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In the Navy ... Where Film Study Works

John Walters — 2009-11-08T12:18:00 00:00

Filed under: Navy, Notre Dame, Daily Domer

Have you ever seen the film Patton? There's a terrific moment in which the controversial U.S. World War II general, played by George C. Scott, is surveying a battlefield in north Africa. Patton peers through his field glasses, observes the German tanks getting in formation, and laughs knowingly.

"Rommel, you magnificent bastard," Patton chuckles. "I read your book!"

Patton was U.S. Army. Ken Niumatalolo is U.S. Navy, but he had that same moment of satisfaction Saturday. "I think the one thing that helped us, and I really hope this doesn't come across wrong," Niumatalolo said, "but I think the thing that helped us this year was last year because we knew that they'd line up the same way."

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Familiar Sinking Feeling Strikes Irish

John Walters — 2009-11-07T21:17:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Navy, Notre Dame, Daily Domer

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- South Bend is suddenly every sailor's favorite port-of-call.

Navy beat Notre Dame for the second time in as many dockings at Notre Dame Stadium, a defeat that left the Fighting Irish (6-3) and their head coach lost at sea with three games remaining. A BCS berth has been torpedoed, as has at least one Heisman candidacy. A second consecutive 7-6 season is not out of the question as inquiries about whether head coach Charlie Weis can properly inspire his team, and whether this team will be his next season, once again arise.

"We kind of felt like we had them in a perfect storm," said Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo, whose team did everything right in the sense that they did nothing wrong. "Just [Notre Dame] looking to the postseason, very, very good Pitt team coming next week, and it's us coming."

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Live Blog: Navy Sinks Notre Dame

John Walters — 2009-11-07T14:57:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

SOUTH BEND, Ind -- Sunshine and Flowers. Two words not normally associated with South Bend in November are primary elements in today's game between Navy and the Fighting Irish. Outside the weather is sublime--and unseasonal--as an Indian Summer sky looms overhead with temperatures in the mid-sixties. This is the kind of weather you'd hope to have in a bowl game much less the first week of November in the Midwest.

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Ram Vela Stars as 'The Fugitive'

John Walters — 2009-11-06T14:47:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

SOUTH BEND, Ind.-- Six months before Ram Vela's notorious sack of Evan Sharpley in the 2007 Navy-Notre Dame game, the Midshipmen linebacker was sacked himself ... by the Secret Service. At the White House.

Each spring the team that wins the Commander-in-Chief's trophy (the unofficial round-robin tourney between the Air Force Academy, Army and Navy) is invited to the White House for a reception. In the spring of 2007, Vela (No. 34 above) was a freshman who had not seen any varsity action the previous season.

"I hung near the back of the line as we approached the security gate," Vela, a 5-foot-9, 193-pound outside linebacker, recalled on Thursday. "I hadn't played so I didn't feel as much like I deserved to be up near the front. I was back with some of the higher-ranking officers, the Commandant and even the dean."

When Vela made it to the gate, a female agent looked him over and spoke into a radio, "He's here."

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Daily Domer: Pax de South Bend

John Walters — 2009-11-05T12:08:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

FanHouse writer John Walters is living in South Bend, Ind., during one of the most pivotal seasons in Notre Dame history. Check back daily for his dispatches on the Irish.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- When it comes to team bonding, victory is the greatest adhesive. These Irish are a tight bunch, and Charlie Weis conceded on Tuesday that "going through all those tight games at the end of the game has bonded the team even more."

The Irish have won five of their past six, and that one loss came down to one play. Or four. Or a mismanaged final 35 seconds (cue Glenn Frey's "Get Over It"). Whatever. The 6-2 record and the Alcoa "Fantastic Finishes" have certainly done more to unite this team than a trust-fall exercise. However, there is something else at work here: character at the top of the roster.

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Daily Domer: Naval Gazing

John Walters — 2009-11-05T10:32:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

FanHouse writer John Walters is living in South Bend, Ind., during one of the most pivotal seasons in Notre Dame history. Check back daily for his dispatches on the Irish.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- While scouring the Navy roster on Wednesday afternoon, I came across the name Aaron Santiago, a sophomore slotback from Hawaii.

