My wild, early preseason predictions for 2009

[Riddickulous]

It's late night, I'm bored, and have nothing to do. This happened.

Offense:

- Clausen will be much, much improved. Following the debacle of interceptions and blown leads that was the second half of the 2008 season, Jimmy is going to take a huge leap after his brilliant performance in Hawaii. From the first throw against Nevada, Clausen will be firing the ball with confidence and accuracy. Jimmy won the quarterback job at the Hawaii Bowl, and Weis' confidence in his field general has never been stronger. Clausen will throw for 3500+ yards and 40+ touchdowns, book it. The haters will continue to plague him, however, until he has his breakout game against USC. I am confident in Jimmy for next year. Also, expect under 10 picks next year.

- Allen will continue to get the rock and continue to prove he doesn't deserve it. His tackle-breaking ability will not improve and he will still go down on the first hit. Hughes, as he did against Hawaii, will keep on being the best back on the team, but will be ignored by Weis like this past season. Aldridge, Gray, Wood, and Riddick will all see carries, but nothing truly significant.

- Floyd and Tate will both have 1000 yard seasons and 10 TD's each. Deion Walker, John Goodman, and Shaquelle Evans will share the third receiver spot. Roby Toma will be redshirted. Robby Parris will be buried on the depth chart.

- The offensive line will improve, and be about as successful as the 2006 unit, which means Jimmy is still going to take more shots than he needs to. Sam Young will continue to prove he is the biggest bust on campus since Ron Powlus. Chris Watt will see very significant playing time.

- Weis will not call plays from the booth.

Defense:

- Kapron Lewis-Moore, Ian Williams, Brandon Newman, and Ethan Johnson will start on the defensive line. Ethan Johnson will build off of his strong finish to his freshman campaign and will get at least 10 sacks. We will get more pressure than last season, forcing more sacks and causing many hurried throws. Randy Hart will have the defensive line ready and dominating in 2009.

- Brian Smith, Darius Fleming, and Manti Te'o will round out the linebacker corps, with Zeke Motta and Kerry Neal seeing much playing time. A healthy Brian Smith should have a monster year, recording 100+ tackles and becoming a star for our Irish. Fleming and Te'o should make great contributions, as well. Coupled with our offensive line, the run defense will be much better than last season's terror.

- Darrin Walls, Raeshon McNeil, Harrison Smith and Kyle McCarthy will start in the secondary. Sergio Brown, Robert "Beast" Blanton and Jamoris Slaughter will also see signifcant playing time. Darrin Walls will have 5 picks and will take one to the house. Expect to see Hasie struggling early, but eventually steeling up and having a nice second half to the season. The secondary will be the strongest unit of next year's defense.

Special Teams:

- Brandon Walker will win the kicking job. The competition will be "not even close".

- Nick Tausch or Ben Turk punts. Seriously, I've seen paraplegics that can punt better than Eric Maust.

- Golden Tate will still do kick returns, alongside Cierre Wood. One or both of them will take a kick to the house next season. Golden Tate will also be returning punts.

Win/Loss Predictions:

NEVADA: Easy, blowout win, although we cannot underestimate them. Clausen will pick apart their secondary and Shaquelle Evans will catch his first touchdown pass.

MICHIGAN: What should be an easy win could turn into a struggle. We got lucky against a terrible Michigan squad this year. As long as the line blocks and the weather is fine, Clausen will have another nice day, and the Tate/Floyd combo will silence the 100,000+ at Michigan Stadium. Golden Tate will have a demonic big play on a slant where he breaks multiple tackles.

MICHIGAN STATE: Toss-up. Always a dangerous opponent, Michigan State always poses the most frustrating game on the schedule. We could've won last year, but we didn't catch a break. It all depends on the offensive line. If we cannot get the run-game going, Clausen and Floyd will have to carry the team on their shoulders...again.

PURDUE: Blowout. Clausen, as usual, will have a field day. Floyd and Tate will have a hundred yards each. Notre Dame wins running away.

WASHINGTON: Blowout. Ty Willingham proved he's a terrible coach, and it will take Washington years and years to recover. Expect a repeat of last season's game, but Notre Dame will score far more points than last year's meager 33.

USC: The biggest "eh" game on the schedule. Either a close game or a major loss. It all depends on the team. This is definitely the hardest game to predict. Let's be optimistic and say win.

