Hey Mr. DJ, won't you hear my last prayer?
Hey ho, rock 'n' roll, deliver me from nowhere...
Dateline: Flint Lake, IN
You have all heard how I believe The Universe occasionally speaks to Jerrence, yes?
Despite his best efforts to ignore it.
Well it happened again this week, this time inside the Valparaiso Cinemark theater, watching the new Bruce Springsteen flick, "Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere" -- a title which, Jerrence realized after seeing the film, described exactly how he felt after last Saturday's ND - BC football game.
The film, which is quite terrific, is about a particularly dark, depression-addled period in The Boss's life -- post Born To Run / Darkness On The Edge of Town / The River success but pre the mega-stardom of the mid-'80s -- that led directly to his "Nebraska" album, a stripped down recording made in his bedroom that no one expected -- or necessarily wanted -- other than him.
At one point Springsteen / Jeremy Allen White declares, "I'm lost."
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| How can we go 3-10 on 3rd down against these guys?! |
"Open All Night" represents probably the most optimistic song of the album's 10 songs -- which isn't saying much.
But that, too, is fitting from an ND perspective. Saturday was undeniably a soul sucking three hours but they won, something a few of other playoff teams aspiring couldn't do -- so, hey, we live to fight another day.
And look what followed immediately Bruce's debacle: "Born In The USA" -- #1 literally everywhere in the world.
Quote of the Week
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you don't have one... "
Marcus Freeman
Yes, he actually said that. Without a hint of irony.
Word of the Month
Used in a sentence paragraph: The pit in Jerrence's stomach grew deeper with each self inflicted wound Notre Dame would gift wrap to Boston College.
"They're not really going to actually lose this game, are they?" he wondered.
When he could breath normally again... minutes after the clock ticked to :00 (thank you Jeremiyah Love)... he knew this was three hours of his life he wasn't going to get ever back. It triggered a fast inventory of other things he really, really didn't like, like:
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1) Old people driving in the passing lane
2) Colonoscopy prep
3) Attempting to fold a fitted sheet
4) Witnessing ACC officiating
But mostly, Notre Dame playing down to its clearly inferior opponents. That had to be near the top of the list. It was something he'd seen across many of the coaches in the post-Lou Holtz Era.
Jerrence knew what the French might describe as ennui ( where boredom meets despair), Jerrence found the Germans -- a culture that could find the darkness in any occasion -- had a better word for his post-game attitudinal malaise, Weltschmerz. He wasn't depressed, just sad and tired.
Game 8 Thoughts
I was wrong!
Self destruction's got me again.
In the wake of the unfolding NBA gambling scandal, one could be forgiven if the thought crossed your mind -- ever so briefly because, you know, perish the thought -- someone in the ND program got themselves into some significant financial trouble, got approached by someone who said, "We really need ND not to cover this week..." and voila!
I jest of course. Still...
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Here's also a few other quick bites that came to mind watching the game
One thing about his long passes I've noticed: when he misses, he misses long. Which is to say, its almost always going to be an incomplete pass, not an INT.
2. Style points I happen to believe in the concept -- and Saturday represented a missed opportunity that I don't think the BCS Playoff Committee will give ND a pass on again.
The fact is, between the kicking horror show and Price's fumble, we left 13 points on the table. 25-10 should've been 38-10. Someone, somewhere, would still bitch about not covering the spread but the optics would look soooo much better.
I also missed a few kicks. At least one that was a game decider. And I was devastated. Felt I let the whole team down. The coaches had to talk me out of a very deep funk. Even when I missed less consequential kicks, I was bummed -- it was the ultimate buzz kill after the offense worked hard to get in the position to come away with some points. And then you don't. Not good.
So seeing the ND kickers' jocular sideline demeanor after their misses -- and God knows what the context was -- I just didn't understand. To say the optics weren't good would be a massive understatement.
I've always likened the public opinion of kickers to that of the Franco-American relationship. They tolerate the U.S. until they need us to save them from the Germans; then you LOVE us.
Kicking-wise right now, France would be thinking, "Hey America, we're good. Poland has said they'd help us..."
4. Coaching. Nature or nurture? Chicken or egg? When it typically comes to assigning blame -- recall the adage, "Success has many fathers but failure is an orphan" -- we have the perennial debate, is it the coaches or the players (most) at fault?
This is a game that I'm willing to look squarely at the coaches, particularly Freeman / Denbrock / Biagi. That was not a team that looked very prepared -- either for BC loading up to stop the run (well, duh) or the skill set of their 2nd QB.
I do find it funny how no one seems to be calling for Chris Ash's head anymore.
Buddy's Buddy
Typically, I am loathe to cite someone for a single act, good or bad. It seems recognition should be about some consistency of excellence.