Santiago? The Navy? A tropical island?

"Did you order the Code Red?!?"

"You're goddamned right I did!"

As it turns out, Aaron Santiago is one of more than just a few good men on the Midshipmen roster. For example, how many other Irish opponents have a pair of high school valedictorians on their two-deep chart? Inside linebacker Tyler Simmons (54), who is second on the team in tackles with 53, was the valedictorian at Washington High School in Goldsby, Okla. Sophomore reserve right tackle John Dowd (68) also graduated No. 1 in his class from St. Peter's Boys High School in Staten Island.

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Daily Domer: Crist Out, Floyd Back

John Walters — 2009-11-03T17:23:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Alabama, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Daily Domer

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Crist will come again ... in four to six months.

Notre Dame learned the fates of both back-up quarterback Dayne Crist and wide receiver Michael Floyd on Monday and the results were mixed.

Crist, a sophomore who went down in the fourth quarter of Notre Dame's 40-14 win against Washington State, learned on Monday that he had torn the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee. Floyd, who broke his left collarbone against Michigan State in the season's third game, was cleared to play.

On Tuesday, Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis confirmed that Crist, who had an MRI on Monday, had torn his ACL and that he would have surgery on Friday. Weis said that the Irish staff consulted "the guru in Alabama" (Dr. James Andrews) and that the prognosis was for a four-to-six month rehab. That likely keeps Crist out of spring football.

"I know one thing," Weis said, concerning Crist's return. "We'll be conservative."

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Blanket Coverage: For Pete's Sake

John Walters — 2009-11-03T12:33:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Arizona State, Cincinnati, Florida, Louisville, New Mexico State, Ohio State, Oregon, Temple, Texas

Halloween in Eugene began with Oregon coach Chip Kelly disguised as the Duck mascot and ended with USC masquerading as Cal. Pete Carroll's Trojans are not exactly immune from defeat in the Beaver State (0-4 since 2006) but they never lose to a fellow highly ranked Pac-10 foe and they most certainly never get waxed.

That's Jeff Tedford's domain.

Hands continue to wring in the Southland -- the Orange County Register declared that "USC's complete dominance of the league, a dominance unmatched in conference history, is over" -- but I believe that Pete Carroll, much like Michael Myers, will haunt the Pac-10 for many Halloweens to come.

Also, I'd like to suggest a more salient reason for Troy's desultory play of late, one that has nothing to do with the freshman QB, the eight defensive starters lost, or the two new coordinators: jet lag (and that's not a Mark Sanchez reference).

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Daily Domer: Crist Alrighty?

John Walters — 2009-11-02T17:00:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

The first words out of the mouth of Charlie Weis at his Sunday evening presser concerned the injury status of sophomore quarterback Dayne Crist. "Well, Dayne is going to get an MRI tomorrow," Weis said of the second-string QB who was 2-of-6 versus Washington State, but who did toss a 64-yard TD pass, his first, to classmate John Goodman. "We're cautiously optimistic that it's not as bad as we originally thought it was. But, you know, we're keeping our fingers crossed on that one."

Although his surname is pronounced with a short "i" (as in Ruth's Chris Steakhouse ... because that was the simplest example, right), the combination of that spelling and the Catholic identity of the school that he attends has scribes and editors alike anxiously awaiting Crist's return. So to speak. One witty wag on the beat texted me Sunday as to whether the presser should begin with the query, "Body of Crist?"

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Oregon Treats USC to Halloween Trick

John Walters — 2009-11-01T01:39:00 00:00

by John WaltersEUGENE, Ore. -- Fright on!

Autzen Stadium became a chamber of horrors on Halloween night for USC as the Trojans suffered their worst loss by far under Pete Carroll at the hands of Oregon, 47-20. As for the slim chance that USC, which entered Saturday No. 5 in the BCS rankings, could still advance to the BCS championship game in Pasadena, much less extend their streak of seven straight Pac-10 titles to eight, I see dead people.

