General team info

[Bogtrotter07]

It's just personal preference. The higher up you are the easier it will be to actually see plays on the other side of the field. But then you sacrifice being close to the action in your endzone.

I have row 4 seats for the USC game so I probably won't see the plays at the other end but it will be fun as heck.

This may be the perfect answer to the question asked, Redbar! Reps and props to you GK! I always knew you were a silver tongued devil, but your response was all of the words I failed to be able to verbalize!

 

[IrishLion]

I sat on the 35-yard line about 20 rows up for the Wake Forest game in 2012. Got lucky with tickets from a silent auction. The seats couldn't have been much better without being in towards the 50-yard line more. They were fantastic.

Having said that, my favorite seats that I've ever had were section 105, directly in the corner of the North East (?) endzone when they played Air Force in 2011. We were on the very top row against the back wall. Got to stand up against the wall the entire time without worrying about anyone behind me. Could see the entire field and all of the plays develop. AND I think I could have reached up and touched the Stealth Bomber that did the flyby for that game. It was amazing.

Unless I land tickets anywhere between the 35's, which is unlikely, the top row in the corners will probably remain my favorite.

 

[NDBoiler]

We t to my local Meijer. Not only did they not have it, they didn't even sell SI. WTF?

I don't think this issue has hit the news stands yet. I went to 3 different places this morning in hopes of reading it on my flight, but none of them had it. They all had older issues so I know they sold SI.

 

[dublinirish]

ND sent out Jaylon, Ronnie, Sheldon and C-Mart for player interviews, im guessing they will be the 4 captains this year

edit: Corey is there too so perhaps im wrong..

 

[woolybug25]

ND sent out Jaylon, Ronnie, Sheldon and C-Mart for player interviews, im guessing they will be the 4 captains this year

There's more than that. I'm watching them interview Corey Robinson right now.

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

There's more than that. I'm watching them interview Corey Robinson right now.

Where are you seeing this? I haven't found alink

 

[Legacy]

I think we can all agree that's a tad high... unless they are projecting where they think teams will finish... then it's a total crap shoot anyway.

I admit not being an expert in preseason rankings. Sells magazines though. I would just put about seven SEC teams in the top twelve with one or two from each of the other PM conferences. Recruiting rankings should be predictive, right?

 

[Luckylucci]

They interviewed Will Fuller as well.

 

[phgreek]

VS

Hopefully the new edition has a happier ending

Yea...thats the first thing I thought of...too funny.

I do think the level of talent is different, particularly on the O-line and defense. However, I think people are pretty quick to raise MZ beyond a talented question mark.

 

[dublinirish]

Where are you seeing this? I haven't found alink

it was on Periscope, i posted the link in preseason thread

 

[#1rish]

Found at a Barnes and Noble in Midtown Manhattan near my office. Initially I thought they only had Ohio State covers, but saw the golden cover buried beneath them. Only had 4-5 copies, so I took one and put the rest in front haha.

 

[TheChosen1]

Pipeline to Pros: Top 25 CFB teams with most NFL talent in 2015 - NFL.com

 

[Buster Bluth]

Pipeline to Pros: Top 25 CFB teams with most NFL talent in 2015 - NFL.com

Does Russell have another year of eligibility? Was his suspension the loss of his redshirt year or did he basically slide down to four years to play three seasons?

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Does Russell have another year of eligibility? Was his suspension the loss of his redshirt year or did he basically slide down to four years to play three seasons?

Yes. If the NCAA clears him.

 

[texbender]

Haven't been in the stadium in a while and have never sat in the end zone or the upper section. Anyone have an idea if it would be better to be in the upper level or lower level with the end zone perspective?

Have sat relatively high in south endzone for decades. Great action when they come at you, but you can still easily see all plays at other end. Not an issue IMO. ND Stadium is pretty good viewing for anybody.