This week, consistency was in obvious short supply, except if you're talking about dumb ass penalties.
So by the beginning of the 4th quarter... with ND up by only one score... with a group of kickers who couldn't hit the ocean if they were teeing it up on the beach... and pinned back almost on the their own goal line, things didn't look super comfortable.
Enter Superman.
:14 and 94 yards later, Jerrence exhales for the first time in about two hours.
And while you're sprinting down the sidelines, looking for your positions coach to tell him 'I told ya so' was an interesting touch, Jeremiyah Love....
I'm more than a bird, I'm more than a plane
I'm more than some pretty face beside a train
And it's not easy to be me...
RE-PETE (A shameless, illegal lift of Pete Sampson's weekly mail-bag)
If you're like me, you've got questions about the path forward to a BCS Playoff berth.
Other than the famous Al Davis mantra of 'just win, baby'.
Well, Pete Sampson has, if not answers, an educated opinion about what it all means with a month still to play out...
Still, best not to invest too much time or energy for a couple weeks... as the saying goes, "a lot of ball game left."
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Are the Irish a lock to make the field at 10-2?
Probably? And this is where Freeman’s “wasted time” comment holds the most weight. With four weeks remaining in the regular season plus championship weekend, there are too many permutations to figure out whether the Irish would definitely make the CFP with 10 wins or merely be almost certain to make it. (The Athletic’s model places Notre Dame’s odds to make the field at 81%)
There are enough matchups in the SEC among teams trailing Notre Dame in the rankings to imagine one of those programs jumping the Irish. If #11 Texas wins out against #5 Georgia, Arkansas and #3 Texas A&M, it’s easy to envision the Longhorns vaulting the Irish. Similar story for #13 Oklahoma, which closes with No. #4 Alabama, #20 Missouri and LSU. It’s harder to make a case for #16 Vanderbilt, which finishes with Auburn, Kentucky and #25 Tennessee.
However, #7 BYU heads to #8 Texas Tech this weekend, with the loser certain to fall below Notre Dame. #9 Oregon also heads to #20 Iowa on Saturday. If the Hawkeyes upset the Ducks, there’s a good chance Notre Dame jumps Oregon next week.
But because of the current CFP selection criteria, where the five highest-ranked conference champions receive automatic bids, Notre Dame was actually the last at-large team into the field on Tuesday. Virginia, ranked #14 by the committee, made it as the highest-ranked ACC team. Memphis wasn’t ranked in the Top 25 at all, but the Tigers took the slot as the projected top Group of 5 program.
Yes, it’s very likely Notre Dame will be back in the CFP at 10-2. It’s just not quite a stone-cold lock.
Source: The Athletic
November 5, 2025
Cocktail of the Month
A New England-based horror story?
This story / cocktail comes as close as one is ever going to get to mirroring the anxiety-inducing performance we saw last Saturday night.
And only one day removed from Halloween.
How fitting.
THE LEGEND OF SLUSHY HOLLOW
("The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"
by Washington Irving (1820)
Consider the delightful autumn ambiance of harvest parties, ghost stories, and a terrifying specter with a severed head.
If this isn't enough to send shivers down your spine, then try this frosty take on grog.
Yield: 1 serving
-- 2 oz. dark rum
-- 1 oz. water
-- ½ oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
-- ½ oz. honey or simple syrup
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1. Combine water, dark rum, lime juice and honey or simple syrup in a blender. Add a generous amount of ice cubes to the blender.
2. Blend the ingredients until you achieve a slushy consistency. Add more ice if needed to reach the desired texture.
3. Pour the slushy grog into a glass.
Source: The Turn of the Screwdriver
50 Dark & Twisted Literary Cocktails
By Iphigenia Jones
Schedule 202
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
16 @Pitt
23 Syracuse
29 @Stanford
December
19-20 PLAYOFF GAME!
Wager 2025
First BCS Playoff ranking out and ND clocks in at #10 -- and in spitting distance of hosting a 1st round game.
One would think that ought to be incentive enough to keep these kids focused over the last four games, yes? And yet, one can't shake the feeling that, after eight games, fully 2/3 of the season, this team is not last year's team, as much as we'd like 'em to be.
So color me still a little uncertain as to how substantive this team is...
If I had known then
What I know now...
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. |
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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 TedBill Jim B Pat B George Alex, Feif Garrett Spit the Elder |
10  | "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.
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8  | "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  | "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  | "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 Falling Man, by Auguste Rodin, 1882
Schadenfreude of the Week.
2/3 of the season in the books and now the games -- everyone's games -- get super interesting. Those longtime proponents of an expanded playoff, feel free to pat yourself on the back and say "I told you so!"
