Willingham and the rest got themselves into trouble because even the games against the bums were up for debate.

I think a good litmus test for ND strength is the Navy game. Sure it is a tricky offense to defend unless you have two weeks of preparation. However, good teams bury them on talent alone. ND used to bury them.

I found it very troubling for their program when Urban Meyer would not take the job.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Drinkin before work again, Hawger?



The offense has not been an issue overall

Hopefully Kelly keeps them in the conversation every year (even a year like this when they're proved to be frauds, I think the media coverage helps the program) to at least make the job somewhat coveted again

How many turnovers does he have though? That can and will have a affect on the defense.

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2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

12 interceptions. A lot of them in one game though (ASU) Not good, but the defense has been atrocious.

Oh I agree, and he has several fumbles also.

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2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

They didn't slay the bums Saturday.

And running a play when all you need to do is kneel down, is way past country dumb.

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Did he ever say why he went for the 2-point conversion when it was 40-29?

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I forgot all about that brilliant move.

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In Kelly's first season I was disappointed with what an asshole he looked like on the sidelines. That doesn't make you a bad coach all the time, but he just struck me as a throbbing penis and I haven't liked him since. I'm a pretty big ND fan but they'll never be what they used to be, and if they fire Kelly I give them a 20% chance of getting a better coach

Would you mind pasting his head to the computer from the Blade movie?

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Hawaii (fuck) You

That frequent constipated look on his face -- tolerable if he would actually win a truly big game for once.

I think the challenge is finding a coach who's a great "fit" as opposed to technically a "better" coach. Kelly's strength has been bringing in better talent overall than his predecessors, and building better quality depth. This team is positioned well for 2015 on the depth chart. He also made a good move to bring in respected coach B. VanGorder as the D-C, but suspensions and injuries have ravaged the defense severely.

Kelly's failure to get his team jacked-up has cost him -- a loss to Tulsa bothers me more than close games with Navy teams that play out of their minds with a specialized offense.

As a former assistant here, Urban Meyer was keenly aware of the unique demands of the ND head coaching position. Kelly was willing to take on all of the extraneous crap.

George O'Leary likely would have been a decent fit (after Davie, before Willingham). But ND administrators killed the hire literally right when it happened (and shirts had been printed!). Had he gotten the job, a very different history may have unfolded in terms of avoiding some of the mediocrity and bad bowl losses.

Anyway, I believe ND fans are facing 2 obvious realities for the major sports: 1) BK will not win a National Championship, and 2) Mike Brey will not make a Final Four appearance. These despite the fact that both have garnered coaching trophies while here.

I thought that was photoshopped for a second.

_________________
Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

I don't know anybody that has any expectations for the basketball team. They'll be DePaul soon. I remember watching ND-DePaul games at the Horizon in the early 80's as a kid and wondering what the hell a Westinghouse was.

Basketball: Sports Illustrated has ND reaching the tournament as a 9-seed this year (losing to 8-seed Harvard). I doubt they'll make the tourney, but they have shored up somewhat as compared with 2013-14 and can attack the rim better.

I remember Digger Phelps writing "they want me out" when the then-new A.D. Dick Rosenthal came in -- as it turned out, that was the beginning of the unravelling of ND basketball.

However, Phelps had done some maddening things. In the tourney with one of his best teams against BYU, Kelly Tripucka was having an outstanding game and was pretty much unstoppable. Phelps called an unnecessary timeout so that the TV cameras could show him mapping out a play. From that point onward, the momentum was gone, and Danny Ainge killed them. Stupid coaching.

Eventually in the McLeod era, students resorted to shouting at games to John M, "why don't you do us a favor and resign!"

Matt Doherty's single season was great -- got more out of the talent than most coaches could have.

Currently ND men are in over their heads with the ACC. I don't know how else to put it. I'll be very surprised if they can muster an at-large NCAA bid.