Fans arrived at Autzen clad in black shirts that read "USC, R.I.P." And that was only one ominous sign. The Trojans found themselves deep in the woods, far from home, on a dark and stormy night ... facing creatures who were outfitted, incidentally, by a bright and sunny Knight (Phil). And yet, to judge from the manner in which USC attempted to defend itself from Oregon's simple yet deadly belly option, the Trojans appeared lost. Blair Witch Project-lost.

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Oregon-USC Live Blog: How Can You Tell If the Ducks Are in Costume?

John Walters — 2009-10-31T20:03:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Oregon, USC, Pac 10

EUGENE, Ore. -- Greetings from Autzen Stadium, where just moments ago I was "looking live at Brent Musberger" as we rode up the elevator together. Brent is 70 years young and he hasn't lost an ounce of energy. It's funny. Earlier today ESPN Classic aired a replay of the 1983 NCAA basketball final (Houston-N.C. State), for which Musberger did the play-by-play (on CBS).

That was 26 years ago. And Brent is still getting the primetime gigs. I am an unabashed, unapologetic Musberger fan.

More Coverage: Texas-Oklahoma State Live Blog | Live Scores

Follow John Walters' live blog after the jump.

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Don't Expect Clausen to Have Senior Moments at Notre Dame

John Walters — 2009-10-30T16:00:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

Brace yourselves, Irish fans: The quarterback, he ain't coming back.

The Double D was in the midst of a 17-hour journey between South Bend and Eugene on Thursday (perhaps I just should have driven?), so it missed Charlie Weis' post-practice presser with reporters.

One of the subjects Weis broached was what has become everyone's favorite parlor game around the Gug: Will Jimmy Clausen return for a senior season? "We're not even going to address the subject until the first week in December," my man Brian Hamilton reports Weis saying on chicagobreakingsports.com. "We've already addressed the fact that we're not going to address it. So we're just worrying about the next five games, starting with Washington State. First of all, let's see how we play. But we'll revisit it then."

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What's in the Cards for Golden Tate?

John Walters — 2009-10-30T16:00:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

We've already gone over Jimmy Clausen's potential plans for next year. As for Golden Tate ...

It was only eight weeks ago -- one day after the Nevada game -- that a reporter asked Charlie Weis if Michael Floyd could be the best wideout in Notre Dame history. Weis quickly replied, "I think Golden would argue with you."

At the time it seemed like lip service. Today, it seems prophetic.

When is the last time the Irish had a player with this much swagger as No. 23? Okay, Jeff Samardzija (who, like Tate, also played baseball for the Irish). If Tate remains at Notre Dame for his senior season, he will break every career receiving record that Samardzija set just three years ago.

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Chip Kelly's Oregon Comeback Nearly Storybook Perfect

John Walters — 2009-10-30T15:53:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Oregon, Pac 10

EUGENE, Ore. -- Those football coaches who at least make an attempt at opening a book whose primary letters are not X and O often reach for biographies. Famous military leaders are popular.

Earlier this season Chip Kelly was reading, even committing to memory, a children's book. On the coffee table in his office here, the first-year Oregon coach kept a copy of "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day."

Certainly Kelly can relate. In his sideline debut Kelly, 45, had a terrible, horrible, no good, cable-news-channel-attention-getting, very, very bad day.

And he has not had one since. But we are getting ahead of the story.

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Domer: Beating a Dead (Trojan) Horse

John Walters — 2009-10-29T08:58:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, USC, Daily Domer

FanHouse writer John Walters is living in South Bend, Ind.during one of the most pivotal seasons in Notre Dame history.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- USC beat Notre Dame. I get it.

The Trojans were the better team on October 17. There was no "Bush Push" chaos on the final play from scrimmage. In fact, USC made a do-or-die defensive stop after what might have been the game's last play or, as Pete Carroll said three days later at his Tuesday press conference, "It was nice to beat Notre Dame twice."

The game never seemed as close as one that hangs in the balance in the final seconds, even though it actually did. It never had the feel of 2005.

