would each have one coming their way for the fourth down play from Purdue's one yard line. On that play, the right side of the line got a fantastic push, and RPN simply slid down the line into the end zone. Or, perhaps you can give the entire line pride stickers on a day when the offense ended up with 621 total yards and no sacks.
Or, you can say "screw the pride stickers," and stay with the philosophy of team effort.

D-Line: It was another quite day for the defensive line. No one on either side had a sack, and in fact cornerback Leo Ferrine was the only Irish player to make a stop in the backfield. On the line, Victor Abiamiri and Trevor Laws each had two tackles.

Linebacker: By normal standards, this was a quiet day for the Irish linebackers as well. Corey Mays and Brandon Hoyte tied for third on the team with 5 tackles a piece. Hoyte did force a key fumble on the goal line, simply by having his helmet in the right place at the right time. The Purdue running back reached back over his head to get the ball over the goal line, and the collision with Hoyte's dome jarred the ball loose. Also, Hoyte added a pass breakup, another sign that he has developed into a complete player.

Safety: Pop quiz: which safety turned in the best performance in this game? No peeking! If you answered David Bruton, you either cheated, or you live down the hall from him. Bruton had 5 tackles and a pass breakup. Tom Zbikowski added 4 tackles, and Chinedum Ndukwe 2.

Cornerback:

Courtesy AP/und.com
For a man who's been on his share of posters, Mike Richardson finally got to be the posterizer instead of the posterized. A pessimist could say that Richardson was simply channeling Clifford Jefferson from the Bob Davie "Beat Purdue Bowl" from three years ago. An optimist would say that Richardson's team-leading 9 tackles, two pass breakups, goal line fumble recovery, and the interception pictured above are a sign of Richardson's improvement as a cornerback. (I'll leave any comments on Richardson's eyes being closed to the reader.) Ambrose Wooden once again ended near the top of list with 7 tackles; I've yet to determine whether or not that's a good thing. In his first career start, nickelback Leo Ferrine added four tackles, including one for a loss.

Other defensive players: As a lifelong bench player in little league, I could always appreciate getting my name in the newspaper. For that reason, here's a list of the many backup players who had at least one tackle in this game (besides those listed above): Terrail Lambert (2), Chase Anastasio (2), Jake Carney, Casey Cullen, Justin Hoskins, Marcus Freeman, Pat Kuntz, Paul Duncan, Steve Quinn, LaBrose Hedgemon, James Bonelli, and Nick Borseti.

Kicker: DJ Fitzpatrick didn't attempt a field goal in this game, but he was 7 for 7 on extra points.

Punter: Once again, it wasn't a very busy day for Fitzpatrick and the punt team. DJ had two punts, one for 32 yards and one for 41.

Kick Returner: After a 31 yard run back against Washington, David Grimes was given the primary return role. In his debut, Grimes had returns of 22 and 40 yards.

Punt Returner: Tom Zbikowski's lone return went for 0 yards.

Special Teams: As usual, ND's punt coverage team was solid. On Fitzpatrick's two punts, Purdue returner Lance Melvin had returns of 13 and 5 yards. On kickoffs, Purdue gained 126 yards on 5 returns. The long was a return of 67 yards by playmaker Dorien Bryant.

ND Football 2005Issue 5: Purdue

Purdue Rush Offense vs. ND Rush Defense

This isn't the Drew Brees/Kyle Orton "basketball on grass." (Or even Portland Trail Blazers basketball on grass, for that matter.) This Purdue team is getting it done on the ground - to the tune of 210 yards per game. The Boilermakers are lead by the three-headed attack of running backs Jerod Void, Kory Sheets, and Brandon Jones. Void is the best player in the rotation. On 36 carries, he has 240 yards in the positive direction, 6 in the negative, and 5 TDs. Not to far behind is Sheets, who on 32 carries is averaging 57.3 yards per game. With an 88-yard TD run and 23 yards in the negative direction, something tells me that Sheets is the flashy complement to Void's downhill running style. In addition to the three halfbacks, Purdue also features a QB that knows how to run. Brandon Kirsch has run 17 times for 108 yards in three games, not counting a scant two sacks. Look out for playmaker Dorien Bryant as well. The wide receiver has run 7 times for 49 yards in three games.
As I've said many times, Notre Dame can handle the run. Last year, though, they did have problems with mobile quarterbacks. However, that hasn't been the case yet this year. Not counting sacks, the Irish held Tyler Palko to 30 yards on 7 carries and Isaiah Stanback to 24 yards on 4 carries. Big leads do do wonders for your run defense, of course. Notre Dame's front seven will give up some rushing yards in this game. But, as long as the tackles are being made by Corey Mays and Brandon Hoyte, and not by safeties Tom Zbikowski and Chinedum Ndukwe, the defense should be able to keep Purdue's rushers at bay.

