Week 11: All Mixed Up

Ball of confusion

And the band played on... 

Dateline:  Davenport, IA

When Jerrence's daughters were quite young, he used to make up stories to tell them.  The tales could be about almost anything that sprung into his mind -- ponder than for a moment, dear reader -- but quite often it involved their favorite Teletubbies, Laa-Laa & Po, and their unfortunate, freakish, and often violent, deaths.  

Die, Spawn of Satan, die!

Jerrence despised those insipid creatures and took great relish in finding new and creative ways to off them.   But his daughters -- begging the question 'nature or nurture' -- and long before they knew anything about Freddie Krueger, Michael Myers or Jason Vorhees, would always find ways to bring them back to life.  

They were unkillable.

It was a back-and-forth that both sides loved to play (hey, we all bond with our children in different ways).   To this day, any archival reference to those garishly colored creatures triggers Jerrence and makes Ryan & Shea laugh.

So, storytelling is a skill that this blogger maintains makes the world go round.  Whether you are a screenwriter, a novelist, a financial analyst or a CEO...  if you cannot create an interesting, compelling narrative that explains and persuades -- that addresses the 'what', the 'so what' and 'what's next' -- you're fooked.   What many people call 'selling' is, in fact, storytelling.  Just ask anyone of Irish lineage.

Thank you for attending my Ted Talk. 

And which brings us to last Saturday's game.  Even by Jerrence's generous standards, that contest's story was (is) unbelievable.  Even he couldn't come with a sequence of events that outlandish, although high marks, ND, for getting the viewers' attention early and not letting go.  

Just too bad it wasn't against Miami or Texas Tech in a playoff game.

Quote of the Week

Word of the Week

Used in a sentence paragraph:  Upon reflection, the first thing Jerrence thought about the game he'd just witnessed was recalling something Billy Bob Thornton's psychotic character said in Season 1 of Fargo --  when a postal worker asks him for I.D. -- he was picking up a package -- and Billy Bob says, "No." 

Declaring to that his refusal was asking was "highly irregular," Thornton's Lorne Malvo character responds in a deadpan tonality (as only Billy Bob could do):

"No, 'highly irregular' is the time I found a human foot in a toaster oven.  This is just odd."

True dat, Billy Bob.  Begging the question, what was the foot doing... wait, don't tell me.  

So Jerrence considered it might be a stretch, hyperbole even, to suggest Notre Dame's 1st Quarter represented a phantasmagoria of perfect, improbable sequential plays...  but when stuff occurs that hadn't happened in a generation of football play -- or ever... 

...that's more than just 'odd.' 

Game 11 Thoughts

Man, it's all been forgiven

Swans are a-swimmin'

I'll explain everything to the geeks...

After someone explains everything to the geeks, maybe they can explain it to me -- 'cause I have no idea what this song is about, and yet find it weirdly appropriate given how inexplicable Saturday's game was.

How bizarre was the game? 

It defied rationale explanation, -- even the obvious 'one team was really good and one team was really bad' analysis doesn't quite do the absurdity justice -- so I've got no pithy insights.  Simply, here's a few of the weirder 'fun facts'...

   

    -- Notre Dame 70, Syracuse 7.  (The last time ND scored that many points, Kay Corrigan was 12!)

    -- Time of Possession:  Syracuse 44 minutes vs. ND 16!

    -- ND had more points than passing yards.

    -- ND had more points on offense (49) than plays run (39).

    -- First team ever in college history to rush for more than 300 yards on less than 25 carries.

    -- ND's defense has outscored the starting offenses they've played in back-to-back games.

    -- ND's 35 points in the 1st Quarter -- and came about :10 short of 42 points -- had never happened before.

    --  And the most ridiculous stat of all, ND went 10-for-10 on PAT's -- which I think puts young Mr. Schmidt in the ND record books!  Talk about irony.

Usually I like to put some game highlights here.  But it was Senior Day...   

Buddy's Buddy

If I was a really good guy, Jalen Stroman would be the hands down, slam dunk Buddy of the week. He played arguably the game of his career, in a substitute role.

Hell, he personally accounted for 12 points alone IN THE FIRST SIX PLAYS OF THE GAME.

Okay maybe he should be a co-recipient... 

And granted, ND playing a walk on freshman QB... talk about feeding someone to the lions... hard to feel super impressed about anything accomplished defensively in that context.

Still, those are the types of games where historically ND plays down to the competition, lets 'em hang around for a half then puts 'em away by the middle of the 4th quarter...

Not today, Satan.

So we're calling out Chris Ash as this week's Bud.   When your team is up three scores before your offense even takes the field, it does suggest you've got your unit locked in for the get go.

And stayed locked in -- even as the 2nd and 3rd stringers flooded the field for the entire 2nd half.

Need we remind you, CFP Committee members, when this same Syracuse team -- minus Steve Angeli -- played Miami in early November (i.e., two weeks ago!), it was scoreless after the 1st quarter, 0-0 with 3 minutes left in the 1st half (!) until a 38-10 final. 

