Prediction.....PAIN!....

Really...Really?.... Come on folks!... At this point every magazine, analyst, Tom, Dick and Harry has made predictions....Here's one from your old buddy Damefan.....PAIN!...

Pain...in the name of...We will feel some PAIN...We will inflict some PAIN...but at the end of the day the scoreboard should, and yes I said SHOULD, have ND with more points!... We will see...

Everybody wants to talk Defense...and you know what?  I understand!....

Let's talk the past 6 seasons!...One of my favorite books for business and if you haven't checked it out...GO READ IT!.... is....

Bear with me for a moment....ND is not...and has not...been that far from being a great team in quite some time!...

05...MSU loss...Bush Push....All that was missing between us and a BCS Championship berth....Good Defense.....

06...UM loss....USC...Loss... again the only thing from a back to back BCS Championship berths...Good Defense....

07...FROSH vs Seniors...We lose that battle every time!...Ty played us into that mess....

08...All our losses were not because we couldn't score points!..... it was...Good Defense....

09...See 05...06...08....etc...Ya see a pattern?...

Now why good to great.... because I don't expect our Defense to be GREAT right outta the gate...

But what I do expect is for us to be at least GOOD!.... If our D is good....just good....we will be VERY DANGEROUS!...

We don't need to be great on D to be a great team....we just need to be good!....

Sure there will be games were our D is great....and that is awesome...we just need to make sure there are NO GAMES where we are less than good!....

Our margin for error is slight....but it's there!....

We will have games that our D bails our O out!...and vice versa!... Get ready, this will be a long...but highly rewarding season!....

You want predictions!....Here we go...

1. We will have a solid D secondary!....Led by Harrison Smith...and Gary Gray....as well as my boy RJ Blanton!....(sub in rotation Motta and Slaughter) Smith..Gray...Blanton will have seasons that will send them into the NFL draft....No question...1st and 2nd round players!...

2. As a whole the Defense will gain NATIONAL attention by week 5 and the U$C game will be on everyone's calendar as a make or break game for both programs...

3. Brady Hoke...pictured above will give ND everything they can handle for 3 quarters!....you put them in whatever order you want....(we either jump out early and put enough distance so they can't catch up...or we wear out their lack of depth and own the 4th quarter!...) but ND's talent and depth will make the final push and send the IRISH into week three undefeated!...

4. I will not go into detail about how I know this...but expect to see this guy in Ireland to play NAVY!....

5. NO DISTRACTIONS!... The ups and downs of last season will seem like a distant memory....we got hit by SO MANY distractions last season I think we got four or five seasons of BullSh#t outta the way...Karma should be swinging our way....It was almost like GOD was testing Coach Kelly to see if he was the man for the long haul!.... Injuries....Sullivans tragic (but somehow Coach Kelly's fault?)  Death....Crying Wolf "supposed rape"...etc...  So No more pulling your hair out!...


The bottom line is...this is our time!.... We've survived the storm....weathered the elements....and we are still standing!...

What the college football universe doesn't realize is....We are already a legit 10 win team NOW!...

Hell, put us in the Big 10 let us cupcake our schedule, with some Eastern Michigan....some Akron or Toledo laughable games!....

Trade out our legit murders row of opponents and we are 10-2 EVERY SEASON!...

So what?...What have we accomplished...We think we're elite...just so we can show up to a bowl and have the SEC murder us like they do almost every season to some undeserving qualifier?..

When the IRISH walk into the big game they will be tested....and ANGRY!

They will be ready...and they will show college football what doing it right...and not dodging the big boys looks like!...

So rejoice my friends and realize that the dark times are at our back...and only the light of VICTORY lays before us!.... GO IRISH!....and GOD BLESS!....

