'13 IN ATH Jaylon Smith (Notre Dame Man & Graduate)

[Irish Man3]

Good for him. Can't wait to see this kid rehab and dominate in the NFL.

 

[NDinMich]

SIAP

Notre Dame man?

 

[ResLife Hero]

Best of luck to him. Would have loved to have him all 4 years, but he was a beast for us and is making the right decision by all accounts.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Heal fast young man. Best of luck.

 

[NDohio]

What a great representative of ND. Good luck Jaylon.

 

[koonja]

SIAP

Notre Dame man?

I don't think so. He didn't graduate and stay 4 years. I don't dislike him at all, but I think the title is meant to be reserved for the people who choose to exhaust as much time as they can at ND, not because it necessarily makes financial sense, but because they love thee so much they want to give every season they can.

Have at it.

 

[gkIrish]

SIAP

Notre Dame man?

I don't think so. He didn't graduate and stay 4 years. I don't dislike him at all, but I think the title is meant to be reserved for the people who choose to exhaust as much time as they can at ND, not because it necessarily makes financial sense, but because they love thee so much they want to give every season they can.

Have at it.

I agree with Koon. But those designations are being handed around like candy now so whatever. The fact the Rees is a "Notre Dame" man still boggles my mind when at least half the site didn't agree with it.

 

[phork]

I don't think so. He didn't graduate and stay 4 years. I don't dislike him at all, but I think the title is meant to be reserved for the people who choose to exhaust as much time as they can at ND, not because it necessarily makes financial sense, but because they love thee so much they want to give every season they can.

Have at it.

I'm OK with that. But having no ties to ND and certainly not going to school there, I can't say I am qualifed to make that statemnt.

 

[beryirish]

"Notre Dame Man" is subjective and the criteria is just made up by whoever - He's a NDM to me.

 

[koonja]

I'm OK with that. But having no ties to ND and certainly not going to school there, I can't say I am qualifed to make that statemnt.

And there's truth to that, no doubt. But I think guys like you and I who follow the school and specifically the team til we're blue in the face have pretty educated opinions on things ND-related as well. I'll never claim to be as close to ND as someone who graduated from there, but that doesn't mean that I don't get ND.

 

[CanadalovesND]

I think all players are a 'Notre Dame Man'. Playing football and going to class. That should be all the requirements. You shouldn't have to be a star player to be a Notre Dame Man or even one that gives great interview that recaps his career (Chris Brown). Any player that represents ND in a positive manner in the classroom and community is a Notre Dame Man.

 

[Irish Insanity]

I don't think so. He didn't graduate and stay 4 years. I don't dislike him at all, but I think the title is meant to be reserved for the people who choose to exhaust as much time as they can at ND, not because it necessarily makes financial sense, but because they love thee so much they want to give every season they can.

Have at it.

Bod Squad Legend?

 

[ulukinatme]

I don't think so. He didn't graduate and stay 4 years. I don't dislike him at all, but I think the title is meant to be reserved for the people who choose to exhaust as much time as they can at ND, not because it necessarily makes financial sense, but because they love thee so much they want to give every season they can.

Have at it.

Same. Jaylon is one of the greatest to don the golden helmet, but when you look at why players are designated "Notre Dame men" typically it's someone who was a real ambassador to the university or had to overcome some personal hurdles to succeed. I'm not just talking about on this site, but if you search "Notre Dame man" in google it typically references people tied to the community that went above and beyond. Father Hesburgh is one. Danny Spond. Father Riehle. TJ Jones, etc. I do think if you're going to talk about players they should at least graduate.

I agree with Koon. But those designations are being handed around like candy now so whatever. The fact the Rees is a "Notre Dame" man still boggles my mind when at least half the site didn't agree with it.

True, but as frustrated as fans were with Tommy, they should have been more frustrated with the players behind him that couldn't unseat him. It's unfathomable how bad we could have really been if Tommy didn't step up and execute as well as he did (Relatively speaking). BK would probably be gone if Rees didn't bail us out numerous times over his career.

 

[IrishLion]

Jaylon is a Notre Dame Man to me.

Good luck sir. Heal fast and run the league.

 

[dwshade]

Aaron Lynch ND man? NO.

Jaylon Smith ND man? YES.