Of course, the ultimate Buddy has always been The Stayer Lot Six (missing Our Man Lini)... thanks as always, Jim / Bob/ Jay / Tim / Peter /Jerry!

The regular season's final Stayer tailgate:  a tradition like no other. 

RE-PETE (A shameless, illegal lift of Pete Sampson's weekly mail-bag)

So, courtesy (I think) of James Flaherty III, Esq., I got to meet one of my ND heroes this past weekend at the tailgate.

No, not Art Best (who, sadly, died in 2014).

Rather, The Athletic's very own Pete Sampson whose introduction allowed me to not only profess my sincere esteem for his blog / podcast work but also confess my consistent plagiarizing of his work.

Thankfully, he took it like a champ.  What a guy.  

So, I don't want to say I'm feeling bulletproof but I think he gave me a legally binding, non-verbal smirk -- in front of witnesses -- and knowing Indiana IP Law like I do... 

In any event, I'm a big believer in culture:  pop culture, corporate culture, ethnic culture... and it occurs to me that one of the reasons so many football programs are so enamored with Marcus Freeman, be it college or professional, is not his schematic expertise (sorry, Charlie Weis) but rather, his ability to actually establish a high character-based culture that endures even with the typical turnover of college graduating classes -- and rocket-fueled by the new NIL / transfer portal chaos.  Here's Pete Sampson's take: 

Too many programs throw around “culture” as some kind of trade secret. It’s more basic than that. It’s an ability to get a locker room and a program to pull toward one end goal, no matter the transfer portal or name, image and likeness implications. Notre Dame has that going for it across the board. Even with Jeremiyah Love’s Heisman campaign activated — Freeman blessed the running back striking the pose after his final touch — Love still seems to get almost as much joy watching Notre Dame’s other backs make plays as he does making his own.

“Obviously a lot of people like to talk about me doing lots of great things, but I love to see my teammates go out there and have success,” Love said. “That’s what really moves my heart. It’s not very easy to move me, so I love seeing those guys have success.”

Notre Dame will need more of this, maybe not next weekend against Stanford, but in whatever comes after. The Irish should stay within the projected CFP field on Tuesday night as the season moves toward its penultimate week. There’s nothing about a 63-point win that could be used against the Irish. And considering no program within the top 14 lost, it’s a good bet that things will be status quo.

What comes in the CFP will be different, which Notre Dame learned last season, duct-taping the team together through injuries, including Love’s meniscus that limited him during most of the postseason. Viliamu-Asa goes down, Faraimo steps up. The Irish have been going without wide receiver Jaden Greathouse almost all season, with Will Pauling filling the void. The offensive line has made the best of a bad injury situation.

No one is feeling sorry for Notre Dame. Injuries are part of the sport. Either develop enough depth to withstand them or enjoy the Pop-Tarts Bowl. Freeman opted for the former, assembling enough talent to make the Irish durable and assimilating it within the program, no matter the role.

“Nothing’s handed to you,” Jalen Stroman said. “This team is everything to me. You can go from offense to defense to special teams, punters, long snappers, everybody loves each other. It’s just a great bond on this team.

“I’ve never had that in my life. It just feels good to be a part of it. It feels great just to be with these boys. I wouldn’t change it for anything.”

Source: The Athletic

November 23, 2025

Cocktail of the Week

One might think that choosing a Cormac McCarthy-inspired novel as the basis of this week's cocktail selection would be a counter intuitive selection.

The game was, by all accounts, a giggle fest from start to finish.

Mr. McCarthy's novels, decidedly, are not.

The maestro, with his fans

But there is a "I don't know quite what's happening here" aspect to both author and last Saturday's game.  Plus, isn't it about time that we remind the sentient world just how special we have it with Peter Behrens, Esq. as our officially unofficial bartender at every tailgate?

Granted, in the more limited milieu that is tailgate mixology, he is a bit of a one trick pony but boy oh boy, what a trick:  

Turning a classic breakfast cocktail into a full blown meal with all the goodies he throws into said drink.

As the Millennials or Gen Z (who can tell them a part anymore) are fond of saying, "We appreciate you."

So, Cormac McCarthy Meets Peter Behrens.  How's that Syracuse game-level weird?

__________

BLOODY MARY-IDIAN

Blood Meridian

by Cormac McCarthy (1985)

A book in the anti-western genre, this nihilistic and bloody novel takes place on the American frontier. 

As the reader follows a protagonist known as "the kid," a tale of bloodshed and violence unfolds to reveal the horrors of the early Americas. 

After such a bleak trip through time, reward yourself with a modern twist on a classic drink to ease the pain.

