Notre Dame to play UMass in 2015

[gkIrish]

Scheduling these teams is never a good idea. There is no benefit to it and if you happen to lose this game its certain Doom. See, Michigan vs AppSt.

A loss to say, Tennessee, is just as damning to our team's chances at a national championship as a loss to UMass. But the probability of losing to Tennessee is significantly higher than losing to UMass.

 

[BGIF]

A loss to say, Tennessee, is just as damning to our team's chances at a national championship as a loss to UMass. But the probability of losing to Tennessee is significantly higher than losing to UMass.

So is the likelihood of injuries. When you play the power teams week after week your injuries mount. A player can get injury in practice but when you're banging up against 300 pound DLs and 250 pound LBs play after play, game after game it mounts up.

Whenever UTN and ND have played the injury list has been long.

 

[phork]

Tell you what, when we are running full out and slaughtering teams that we should be easily handling, then schedule the UMass' of the world. As it stands right now the win is not in the 95%+ certainty range.
Teams like this, and BC and Pitt, I expect to crush, not eke out a 16-14 win.

 

[irishpat183]

Aside from the obvious reasons to want to play a cupcake or two I'll give a specific reason why it is good to play UMass:

Having a good supporting coaching staff to back up your head coach is a good thing. Many if not all assistant coaches have aspirations to become a head coach one day. And most of them start off at a mediocre to low-level school like UMass. Playing your former assistant coach (Molnar) shows other potential assistants that you are willing to help their careers by playing their mediocre school. In other words, you don't want your head coach to be known as the guy that doesn't give a **** about his former assistants after they leave.

This, coupled with the fact that playing UMass isn't all that different from playing Army makes this a good or at worst neutral decision by Notre Dame

Yeah, but we have history with the service academies that we can hide behind when explaining why we still play them....What history does ND and UMass have?

I'm with Zbi...I dont' like this. I dont' care about "doing favors" to former assistants. Really?!?!?!!? That's your argument? For a school llike ND, I doubt we have problems getting future assistant coaches.

 

[greyhammer90]

Tell you what, when we are running full out and slaughtering teams that we should be easily handling, then schedule the UMass' of the world. As it stands right now the win is not in the 95%+ certainty range.
Teams like this, and BC and Pitt, I expect to crush, not eke out a 16-14 win.

So your argument is that we aren't good enough to beat bad teams consistently so we should schedule tougher teams... so that we can be consistently beaten by better teams instead of occasionally losing to a team that it would be embarrassing to lose to?


It's official. Logic is dead.

 

[irishpat183]

Tell you what, when we are running full out and slaughtering teams that we should be easily handling, then schedule the UMass' of the world. As it stands right now the win is not in the 95%+ certainty range.
Teams like this, and BC and Pitt, I expect to crush, not eke out a 16-14 win.

Yeah, but we're not crushing them anyway.....so what's to gain from scheduling them as opposed to a better team(in name)? I'd rather schedule another tier two ACC, Big 12, PAC 12 team over a UMass....

 

[BGIF]

... so what's to gain from scheduling them as opposed to a better team(in name)? I'd rather schedule another tier two ACC, Big 12, PAC 12 team over a UMass....

Good for you, pat. Now name all those ACC, Big12, and PAC 12 teams that would agree to be the opponent in a one time BUY GAME in South Bend.

UMASS IS A BUY GAME.

ND is trying to schedule an extra home game, like UF and loads of other teams have been doing for 2 decades or more. Only they schedule the like of The Citadel, Maine, Furman, UMASS (2010 Michigan) and a bunch of other Div 1AA schools. ND doesn't play 1AAs so the potential teams are few.

 

[phork]

So your argument is that we aren't good enough to beat bad teams consistently so we should schedule tougher teams... so that we can be consistently beaten by better teams instead of occasionally losing to a team that it would be embarrassing to lose to?


It's official. Logic is dead.

The logic is I would rather lose to Tennessee than to UMass or AppSt.

 

[irishpat183]

The logic is I would rather lose to Tennessee than to UMass or AppSt.

THANK YOU.

But some people are beyond the ability to comprehend that. There is no cure. These are probably the same guys that defend Tommy Rees as well........LOL

 

[BGIF]

THANK YOU.

But some people are beyond the ability to comprehend that. There is no cure. These are probably the same guys that defend Tommy Rees as well........LOL

Still working on that list of ACC, Big12, and PAC 12 teams that would agree to be the opponent in a one time BUY GAME in South Bend, pat?

 

[notredomer23]

THANK YOU.

But some people are beyond the ability to comprehend that. There is no cure. These are probably the same guys that defend Tommy Rees as well........LOL

So you guys would rather lose to Tennessee than beat UMass? how does that make sense? Every single team in the nation has "warmup games". UMass will be in the MAC so they are low level D1, whats the problem? It's not like we are scheduling the Citadel or a FCS team. And plus, our 2015 schedule if I am reading it correctly, we would not play UMass until October 24th. We open the season with Texas then Michigan.