BOSTON COLLEGE: Toss-up. Anywhere from a close win to a blowout to a blowout loss. Still impossible to predict.

WASHINGTON STATE: Blowout. No description needed.

NAVY: Blowout. The debacle from the last two years will be a distant memory.

PITTSBURGH: Possible loss. Clausen needs to play well to win this game.

CONNECTICUT: Blowout. Donald Brown left, so they have no offense. The Irish should dominate.

STANFORD: Blowout. Jim Harbaugh will be tossing his hat all over the field.

Final Record: 11-1

Miscellaneous:

- We will wear the green jerseys for the USC game.

- Weis will keep his job (damn it)


And that's it. Thoughts? Things to add?

 

[Irishlew]

And that's it. Thoughts? Things to add?

yeah, get a GF

 

[Brown]

yeah, get a GF

amen! couldn't of said it better myself.

 

[phork]

Thats some fantastic meth you are cooking up there bro.

 

[NDOM]

This is no way to treat a new guy!!! I could expect you to treat ME like that but not a newbie. I think Its a pretty darn good post. a little pitchy in some spots dog (randy jackson) lol. 11-1 though is pretty steep I think. I say we go 9-3 or 8-4 and Charlie Weis loses his job.

 

[notredomer23]

It's late night, I'm bored, and have nothing to do. This happened.

Offense:

- Clausen will be much, much improved. Following the debacle of interceptions and blown leads that was the second half of the 2008 season, Jimmy is going to take a huge leap after his brilliant performance in Hawaii. From the first throw against Nevada, Clausen will be firing the ball with confidence and accuracy. Jimmy won the quarterback job at the Hawaii Bowl, and Weis' confidence in his field general has never been stronger. Clausen will throw for 3500+ yards and 40+ touchdowns, book it. The haters will continue to plague him, however, until he has his breakout game against USC. I am confident in Jimmy for next year. Also, expect under 10 picks next year.

- Allen will continue to get the rock and continue to prove he doesn't deserve it. His tackle-breaking ability will not improve and he will still go down on the first hit. Hughes, as he did against Hawaii, will keep on being the best back on the team, but will be ignored by Weis like this past season. Aldridge, Gray, Wood, and Riddick will all see carries, but nothing truly significant.

- Floyd and Tate will both have 1000 yard seasons and 10 TD's each. Deion Walker, John Goodman, and Shaquelle Evans will share the third receiver spot. Roby Toma will be redshirted. Robby Parris will be buried on the depth chart.

- The offensive line will improve, and be about as successful as the 2006 unit, which means Jimmy is still going to take more shots than he needs to. Sam Young will continue to prove he is the biggest bust on campus since Ron Powlus. Chris Watt will see very significant playing time.

- Weis will not call plays from the booth.

Defense:

- Kapron Lewis-Moore, Ian Williams, Brandon Newman, and Ethan Johnson will start on the defensive line. Ethan Johnson will build off of his strong finish to his freshman campaign and will get at least 10 sacks. We will get more pressure than last season, forcing more sacks and causing many hurried throws. Randy Hart will have the defensive line ready and dominating in 2009.

- Brian Smith, Darius Fleming, and Manti Te'o will round out the linebacker corps, with Zeke Motta and Kerry Neal seeing much playing time. A healthy Brian Smith should have a monster year, recording 100+ tackles and becoming a star for our Irish. Fleming and Te'o should make great contributions, as well. Coupled with our offensive line, the run defense will be much better than last season's terror.

- Darrin Walls, Raeshon McNeil, Harrison Smith and Kyle McCarthy will start in the secondary. Sergio Brown, Robert "Beast" Blanton and Jamoris Slaughter will also see signifcant playing time. Darrin Walls will have 5 picks and will take one to the house. Expect to see Hasie struggling early, but eventually steeling up and having a nice second half to the season. The secondary will be the strongest unit of next year's defense.

Special Teams:

- Brandon Walker will win the kicking job. The competition will be "not even close".

- Nick Tausch or Ben Turk punts. Seriously, I've seen paraplegics that can punt better than Eric Maust.

- Golden Tate will still do kick returns, alongside Cierre Wood. One or both of them will take a kick to the house next season. Golden Tate will also be returning punts.