           

Yield:  1 serving

--  1½ oz. vodka

--  3 oz. tomato juice

--  ½ oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice

--  1 dash Worcestershire sauce

--  1 dash hot sauce (adjust to taste)

--  celery salt and black pepper, to taste

--  celery stalk, lemon wedge, and olives, for garnish

-----------------------------

1. Fill a shaker with ice cubes.

2. Add the vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, celery salt, and black pepper to the shaker.

3. Shake the ingredients well to combine and chill.

4. Strain the mixture into an ice-filled highball glass.

5. Garnish with the celery stalk, lemon wedge, and olives.

Source:  The Turn of the Screwdriver

50 Dark & Twisted Literary Cocktails

By Iphigenia Jones

Schedule 2025

August

31                @Miami              L      

September 

                                                  

13                Texas A&M         L                      

20               Purdue                W                   Corrigan brother reunion!                      

27                @Arkansas        W                   Soooiiieeee! 

October  

                                                                                                     

4                 Boise St.              W                    Alumni Hall Reunion weekend, Union Pier MI        

11                NC State              W

18               USC                      W                     "Lincoln, We Hardly Knew Ye" (wussy)                    

November 

 1                 @BC                    W

 9                Navy                    W             

16               @Pitt                    W           

23               Syracuse             W                    Final 2025 regular season tailgate                       

29              @Stanford                                                              

December

19-20      PLAYOFF GAME!

Wager 2025

Wins	ND Equivalence	Domer
12 The Joker	"Do I really look like a guy with a plan?" -----  Ledger's Joker is mercurial, charismatic and a complete psychopath. Utterly unforgettable.  Just as a Notre Dame undefeated, on-their-way-to-a-national championship-season would be.	Kevin C. John P John L Brian M  JP  Bryan G   Raz  Dave M Tim B.
11 Otto	"Don't call me stupid!" ----- Ex-CIA operative Otto lives at the intersection of dangerous and moronic. An 'Otto season' for ND would be a rollercoaster -- a lot of fun with youth at some key positions, and likely more than it's fair share of 'that wasn't very clever' moments.	Gutsch , Sloane Daryl Jim S.  Peter  Tim  Ted Bill Jim B Pat B George Alex, Feif Garrett Spit the Elder
10 Hans Landa	"That's a bingo!" ----- Jew hunter Landa -- equal parts chillingly pathological and  pragmatic, this character would probably represent a 10-win regular season that might make you sick to your stomach but ultimately pretty satisfied.	Jerrence,  Mike C,   Tim C.   Mark U.  Jerry P.  Jerry C.   Mike B. Brian W.  Jim T. Mike G, Bose Jerry W Lini, Randy   Greg Kyle W.
9 RP McMurphy	"I'm a goddamn marvel of modern science." ----- What's the residual emotion from Cuckoo's Nest?  Sadness. RP, a guy who sees things clearly but can't get out of his own way. When it doesn't end well, one is left thinking what could've been.  Like a 9-win season.	Matt Alvin
8 Jason Bourne	"I don't know who I am.  Or where I'm going.  None of it." ------ An apt summary of an 8-win ND season.  A lot of difficult questions ultimately unanswered. Still, the Bourne trilogy rocks and JB is The Man.
7 John Wick	"I'm thinking I'm back..." ----- For many, ND winning only 7 games would be akin to someone shooting their dog -- and requiring appropriate payback. And like with John Wick, rationale requiring very few words of explanation.
6 Maximus	"Are you not entertained!" ------ Probably not, if ND only won six games... but that's not the point here:  it probably says a lot about me that the final ranked character is the most moral, selfless one of the bunch.

Sports Imitating Art

The Martyrdom of St. Peter, by Gaspar de Crayer, 1664-69

Schadenfreude of the Week

One can be of two minds re Notre Dame's chances to make the CFP:

1)  As long as we take care of business against Stanford, we're in.  Just a question of the final seeding.

2) Not so sure.  We still need a few games to go our way. 

And what would those games be?  Let's throw out a couple:

-- Mississsippi St. surprising a distracted Ole Miss would be a great start to the weekend.

-- Ohio State smoking Michigan would be good on a few different levels.

-- Auburn beating Alabama is probably too much to ask for, but a girl can dream.

-- LSU shocking Oklahoma would be icing on the cake.

-- Texas A&M beating Texas still seems key. 

Some personal news: I am anti-science now.

FWIW, the nightmare scenario seems to involve #10 Alabama reaching / winning the SEC Championship game vs. #3 Texas A&M... the Tide would likely rise ahead of the Irish but the Aggies would not fall behind. 

Meanwhile, if #5 Texas Tech loses to #11 BYU in the Big 12 championship, the Cougars would earn an auto-bid and the committee would have a choice to make between two-loss Texas Tech and two-loss Notre Dame. 

Finally, if #18 Michigan beats #1 Ohio State AGAIN... that could complicate things further.

-----------------------------------------------

Re last week... when the top 14 ranked teams all win, there's not a whole lot to celebrate.  And yet, a humble offering...

1.  Georgia Tech.   There's a few reasons why the Yellowjacket's is cause for celebration, starting a) it knocks them out of an ACC conference championship game (and any playoff contention) and b) it gives Pitt significant motivation to win next week against Miami -- a game being played at Pitt with anticipated 30F temps at game time.