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For Irish, Finally Just a Game

John Walters — 2009-10-27T19:00:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Washington State, Daily Domer

FanHouse writer John Walters is living in South Bend, Ind.during one of the most pivotal seasons in Notre Dame history. Check back daily for his latest dispatches on the Irish.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Washington State. What's the angle, you say? The Cougars have no manner of a long win streak versus the Irish a la Michigan State, USC and Boston College. There's no Ty Willingham connection a la Washington, no in-state pride a la Purdue. There's no season-opener anxiety, as with Nevada and there's no good-old fashioned mutual loathing, as with Michigan.

It only took eight weeks, but the Irish happen to be playing ... just a football game.

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Blanket Coverage: Glamorous, Not Great

John Walters — 2009-10-26T13:00:00 00:00

by John WaltersSouthern California, with one loss already this season, has allowed a combined 63 points the past two weeks in single-digit margin victories against unranked opponents. The Trojans are ranked No. 4 in this week's AP poll and are No. 5 in the BCS rankings. In the ranking that matters (the BCS poll) USC, whose loss came to a team with a sub-.500 record (Washington), is rated ahead of three undefeated teams and nine one-loss schools. Three of those one-loss programs (No. 9 LSU, No. 10 Oregon and No. 12 Penn State) fell to teams that are currently undefeated (respectively, Florida, Boise State and Iowa).

Am I missing something?

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Daily Domer: A Heapin' Dish of Sunday Leftovers From Boston College Win

John Walters — 2009-10-25T19:30:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- If you happen to be a Notre Dame fan or alum, you probably have a friend who either attended or is a fan of Boston College. You may want to go easy on the smack talk today. Yes, the Irish defeated the Eagles 20-16 on Saturday to end B.C.'s six-game win streak in the series (the Irish head-to-head mark versus their Catholic brethren is now 10-9).

On the other hand, B.C. very nearly beat the Irish with a first-year head coach (Frank Spaziani, who looks like a cross between Dennis Farina and Uncle Leo) and a freshman quarterback (Dave Shinskie). Their leading tackler, linebacker Luke Kuechly, who had 14 tackles, is also a freshman.

And their premier player, 2008 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, Mark Herzlich, is sidelined for the season as he undergoes cancer treatment.

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Irish Walk High-Wire in Win, Again

John Walters — 2009-10-24T23:02:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Boston College, Notre Dame

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Boston College head coach Frank Spaziani referred to his team as a "high-wire act".

What does that make the Fighting Irish?

Notre Dame went Wallenda again on Saturday, defeating its Catholic university nemesis 20-16 in a game whose outcome was not decided until Brian Smith's interception with 1:38 remaining. That makes six consecutive games decided by seven or fewer points by the Irish, a school record. Tight-rope walking is all the Irish know.

As the sun disappeared behind the library mosaic of Touchdown Jesus, his arms, we now believe, held aloft in frustration as if to ask, "Not again?", Boston College was just 27 yards away from a game-winning touchdown. Notre Dame was practicing its insidious form of deja voodoo yet again.

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Go Catholics! Notre Dame-Boston College Live Blog

John Walters — 2009-10-24T13:22:00 00:00

by John Walters

Filed under: Notre Dame, Daily Domer

FanHouse writer John Walters is living in South Bend, Ind., during one of the most pivotal seasons in Notre Dame history. Check back daily for his latest dispatches on the Irish.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Four touchdowns?!?

Earlier today on ESPN Gameday Lee Corso predicted that the Irish would take down their Catholic nemesis, Boston College, by four touchdowns. Not so fast, my friend.

Vegas has moved the Notre Dame line down progressively this week, from 10 points to 7-1/2. I don't know exactly whom to believe--the bookies or Corso--but I do know that the Irish have trailed at halftime in three of their past four games. And that they've trailed in the second half in every game this year except the season-opener at Nevada.

You probably want to know about the weather. Nastiest of the season so far, although the rain is little more than a drizzle. However, it's windy and it feels about 40 degrees out there. Not a few fans have broken out their hunting gear a couple weeks early to fend against the cold.

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