Jan 7 | BCS National Championship | Alabama

[IrishSteelhead]

Per ESPN, ND will have 6 days off for the holidays, and Bama 3. Let the meltdown begin...........

 

[Who'saWildManNow]

Per ESPN, ND will have 6 days off for the holidays, and Bama 3. Let the meltdown begin...........

I'm pretty sure ND decided to start practices before Bama. It evens out in the end, just a scheduling difference. Actualy I think we'll end up with more actual practices because Saban decided rest was more important, initially.

 

[IrishSteelhead]

I'm pretty sure ND decided to start practices before Bama. It evens out in the end, just a scheduling difference. Actualy I think we'll end up with more actual practices because Saban decided rest was more important, initially.

Same amount of practices in the end. Plenty of time to ramp it up after the holidays too. A good chunk of how we do will be determined the week before anyways. At this point, I would say how the team handles this game will need to be 75% mental, 25% physical.

We keep hearing how "physical" these two teams are, but the one more mentally prepared will win IMHO.

 

[Who'saWildManNow]

Same amount of practices in the end. Plenty of time to ramp it up after the holidays too. A good chunk of how we do will be determined the week before anyways. At this point, I would say how the team handles this game will need to be 75% mental, 25% physical.

We keep hearing how "physical" these two teams are, but the one more mentally prepared will win IMHO.

Absolutely. I hope to see us shake AJ up early and get in his head.

 

[Cackalacky]

He's technically right. 17/22 of our current starters were recruited (at least initially) by Weis. By my count, Farley, Russell, Tuitt, Golson and Daniels are the only starters recruited by Kelly.

Damn you and your cyborg memory output whiskey.

I guess I was I thinking more of a player development aspect. I know one thing Kelly changed from last year to this is he rearranged his staff to allow for him to do more player development. Looks like that has certainly yielded some better results.

 

[philipm31]

I think that the addition of Daniels vs, them losing Kenny Bell is an underrated aspect of the game.

Losing Bell could be HUGE because even with a serviceable TE for Bama, they really could miss having that other deep threat opposite Cooper.

But I think that the mental aspect is also being underplayed, as well. Good call, SteelHead

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Damn you and your cyborg memory output whiskey.

I guess I was I thinking more of a player development aspect. I know one thing Kelly changed from last year to this is he rearranged his staff to allow for him to do more player development. Looks like that has certainly yielded some better results.

I wasn't necessarily disagreeing with you. The most obvious difference between this coaching regime and the previous one is player development; Kelly deserves full credit for that.

But insofar as Martin was commenting on Weis' eye for talent, I can't really argue. Weis was a great recruiter, which is part of the reason why we're headed to the title game this year. If Kelly had taken over after year 5 of someone like Willingham, we'd still be rebuilding.

 

[gcashwell]

I think that the addition of Daniels vs, them losing Kenny Bell is an underrated aspect of the game.

Losing Bell could be HUGE because even with a serviceable TE for Bama, they really could miss having that other deep threat opposite Cooper.

But I think that the mental aspect is also being underplayed, as well. Good call, SteelHead

Local radio and news says bell may be back for the game. Williams, however is not doing well with his brace. Jones will not practice until after Xmas- conditioning only. Alabama has done no game plan type practices. They have only focused on fundamentals. Practice videos look like middle school drills with focusing on proper technique and form.

The feeling around here (Alabama) is that ND may still be an improving team, which is very dangerous. The hardcore, crazy Tide fans still think it is going to be 35-10, but most of us see about a 4-7 pt game.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

I wasn't necessarily disagreeing with you. The most obvious difference between this coaching regime and the previous one is player development; Kelly deserves full credit for that.

But insofar as Martin was commenting on Weis' eye for talent, I can't really argue. Weis was a great recruiter, which is part of the reason why we're headed to the title game this year. If Kelly had taken over after year 5 of someone like Willingham, we'd still be rebuilding.

I guess the whole thing smacked me in the face. It is all Kelly's development. Even Te'o this year. Basically Weis has the senior class and current fifth years. Next year will be the fifth years.

Lou Holtz said, coincidentally, that next years team would be better. I agree. It is a granted that a good coach and ND are going to draw in outstanding recruits. It is all about what you do with them.

The thing about Chris Martin's comment is I see it irrelevant to anything but his own salvation. With the Kelly teams of the next couple years, it is all about how many on the roster are ready to play, that will determine a lot of the luck piece.