Win/Loss Predictions:

NEVADA: Easy, blowout win, although we cannot underestimate them. Clausen will pick apart their secondary and Shaquelle Evans will catch his first touchdown pass.

MICHIGAN: What should be an easy win could turn into a struggle. We got lucky against a terrible Michigan squad this year. As long as the line blocks and the weather is fine, Clausen will have another nice day, and the Tate/Floyd combo will silence the 100,000+ at Michigan Stadium. Golden Tate will have a demonic big play on a slant where he breaks multiple tackles.

MICHIGAN STATE: Toss-up. Always a dangerous opponent, Michigan State always poses the most frustrating game on the schedule. We could've won last year, but we didn't catch a break. It all depends on the offensive line. If we cannot get the run-game going, Clausen and Floyd will have to carry the team on their shoulders...again.

PURDUE: Blowout. Clausen, as usual, will have a field day. Floyd and Tate will have a hundred yards each. Notre Dame wins running away.

WASHINGTON: Blowout. Ty Willingham proved he's a terrible coach, and it will take Washington years and years to recover. Expect a repeat of last season's game, but Notre Dame will score far more points than last year's meager 33.

USC: The biggest "eh" game on the schedule. Either a close game or a major loss. It all depends on the team. This is definitely the hardest game to predict. Let's be optimistic and say win.

BOSTON COLLEGE: Toss-up. Anywhere from a close win to a blowout to a blowout loss. Still impossible to predict.

WASHINGTON STATE: Blowout. No description needed.

NAVY: Blowout. The debacle from the last two years will be a distant memory.

PITTSBURGH: Possible loss. Clausen needs to play well to win this game.

CONNECTICUT: Blowout. Donald Brown left, so they have no offense. The Irish should dominate.

STANFORD: Blowout. Jim Harbaugh will be tossing his hat all over the field.

Final Record: 11-1

Miscellaneous:

- We will wear the green jerseys for the USC game.

- Weis will keep his job (damn it)


And that's it. Thoughts? Things to add?

well, I agree with you, but this site is full of negetive buttheads(yes, buttheads) such as NDOM. We need more people like you.

Ill do one of my own, slightly differently, actually predicting the score


Nevada-W, Clausen starts his run for the heisman by completing 84% of his passes going 21-25, throwing 4 touchdowns, 2 to Tate, 1 to Floyd, and 1 to Rudolph for 340 yards. Armando Allen adds one, taking a hand off from the fifty to the house. Cierre Wood returns a punt for a touchdown. ND wins 42-13

Michigan-W Still rebuilding big time, they will be starting a true freshman QB in Tate Forcier, revenge for their 38-0 beating to us back in 07 at their place, we 38-0, Clausen throwing 3 touchdowns completing 65% of his passes, Aldridge taking one in, Allen taking one in, and Tate, Floyd, and Kamara each get a TD.

Michigan State-W, I honestly think they will be one of the weaker teams on our schedule. Their offense will be incapable with out Ringer, although they will probably have a better QB, but our DBs in Walls and Blanton will kick the shit out of him intercepting 3 passes. We win 31-10, Clausen completing 59% of his passes, throwing his first INT on the season, but still throwing for 2 Touchdowns. Allen adds a TD, and Hughes does too, rushing for a total of 200+ as a team.

Purdue-W, they will be horrible. nuff said

Washington-W, they will be good 4 years from now, but not this year.

USC-In a #4(USC) vs #6 battle of the titans, USC prevails by kicking a field goal with a 35 seconds to take a late lead. Clausen leads a late charge after the USC kicker kicking a touchback, they drive 60 yards. Walker takes a shot at the 57 yard field goal, and it hits of the goal post, bounces up in the air twice, and finally misses. USC wins 31-30. Clausen has the game of his life throwing for 3 touchdowns, 1 to allen, 1 to floyd, and 1 to tate, and connecting for 320 yards for a completion percentage of 64%.

Boston College-W after losing a lot on defense, and then the even bigger blow of losing their stud coach, it was almost never even close. ND wins 45-21

Washington State-This team will never be good again, atleast in the next decade.

Navy- W

Pitt-No shade mccoy, and their QB's suck!!!! We will win this one

UConn- W. They lose one of the best RBs in the country

Stanford-W you see Harbrough crying on the sidelines in the second half after Notre Dame gets their 35th point with 10 minutes left in the 3rd.