Let's hope the Weenie Boy South Beach guys show up in their arctic tundra wear...

2.  USC.   I know the conventional wisdom was that we needed SC to lose but admit it, you didn't really mind seeing them 'spit the bit' again, did you?

And coach Lanning, tell us how you really feel...

Terry's Tools

Anyone who has ever witnessed an ugly inheritance fight, either firsthand or from a distance, can probbaly tell you there was one accelerant to the battle:  money. 

Money has the ability to turn people into something... different.

So it's not surprising that as the season gets down to the short strokes, most institutions -- be it universities or their athletic departments -- are not thinking about Marcus Freeman's "team glory" concept.

It's about the Benjamins.  And making the playoffs means a whole lot of 'em, be it for the school, their coaches and the players who get 'em there. (I've omitted the referees though I have an uncomfortable feeling some of them are wading in that revenue stream.)

So if anyone is wondering why the vitriol toward ND has been amped up, follow the money. 

Hey, those coaches' buyouts don't fund themselves.

-------------------------------------------------

Which leads us to... 

1)  Lane.  Like Madonna, Prince and Jerrence, the soon-to-be ex head coach of Ole Miss requires only one name.  

This year's "leader in the clubhouse" for the Brian Kelly "Playoffs Schmayoffs -- I'm Outta Here" award.

I gotta say, as big of a tool as he was early in his career (and maybe he still is, I haven't paid that much attention to him), the chaos he's creating now is only by virtue of the system he's working in. 

If you think Marcus Freeman's agent isn't getting calls about possible interest and 'what would it take, $-wise, to consider' you're more naive than I am.  

Which would put you at granddaughter Sloane-level gullibility.  

Name of the Week

Sometime a nickname is just so good, it doesn't even matter if anyone actually calls them by it.

Like Crash.  Or Wrong Way. Or The Dim One.

You kinda hope they do because it shows that synapses are still  firing in the originator's head... and a sense of humor likely similarly exists in the recipient's.

And when there's genuine affection between the two parties mixed into the moniker, well, it just doesn't get any better.

Steve 'Peatnut Butter' Angeli

Welcome back.

Trivia

Q. What song represented the last collaboration between these two band partners and is roundly considered their best?

A)  "Hey Jude" (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)

B)  "Sound of Silence" (Paul Simon / Art Garfunkel) 

C)  "Comfortably Numb" (Roger Waters / David Gilmore)

D)  "Hotel California" (Don Henley / Glenn Frey)

------

(Last blog's answer:  Like A Rolling Stone was voted the #1 song of all time by Rolling Stone.

Final Thoughts

Another great tailgate season behind us... Happy Thanksgiving, all!  

Week 10: Instant Karma

Look closer, you can see the flaws -- 

The holes in the floor and cracks in the walls

That gleam in your eye isn't there at all

It's painted on like a face of a doll...

So it begins, fantastic delusion.

Dateline:  Flint Lake, IN

So Tuesday is 'discount movie day' at the Valparaiso Cinemark Theater.

As such, Defarge and Jerrence have a a semi-standing date to see something for the low, low total price of $11.50 (if one knows my wife, you'll know that's completely on-brand), as love of film being a point of common interest between the two of us since, well, Day 1.

We won't see just anything.  (We're cinematically promiscuous but we're not that slutty.)  We have some base level of standards.  Like if there was nothing but Pauly Shore and Steven Seagal films playing, or films involving hobbits, we'd be staying home.

But of late, that's not been the case (we're both big fans of the latest, very offbeat Yorgas Lanthimos offering, "Bogonia" which played a week ago) so we've been hitting the theater pretty regularly. 

"We will now make Pat Narduzzi disappear..."

This past week we saw the fun-but-inconsequential (brother Mike would categorize it as a cinematic Twinkie, tasty but devoid of anything substantive, "Now You See Me: Now You Don't." 

An ensemble cast involving a team of do gooder, Robin Hood-like magicians who trade on slight of hand, misdirection and illusion to pull off their 'tricks' and give bad guys their comeuppance... 

But invariably, all roads lead back to Notre Dame for Jerrence... 

So when the topic is "things that one is told that aren't really as one is meant to believe" -- which is to say, illusory -- one couldn't help but think of last week's Pitt game and:

--  Pat Narduzzi's "this game means nothing to us" act.

--  Mason Heintschel being a top tier QB

--  Pitt being an elite defense against the rush.

Fantastic delusion. 

Quote of the Week

"To each their own." 

     Marcus Freeman

To each their own, indeed -- an expression typically reserved for the more societally relevant and hotly contested “ketchup or mustard on a hotdog?” debate -- but Saturday evening used by our coach as more subtly derisive response towards Pittsburgh's coach calling a timeout with :06 left in a 37-9 game.

A ton of respect for Marcus's self control -- I, myself, would've started the press conference by something to the effect of "Sure glad that game didn't mean anything to that mofo, he's a master psychologist as his team followed his 'don't a give a shit' mantra to a T... well-f*cking-done." 