ND Rush Offense vs. Purdue Rush Defense

It's gotten to a point where a 100-yard rushing day by Darius Walker is basically the norm. Walker set a school record against Washington with his fourth straight 100 yard game. Walker has averaged 112 yards on 23 carries per game this season. After walker, ND's main running threat is Rashon Powers-Neal. In the three games he has been used, RPN has averaged 8 carries and 30 yards. He has also reached the end zone 4 times, two more than Walker. Quarterback Brady Quinn has been surprisingly mobile this year. Again not counting sacks, BQ has run 16 times for 100 yards.
Purdue has given up 337 yards on the ground this year. Hoo hoo. It's hard to get a good read on the Boilermaker run defense, however, as they gave up 9 yards to Arizona, then 301 to Minnesota. (Stats for Akron were not available, but my awesome powers of subtraction tell me that the Zips were only able to put up 27 yards against Purdue.) Darius Walker may not be Laurence Maroney, but the Irish offensive line is definitely better than a Pac-10 doormat's. Purdue has had 15 players combine for 23 stops in the backfield, which tells me their defense is very active. (Then again, what do I know?) Linebacker George Hall leads the team in tackles with 22, while defensive end Ray Edwards leads Purdue with 4.5 tackles for a loss. (Hopefully Edwards' uniform number 10 won't confuse Coach Charlie Weis too much.) Edwards, Stanford Keglar, and Bobby Iwuchukwu are said to make a formidable linebacking corps.

Purdue Pass Offense vs. ND Pass Defense

New starter Brandon Kirsch isn't a Heisman candidate (now or before the season), but he's been doing just enough to complement the Purdue run game. Kirsch is averaging 213 yards passing per game, despite completing only 52% of his throws. He also has 4 touchdowns to 3 interceptions. As you can probably tell with a guy who completes only half of his passes, Purdue likes to throw the ball downfield. Three receivers have caught passes of 40 yards or longer, while two more have receptions of 30 yards or longer. As mentioned above, Dorien Bryant is the playmaker at the receiver position. Bryant has 18 receptions, twice as many as anyone else on the squad. He also has 247 yards, for an average of 82.3 yards per game. After Bryant, Kirch's main targets are his tight ends and 6'9 receiver Kyle Ingraham. Starting tight end Charles Davis is second on the team with 9 catches for 130 yards. He also has one touchdown catch. Ingraham has 8 catches for 133 yards, but surprisingly no touchdowns in the young season. Number two tight end Dustin Keller has only three catches, but two have been for touchdowns. So, look for the playaction in goal line sets. Also in goal line sets, look for Ingraham to (please) not be covered by a 5'8 defensive back. (Chinedum Ndukwe is the tallest starting DB at 6'2.)
Having played some good passing teams, and not having all the talent in the world at secondary, Notre Dame has survived with a "bend but don't break" philosophy (waa?) against the pass. Or should that be a "bend, but don't break often enough that the offense can't bail you out" philosophy? But, how much can you expect from a defense that doesn't have a good pass rusher on the defensive line and doesn't have a true free safety? Linebacker Brandon Hoyte leads the team in sacks with 4, while saftey Tom Zbikowski has two of Notre Dame's four interceptions. I'm no defensive coordinator, but I'm assuming the key to this game will be figuring out a way to shut down Dorien Bryant and pay attention to the tight ends without taking too many resources away from the run game. Of course, if it works, shutting down the run and forcing Kirsch and Bryant to beat them may be a decent strategy.

ND Pass Offense vs. Purdue Pass Defense

Brady Quinn has put up good numbers so far this year - 295 yards passing per game, 61.7% of his passes completed, 10 touchdowns, and only two interceptions. However, unlike the past two years, where Quinn has combined for almost 800 yards against Purdue, it may be better if BQ doesn't put up good numbers in this one. If Quinn doesn't put up big numbers, that normally means that ND has established the run well, and the Irish aren't playing from behind. If and when Quinn does go to the air, he'll have a few pretty good options. Jeff Samardzija has been Quinn's go-to guy this year. Samardzija has 21 catches, including 6 touchdowns, and is averaging 86.5 yards receiving per contest. Jeff has found the endzone in each game so far this season. Right on Samardzija's heels is tight end Anthony Fasano. Fasano is tied with Samadzija for the team lead in catches (21), and has 219 yards receiving this year. Fasano has been held without a touchdown this year, though. Out of the backfield, Darius Walker is averaging four catches per game. Receiver Mo Stovall is having the best season of his criticized career, with 15 catches, 254 yards, and a touchdown.
Purdue is giving up 305 yards passing per game, a number that includes 358 yards from Akron. A quick look at Tuesday's press conference reveals that that number is partially due to communication problems. I'll let you make of that what you want, but I'm pretty sure Coach Weis will be able to find something interesting in the game films. Purdue has gotten 9 sacks from nine different players. Defensive end Anthony Spencer leads the team with two. (Before your awesome powers of addition go off, may I point out that two players combined for a sack, and each were credited with half a sack.) Free safety Kyle Smith has two of Purdue's four interceptions. Purdue has only 10 pass breakups to Notre Dame's 22; unfortunately, I have no idea how to interpret that stat.

