New blog!

We have finally left 2001 and gotten ourselves a new Web site. It’s the same address as the old one, ndsmcobserver.com, but it’s much cooler and looks much better. The nice thing is, we’ve got a blog that’s attached to our site now as opposed to this, which takes you fine readers one extra click to get to. We felt that was too much work, so we have created a new blog on our main Web site.

It can be found here:

http://www.ndsmcobserver.com/blog-1.109/sportsblog

Thanks for reading/putting up with us, and we hope you continue to do so on our new blog.

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Notes from updated Irish depth chart

Notre Dame released its updated depth chart for this weekend’s game against Navy tonight, and on the injury front there are a few things of note:

• Sophomore wide receiver Michael Floyd is not listed on the depth chart. Floyd underwent a CAT scan today, so it’s possible that Weis just didn’t have the results before he set the depth chart. Weis had previously indicated that if today’s test came back 100 percent, and he anticipated it would, Floyd would play against the Midshipmen. Check back tomorrow after Weis’ press conference at noon for an update.
• Fifth-year senior Evan Sharpley is listed as the backup to Jimmy Clausen, indicating that Dayne Crist will miss some time after a knee injury against Washington State Saturday night. Again, we’ll find out tomorrow the true extent of the injury.
• As expected, senior Dan Wenger is listed ahead of sophomore Trevor Robinson at the right guard position. Robinson suffered what Weis described as a “low ankle sprain” against the Cougars.

LIVE at Alumni Stadium – hopefully

I’m here at the brand new Alumni Stadium as No. 10 Notre Dame takes on No. 21 Michigan. The Stadium itself does not have wireless access yet, so I’m going to be patchy at best as I try to pick up signals. Stay tuned for updates!

FINAL 8:57 – That’s all, everyone. Notre Dame routs Michigan 5-0. I think we can all agree it’s nice to see Michigan get hammered in any sport. I’m going to go talk to Coach Clark about the game, and you can read the wrap tomorrow in the Observer.

Make sure to check in on Saturday – I won’t be in the press box, but three of our writers will be and I bet they’ll have some thoughts to share with the followers of our blog.

26 days….

..but who’s counting.

Fall practice started up on Friday, and with it some interesting stories, quotes, and depth chart changes. A quick wrap-up:

• The overall theme of Weis’ Friday press conference was less talk about expectations and all about proving it on the field – “There’s a lot of things going into this year that I’d rather not say because I’d rather get it done on the field. That’s really one of the main deals or goals going into training camp, is, Fellas, don’t tell me about expectations, show me.”
• Rumors of changes in the O-line were confirmed with the release of the latest depth chart, with Eric Olsen slotted as the starter at center and sophomore Trevor Robinson at right guard (Stewart at LG). Wenger battled injuries in the spring and apparently still could win back a starting job, but it would be a surprise at this point – looks like Verducci & Co. found a way to get the five most talented linemen starting.
• Other depth chart observations: Ethan Johnson definitively listed on the inside at DT, sophomore Kapron Lewis-Moore (at 6’4, 270) and Kerry Neal listed at the DE spots.
• Toryan Smith as the starter at the MIKE linebacker spot, Brian Smith at the WILL, and Scott Smith, Darius Fleming, and Steve Filer all listed at the SAM. Hopefully Fleming or Filer will emerge in fall practice and make a case for taking clear control of the position.
• Manti Te’o is listed behind Brian Smith at the WILL. At 6’2 244. If he doesn’t see the field against the Wolfpack, I will wear leis for a week.
• Blanton and Walls listed at the CB starters, but I wouldn’t be surprised if its a toss up between Blanton and McNeil and they see equal amounts of time.
• Other weight room notes: Braxston Cave (now listed at guard as a sophomore) benched 520. Ian Williams “came close to cleaning 400”. Good things to hear.
• Also, freshman RB Cierre Wood (at one time a top-5 recruit in the nation according to Rivals) checked in at 218. His high school profiles had him at around 190, and coaches have commented on the difference.

