Notre Dame will host Rice in 2014

[NDPhilly]

Per ESPN

Notre Dame will host Rice in 2014, Rice announced. The date of the game has yet to be determined.

"Notre Dame is a program that shares our core beliefs about college athletics," Rick athletic director Rick Greenspan said in a statement. "We both believe that the pursuit of excellence in the classroom need not become secondary to the pursuit of championships in athletics. This type of schedule is reflective of the greater overall vision for the second century of Rice Athletics that we will begin share in the coming weeks."

"We are excited to add this game to the schedule in order to give our student-athletes and our fans this tremendous opportunity to experience a game day in South Bend and renew this series with the Irish," Greenspan added.

The Irish are 4-0 all-time against the Owls.

Right now, the 2014 schedule has a tentative lineup with Purdue (Sept. 13), Michigan (Sept. 20) and Syracuse (Sept. 27), meaning an opening date on Sept. 6 could be filled with the Owls.
Also tentatively on the schedule are at Temple (Oct. 11), at Arizona State (Oct. 25), Pitt (Nov. 8), Northwestern (Nov. 15) and at USC (Nov. 29). Dates for Stanford and Navy are still to be determined.

 

[irishff1014]

I was surprised to see that Rice is division one.

 

[Rhode Irish]

Ummm I like 2014.

 

[Rhode Irish]

I was surprised to see that Rice is division one.

Seriously? That sounds like a 'you' problem.

 

[Riddickulous]

We kicked their *** badly last time we met.

 

[Damion704]

I love that.. Look VA tech play no one, fans travel= BCS

 

[Sherm Sticky]

This is cool. Rice is a great school. They also fit the mold of Wake Forest, Tulsa and Northwestern type of school.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Love this move. More please.

It's great that ND has never played a FCS opponent, and I'd like to see that trend continue. But 2012's schedule is simply stupid; we'll never see a NC again if that keeps up.

We need to be scheduling Rice, Akron, Central Michigan, etc. like the SEC schedules FCS teams.

 

[irishfan]

I was surprised to see that Rice is division one.

Yeah, surprised you didn't know they were 1A. They're a good school academically and in Conf-USA. Beat Purdue this year and won 10 games in 2008. Not really a nobody in terms of non-BCS schools.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Yeah, surprised you didn't know they were 1A. They're a good school academically and in Conf-USA. Beat Purdue this year and won 10 games in 2008. Not really a nobody in terms of non-BCS schools.

I would say they are a great school academically.

 

[rikkitikki08]

Notre Dame needs a cup cake here and there......simply look at next seasons schedule and you will understand why

 

[irishog77]

I like this better than a directional-Michigan school or some MAC team. Rice is a decent school and is also located in a top-5 market in the U.S. and in the football-crazed state of Texas.

Edit: I may have just set a record for most hyphenated words in a 2 sentence post on IE.

 

[jimmymac]

our 2014 schedule is incredible. and USC should be at its worst then bc of the restrictions. hopefully will be a great year

 

[NDPhilly]

With the last spot in 2014 I'd like us to add a legitimate opponent. I'm all for a easier schedule but 2014 has To many cupcakes.

 

[arrowryan]

Rice in 2014?

Rice in 2014?

Kieth Arnold just tweeted that Notre Dame and Rice have scheduled a game for the 2014 schedule. It will be a 1 game series and it will be in South Bend. Its good to see Swarbrick and Kelly schedule new teams that we never play.

If this doesnt deserve it's own thread, mods can delete it. I found it interesting

 

[IrishLax]

It's a huge step in the right direction. Scheduling schools that share our values.

IMO need more Duke, Vandy, Rice, Wake, etc. on the schedule and less Oklahoma/Texas/Arizona State/Miami.

 

[ThePiombino]

It's a huge step in the right direction. Scheduling schools that share our values.

IMO need more Duke, Vandy, Rice, Wake, etc. on the schedule and less Oklahoma/Texas/Arizona State/Miami.

AKA soften the schedule?

 

[arrowryan]

AKA soften the schedule?

I would rather play Rice the first game of the season than Texas of Oklahoma(which we are in the next couple years)

 

[IrishLax]

AKA soften the schedule?

Sure, if that's how you want to read it. I read it exactly how I said it: play more schools that graduate players and have strong academics.

IMO Michigan State should be dropped permanently and rotated for home-and-homes with schools like BYU, Duke, Vandy, Northwestern, etc. But I think I'm in the minority there.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

There is already a thread for this subject.

http://www.irishenvy.com/forums/notre-dame-football/65431-notre-dame-will-host-rice-2014-a.html

Mods please merge

 

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

See my username.

 

[Rhode Irish]

Sure, if that's how you want to read it. I read it exactly how I said it: play more schools that graduate players and have strong academics.

IMO Michigan State should be dropped permanently and rotated for home-and-homes with schools like BYU, Duke, Vandy, Northwestern, etc. But I think I'm in the minority there.

Sure this is worthy of a thread. Not sure it's worthy of two, though. Don't get what was wrong with the first one.

Anyways, Lax, I'm totally with you bud. In fact, you're pretty much speaking for me in this thread so far. More quality schools, more easier openers, and less MSU. I get that people seem to like that rivalry for some reason, but I don't get why. That game does nothing for me. They're the ugly redheaded also-ran in a creepy, backwoods state. I honestly wouldn't care if we never played them again. They bring nothing to the table.

 

[SJIrish]

It's a huge step in the right direction. Scheduling schools that share our values.

IMO need more Duke, Vandy, Rice, Wake, etc. on the schedule and less Oklahoma/Texas/Arizona State/Miami.

If that's the case ND should move to the Ivy League. Who ND plays has no impact on them, it's just a football game.

 

[ShamrockOnHelmet]

I like this better than a directional-Michigan school or some MAC team.

Generally, I agree, but I really liked playing Western Michigan last year. It kinda feels like a civic duty kind of thing, you know, taking care of Michiana.

 

[The Polish Irishman]

No MSU in 2014?

 

[IrishLax]

If that's the case ND should move to the Ivy League. Who ND plays has no impact on them, it's just a football game.

*woosh*

 

[irish1958]

If that's the case ND should move to the Ivy League. Who ND plays has no impact on them, it's just a football game.

Suicide schedules are suicide. As an aside can you name the teams LSU and Alabama played the week before (and the two weeks after) their "game of the century"?
Hardly what I would call a murderous or suicidal schedule
When ND played Florida State when they were #1 and we were #2 and we beat them, we played Boston College, who had won six in a row, the next week. I don't remember who Florida State played......if I recall correctly, it was the reserve team for the Little Sisters of the Poor.
I was at the game when we last played Rice. Their players were over matched but they played hard and they had a fun band. Their fans were high class and pleasant.
And they graduate their players, including their black players.
Contrast that with Mich state or Florida state.
I'll take Rice any day.

 

[irish4ever]

If that's the case ND should move to the Ivy League. Who ND plays has no impact on them, it's just a football game.

That's almost sacrilegious!

 

[irish1958]

No MSU in 2014?

I hope not. ( The next sentence is omitted for the sake of good taste, and to lessen the work of the moderators.)

 

[IrishAlum1997]

Yeah, surprised you didn't know they were 1A. They're a good school academically and in Conf-USA. Beat Purdue this year and won 10 games in 2008. Not really a nobody in terms of non-BCS schools.

Yeah, for a long time it seemed we were going to play them in the Texas Bowl. We very well may have lost that game. They had a great QB/WR combo that year and could score some points.