Special Teams

Purdue kicker Ben Jones has only attempted one field goal this year, but he made it from 47 yards. He is also 16 for 16 on extra points. For the Irish, DJ Fitzpatrick has made 6 of 7, which includes hitting one of two from 48 yards.
Sophomore punter Dave Brytus has a mediocre 37.5 yard average on 20 punts. He has put seven kicks inside the 20 and induced 12 fair catches, however. (Then again, short kicks will tend to induce fair catches, so maybe that's the plan.) On the other side, Fitzpatrick has punted 17 times for an average of 41.2 yards and a long of 60.
On kick returns, once again Dorien Bryant is the playmaker. Bryant has five returns for 93 yards, with an average of 18.6 and a long of 33. Carl Gioia and DJ Fitzpatrick have split kickoff duties this season. They're both averaging about 55 yards per kick, which starts their opponents on the 10 yard line. From there, Notre Dame's coverage teams are giving up 18 yards per return.
Justin Hoskins and Brandon Harris have been ND's primary kick returners this year. However, after a 31 yard return in the Washington game, David Grimes may see more time as a deep man on kicks. To this point, Hoskins has averaged 23 yards per return and Harris 18. Dave Brytus has averaged 60 yards per kickoff. That is an average start of the 5 yard line, but 9 of Brytus' 17 kickoffs have been touchbacks. The Boilermaker kick coverage team has been below average this year, surrendering 29 yards per return.
Reserve wide receiver Brian Hare is Purdue's primary punt returner. He hasn't done much, though. Hare has returned 6 punts for 19 yards, with a long of 6. Notre Dame's punt coverage team has been downright stifling, giving up a mere 4.7 yards per return.
Tom Zbikowsi has been the Irish punt returner this season. He has returned 6 kicks 95 yars, with a long of 25. Purdue's punt coverage team has been outstanding so far, giving up 5 yards on 4 returns.

Look for a big game from Samardzija, Walker, the O-Line, Ambrose Wooden, Corey Mays

ND 34, Purdue 30: Samardzija, Fasano, RPN, one by the defense, and two by DJ.

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Quick Hits

• You've probably seen this on ESPN already, but it was first pointed out to me on the message board by KankaNation Legal Correspondent Jon Byrer. It's the inspirational story behind ND's first play from scrimmage.


• In honor of Beat Purdue Week: Do a Google image search for "Beat Purdue" - you'll 'ppreciate the results.

ND 36, Washington 17

Quarterback: It's hard to find negatives when your quarterback completes 68% of his passes for 327 yards and no interceptions. That's exactly what Brady Quinn did on Saturday, as he picked apart the Husky secondary. Quinn also got the deep passing game on track, completing a 52-yard touchdown pass to a streaking Jeff Samardzija.

Running Back: Washington's front seven was able to stop Darius Walker in the backfield a few times, but in the end Walker was just too much. Notre Dame's starting halfback ended his day with 128 yards and a touchdown in just over three quarters of work. Walker's 128 yards were a personal best, and his fourth straight 100 yard game is a new school record. Walker was replaced by Travis Thomas. Those who remember Thomas' problems with fumblitis early last season were no doubt happy to see him almost singlehandedly march down the field for 52 yards and a touchdown. Thomas was sure to secure the football every step of the way. After Thomas' score, Jeff "Don't Call Me John" Jenkins picked up 4 yards on 3 carries.

Fullback: Rashon Powers-Neal returned to his familiar spot at starting fullback this week. Lined up at fullback and halfback, Powers-Neal rushed 9 times for 30 yards and also caught 4 passes for 28 yards.

Receiver:

Courtesy AP/John Froschauer

Three players on the Irish offense had "stat sheet stuffer" days. Quinn and Walker were the first two. Predictably, Jeff Samardzija was the third. Samardzija, highly praised but not highly used by Ty Willingham, picked up 164 yards in the air, including the aforementioned 52-yard TD bomb. Oh yeah, he also was credited with a breakup on a Washington Hail Mary pass. Maurice Stovall contributed 34 yards on 3 catches at the other receiver position.