 

[notredomer23]

This is no way to treat a new guy!!! I could expect you to treat ME like that but not a newbie. I think Its a pretty darn good post. a little pitchy in some spots dog (randy jackson) lol. 11-1 though is pretty steep I think. I say we go 9-3 or 8-4 and Charlie Weis loses his job.

NDOM, I want to make a bet with you. If ND wins 10+ games this year, you can never say anything bad about Charlie Weis again, if they win less than 10, you decide what I have to do

 

[NDOM]

NDOM, I want to make a bet with you. If ND wins 10+ games this year, you can never say anything bad about Charlie Weis again, if they win less than 10, you decide what I have to do

Its a deal. I havent said anything bad about him in a long time. And I think he SHOULD win 10 plus games this year because the schedual is soft as hell. (just like it was last year and we somehow seemed to squeeze out 7 wins) All I'm saying is that Charlie Weis has yet to prove to me what he can do with his own recruits. He should win 10 or more games this year cuz if he doesn't he SHOULD be fired. But I will take that bet "BUTTHEAD" he he he he heeeeeeee. (you just called me a butthead in the post above me) I still love ya dude.

 

[NDOM]

You're on crack too if you think we are going to beat Michigan 38-0!!!! That will NEVER EVER happen. Just sayin

 

[notredomer23]

You're on crack too if you think we are going to beat Michigan 38-0!!!! That will NEVER EVER happen. Just sayin

Michigan sucks. I dont actually think that will be the score, but it will be a blow out.

 

[notredomer23]

Here is a link with pictures from their spring practice. Their QB is 6 feet tall at most and weighs probably 170 with all his pads and helmet on

Photo Gallery: U-M football spring practice

 

[notredomer23]

Here is a link with pictures from their spring practice. Their QB is 6 feet tall at most and weighs probably 170 with all his pads and helmet on

Photo Gallery: U-M football spring practice

holy crap, after looking at picture 2, if Dick Rod is not a pedafile, I will be shocked

 

[fightinirish68]

yeah thats a pretty bold statement at 11-1. we dont even know if we are gonna go with the full 4-3 yet.

 

[IrishInFl]

That first pic of Rod is creepy. Michigan's QB situation looks bad.

 

[NDOM]

holy crap, after looking at picture 2, if Dick Rod is not a pedafile, I will be shocked

ROTFLMFAO! Jesus that was funny. reps for you.

 

[Folsteam_Ahead]

Final Record: 11-1

Miscellaneous:

- We will wear the green jerseys for the USC game.

- Weis will keep his job (damn it)


And that's it. Thoughts? Things to add?

i'm curious how you could be upset that weis would keep his job after predicting an 11-1 season. a record like that would mean the offense is clicking like 2005 and our defense is actually respectable. shouldn't weis deserve to keep his job after leading the team to that type of performance?

 

[NDinL.A.]

Thoughts:

*** Wow, someone more long-winded than I am! I thought there wasn't anybody alive that wrote as much as I do. LOL. Welcome aboard.

*** I actually agree with a lot of stuff you wrote. Not necessarily the wins and losses, but certain parts. Such as Jimmy having a breakout year, along with Tate and Floyd. Such as Allen not being able to break tackles and make the line look a little better like most backs do. However, Hughes did not prove that he was the best back last year. He was the best back in the San Diego St game, until he got crushed, twisted his knee and fumbled the ball. He looked slow and indecisive the rest of the year until the Hawaii game, where again he looked good. But he didn't deserve more carries last year, none of them really did. The line sucked, and nobody could make a guy miss. And I'm a huge Hughes guy (he was my breakout pick last year, showing you what a genius I am).

*** Your prediction on the punter was brilliant:

Nick Tausch or Ben Turk punts

Ummm....those are our only 2 punters on the team, so by default, I'm guessing that one of them has to punt, right? Sorry, just messin' with you.

 

[ARALOU]

Yes that is funny. He is a creepy MF.

 

[notredomer23]

*** Your prediction on the punter was brilliant:



Ummm....those are our only 2 punters on the team, so by default, I'm guessing that one of them has to punt, right? Sorry, just messin' with you.

Maust is a 5th year

 

[ARALOU]

I honestly hope that I dont get all that familiar with the damn punter. This aint the NFL.

 

[WabashFalcon]

Hey! I have another prediction... Ben Cowhert's gonna snap!!!!

