Irish Blogger Gathering: Hoisting Shillelaghs

notre dame purdue

Welcome back to the Irish Blogger Gathering! This week the Iriah take on Purdue and their uh… drum. I asked Josh Flynt of Notre Dame's Strong & True football blog a few questions and not only did he answer them for me- he asked a few of his own. Be sure to check over there for my responses, as well as Her Loyal Sons & Inside The Irish. We be getting our talk on y'all!

On to the IBG…

1. The 2012 Notre Dame football team has an interesting mix of veteran leaders and talented youth. In Dublin, 20 student-athletes saw their first collegiate action. Of these first-year competitors, pick three who you think will have the biggest impact on Saturday’s game against Purdue. Why?

This is a tough one for me. Even though I asked the question, I really didn’t think about having to answer it myself.

Everett Golson: I think this is an obvious choice. The Irish quarterback is an incredibly talented athlete. People are excited to see what #5 can do, and while Riddick and Atkinson might still be the go-to playmakers in the offensive gameplan, I think Golson will make a couple of big plays with his arm, helping people realize he’s not just a “running quarterback.” KeiVarae Russell: It’s no secret the secondary is the position group with the biggest question marks for Notre Dame. A lot of eyes will be on Russell, and I think he steps up on the big stage, giving fans a bit more confidence heading into next week. Chris Brown or Davonte’ Neal: Just a gut feeling. Everyone kept talking about these two freshman receivers in training camp and I expect one of them to make a name for himself on Saturday – a la GAIII vs. Michigan State last September.

Well, that wasn’t exactly a scientific analysis on my part. I guess I just have a lot of hunches this week.

2. In many ways, I thought ND played a very conservative game against Navy. Obviously this was expected since it was a) Navy & b) ND was breaking in a new QB. Do you think the Irish will open it up a bit more on both sides, and what do you expect to see if that's the case?

I don’t think Coach Kelly has any crazy tricks up his sleeve, but I expect Notre Dame to mix it up more than last week for a couple of reasons. First, the Irish have a win under their belt – and a comfortable one at that. Even though Navy will be one of the weaker squads on the 2012 schedule, beating any team by 40 points has to boost a team’s confidence.

Second, I think the Irish need to open things up, if they’re going to beat the tougher opponents on this schedule. Nothing against Purdue, but the real meat of the season begins next week in East Lansing. Beating a team like Michigan State is going to require the Irish to step outside their comfort zone.

And finally, they’re playing in South Bend. Aviva Stadium was very ND-friendly, but it wasn’t home. During last week’s game, the team had a “swagger” we haven’t seen in quite some time. I expect that to carry over to Saturday, and hope that the home crowd only adds to it.

3. The Purdue game is played for The Shillelagh Trophy. What are your feelings on all of these "rivalry trophy" games and would you like to see the hardware on the field and celebrated like most of college football does with theirs?

It doesn’t bother me that Notre Dame’s rivalry trophies are overlooked, but I also think that if they exist, they should be used for something other than collecting dust. I’m sure there are a lot of Irish fans that would say, “Well, Purdue’s not a rival.” Yes, the Boilermakers aren’t Michigan. They’re not USC either. But we’ve played them 83 times and they’ve been on our schedule every year since 1946.

Maybe “trophy games” lose their luster on Notre Dame’s schedule because there are four or five of them. Historic rivalries are a big part of what makes college football unique, and I think the trophies can only add to the pageantry of fall Saturdays (They certainly don’t take away from it). If we beat USC at the Coliseum, I don’t think any ND fan would mind seeing Manti Te’o hoist the Jeweled Shillelagh while he’s running off the field.

About The Subway Domer

Warlord and Emperor of the Subway Alumni... also, I do this "dad" thing pretty damn well.

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