 

[irishroo]

Not sure where to post this but this is good as any. I got annoyed by all these conflicting reports of how many championships each team has. ND claims 11, Bama 14, most people disagree with one of those numbers or both. So I took a deeper look into the championship, and here's what I found:

For the determination of "legit or not," I looked first at recognized consensus national championships. If either school claims a national championship in a year when they were considered the ONLY consensus national champs, that gets a yes. If the school claims a national championship in which they are not considered consensus winners, that gets a no. Where it gets tricky is when there is more than one school considered consensus national champs. If it was before 1936 (start of the AP poll), I looked at the 10 "major selectors" of the time to see how they decided. If a school had more than 7 of the 10 in their favor, they get it. If between 3-6 in their favor, they'd get half, and less than 3 they get none. Post-1936 but pre-1950 (the year of the advent of the Coaches Poll), I would have given any arguments to the team atop the AP poll, but that issue did not come up. Post-1950, there were 4 polls considered to determine consensus champs - being atop any of these 4 leads to NCAA recognition as a consensus national champion. I gave a team 1/4 of a title for each of the 4 polls they sat atop in these situations. Obviously, any BCS titles are considered legit. Moral of the story: ND>Bama.

 

[Jebediah Springfield]

Irish Benefit From Downtime

 

[choo choo]

guys i feel deep down like we are gonna take the trophy...now i might be wrong and they may kick the sh!t out of us and have espn telling the country we told you so, but i think theres a new sherrif in town (and he wears #5)...i cant wait...already have the next day off cause i plan on celebrating into the wee hours...if by chance we lose (cause they friggin cheat us haha), then what a season its been...remember 4 years ago when we looked at this schedule and called it a coach killer and now its a nc year...wow...that makes it even more special...i cant wait

 

[chicago51]

Got a feeling we are going to see a bunch of FGs in this game.

 

[greyhammer90]

Got a feeling we are going to see a bunch of FGs in this game.

I have this intuition deep down in my gut that this game will be played in Miami.

 

[fitz_bu47]

27-20 ND.

It is just supposed to be this way. Special year.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

I'm beginning to think that the game is kinda on Golson -- if he has a great game, ND can't lose. But if he has a ****** game, then ND can't win...

 

[chicago51]

I'm beginning to think that the game is kinda on Golson -- if he has a great game, ND can't lose. But if he has a ****** game, then ND can't win...

Golson for sure has a large burden on his shoulders.

Kyle Brindza to me will also be important. In my early mental simulation of this game ND wins 19-16. Brindza goes 4 of 5 on FGs. Despite missing a chip shot 29 yard FG in the 4th quarter, he comes back to drill a 48 yarder to win the game as time expires.

Will make my final prediction on friday January 4th.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

I wasn't necessarily disagreeing with you. The most obvious difference between this coaching regime and the previous one is player development; Kelly deserves full credit for that.

But insofar as Martin was commenting on Weis' eye for talent, I can't really argue. Weis was a great recruiter, which is part of the reason why we're headed to the title game this year. If Kelly had taken over after year 5 of someone like Willingham, we'd still be rebuilding.

Hey Whiskey!

Lou Holtz had some interesting comments to follow what you say; Lou said it isn't the talent level, it is the hard work, and expectation to win. He made the case that Faust was a good recruiter too, because Lou maintained the talent difference between '86 and '88 was negligible. So the difference was coaching, leadership, and player development; which is why I found Martin's comment puzzling. It was meaningless.

I went back, and I don't consider any players in the '10 class to be Weis'. Shembo, Smith, Collinsworth, Nix, Jackson, Rees, Woods, Lombard, Collinsworth, Spond, etc. Spond is the first example of a player that was off everybody's radar, that everyone thought Kelly was crazy for bringing in. And I remember, Danny received more raised eyebrows from Irish fans, even on this site, than anybody but maybe Harrison Smith, and he is now one of the best outside linebackers in college football. That was a totally Kelly recruit. And wasn't it Kelly that pulled Jones from Stanford?

Not that it matters, and I AM NOT TRYING TO PICK A FIGHT, but I think that credit thing falls both ways. Love you man, and I enjoy your drink when I can . . .

 

[no.1IrishFan]

27-20 ND.

It is just supposed to be this way. Special year.

Yes....you get it!

It's meant to be!