Speeding up the summer

76 days until kickoff, and Notre Dame football cannot come fast enough.

Fortunately we’re going to get the football talk rolling early here, with our team of beat writers (myself, Matt Gamber, Sam Werner, and Bill Brink) answering roundtable questions each week. We’ll talk strategy, hopes, predictions, and fears for the ’09 season, likely the most critical of the Weis era.

So hit us up with your best question regarding the upcoming season, and we’ll field one or two per week. Either leave a comment below or email us at observersports@gmail.com.

Pollock taken 17th in MLB Draft

Notre Dame center fielder A.J. Pollock was taken by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the No. 17 overall pick in the MLB draft this past week. The rising senior led the Irish in hitting ever year with the team.

Pollock had another outstanding year  as a junior in 2009, batting .365 with ten home runs and 52 RBI. He also played flawless defense, playing without an error in all 59 Notre Dame games.

At 17th overall Pollock is the highest drafted player ever out of Notre Dame. The center fielder’s next move probably won’t be too far away, however, as it’s likely Pollock will join the South Bend Silverhawks, the Diamondback’s A minor league team, in the future.

Becca Huffer takes Big East Freshmen of the Year honors

Becca Huffer was voted the women’s golf Big East Freshmen of the Year by the conference coaches last Thursday. Huffer was also one of four Irish golfers named to the eleven spots on the all Big East team. Joining Huffer with All-Big East honors were senior captain Lisa Maunu, junior Annie Brophy, and sophomore So-Hyun Park. The Irish tied with Big East Champion Louisville for the most spots on the All-Big East team with four.

The Irish finished second on the Big East Tournament on April 21 and qualified for the Ohio State Regional on May 7 as part of the NCAA Championship.

Irish Draft Tracker

Four rounds and 114 picks into the NFL draft, a Notre Dame player has finally been selected, as safety David Bruton was picked by the Denver Broncos. Bruton should make an immeadiate impact on special teams, and certainly has the measurables to eventually compete for a starting role.

We’ll keep an eye out to see if any other seniors (most likely Terrail Lambert or Maurice Crum) are drafted late, but it would be  no surprise if Bruton is the only Irish player taken this year. With the current influx of talent, this should be the last year in a long time that ND makes so little an impact on draft day.

Double Big East Victories

The No. 9 Irish women finished off their regular season this past Saturday with a 20-5 win at home over UConn, and senior attack and co-captain Jillian Byers set a Notre Dame and Big East record 12 game points to earn her the Big East offensive player of the week title for the second time this season.

“It took us a little while to figure out how to beat them,” Irish coach Tracy Coyne said. “But once we did we really controlled the ball in the second half.”

Live from U.S. Cellular Field

Live here at U.S. Cellular Field, home of the Chicago White Sox, where Notre Dame is taking on Northwestern in a non-conference Wednesday battle. Proceeds from today’s game are going to White Sox charities, which support hundreds of Chicago based causes from cancer research to youth athletics and education.

The Irish are down 2-0 here in the top of the sixth, and haven’t gotten much going offensively off of Wildcats starter Eric Jokisch. Freshman Ryan Richter made his first career start for Notre Dame and gave up two runs over three and two thirds innings, striking out six.

Now the lead is up to 3-0, as DH Tony Vercelli blasted a pitch off reliever Todd Miller into the stands in left-center. We’ll have to see if the ND offense can get anything going now that Jokisch is out of the game (5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 55 pitches).

Notre Dame is finally on the board in the bottom of the seventh, as Jeremy Barnes just went deep for the seventh time this season. Barnes went out to the opposite field in right, almost to the same spot he homered in this stadium against Northern Illinois last year.

And it’s a final, 5-1 Northwestern. Vercelli added another homer, this time for two runs in the top of the ninth, and the Wildcats get their tenth win of the season.