A Champions Perspective!....John Foley

Ladies and Gentlemen say hello to 1986 National Defensive High School Player of the year..John Foley. About 6 months ago I was highly engaged in one of my numerous Facebook arguments about college football when outta nowhere someone took a shot at Lou Holtz!....Surprising...Yes...Surprising, seeing as how I live in the heart of the worst fan base in college football, Columbus "1 National Championship and 4 outright conference championships in 40 YEARS....yet we believe we are elite" OHIO...Buckeye Country...NO!..not surprising... But what happened next was very nice.... Outta thin air an agressive response to the negative Holtz comment came out!...BAM!... Followed up with a very respectful "you don't know sh#t about what you are talking about" via...John Foley!... Little did I know I had an ND Legend that had been following my arguments on Facebook and decided that day....was the day to break his silence...

CLICK HERE TO REFRESH YOUR MEMORY TO THE PAIN JOHN USED TO DISPENSE!


Since that day John and I, being in the same business and sharing the same passion for life growth and the pursuit of EVERYTHING Notre Dame, have become great friends....and don't worry...It's not a NCAA violation for us to be buddies!..LOL...

To say John hasn't lost his desire to compete is a drastic understatement.  He has become a pivotal figure on Wall Street and a brick in the foundation that is Barrington Research Associates Inc. 

With all that is happening lately in College Football with the $180,000 for Cam....Tattoos and Lies at O$U....Oregon...who really knows what the Hell they were doing...and now the U!... John and I started talking about the old days....and the conversation went a bit like this!....

What was it like being so highly recruited and what type of "shady" tactics do you remember...(I'm leaving the school names out fellas!..)


"Growing up we were not wealthy people so I think they saw me and my family as maybe a target... I had one coach come into my high school with $100,000 in cash...one college said that if I went there that they would give my brother and my girl friend a full ride also....One promised my dad a house and a new job at twice his salary...It got way outta hand"  

Was it kind of a free for all...was anyone monitoring these programs?


"You know that's the funny part...the NCAA had contacted me and my family almost knowing that this was about to start happening.  They pulled the wool over my eyes to the extent that they told me that if I didn't report EVERYTHING I was seeing, they made me feel as if they could prevent me from receiving a scholarship at any school...So I reported in every week.." 

Why Notre Dame?....Why Coach Holtz?

"That's the thing....When I met Coach Holtz he looked me in the eye and simply said...Son, we'd love to have you at Notre Dame...We know your being offered the world...But I have you tell you...Your the most aggressive player I've ever seen...I don't think your gonna survive college the way you play...So I have an offer too....An offer you can't refuse...An Education...Now let me ask you....How's your shoulder?"  


"That was the amazing part...No one...I mean No one knew I had a bad shoulder...but somehow Lou knew."  "I felt like he cared about Notre Dame so much but he also cared about our lives...and what we would do after football. No one else even mentioned the future."

What was you favorite memory of Lou?

"We had been practicing and the coaches used to yell at me to CALM DOWN...I didn't know how to go  half speed...to me at that age it was FULL GO all the time...  Growing up my father was a Golden Glove boxer and being from Chicago I learned here and there how to get respect when need be.  I let the guys on the team know that if you cheap shotted me...I'd kick your butt!  One day during practice I can't remember who...but man someone took a cheap shot and I was pissed.. Fists stared flying and the next thing I knew I heard Coach Holtz scream...FOLEY YOUR OFF THE TEAM!...LEAVE THE FIELD!"  


"I was so upset I remember walking out...mad!...There were a bunch of kids on the other side of  the fence waiting for us to walk back from the practice field....I thought well why not?  I started handing out my equipment to the kids...one got a helmet...one got a jersey...one got some shoulder pads...etc" 

"That night Coach looked at the practice film and realized it was a cheap shot and called me in to re-instate me to the team..." 

"Well as things went on through the season...it happend again in practice...I got the cheap shot...I took my shots...Coach Holtz screamed and kicked me off the team...but this time...he said...FOLEY..YOUR OFF THE TEAM...and DON'T GIVE YOUR EQUIPMENT AWAY!...LOL... Sometimes I laugh just thinking about that."


What player on this current team reminds you of yourself and why?

"No question Fleming... He and I went to the same high school in Chicago...his playing style really reminds me of myself...and I expect HUGE things from him this season. When I was new to the college game I was so aggressive that I would over pursue and take myself out of plays...I notice Fleming doing that last year...but toward the seasons end it seemed more like controlled anger."  