Here's a hot take:  Freeman will NEVER lose to a Narduzzi-coached team.

Word of the Week

Used in a sentence paragraph:  Self restraint.

That was a character trait that Jerrence did not possess. And if he ever had it, it was like a guest that could only stay for coffee but far too quickly told you, "Gee I have to go now..."

Jerrence admired coach Freeman for many things, on and off the field -- his ability to motivate, his skill in administering 'tough love' without seemingly alienating his players, his commitment to still finding  time for his family -- but his facility to remain cool... professional... while the world took shots at his employer, his program and, indirectly, him... was sorta freakish.

Jerrence thought he would love to be the proverbial  'fly on the wall' to hear what the young coach really thought of the James Franklins, the Joey McGuires, the Pat Narduzzi's of the college football world.

Surely, there had to be a mordant, Wildian / Twainian / Churchillian wit inside the man just itching to make an appearance.  

Will the world ever get to see it?  Probably not.

But damn, Jerrence sure hoped so.

Game 10 Thoughts

Instant karma's gonna get you

Going to knock you on the head

Here's a series of rapid fire observations.

Watched ESPN Game Day for the first time in forever, and couldn’t help but think of all the Pittsburgh associated players that actually had ND connections: ex-Steelers like Jerome Bettis, Terry Hanratty and Rocky Bleier... ex-Panther legend Larry Fitzgerald who's got his son committed to attending ND next year... and of course, Pittsburgh area ND legends like Tom Clements and Joe Montana…

Beyond that... 

1.  How about this insight:  our players were better than their players.

2.  Apparently Narduzzi did care about losing by 100. 

3. Eli Raridon -- Love ya, but would it kill you to just glance down even for a nan0second?

4. Zen and The Art of Placekicker Management.  I liken our kicker to the golfer who's awesome on the driving range but is a mess when he actually has water and traps in front of him.

Not good.  I don't know if that golfer ever overcomes it until they do it 'live.'  And Freeman, despite his post-game "the analytics dictated that we go for it" waffling, clearly has zero confidence in the kicking position -- completely justified, I might add.  But his kicker knows it -- and not letting him 'get back on the horse' with zero at stake at the end of the game, was a missed opportunity.  IMHO. 

5.  Conventional wisdom, pregame, was that Notre Dame would not be able to run on Pittsburgh. Hey, Panthers, did you actually watch any film of Jeremiyah Love?

6.  There’s a lot of good young QB’s and Pitt's Mason Heintschel may, ultimately, be one of them.  But he looked every part a very confused, deer-in-the-headlights freshman all day long. 

7.  One of my biggest football-related pet peeves:  when it’s 3rd (or 4th) down and long… and the receivers don’t run their routes to the sticks… ugh. 

8.  Can we please stop bitching about Chris Ash?

Thank you, Sgt. Hulka.

What's interesting about the associated mea culpa, taken from an ND message board, was just how many ND know-it-all's doubled down on a "f*ck no, I'll never forgive Ash for the first two games" response to this post.

No acknowledgement about installing a new system with a bunch of 18-22 year old kids... um, there might be an early season learning curve.  Sure glad, I never worked for any of you clowns. 

Responses like this reaffirm just how deserved the sh*t that ND fans get for being entitled.

9.  And why doesn't Mike Denbrock get anywhere near the same level of scrutiny and criticism (and he absolutely does not)...  Oh yeah, he's got the universal cheat codes, Jeremiyah Love / Jadarian Price, in his backfield.

Not saying he's a bad OC, he's clearly not.  Personally, I'm not seeing the 'genius offensive game plan / schemer' that he's viewed as. 

Here's a grim, 'fun fact' that just might matter come playoff time:  the Irish have now come up empty in 8 of 34 (empty as in ZERO POINTS) goal-to-go situations.  That's almost 1 out of 4 times.  Not good.

10.  The ACC refs, so bad at their job and yet, so predictable.

As an aside...  can someone tell me, in the accompanying picture, how is it that Pitt's formation is not a penalty?  

Their OT's aren't remotely close to being on the line of scrimmage.

And they lined up like this virtually every freaking time!

A penalty was never called. What am I not understanding?

10.  Jeremiah Love, best player in America.

About the above video:  As a mediocre English major, I find Nicholas Sparks is easy to -- if not overtly hate -- easily disparage and be supremely jealous of.  In my mind's eye, he is objectively, not a great writer -- though his best sellers, movie adaptations and net worth would suggest otherwise. 

But this was pretty good.  Bravo, ND Social Media and/or whomever came up with the idea.

10.  Everyone recognizes Notre Dame having the best RB room in the country, but don’t we also have a case for the best DB room in the country? 

If not just the CB’s, surely the safeties…

11.  Do we have a sports psychologist on staff? Send your kicker (anything over 20 yds.) and your OC (anything under 3 yds.) for their issues. 

12.  The dreaded WR screen - which EVERYBODY in college football apparently runs (and no one particularly successfully) -- can we just stop?