Tight End: It was another day at the office for Anthony Fasano, as he picked up 66 yards on 6 catches. John Carlson added once catch for 15 yards.

O-Line: It wasn't a perfect day for the offensive line - Washington did make 8 stops in the backfield, and there was a short period of time when Darius Walker couldn't get anything going. But, you can't argue with the final results - 560 total yards of offense. The only sack of the day came when Jeff Samardzija couldn't find anyone open on a flanker reverse pass. Little is known about Bob Morton's ankle injury, but Charlie Weis said that Morton may have been available to return if the game had still been in doubt.

D-Line: It was another relatively quiet day for the Irish defensive line. Victor Abiamiri and Derek Landri had two of the team's three sacks.

Linebacker: Eight tackles, 3 for a loss, and one sack. Like Fasano's performance, it was just another day at the office for Brandon Hoyte. Corey Mays added a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Safety: You may or may not have noticed, but Chinedum Ndukwe had a big game on Saturday. The safety had seven tackles, including one in the backfield. Ndukwe also forced and recovered a fumble.

Cornerback: Ambrose Wooden led the team in tackles for the second time this year. I'm not sure that that's a good thing. I am sure, however, that his drive-killing end zone interception was one of the major turning points of the game.

Kicker: There was a fourth Notre Dame player with a stat sheet stuffer game, and it was kicker DJ Fitzpatrick. Despite a blocked extra point, Fitzpatrick still ended the day with 11 points. DJ made field goals from 25, 39, and 25 yards.

Punter: Being your team's kicker AND punter is easy when you only have to punt once per game. Still, Fitzpatrick's lone punt went only 33 yards.

Kick Returner: There was only one kick return by an Irish player in this game. David Grimes went 31 yards on that return.

Punt Returner: Tom Zbikowski had two punt returns in this game, one for 5 yards and one for 26.

Special Teams: Notre Dame's coverage teams were once again solid, giving up an average of 15 yards on 5 combined returns.

ND Football 2005Issue 4: Washington

Washington Rush Offense vs. ND Rush Defense

For a PAC-10 team, Washington does have a decent run game. Running back Louis Rankin gets the bulk of the carries, about 19 per game, and is averaging 88.3 yards on the ground. Washington's other main running threat is quarterback Isaiah Stanback, who tucks-and-runs six or seven times a game, to the tune of 23.3 yards per contest. The only other runner with a significant number of carries is fullback James Sims. Sims' 14 carries for 28 yards looks downright gaudy for a blocking back in Ty Willingham's system.
Notre Dame has given up an average of 126 rushing yards per game, while the Huskies have gained 129.7 per. So, look for 125-130 yards from Washington runners this Saturday, right? Not so fast my friend. As baseball statheads will tell you, three games is too small a sample set. The Irish gave up just over 100 yards each to Pitt and and Michigan, then over 160 to MSU. Washington gained only 68 yards on the ground against Cal, but came back with 192 against Idaho. Notre Dame's defense has been stout against the run over the past few years. Their strength is once again their linebackers. Even if one has to spy Isaiah Stanback, there are still two qualified backers left to go after the play. Brandon Hoyte is the team's leading tackler with 29 stops, including 8 tackles for a loss. He's joined by Corey Mays and Maurice Crum, who each have 17 tackles this season.

ND Rush Offense vs. Washington Rush Defense

Notre Dame's workhorse this season has been Darius Walker. Fullback/halfback Rashon Powers-Neal is the team's second-leading rusher, who gained 60 yards his first two games. Powers-Neal didn't get a single carry against MSU, but there was a reason for that. Coach Charlie Weis concluded that he would need two halfbacks more than two fullbacks, so he moved Asaph Schwapp to the starting fullback spot with the intent of keeping RPN rested and ready when Walker needed a breather. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. Wisely, Weis has not revealed his plans for RPN this weekend.
Washington limited Idaho to 4 rushing yards last Saturday, and their average yards against is still 167 per game. (Also, Idaho did get 56 positive rushing yards while losing 52 to sacks.) Of course, Air Force will always put up big yards on the ground, and Cal has been known as a good running team as of late. Washington can get in the backfield, as nine players have made stops for a loss. Their leading tackler is linebacker Evan Benjamin with 24 tackles.

