Report Card vs. Michigan

By Joe Pierce

QB: B+
Jimmy Clausen lead the team well, and made some key passes to put Michigan out of the game. However, you can't ignore the fact that he threw two pretty bad interceptions. One thing's certain, though - Jimmy Clausen's the real deal.

RB: B+
Notre Dame's RB-by-committee trio played pretty well, lead by Robert Hughes' two TDs. James Aldridge contributed with some tough running in the red zone, but Armando Allen played sparingly and poorly, mustering up only 4 yds on two carries. I want to see someone emerge as the featured back.

WR/TE: A
Golden Tate is a star, Michael Floyd is a star in the making, and Duval Kamara rebounded from his poor game last week to score a touchdown on a beautiful jump ball in the end zone. The TEs were quiet in the receiving game, but must be contributing in the blocking game by helping keep Jimmy Clausen clean two weeks in a row.

OL: A+
The big guys didn't allow a sack for the second week in a row, and imposed their will on a very tough Michigan front seven. Trevor Robinson made his Notre Dame debut, spelling Chris Stewart at RG.

DL: D
They were more active than last week, and Pat Kuntz played well, but they were gashed all day by Michigan RB Sam McGuffie. Michigan State will destroy them next week if they don't get it together.

LB: B-
They made some nice highlight reel plays, including Bryan Smith's fumble recovery for a TD, but they need to take some blame for the poor run defense.

DB: A+
David Bruton, Sergio Brown, and Kyle McCarthy pace the defense and are true playmakers. I also believe that Saturday was Raeshon McNeil's coming out party. I haven't seen him play this well his entire career at Notre Dame.

ST: B+
A punt was tipped, but they recovered a muffed kickoff and pinned Michigan deep most of the day. Mike Anello is one of the best gunners I've ever seen.

Overall: B+
This was a terrific and fun game to watch, but there were mistakes made, too. If Notre Dame makes the same mistakes against Michigan State next week, the outcome will be significantly different.

Walls' Departure Reinforces Why I Love Notre Dame

By: Joe Pierce

When I tell people that I'm a Notre Dame fan, the following conversation usually occurs:

Person: "Did you go to school there?"

Me: "Nope."

Person: "Well then why do you root for them?"

Me: "I'm Irish-Catholic, I went to college and played football at a small Division III school in VA, so my childhood allegiance to Notre Dame remains intact, no one in my immediate family went to college, so I have no family allegiances, Rutgers is a North Jersey school, I hate Temple, and as I get older, Penn State annoys me more and more. Most importantly, though, the place is just special. There's no other place that can offer such religious and football tradition, matched with a mystique that you just can't explain. Plus, their athletes aren't dummies. It isn't like USC, where you can take ballroom dancing (*cough*, Matt Leinart, *cough*) and coast through to the NFL. You have to be a good person and good citizen to make it through."

This, my friends, is why I root for and love Notre Dame. They refuse to compromise their stringent academic and moral standards for athletes, and while they occasionally lose out on a recruit or have a player jettisoned out of the program for not keeping their grades up or acting like a schmuck, it's frankly the right way to do business.

Although it's painful and will hurt the program, Darrin Walls withdrawing from Notre Dame was the only choice. Although the Irish staff isn't confirming this, insiders say that Walls was asked not to return because of poor grades. Cornerback is a position of strength for the team, but losing Walls, who had nine pass deflections and one pick as a sophomore last year, and who many consider to be the best athlete on the team, would hurt any program. Over the years, how many times have we heard stories of crooked coaches like Jim Tressel and Jimmy Johnson pulling strings to keep their top athletes on the field? It makes me sick to hear these stories, and I'm happy Charlie Weis doesn't play those games.

Notre Dame has no choice but to make the best of a bad situation. Let's be honest, although they'll be much better, 2008 is considered another building year, and if the Irish compete for the BCS Championship this January, I'll think it's the work of the Blessed Mother, not Charlie Weis and his staff. Walls' departure gives Raeshon McNeil, Gary Gray, and freshmen Jamoris Slaughter & Robert Blanton a chance to step up the plate, compete for a starting job, and gain valuable experience on the field. The best case scenario would be for Walls to take a page out of Julius Jones' book, work hard to gain readmission in the Spring, and return for the '09 season, where I think Notre Dame has a legitimate shot to compete for a National Championship. If Walls returns, the Irish would find themselves with a talented and experienced group of veteran corners.

Although not having Walls for '08 hurts, take solace in the fact that the team you love wins and loses with class and dignity, which is certainly more than most fans can say.