The only problem I have with this game is that it is not the first game of the season.

future schedule

And I apologize if I sound rude or if I am being critical of you guys. I just have a hard time understanding why you would rather a loss to a good team

 

[Cali_domer]

The UMass game is a joke, I would rather schedule an Indiana or teams of there ilk that at least play in Big Boy conferences.

 

[Cali_domer]

So you guys would rather lose to Tennessee than beat UMass? how does that make sense? Every single team in the nation has "warmup games". UMass will be in the MAC so they are low level D1, whats the problem? It's not like we are scheduling the Citadel or a FCS team. And plus, our 2015 schedule if I am reading it correctly, we would not play UMass until October 24th. We open the season with Texas then Michigan.

The only problem I have with this game is that it is not the first game of the season.

future schedule

And I apologize if I sound rude or if I am being critical of you guys. I just have a hard time understanding why you would rather a loss to a good team

If it is a warm up game it should be at the start of the season. We need patsy's at the beginning of our schedule.

 

[gkIrish]

Yeah, but we have history with the service academies that we can hide behind when explaining why we still play them....What history does ND and UMass have?

I'm with Zbi...I dont' like this. I dont' care about "doing favors" to former assistants. Really?!?!?!!? That's your argument? For a school llike ND, I doubt we have problems getting future assistant coaches.

That's not my argument. It's just a specific reason I gave a previous poster who can't comprehend the value of scheduling a cupcake or two in general terms.

 

[gkIrish]

The logic is I would rather lose to Tennessee than to UMass or AppSt.

If we lose to a team like UMass then we have way bigger problems than strength of schedule

 

[gkIrish]

The UMass game is a joke, I would rather schedule an Indiana or teams of there ilk that at least play in Big Boy conferences.

Can someone please provide a valid reason why playing Indiana is any different than playing UMass??? Both teams suck and no voter in the pools will give a damn about whether we beat Indiana versus UMass. And if we lose to either team we are screwed no matter what.

Sorry for the string of posts

 

[Cali_domer]

Can someone please provide a valid reason why playing Indiana is any different than playing UMass??? Both teams suck and no voter in the pools will give a damn about whether we beat Indiana versus UMass. And if we lose to either team we are screwed no matter what.

Sorry for the string of posts

Perception, Umass will be in there 4th year as D-1 school. I think it is a joke but it really doesn't irritate me that much to schedule Umass.

 

[IV33]

Regardless whether it was a good idea or bad idea to schedule UMASS, what happens when ND loses to UMASS?

 

[gkIrish]

Perception, Umass will be in there 4th year as D-1 school. I think it is a joke but it really doesn't irritate me that much to schedule Umass.

When was the last time OSU or Alabama dropped in the polls because they played Akron or Louisiana Lafayette because another team beat Indiana or Kentucky instead?

Furthermore, 8-4 is perceived more negatively than 9-3 no matter who you play (generally)

 

[greyhammer90]

The logic is I would rather lose to Tennessee than to UMass or AppSt.

THANK YOU.

But some people are beyond the ability to comprehend that. There is no cure. These are probably the same guys that defend Tommy Rees as well........LOL

Sorry guys but this logic is FUBAR. You're literally saying that we are going to lose to a team that is weak (because we are, because you said so) so we should schedule someone who is strong so that it will look better to the rest of the country when we lose. It's not like ND looks at the schedule and says "Oh ****, it's october 7th. We've got a loss circled here, who are we playing? Oh damn it's wake forest. Well lets go out and lose." Do you guys really think that SOS doesn't matter? That ND is just going to lose 4 games no matter who we play? Do you think that if ND played Div. 2 ball we'd go 8-4? Sh*t if that's the case then lets just schedule the top 12 teams in the preseason every year. We're going to go 8-4 no matter what guys! Might as well play the absolute toughest teams we can so that it looks better on paper! Phork you have to be trolling, there's no other explanation.

 

[Irish YJ]

Just my thoughts.
1. we do need a tune up game of some sort with the current state of the team AND current state for BCS football.
2. tune up games should not be an FCS opponent.
3. there should be some type of logic for that tune up game.

That logic to me is what is in question. Other than the Molnar tie-in, not much for ND. My preference would be an in-state patsy from a large conference, or an out of state patsy from a large conference AND some type of political or strategic tie-in.

Indiana to me is a better option than UMass, but honestly it doesn't matter much as long as they stay away from FCS teams. Vandy would be nice, as both are strong academic schools.
Those would be my top 2 picks. After that, maybe Ball St. or Kentucky.

 

[greyhammer90]

Vandy isn't a tune up game. Franklin can coach.

 

[Irish YJ]

Vandy isn't a tune up game. Franklin can coach.

Yep, not anymore. I'd rather see Vandy than a UMass though. Tier 2 team, but SEC, and good reputation.

 

[Irish YJ]

I would like to see Rocky Top get back on the schedule too. Definitely not as a tune up game though. Nice fall game in Oct would be sweet.

 

[Buster Bluth]

Yep, not anymore. I'd rather see Vandy than a UMass though. Tier 2 team, but SEC, and good reputation.