 

[calvegas04]

Barnes and Noble in Vegas had plenty of the Irish SI issue in stock, just picked up mine

 

[Crazy Balki]

ND did well in not falling for the mistake scUM did, which is make their stadium TOO big and TOO cramped. Being able to pack 107,000+ is cool and all, but when you're packed in there like a bunch of sardines and you can hardly see the action from the nosebleeds, it takes away from the experience.

 

[Irish Insanity]

At Barnes and Noble here in West Michigan and they don't have the ND SI cover but the OSU one. I thought it was supposed to be ND. I'm beyond pissed.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Just came across this. I am not sure of the cred the author gets, or anything else. And he is just one voter. But he has something to say . . .

My AP preseason top-25 football ballot: Ohio State is No. 1, followed closely by Notre Dame

Posted on August 12, 2015 by Jon Wilner


Very quickly on my process, for newcomers:

My preseason ballot below is a projection of how I think the teams will finish in January, a task more difficult with by the four-team playoff. (Not that I’m complaining about the CFP.)

How the teams finish depends, to a certain extent, on their schedules, which I examined closely before sending my ballot to the AP HQ.

If you take issue with that approach, fine — taking issue is what the polls, an essential part of the college football machinery, are all about.

Please note, however, that the AP purposefully provides no framework for the preseason poll, allowing each voter to follow his/her own system.

Once the season starts, I’ll begin revising the ballot based on results, with heavy emphasis on strength of schedule.

Losing a close game to a highly-ranked team is often a better indicator of quality than a blowout victory over a cupcake.

If past years are any indication, it takes four or five weeks for enough teams to play enough meaningful games to compile a fully results-oriented ballot.

In general on the ballot below:

* I’m projecting Notre Dame to play Ohio State for the national title and have the Irish in the No. 2 slot. Their defense should be dominant (maybe better than ’12). The schedule is challenging but manageable. If Malik Zaire is merely average, there’s no reason they can’t win every game 17-10.

* Ohio State is my pick to win the title, but that pick comes with some trepidation: Sure, the Buckeyes benefit immensely from playing in a soft league (compared to the SEC/Pac12/B12), but they’re facing the twin burdens of complacency and expectations.

(I don’t expect the Bosa and Co. suspensions to be the last of the issues that challenge OSU’s chemistry and focus.)

* Breakdown by Power 5 conference: 6 SEC, 6 Pac-12, 4 Big Ten, 3 ACC, 2 B12.

* Also considered (in no particular order): Missouri, Tennessee, Brigham Young, Mississippi State, Memphis, Minnesota, Nebraska, Western Kentucky, Western Michigan, Kansas State, Marshall, Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech, Louisville, Utah, Oklahoma, Texas, Cal, Utah State, Texas A&M and Michigan. (Great as I expect Harbaugh’s impact to be, the Wolverines’ schedule is just too tough for them to be a ranked team at the end of the season.)

1. Ohio State
2. Notre Dame
3. TCU
4. Michigan State
5. Alabama
6. USC
7. LSU
8. Florida State
9. Baylor
10. Georgia
11. Oregon
12. Arizona State
13. Auburn
14. Georgia Tech
15. UCLA
16. Arkansas
17. Stanford
18. Cincinnati
19. Boise State
20. Clemson
21. Arizona
22. Wisconsin
23. Mississippi
24. Northern Illinois
25. Penn State

And while we are at it . . .

Notre Dame enjoying rare luxury at heart of defense - News-Sentinel.com
SOUTH BEND - It's interesting how a football roster can evolve – or dissolve – throughout a sea . . .

Notre Dame enjoying rare luxury at heart of defense - News-Sentinel.com

 

[BeauBenken]

Just came across this. I am not sure of the cred the author gets, or anything else. And he is just one voter. But he has something to say . . .




And while we are at it . . .

This dude thinks we will have a better defense than in 2012?

He's nuts. If we do that, hell yes we will win every game.

 

[EvilleIrish]

This dude thinks we will have a better defense than in 2012?

He's nuts. If we do that, hell yes we will win every game.