Patting self on back.

I iz so smarts!

 

[TexasNDFan]

Good post and I think 11-1 can be a very attainable. I myself think that ND will give USC all it can handle this year. The only part of your prediction that I disagree with is Shaquelle Evans getting playing time. ND has too much depth with three returning starters and then adding Walker. The only way he sees the field is if either Tate or Floyd are lost to injury.

 

[tse057]

D-Rod is a definite creeper in that photo. Tate Forcier should be a decent player, but if he gets the nod the question is will he be able to hold up in his first rivalry game and first real game of his career. Clearly the Wolverines' week one game is against Western Michigan out of the Mid-American, though I somewhat expect them to lose to WMU because they're Michigan, they're cocky, and they think they're still good. Lets all hope Dick has another embarrassing year to salt the wounds of all Michigan fans.

 

[Riddickulous]

I hope Michigan has another losing season. I live in Michigan, and all of my friends are Michigan fans.

 

[Echo Insanity]

yeah, get a GF

haha. that could be the standard reply to the majority of posts on internet forums.

 

[Honey Nut Irish]

I'm not making any predictions until after the Nevada game. I think it will tell us a lot about this team. This team has the potential for a big year, but after the last two I don't want to expect too much.

 

[NeuteredDoomer]

We gonna win some games. We gonna be pretty good.

 

[GOLDENISTHYTATE]

The long snapper we gave a scholarship to this year is Jordan Cowart.

 

[IrishAlum1997]

I'm not making any predictions until after the Nevada game. I think it will tell us a lot about this team. This team has the potential for a big year, but after the last two I don't want to expect too much.

Doesn't that take the fun out of a 'prediction?' Man up! Call your shot!

***IA97's official prediction*** 12-1

We don't taste it just yet. A great regular season with a 2 TD win over Southern Cal ends just short of the crystal football with a 10-point loss in the BCS title game. Won't call my shot on the opponent, although I just have a feeling about Urban pissing Irish Nation off once again...

 

[Riddickulous]

I have thought of more predictions:

- Clausen is a Heisman finalist, but he loses out to ESPN's bitch, Tim Tebow.
- Notre Dame's success will be downplayed by ESPN's "experts". Mark May will continue his Notre Dame hate parade, especially after his beloved Pitt is blown out at home by Clausen and company.
- Aaron Corp will start for USC and will throw 3 picks when the Trojans come to South Bend, one to Walls and two to Blanton. Robert Blanton brags about his 2 picks and his continued dominance of USC for months afterward.
- Golden Tate and Michael Floyd's accomplishments will continue to be ignored by all non-Irish fans.
- Joe McKnight will be shut down by Manti Te'o on all of his three carries.
- Notre Dame will make a BCS Bowl.
- Both Tyler Eifert and Jake Golic will be redshirted.
- Notre Dame will be USC's annual "unprepared game", where USC loses to a team they shouldn't.
- Notre Dame finishes the season ranked in the Top 10. Weis keeps his job.
- The Notre Dame crowd will be much crazier than they've been in the last two seasons. Seriously, the last two years, every time the Irish make a play, it sounds like four people are cheering.
- There will be similar hype to the Notre Dame-USC contest as there was back in 2005. However, the following game will not be nearly as epic, nor as close.
- Michael Floyd will outplay both of his receiver counterparts, Julio Jones and AJ Green. ESPN will downsize his accomplishments.
- Notre Dame lands Seantrel Henderson AND Hurst, as well as Anthony Barr and Kyle Prater.
- Jonas Gray and his bodybuilder physique emerge as the starter by the end of the season, after Weis drops his mancrush on Armando Allen when his production fails.
- Shaquelle Evans will be redshirted.
- Lou Holtz will predict a 13-0 season and a national championship. Mark May will be awed by both the prediction and the fact that Lou Holtz is more successful than he is.
- Jon Tenuta's blitz-happy defense will get more production than the crap they put out this season.
- Notre Dame ends the season with double-digit wins and a preseason Top 10 ranking in 2010.
- Following the end of Notre Dame's season, Irish fans will be crying in agony because they'll have to wait eight months for the 2010 national championship run.
- Maura Weis will pressure Charlie into coaching from the press box. When Charlie refuses, Golden Tate will demand that he do so. Charlie relents only after Mike Anello threatens to leave the team.