 

[GoldenDomer]

Notre Dame man in my book. Degree or not degree, he was a huge asset to our program and will be a great representative in the NFL.

 

[Luckylucci]

Notre Dame man in my book. Degree or not degree, he was a huge asset to our program and will be a great representative in the NFL.

I agree.

 

[NDPhilly]

If you could make the perfect Notre Dame student athlete, I think it would look pretty similar to Jaylon Smith. What a great representative of the school

 

[Domina Nostra]

Hahaha sounds like the baseball Hall of Fame! We can even have controversy when Jaylon Smith isn't a unanimous pick lol...

I think the normal identifier after NSD should be their class year:

Jaylon Smith (Notre Dame '16)

"Signed LOI" seems clunky once they start playing.

If they graduate early, we can decide if they merit the "ND Man" title.

 

[Luckylucci]

If you could make the perfect Notre Dame student athlete, I think it would look pretty similar to Jaylon Smith. What a great representative of the school

Yea, the goal for ND should be, to be in the running for all of the Jaylon Smith's that are available in every recruiting class. Perfect example of a humble star football player that wanted something more than just a football factory.

 

[IrishLion]

Hahaha sounds like the baseball Hall of Fame! We can even have controversy when Jaylon Smith isn't a unanimous pick lol...

Hey now, some voters just have different priorities and hold some data points (such as degrees) to a higher standard than others (such as number of police officers assaulted).

But in all seriousness, I can't fault people for thinking that getting a degree and sticking around for 4/5 years is a big deal in terms of "how much did they do for ND?"

But at the same time, it's not realistic to expect some guys to stay, and our IE Hall of Notre Dame Men shouldn't suffer because a guy was too good lol.

 

[gkIrish]

Hey now, some voters just have different priorities and hold some data points (such as degrees) to a higher standard than others (such as number of police officers assaulted).

But in all seriousness, I can't fault people for thinking that getting a degree and sticking around for 4/5 years is a big deal in terms of "how much did they do for ND?"

But at the same time, it's not realistic to expect some guys to stay, and our IE Hall of Notre Dame Men shouldn't suffer because a guy was too good lol.

I like the IE Hall of Notre Dame Men idea. Every single player departing player may receive votes. Any player that receives 80% of the vote or more gets the ND Man designation. You can vote for as many people as you like. All past designations are up for a vote (Nix, Rees, Spond, etc.). I can set it up....

 

[Luckylucci]

I like where this is headed and agree with a majority of the thoughts being thrown out.

 

[gkIrish]

I like the IE Hall of Notre Dame Men idea. Every single player departing player may receive votes. Any player that receives 80% of the vote or more gets the ND Man designation. You can vote for as many people as you like. All past designations are up for a vote (Nix, Rees, Spond, etc.). I can set it up....

I take back what I said. I think the vote should be damn near unanimous. 90% at least.

I think special designations should be reserved for the truly elite (on and off the field) and rare exceptions for players that overcame significant adversity and still made an impact (i.e. Spond). There are people on this site that are going to vote for literally every player on the team because they feel anyone who tries hard is a "Notre Dame Man."

If lots of players get the designation there is no point at all to doing this.

 

[IrishLax]

The Joe Schmidt debate is going to be freaking epic.

 

[IrishLion]

It is created. Propose votes. Propose votes upon players that already have the title.

The votes will be proposed in The Hall. The votes must take place in their own thread, though.

 

[irishff1014]

The Joe Schmidt debate is going to be freaking epic.

Don't forget about Tommy.

 

[Irish#1]

I like the IE Hall of Notre Dame Men idea. Every single player departing player may receive votes. Any player that receives 80% of the vote or more gets the ND Man designation. You can vote for as many people as you like. All past designations are up for a vote (Nix, Rees, Spond, etc.). I can set it up....

I think you need to break it into decades starting with the 60's or 70's. List years as a starter, accolades won, significant achievements, etc..

 

[koonja]

Not commenting in the thread because you asked not to, but I don't understand how to vote and why is Greg Bryant not an option?

 

[IrishLion]

Not commenting in the thread because you asked not to, but I don't understand how to vote and why is Greg Bryant not an option?

Propose a player to vote upon in the thread, and then create a thread with a "yes" or "no" poll. We can link the debate in the Hall thread.