I just can't wrap my head around a dominating defense with the way the year finished last season. I know there were a ton of injuries but I just can't see THAT big of a jump. I would be pleased with just a top 30 defense this season.

 

[BGIF]

ND did well in not falling for the mistake scUM did, which is make their stadium TOO big and TOO cramped. Being able to pack 107,000+ is cool and all, but when you're packed in there like a bunch of sardines and you can hardly see the action from the nosebleeds, it takes away from the experience.

You've apparently never sat in an ND aisle seat, stood up to cheer a play and be the last one in the row to retake your seat ... on the steps.

 

[Johannes]

At Barnes and Noble here in West Michigan and they don't have the ND SI cover but the OSU one. I thought it was supposed to be ND. I'm beyond pissed.

Did you try Schuler Books? If I'm down that way this week I'll stop in and see if they have the ND cover in stock.

 

[IrishFanJMercy]

Did Holmes Redshirt last year?

 

[dublinirish]

Did Holmes Redshirt last year?

no

 

[BGIF]

I just can't wrap my head around a dominating defense with the way the year finished last season. I know there were a ton of injuries but I just can't see THAT big of a jump. I would be pleased with just a top 30 defense this season.

The difference between the Top 30 Total Defense last year and the Top 20 was 32 yds/game, 355 versus 323 ... about 0.45 yds/play.

ND allowed 404 yds/game last year. Stopping 1, 70 Drive a game with a full defense drops ND down into the Top 20 Defenses.

Looking at it another way, in the first 8 game through Navy when Schmidt went down ND was allowing 359 yds/game ... Top 30 stuff WITHOUT the Frozen Five. This year ND is better and deeper.

After Schmidt was lost (and others) ND alloweed 476 yds/game ... almost 2 additional TD drives.

Consider also the number of turnovers giving opponents a shorter field.

IF ND plays as well for the season and not just 8 games with greater depth than last year that could better stand the injuries than last season could AND Zaire cuts the QB turnovers in half. Not eliminates them, just cuts them in half ... ND scores a bunch more points. That writer is correct Zaire doesn't need a Heisman season. Just be a ball manager.

My sole concern about the defense is whether BVG can execute his substitute specialty personnel packages faster or if he can play with less packages. North Carolina's hurry up locked BVG out and other teams went to school on that game.

 

[GoIrish41]

This dude thinks we will have a better defense than in 2012?

He's nuts. If we do that, hell yes we will win every game.

There is a possibility that he is right about our defense. Going into 2012, we had huge questions at DB (not this year) and a couple of freshmen -- Farley and Russell -- showed up and filled those holes. I have high confidence in the corners this year, and so long as Shumate and Redfield deliver to their potential [and coach-inspired hype] I think we have a really good back end this year. Those young guys from 12 are now the leaders in the backfield this year.

We were pretty stacked at DL in '12, and we seem to be in pretty good shape there this year. Hopefully this is where we will have a couple of young guys (especially eager to see Tillery perform) show up this year, but I think Day is a top 10 DLineman, Rochelle, Trumbetti, Jones, and Williams (if he's allowed back) make up a really solid corps. We have enough guys to keep fresh bodies on the field and not get wore down like last year with the injuries. I'm not going to assume we won't generate a pass rush until I see it play out on the field.

At LB, I have no doubt that Jaylon is going to be lights out. Schmidt is a soldier out there and he will offer consistency, toughness and leadership. Between Grace, Morgan, and the new young guys we have some pretty high potential and all those guys could deliver quality minutes.

I will say this ... I feel better about the defense going into this season than I did going into '12, and that defense ended up being pretty darn good.

 

[dublinirish]

2012 D had Nix and Tuitt and Kappy was no slouch either, we don't have any pass rush like these guys

 

[BGIF]

...

I will say this ... I feel better about the defense going into this season than I did going into '12, and that defense ended up being pretty darn good.

And this year they'll be no Lennay Kekua head games.

 

[GoIrish41]

And this year they'll be no Lennay Kekua head games.

The 12th man (er, woman)?