Do you have any idea what losing to Vanderbilt would do to recruiting those southern kids who want an elite school? Bad things.

Facts are, in most games Notre Dame plays, they have more to lose than win. Beating UMass, or Vanderbilt, gives the Irish nothing because they should have won.

 

[BGIF]

The UMass game is a joke, I would rather schedule an Indiana or teams of there ilk that at least play in Big Boy conferences.

There's a major problem there. Indiana doesn't want to play ND and that's been their position for more than 50 years.

All-Time Indiana is 5-23-1 against ND. Four of those wins occurred before 1907, the year of the tie. Since 1907 they're 1-20 against the Irish. When they couldn't beat Terry Brennan in three tries they packed it in. They played ND once since 1958 losing 49-27 in 1991. The 27 points in '91 was the Hoosiers All-Time High and only the second time in 29 games that they scored more than 20 points. They were shutout 11 times.

They cited their rugged Big 10 schedule when they stopped playing ND. Can't blame them for that. Here's their record for the past 4 years:

'08 3-9
'09 4-8
'10 5-7
'11 1-11
4yr 13-35

Now of those 13 wins, 3, THAT's THREE, have been against Big 10 Opponents. They've got more wins, 4, against Div 1AA schools than they do Big 10 Opponents.

Now do you really expect them to give up their only win over South Carolina State (Mid-Eastern Atlantic Conference)? Do you think for a moment Commissioner Delaney is going to approve a substituting a glorious Div 1AA win for another embarrassing loss to ND.

Not going to happen.

How about Northwestern? They used to play ND a lot. But not since they won in '95 17-15 when ND's right guard stepped back on Powlus' foot at the NW 1 yd line taking him and the Irish down. That was NW's first win against ND since 1962.


Regardless, the UMass game came about because of a cancellation in the 2015 schedule. Serioulsy, how many big conference teams have dates available? (Still working on that list Irishpat?)

The Big 10 won't allow non-conference games at that time of season.

And Tennesse isn't going to give up a win over Montana, Tennessee Martin, or Middle Tennessee St for a major battle with ND in South Bend with no return game in Knoxville.


This isn't about scheduling a cream puff to open the season. UMass is a B-U-Y Game to fill a schedule cancellation 3 season away. There aren't many possibilities for a one game, B-U-Y Game in South Bend, considering ND doesn't play Div 1AA schools.

 

[Rhode Irish]

This whole thread makes so little sense...

It is truly an odd position some of you guys are taking about the schedule. I haven't seen a single decent rationale for it yet, either.

 

[Sam Minuteman]

Hey Irish fans, obvious UMass fan here and hopefully will be stopping in from time to time to see what all of you have to say.

First off to shed some light on "Why" the game may have been scheduled there is a comment at the bottom of this link from a local writer who follows UMass. He seems to think this might be tip of the hat to our AD for helping work behind the scenes to bring ND hockey to Hockey East.

Report: UMass football team to play Notre Dame in 2015 | masslive.com

I don't know much about ND coming to HE or how you all feel about it however this seems reasonable. Combined with some of your posters other ideas such as the heavy presence of ND fans in the northeast, "sticking it to UConn" (not entirely up on why but if you guys say so...), and of course coach Molnar. It sounds like a 1 time game that helps give ND an additional home date and the money that comes with it and if ND had to/wanted to schedule a team outside of the big 6 conferences UMass offers a good warm up game but you will notice the OOC schedule is very robust so the SOS hit might not be as bad as some other options depending on how much weight is given to record vs record of opponents of opponents exc.

Personally I never would have thought UMass would be playing ND so this is very exciting for us. I wouldn't think ND to think much of UMass Football right now but we could be viewed as an up and coming Flagship institution playing in an NFL stadium so there is potential. Whether there is synergy which leads to success between the team, athletic department/marketing team, alumni/fans, and the Krafts is yet to be seen but I am excited to see how it plays out!

For those of you interested in how some Die Hard fans of UMass think you can stop by UMassHoops.com Message Board

Football season can't come soon enough!

 

[ACamp1900]

I think this does a lot more for UMass then it does for Notre Dame

Maybe, but it does a lot for ND also,... no reason to have a "tune up" game being against the Navy's or Georgia Tech's of the world every year...

I have been saying for years one of the many things ND must do to fully return is lighten the front of the schedule...

 

[phork]

So you guys would rather lose to Tennessee than beat UMass? how does that make sense? Every single team in the nation has "warmup games". UMass will be in the MAC so they are low level D1, whats the problem? It's not like we are scheduling the Citadel or a FCS team. And plus, our 2015 schedule if I am reading it correctly, we would not play UMass until October 24th. We open the season with Texas then Michigan.

The only problem I have with this game is that it is not the first game of the season.

future schedule

And I apologize if I sound rude or if I am being critical of you guys. I just have a hard time understanding why you would rather a loss to a good team

Because the chance of losing to a team like that is very real, no more examples need to be put out there other than UM/AppSt. Who in their right mind would have picked AppSt to win that game at the BigHouse? Yet here we are. Losses to teams like that stain programs.