Washington Pass Offense vs. ND Pass Defense

Isaiah Stanback took the starting quarterback job from Casey Paus, and Stanback runs what can only be described as a typical Ty Willingham offense. The quarterback averages 229 yards passing per game, and he has already hit 11 different receivers. Sonny Shackelford has been the primary target, with 12 catches for 199 yards thus far. Shackelford is joined at wide receiver by Anthony Russo and Craig Chambers, who have combined for 14 catches and 215 yards. Russo is the possesion receiver, with 9 catches for 86 yards, while Champers is the big play guy, with 5 catches for 129 yards and a TD. Washington's other target is 6-3, 280 lb. freshman Johnie Kirton, a tight end/H-back. Kirton has 8 receptions for 103 yards this season.
Notre Dame's pass defense did well in their first two games, aided by Dave Wannstedt's stubborn favorance of the run game and the Wolverine receivers' case of the dropsies. Things came back to bite them against MSU, as they surrendered 327 yards to Drew Stanton et al. ND has been criticized for its inexperience in the secondary and lack of a pass rush, both before and during the season. It will be interesting to see what defensive coordinator Rick Minter calls. If they stay in the base 4-3 against three receiver sets, will they spy the QB, and who will that spy be. I would assume that the Irish will try to stop the pass and force Washington to run. Then again, I'm just a guy sitting in front of his computer who's never played football, and Minter actually gets paid to think about these things.

ND Pass Offense vs. Washington Pass Defense

Overrated and overhyped? That's what some people, friend and foe, are calling Brady Quinn. Quinn has thrown for 854 yards, 9 TDs, and only 2 INTs. But, he's "only" 70 for 117, including 33 for 60 against MSU. Also, before the MSU game at least, Quinn was criticized for not throwing the deep ball. Of course, as a wise man once said, "you play to win the game," and if dump offs get the job done, why not stick to them? Quinn's leading receiver now is Anthony Fasano with 15 catches. Fasano, however, is questionable for Saturday with a shoulder injury. Also out is receiver Rhema McKnight, who at least has been upgraded to day-to-day. In their absence, Jeff Samardzija and Maurice Stovall will have to continue to step up. Samardzija has been Quinn's Mr. Touchdown - 5 of his 13 catches have been for six points. Stovall, meanwhile, is coming off a huge 8 catch, 176 yard performance. However, two receivers can't do the job alone. Darius Walker ties Samardzija with 13 catches on the year, and Quinn will hope that his running back will continue to be a reliable dump-off option. Also needing to step up are receivers Matt Shelton and David Grimes and tight end John Carlson.
Washington's pass defense has been decent, giving up 223 yards per game. Remember, though, that that average includes games against Air Force and Idaho. The man to look out for is defensive tackle Manase Hopoi. The 290 pound defensive tackle has four of his team's 10 sacks. Notre Dame's interior line will have to stop Hopoi on pass plays, or Brady Quinn will have to effectively roll away from the pressure up the middle. Of course, Hopoi's pass pressure will hopefully be a moot point if ND can establish the run.

Special Teams

Washington kicker Evan Knudson is 4 for 5 in field goals, with a long of 46 yards. His Irish counterpart, DJ Fitzpatrick, is 3 for 4 with a long of 48.
The Huskies are likely very happy to have such a good punter in Sean Douglas. Douglas has punted 15 times, with an average of 44.5 yards, a long of 58, and 5 kicks inside the 20. For the Irish, Fitzpatrick has 16 punts with an average of 41.8 yards and a long of 60.
Washington's kick returners, cornerbacks Roy Lewis and Matt Fountaine, each have an average of 21 yards per return. Lewis has the long return for the Huskies at 38 yards. ND kickoff specialist Carl Gioia is averaging 55.8 yards per kick, putting the ball at about the 10 yard line each time. From there, the Irish are giving up 18.5 yards per return.
Notre Dame's kick return duties are shared by Justin Hoskins and Brandon Harris. Hoskins is averaging 23 yards on 4 returns, while Harris is averaging 17.7 yards on 3 returns. Evan Knudson averages 64.3 yards per kickoff. That's an average starting position of the 0.7 yard lines, and in fact 6 of his 14 kicks have been touchbacks. From there, the Washington coverage teams surrender 22.6 yards per return.
Receiver Anthony Russo has been the primary punt returner for the Huskies, with 5 returns for 14 yards. Insert your own Willingham special teams joke here. Notre Dame is yielding a stifling 4.1 yards per punt return.
Safety Tom Zbikowski has been Notre Dame's punt returner this year. On 4 returns, he's averaged 16 yards, with a long of 23. Washington, meanwhile, is giving up a regular 8 yards per punt return.

Look for a big game from Walker, Samardzija, Zbikowski

ND 34, Washington 20: The backs get one on the ground and one in the air, plus receptions by Samadzija and Stovall, and two by DJ.

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