"I think Fleming will have the type of season that will vault him into the first round of the NFL draft."

What are your impressions of Coach Kelly?

"LOVE HIM!...Great motivator...Not too close to the players...but they respect him and fear him! He has an uncanny way of not letting them know where they are at 100% of the time with him. It's like that  father/son relationship...You want his approval so bad..but at the same time that fear of disappointing him is still there...it makes you work very hard for everything."  


"The last three coaches...were just like...Well one was too close...one was not close at all...and one thought he was smarter than everyone else...Not going to mention names but you figure it out.." 



What do you feel that this team is capable of?

"That's an easy one....At the most 2 losses, but if a few things go their way....health...no major injuries...It' amazing what can happen when a team in on the same page with one another."  


"Remember in 88 we graduated Tim Brown...lost three of our top receivers to grad and academics...lost our ENTIRE starting D and O line to graduation...I got hurt and could not play...Lost our top two fullbacks Johnson and Banks to injury...had to start two young guards Joe Allen and Mike Brennan against no.1 Miami due to injury of Grunhard and Ryan...had to play without leading receiver Watters and rusher Brooks against no.2 USC and still won it all!..." 


"Our team was close and really cared about each other...we knew that if we played together we could win it all. This team reminds me of our 88 team...From what I'm hearing they are like family!" 

He's gonna kill me for putting up this picture...but this is who John Foley is...He loves life,his children and what the future holds... I told him one time that my motto was "Your either growing or you dying...there is no third direction"  This describes John Foley...nothing that has happend in his life will allow him to make an excuse for anything...he controls his own destiny and knows that to achieve success it takes blood, sweat and tears...Just like Coach Holtz said...The offer of education was an offer he could not refuse!....He made the most of it!...

GO IRISH!...Thanks John for the time and friendship!...

IT'S ALIVE!.....IT'S REALLY ALIVE!.....NOW GO KILL SOMETHING!...GO IRISH!

If we're gonna talk Defense....let's be real... The almighty D has been missing for minute!... Well for a couple of decades actually!... But now....it's laboratory time!... It's...go to the cupboard and see what we got time...and what we can make of it!...

When I think about Coach Kelly in defensive meetings...I can't help but think of Dr. Frankenstein....only instead of looting dead bodies...He gets to go out and hand pick his corpses!... I mean PLEASE..Look at what we've got stock piled and waiting...Waiting to be stitched together....juiced up (electric...get your heads outta the gutters!..LOL) and the MONSTER he is able to invision with the ingredients in his cupboard!...

It's a 4 HEADED MONSTER as I see it!...

1. Developing talent through quality asst. coaching!

This is Coach Martin....or as I like to call him...Mr. Sunshine!... I've had the pleasure of talking with Coach Martin on a few occasions...This picture is from the Spring Game last season...Now mind you...this is not a professional picture...I TOOK THIS...He was that intense in a Thursday afternoon walk though for a SPRING GAME...what do you think the fellas get on a daily basis during the season?...

We are VERY fortunate to have Coach Martin...I guarantee his phone rings for D1 Head Coaching jobs SEVRAL times a season... He is a Kelly Man!  You don't leave an established program...were you are winning National Championships to come to any old college and become the secondary coach!... Unless it's Notre Dame...and Coach Kelly... Coach Martin is as good as it gets in college football...

Diaco is a legit up and coming D-coord with NO EGO!...

Coach Cooks brings the "players coach" to light through his "been there done that" approach!

etc..

2. LEGIT POSITION BATTLES!....

I mean when was the last time we didn't have to force young players into a line up?... When have we had ANYWHERE close to this type of quality depth at the defensive skill positions!.... When for GOD's sake have you been truly excited to see THE NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH D-LINE in action?... Since Seinfield was in its first few seasons?...

Don't get me wrong...We've had a few players here and there but that was just it....Here and there!... Not ACROSS THE BOARD!... 

From what I'm hearing...people are pushing....clawing....scraping....they want on that bus!....and it's go time!

3.  ROTATION!....

This season's Defense is gonna be all about rotation...rotation....and more rotation....NO MORE BLOWING LEADS!...