As an aside, I attribute Carr's pick 6 to at least half Denbrock's fault.  And before you say, "but he shouldn't have thrown it" -- have you EVER seen a QB not throw it... stop and pull it down?  No -- it's a pass that's so quick, get the snap and throw.  If the defense sees it coming, you're basically f*cked.

Okay, maybe you could argue Carr should've checked out of the play if he saw the D crowding that line... 

Q. Are (were) the ND coaches aware of just how close the ball — literally the length of the football itself — was to the goal line? 

Asking for a friend.

Buddy's Buddy

For me, once Adon Shuler rocked the Pittsburgh WR's world during the Panthers' first possession -- it might've been their 5th or 6th play -- this game was over.

Chris Ash's defense mixed things up so creatively... had the young Pitt QB so thoroughly in a spin cycle -- Bryce Young almost an pick 6! -- that one could reasonably stomp for him as The Bud this week...

...and yet, no.

Outside of another Jeremiyah 'holy shit what did he just do' Love moment, the offense once again looked a wee bit stagnant.

Enter Malachi Fields.

Following along from a long legacy of famous, successful fields (Mrs. Fields, Strawberry Fields, Field of Dreams), it's unsurprising that the UVA transfer would step up.  And while his in-game statistics weren't necessarily super, off the charts gaudy (7 receptions, 99 yards and 2 TD's), the timeliness of catches were.

Not to mention the positive effect his reliability has on a young, still developing QB:  coach Freeman has said, "There are no 50-50 balls w Fields, they're 100-0 he's gonna come down with it..."  

As Gotham City police commissioner Jim Gordon once opined, "Not necessarily the hero we deserve but the hero we need."

(Actually he didn't say it quite like that but you get the gist.)

RE-PETE (A shameless, illegal lift of Pete Sampson's weekly mail-bag)

Is anyone else getting tired -- and dizzy -- from the seemingly mind-numbing permutations of future game outcomes that will determine:

-- Does ND make the playoffs?

-- Does ND get a home game?

-- Can ND avoid being in Ohio State's bracket? 

Every talking head has an opinion.   And, likely, an agenda to their point of view. 

Let's try and make it simpler (and even then that's debatable): 

Do I really have to root for USC?

I don’t know, how do you feel about cutting off your nose to spite your face?

Yes, the karmic ramifications of Notre Dame pulling for USC are similar to the Ghostbusters crossing streams with their proton packs: Try to imagine all life as you know it stopping instantaneously, and every molecule in your body exploding at the speed of light. 

Yet the reward of this scientific apocalypse would be Notre Dame punching its ticket to the CFP and probably hosting a game next month. 

So, maybe consider it?

The committee was clear that No. 7 Oregon’s schedule lacks teeth (its past schedule ranks 60th according to The Athletic’s model), putting the Ducks in the same group as Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Alabama. If No. 15 USC wins in Eugene this weekend, Oregon will drop below Notre Dame, but the Trojans would very likely not jump the Irish.

However, USC would rise at least a bit, making Notre Dame’s best win even better. Of course, USC winning at Oregon would also go against the trend for Lincoln Riley, who is 1-6 against ranked teams on the road as the Trojans head coach, with the lone victory a 48-45 win at UCLA in 2022.

There are other rooting interests this weekend that might be more palatable for Notre Dame. Kansas State knocking off Utah. Oklahoma losing at home to Missouri. BYU going down at Cincinnati. All those could help solidify Notre Dame’s standing in the CFP rankings, but nothing could give the Irish a bigger boost than USC winning at Oregon (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS).

Muttering “Fight On” a few times outside The Linebacker Lounge doesn’t need to mean the end of the world.

Source: The Athletic

November 19, 2025

Cocktail of the Month

I haven't been to Pittsburgh in quite a while.  It's no doubt gentrified itself a great deal in the decades that have passed, moved off of its steel industry-base and now probably has its economy driven by trendier things like internet tech and health care...

But where's the fun in that imagery?  When I think of the 'Burgh, far more gothic imagery springs to mind... you know,  things like George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla warring over electrical innovation.

Then there's the Notre Dame connection, starting with the whole Class of '79 gang that came from South Hills Catholic HS in Mt. Lebanon.  Eek!  

Talk about disturbing...

THE CASTLE OF OTRANTO OLD-FASHIONED

The Castle of Otranto

by Horace Walpole (1764)

The original gothic story, which kicked off an entire genre. 

Horace Walpole was inspired by ghostly nightmares he had at his spooky English mansion. The old-fashioned tale of Prince Manfred, who is driven mad after his son is killed on his wedding day by a giant falling helmet, is a timeless classic—just like this drink. 

The novel has all the elements that define the genre: paintings haunted by ghosts, forbidden lust, hidden royal identities, love triangles, chases through fantastical castles, and women threatened into nunhood.  

Or, just another Tuesday at Dillon Hall.. 

Manfred might have benefited from taking a break to enjoy one of these drinks and processing his emotions instead of desperately trying to force a divorce on his wife and attempting to marry his would-be daughter-in-law.