I could care less if Bama has been here before and if their players know how to act/prepare.
I could care less how many championships Saban has won.
I could care less if we're playing the almighty SEC, or a MAC team.
I could care less how many NFL prospects they have.
I could care less how much experience their QB has.
I could care less what the analysts say( they've been wrong all year).


We are going to win this game because it's supposed to be this way!!!

Reps!

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Yes....you get it.

It's meant to be!

I could care less if Bama has been here before and if their players know how to act/prepare.
I could care less how many championships Saban has won.
I could care less if we're playing the almighty SEC, or a MAC team.
I could care less how many NFL prospects they have.
I could care less how much experience their QB has.
I could care less what the analysts say( they've been wrong all year).


We are going to win this game, because it's supposed to be this way!!!

Reps!

Zactly! A team of destiny!

 

[chicago51]

Yes....you get it.

It's meant to be!

I could care less if Bama has been here before and if their players know how to act/prepare.
I could care less how many championships Saban has won.
I could care less if we're playing the almighty SEC, or a MAC team.
I could care less how many NFL prospects they have.
I could care less how much experience their QB has.
I could care less what the analysts say( they've been wrong all year).


We are going to win this game, because it's supposed to be this way!!!

Sometimes you can't explain why things happen they just do. Bama is the more talented team but on January 7th they got no chance. Saw of clip of when ND beat Miami in 88. Lou Holtz said it was the spirit of Notre Dame that did it. Well its going to do it again.

 

[95NDAlumNM]

Looks like there is a ND BCS Championship app out for the ipad. Can't wait to get home and download it. Looks great and it is free.

A BCS Championship App for Notre Dame — Joe Zeff Design

 

[FLDomer]

Looks like there is a ND BCS Championship app out for the ipad. Can't wait to get home and download it. Looks great and it is free.

A BCS Championship App for Notre Dame — Joe Zeff Design

can i get that on my iphone?

 

[Black Irish]

Yes....you get it!

It's meant to be!

I could care less if Bama has been here before and if their players know how to act/prepare.
I could care less how many championships Saban has won.
I could care less if we're playing the almighty SEC, or a MAC team.
I could care less how many NFL prospects they have.
I could care less how much experience their QB has.
I could care less what the analysts say( they've been wrong all year).


We are going to win this game because it's supposed to be this way!!!

Reps!

It would be better if you could not care less. grin:

 

[95NDAlumNM]

Not sure. Seems to indicate it was specifically designed for the ipad.

 

[Rocket's Rocket Fan]

As I posted on Twitter, take the adamant denial for what it’s worth, particularly when another source I spoke with on Thursday claimed that Saban has already begun interviewing potential assistants he would take to the Cleveland Browns with him. The source laid out the timing of how current Browns coach Pat Shurmur will be fired after the season, one or two candidates will be interviewed (complete with the name of a minority candidate) and that Saban will be hired on Jan. 8, the day after Alabama’s BCS title game tilt vs. Notre Dame.

I saw this posted on a Cleveland Browns board that I visit sometimes. Right now it is just a rumor, but could be interesting if true.

Direct Snap: More misdirection from Nick Saban as rumors of return to NFL swirl? - Yahoo! Sports

 

[chicago51]

I saw this posted on a Cleveland Browns board that I visit sometimes. Right now it is just a rumor, but could be interesting if true.

Direct Snap: More misdirection from Nick Saban as rumors of return to NFL swirl? - Yahoo! Sports

I think an ND victory in the NC actually might actually keep Saban at Bama longer. If Bama loses it might make Saban feel more challenged thus more likely to stay.

 

[Irish Green]

Being down in SEC Country I'm so tired of hearing "Roll Tide" and that Notre Dame does not stand a chance against Alabama...to which I reply..."Still gotta play the game...see you on the 7th and GO IRISH" I'll be so decked on in my IRISH gear on the 7th for work...man I can't wait. GO IRISH!

 

[chicago51]

Roll Tide?

Does the Tide actually roll. I thought if any elephant rolls over he won't be able to get up and he'll eventually die.

 

[Irish Green]

Roll Tide?

Does the Tide actually roll. I thought if any elephant rolls over he won't be able to get up and he'll eventually die.

Yea I've always wondered about that to...being a Boatswains Mate in the Coast Guard for 30+ years I always thought the tide Ebbed and Flooded, not roll...just saying...