Fresh Legs constantly!... 

Cwynar out....Nix in...      Ethan out.....Kona in....                                                                               KLM out....Lynch in.....   Shembo out....Spond in...

And so on....and so on... Do you realize what having 3 deep and sometimes 4 quality defensive playmakers can do to an opposing offense?...  WEAR THEM THE F#@K out!... We are gonna be CLOSERS this season....We are going to get stronger...and stronger as the clock ticks towards the 3rd and 4th quarters because we can rotate our talent....

and last but not least...and maybe the most exciting!....

4. SPECIAL SITUATIONAL PLAYERS!

Trained....highly skilled....NUKE BEAST MISSILS that Diaco can dial up for certain situations!.... 

I really can't wait to see the first 3rd and 6....obvious passing down... Fleming coming off one corner....Shembo coming off the other....Lynch on one end....Ethan on the other....NIX BLOWING UP THE MIDDLE!...Manti laying back to protect the dump or draw!..... ARMAGEDDON BABY!...

We have these kids....We have packages for these kids....now we just need to UNLEASH these kids...

See ball?....GO GET BALL!... You don't have to be in a system for 2 seasons to understand BRUTE FORCE!...to understand...GO GET THE QUARTERBACK!....We know he has to pass!....

These type of situational players will lead to:

1. More pressure...

2. More sacks...

3. More tackels for loss...

4. More fumbles...

5. More 3 and outs...

6. More picks!....

MORE DAMEFAN BEING HAPPY!....  

If you could bottle up this defense the way I'm seeing it...You'd have to put a surgeon general warning on it..

BEWARE....DO NOT OPEN...unless you have no disregard for human safety!...

In closing my friends...I will quote one of my childhood heros....

Apollo Creed..."GET YER CAMERAS READY!"....

GO IRISH!....

Dear Mom and Dad...Camp is going REALLY WELL!...

Every season...Optimism is high and sometimes for good reason...sometimes just because the fans WANT IT SOOOOO BAD!....

This season is a bit different....The initial "oh...I thought he'd be bigger...." is gone... The "damn..he's gonna need a few years to pack on some muscle" is history!... The freshman are not passing the eyeball test, they are knocking it outta the park!.... These are not your normal frosh hitting campus!...

They are MEN...and not just the stars!....We all kinda knew that Lynch was big....that Tuitt was a monster..but start looking at the guy's walking next to them!....Look at Rabassa!..(no. 56 above)  Look at Carico at 6'6 and 290...Councell 6'5...Hegarty 6'5...Springman 6'6...Niklas 6'7....Kelly doesn't recruit D-lineman that are 5'10...PERIOD!...

Now mix in a bit of spice...My favorite is called LONGO!...

Damn...it feels good to have a head coach that can run outta the tunnel with the team...and a strength and conditioning coach that looks like he practices what he preaches!....

I used to watch Weis and Mendoza and have flashbacks to the junkyard twins in Nothing But Trouble!

Now they are the GAY-tors problem!....

But back to business....Let's talk playmakers...Let's talk offense...Let's talk Cierre Wood!....

In my HUMBLE opinion...LOL The offense starts and ends with Cierre Wood... We know Dayne can sling the ball...We know Floyd can catch it....We know that if Dayne goes down Kelly can develop QB's....But what we don't know is....How fast we can become one dimensional if we can't run the ball!.... Wood is the trigger to that gun!...and he is cocked and ready to explode!....  Floyd keeps the safeties deep....and not cheating up....that's where Wood can slice and dice the competition!... He hits the hole fast and what I'm expecting this season is POWER....We all know he's shifty...but what I'm expecting to see is Cierre punch some people in the mouth!.... I'm hearing that he's a beast in the weight room....Pushing weight comprable to what Jonas is pushing around (and we've all seen Jonas!) He is gonna break out this season....If our line performs like expected....Expect Wood to be a one man highlight reel!... 

With Wood running the ball and keeping the corners and safeties honest....that will open up the slant for what I feel is the 2nd bullet coming outta the Kelly Mac-10....