           

Yield:  1 serving

-- 2 oz. bourbon or rye whiskey

-- 1 sugar cube or ½ teaspoon granulated sugar

-- 2 or 3 dashes Angostura bitters

-- orange twist or slice, for garnish (optional) 

-- maraschino cherry, for garnish (optional)

-----------------------------

1. Place the sugar cube or granulated sugar in an old-fashioned glass and wet the sugar with the Angostura bitters.

2. Muddle the sugar and bitters until the sugar is dissolved.

3. Fill the glass with ice cubes or one large ice sphere,

4. Pour the bourbon or rye whiskey over the ice.

5. Stir gently to combine.

6. Garnish with an orange twist or slice and a maraschino cherry, if using.

Source:  The Turn of the Screwdriver

50 Dark & Twisted Literary Cocktails

By Iphigenia Jones

Schedule 2025

August

31                @Miami              L      

September 

                                                  

13                Texas A&M         L                      

20               Purdue                W                   Corrigan brother reunion!                      

27                @Arkansas        W                   Soooiiieeee! 

October  

                                                                                                     

4                 Boise St.              W                    Alumni Hall Reunion weekend, Union Pier MI        

11                NC State              W

18               USC                      W                     "Lincoln, We Hardly Knew Ye" (wussy)                    

November 

 1                 @BC                    W

 9                Navy                     W             

16               @Pitt                    W           

23               Syracuse                                               

29              @Stanford                                                              

December

19-20      PLAYOFF GAME!

Wager 2025

We're on our way home

We're on our way home

We're going home.

Wins	ND Equivalence	Domer
12 The Joker	"Do I really look like a guy with a plan?" -----  Ledger's Joker is mercurial, charismatic and a complete psychopath. Utterly unforgettable.  Just as a Notre Dame undefeated, on-their-way-to-a-national championship-season would be.	Kevin C. John P John L Brian M  JP  Bryan G   Raz  Dave M Tim B.
11 Otto	"Don't call me stupid!" ----- Ex-CIA operative Otto lives at the intersection of dangerous and moronic. An 'Otto season' for ND would be a rollercoaster -- a lot of fun with youth at some key positions, and likely more than it's fair share of 'that wasn't very clever' moments.	Gutsch , Sloane Daryl Jim S.  Peter  Tim  Ted Bill Jim B Pat B George Alex, Feif Garrett Spit the Elder
10 Hans Landa	"That's a bingo!" ----- Jew hunter Landa -- equal parts chillingly pathological and  pragmatic, this character would probably represent a 10-win regular season that might make you sick to your stomach but ultimately pretty satisfied.	Jerrence,  Mike C,   Tim C.   Mark U.  Jerry P.  Jerry C.   Mike B. Brian W.  Jim T. Mike G, Bose Jerry W Lini, Randy   Greg Kyle W.
9 RP McMurphy	"I'm a goddamn marvel of modern science." ----- What's the residual emotion from Cuckoo's Nest?  Sadness. RP, a guy who sees things clearly but can't get out of his own way. When it doesn't end well, one is left thinking what could've been.  Like a 9-win season.	Matt Alvin
8 Jason Bourne	"I don't know who I am.  Or where I'm going.  None of it." ------ An apt summary of an 8-win ND season.  A lot of difficult questions ultimately unanswered. Still, the Bourne trilogy rocks and JB is The Man.
7 John Wick	"I'm thinking I'm back..." ----- For many, ND winning only 7 games would be akin to someone shooting their dog -- and requiring appropriate payback. And like with John Wick, rationale requiring very few words of explanation.
6 Maximus	"Are you not entertained!" ------ Probably not, if ND only won six games... but that's not the point here:  it probably says a lot about me that the final ranked character is the most moral, selfless one of the bunch.

Sports Imitating Art

Le Blanc de Blanc, by Georges Mathieu, 1987

Schadenfreude of the Week

Isn't this time of year fun?

One can revel in the loss of a team that's never been on one's active 'hate' list -- looking at you, Louisville -- and still not feel even the slightest bit of self-loathing.

Not personal. Just business.

A Schadenfreudist's Utopian state!

Okay, last week's scorecard:

 

Notre Dame at #24 Pittsburgh        GOOD      

Oklahoma at #4 Alabama                 BAD

#20 lowa at #19 USC                         NOT GREAT

#11 Texas at #5 Georgia                    VERY GOOD

-----------------------------------------------

1.  Texas.   I feel for Arch Manning.  Too many unreasonable, nay unattainable, expectations put on the lad.  And truthfully, he's not playing that bad. He just isn't The Second Coming of his uncle (either one).

Which, unfortunately, is what the Longhorns needed Saturday night.

And while I can entertain great empathy for Arch, it's an "L" that Notre Dame desparately needed.

Terry's Tools

New and improved (?)

It dawned on Jerrence last weekend, with a fair level of irony, that what makes college football a sport we love -- and what fundamentally differentiates it from its professional kin -- is the human evaluation element.