And while everything has a heightened excitement about it, it does not come with a similarly increased level of clarity as it pertains to ND's chances.
So let provide primer for this week's games, provided by someone who's done more thinking about this than me (!):
-- Miss St. over #5 Georgia, 12 (ESPN)
-- #3 Texas A&M over #22 Missouri, 3:30 (ABC)
-- Iowa over #9 Oregon, 3:30 (CBS)
-- Auburn over #16 Vandy, 4 (SECN)
-- Wake Forest over #14 UVA, 7 (ESPN)
-- Cal over #15 Louisville, 7 (ESPN2)
-- LSU over #4 Alabama, 7:30 (ABC)
There will be a quiz.
* Irish fans should root for unbeaten Texas A&M to remain unbeaten because a win over Missouri would eliminate the Tigers from being a contender to be the 5th SEC team in the field.
-- The same goes for Vanderbilt if the Commodores fall to Auburn.
* Alabama and Georgia may not be knocked out by losses this weekend, but in the big picture, the consequences of those losses would greatly reduce the possibilities of both the SEC getting a 5th bid and the ACC getting a 2nd.
* If Oregon loses, all of a sudden there are possibilities where those three spots reserved for the Big Ten could become two.
* A Virginia loss would go a long way toward the ACC ending up as a 1-bid league and so, to a lesser extent, would a Louisville loss.
But I digress. This week's honorees:
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1. Miami. One can say this now that ND has appeared inside the first BCS Playoff ranking... but despite it's being in ND's best interest for both the Hurricanes and the Aggies to keep winning, if one of them has to go down -- and it's clear that Miami has accepted that challenge -- it couldn't happen to a more appropriate bunch.
2. Georgia Tech. This year's mystery "how / when did they get good?" team...
3. Vandy. Like a root canal, this one hurts but it's seemingly necessary. We live in an age where (I think) we'd all like to see Vanderbilt becomes respectable -- wouldn't it be nice to have one SEC program take academics seriously -- but just not too respectable.
Sorry Clark Lea but we needed you to lose. And maybe one more time.. .
Terry's Tools.
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| New and improved (?) |
I consider this The Calm Before the Storm.
The more the intensity, of the playoff picture increases...
The more the 'win or lose your job' pressure hits coaches smack in the face...
The better the odds for someone doing -- or saying -- something poorly thought through.
I can't wait.
As The Joker once opined...
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1) Officiating . We've been whinging about the abysmal refereeing for over a month now. Interesting to hear this week coach Swinney go off on them. Call it sour grapes -- Clemson is having a nightmare season -- but he's not wrong.
As Mike Gordon inquired this week, how do you get an offsides call on a shift?! I think Dabo would like to know that too.
If you have the time, give this a listen: EXTREMELY insightful. (And depressing -- don't expect things to get better.)
2). Antonio Brown. The NFL's most stable athlete from 2010-20 is back in the news and it's,
um, not good.
Shocker, I know.
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| When you say, "Extradited..." |
Well, he's been charged with one count of attempted second-degree murder with a deadly weapon, facing up to 15 years in prison.
Brown claimed he had been jumped and attacked. No arrests were made at the time of the incident, which was captured on video and made a stir on social media.
Following an investigation, it was determined that Brown ran toward the alleged victim and fired shots after the initial fight had been broken up.
Name of the Week
I come here to celebrate, not to mock.
The fact is, most of this blog's audience were born in an age of fairly limited creative choices.
In my family, one's full name had to include that of a saint, although how my dad argued ND coach, St. Terry Brennan, still remains a mystery.
And what exactly was the fascination with the name "Jerry" in 1957?! But I digress.
Today is not like the 50's. Or even the 1980's or '90s. Creativity and acceptance abounds in a world that's much more globally connected. Probably more so than many people would prefer.
And that acceptance begins at home: looking at the ND roster for a candidate.
Even a cursory glance at the roster provides for some sneaky good candidates: G'Bran, Drayk, Kyngstonn, Dallas, Scrap...
Boubacar Traore
Only a redshirt sophomore, after a 2024 season ending injury... through eight games, he's got a team-leading 6.5 sacks and probably represents one of the keys to ND's defense living up to its playoff-level potential.
That's all well and good but I like his name because I bet his friends get to call him 'Boob' without PC-fueled recrimination.
Trivia
Q. What became the most-requested song on FM radio stations in the United States in the 1970's despite never having been commercially released as a single there?
A) MacArthur Park (Richard Harris)
B) Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin)
C) Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
D) Whiter Shade of Pale (Procol Harum)
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Final Thoughts
Yet another example of the Cosmos reminding me of the BC game...
It's not as fun as you thought it would be...
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