Theo Riddick... this kid will be a household name by game 2!... He is the ultimate 7 yard slant 60 yard run slot receiver...and maybe by seasons end one of the best in the county!... He's greasy fast....hard to get a hand on...and has moves that we have not seen in an Irish uniform since Rocket graced the dome!... 


Now sprinkle in a bit of the "surprise" player I'm predicting to RISE UP!....

Jonas Gray!....that's right boys and girls...Jonas is my pick for what I've coined as the "HUGHES" award winner....Expect the light to go on for Jonas Gray this season...Nobody is ripping away his confidence...Cierre and he are spending time together and figuring out how to be a very hard 1-2 punch!.....Stay tuned!....


This is the season!....This is the era....this is the time for IRISH football to regain it's rightful spot atop the College Football World!....and Kelly is doing everything right!....


Stay Tuned later this week as I break down what I'm hearing about our D-Boys!....and a certain young man attracting A LOT OF ATTENTION!...and for good reason!...

GOD-COUNTRY-NOTRE DAME! 


                      GO IRISH!

You Gotta Know When To Hold'em!...and You Gotta Know When to Fold'em!....GO IRISH!

Greetings my IRISH brothers and sisters!....First things first!....RELAX!.... This is the game!.... This is how the big boys do it!...  At some point, you have to keep your word!...  Trust me! What Coach Kelly did tonight with Schutt will pay HUGE dividends!...

The kids in this country have to realize when assessing their offers that YOUR NOT THE ONLY PERSON WE WANT AT THIS POSITION!... Day realized this...He's IRISH!... Schutt didn't...He's NOT!... END GAME!...

If you let kids keep you on the dangle all season waiting and you will miss out on other studs!.. Frankly, I think this move is Genius!.. Don't think for a moment guys like Jones....Mahone...Armstead aren't all paying very close attention to what just happened!... You wanna jump?...JUMP!....if not...find another lilly pad!...We know what direction this one is headed!...

There's an old saying among stock brokers....Some are really good at what they do...some are just throwing spagetti against the wall to see what sticks!...(Michigan!..)

Bottom line is KELLY HAS A PLAN....and trust me...the 7 "P's" are worth the process!...
Proper-Pre-Planning-Prevents-Piss-Poor-Performance!.... Write that down!...


Every move this guy has made since he got to ND has been calculated!...Planned...and Performed!...

Look at the first season....

1. Dayne get's hurt and cost's us the UM game!...

2. MSU decides that play clocks are not really important!...

3. We lose Armando....Kyle...Riddick....Ian....Dayne (again)

4. Some idiot manager of the Audio/video dept. sends Sullivan up in that lift and for some reason all eyes are on Coach?

5. Bi-polar girl screams Wolf!....

6....should I go on?....

And the entire time this guy is as cool as ICE....never fazed him or took him off path... Mike Mayock was interviewed this week by Irish Illustrated.com...I'm not sure of the exact wording...but he mentioned how after Navy took us to the woodshed... The Tulsa fiasco....the Players had the same message in interviews and NEVER lost sight of the goal!....Coach Kelly had them....BOUGHT IN!....

And I'll tell ya one thing about Mayock!....He does not candy coat SH#T!... He tell's it like he see's it!...and He's bought in to where Kelly is taking the IRISH!....

So...Why aren't you?...

On a side note....I'm hearing BIG NUMBERS coming from the weight room about our boy Stephon Tuitt!... I WILL NOT go into exact details!....but he was not a gym rat in high school...in fact this is most likely his first formal weight training...and he is KILLING IT!... I've been around power lifting for years...and his numbers for a kid his size....are UN GODLY!... He will be a solid 300 pound greasy fast MONSTER next season!....Trust me!....

Brothers and Sisters!....Rejoice!.... Tomorrow is Coach Kelly's presser!.... Saturday is the start of camp...and in 30 short days....USF will get their ass handed to them!....

I'll leave you with this!....You might wanna get used to this picture on ND campus for the next 4 years!...

GO IRISH!.....I'm Jones-ing to see what happens!.....wink...wink....