Which is to say, as much as everyone would love to apply rational, quantifiable metrics to level the playing field, there are still humans who are making the decisions as to who gets to play for the big prize.

Exacerbating this is the fact that with now, essentially two super conferences (sorry Big 12), the supposed really good teams rarely even play each other.  To wit:

--  Texas A&M can make the SEC championship game w/o playing Ole Miss, Bama, UGA, OU or Vandy. Moreover, the Aggies' eight league opponents currently have a combined conference record of 13-34. That includes Texas, who they haven't played yet. Their six foes to date are a combined 8-27.

-- Ga. Tech can make the ACC title game w/o playing Miami, Louisville, UVA, SMU or Duke.

-- Ohio St. can (will?) make the B1G title game w/o playing Oregon, Indiana, Iowa or USC.

--  Indiana's conference foes to-date are slightly more respectable at 16-26, but the Hoosiers' slate will end up looking much like A&M's because they finish against 1-6 Wisconsin and 0-8 Purdue..

And yet, the masses are bitching about ND's lack of worthiness?!

-------------------------------------------------

Which leads us to... 

1)  The ACC.   Does anyone else find it even a tiny bit ironic, or hypocritical, that the ACC has started openly attacking Notre Dame whose on-going 5 game scheduling commitment is arguably providing the only Strength Of Scheduling ammunition, not to mention some serious media revenue, the conference has?

While I am clearly not wholly objective here -- I do understand get their (self serving) angst over the BCS Committee's ranking of Miami.  I, too, think head-to-head results should matter.  

But I also buy into the 'quality of a loss can outweigh a quality of a (first game of the year) win' argument.  

Maybe they should've thought of that before losing to 3-loss Louisville and SMU teams. 

Doesn't matter what they say

In the jealous games people play

Okay, I lied... 

2). Officiating EVERYWHERE.  There's no funny meme to accompany this particular observation. It's just this: I finally see what Dabo sees. 

Jerrence watched a great deal of football last weekend, post-ND vs. Pitt. And Jerrence saw a great many clearly blown, or weirdly interpreted calls.

So here's my hot take:   It'll be shocking to me if there isn't an important, possibly... maybe probably... a playoff contest that swings on a blatant, blown call.

I'm just hoping it doesn't involve Notre Dame.  

But as long as ACC refs draw breath, I'm not ruling it out.

Name of the Week

I'm endlessly fascinated by the regional / cultural impact on names...  why is Billy Bob such a common Texan mioniker?  Or Bubba in Alabama? 

New England, seemingly having not yet disembarked from the Mayflower, still has its share of folks with appellations accompanied by a number, e.g., Winthorpe Billingsworth III.

California, the stereotypic Land of Fruits & Nuts, seems to gravitate toward vegetation... "Have you met our daughter, Cilantro? We're so proud -- she's just been accepted into USC as a preferred walk-on for the Song Girls..." 

In the Midwest, Where Creativity Goes To Die, we end up with innumerable Jerry's, not that there's anything wrong with that.

My favorite might be Philadelphia where -- and I'm speculating on this -- the apparent attitude is, "We'll name our kids whatever the f*ck we want, you got a problem with that?"   

Um, no, sure don't.

But I digress.  This week's nominee hails from the great state of Louisiana and harkens to that tried and true adage that one should never go food shopping when you're hungry.  I give you:

                                           

                               Lunch Winfield  

A 6'1", 217 lb. sophomore QB for the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns.  Talent aside -- it's a little difficult to determine how good he is -- the name inspires all sorts of speculation as to its origins.

Why lunch?  Why not breakfast, the most important meal of the day?  

And given the French roots of the state, one wonders whether there was ever any discussion about going a little more... native.  Déjeuner Winfield has a nice ring to it, oui?

Trivia

Q. What song was voted the #1 song of all time by Rolling Stone?

A)  Like A Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan)

B)  Satisfaction (The Rolling Stones)

C)  Yesterday (The Beatles)

D)  Layla (Derek & The Dominoes)

------

(Last blog's answer:  Whiter Sahade of Pale  has more than 1,000 known cover versions, with the original having sold over 10M copies..

Final Thoughts

Everyone, to a varying degree, has experienced some level of loss in their lives.  Regardless of the magnitude or tragedy, it's fair to say it leaves a mark.  It changes a person.

This week, Notre Dame's own CJ Carr chose to pen his thoughts on the loss of a younger brother 10 years ago -- a little boy struck down at the age of 5 yrs old, the result of a brain tumor identified when he was only three.  

Three years old!

If one has the time and inclination -- and I'd understand if one isn't so inclined (BYO tissues) -- give CJ's Players Tribune piece here a read.

I'd like to believe that most sports fans can think well of a person such as CJ Carr, irrespective of whether one roots for ND or not.  However, even a cursory trip into the cesspool that is social media suggests my naiveté on that point.

But, after reading his homage to his brother, I'm pretty confident that not a whole lot is going to bother young Mr.  Carr as he progresses through his athletic career.  Certainly not a bunch of gutless internet trolls.