Can You Smell What the Zook is Cookin'? | by Jay

Have you been following the Ron Zook v. the World contretemps that finally flared up last week? It's juicy. Put on a pot of coffee and let me catch you up.

---

Wednesday. On the eve of Illinois landing a top-15 recruiting class -- including the top defensive end (Martez Wilson) and top wide receiver (Arrelious Benn) in the country -- Thayer Evans and Pete Thamel of the New York Times ask the question that's been on everyone's minds: How is the Zooker Doing It?

The success at Illinois has left the world of college football abuzz with a question: How did a program that went 4-19 the past two seasons, including 1-15 in its conference, persuade so many top players to sign?

John L. Smith, who was recently dismissed as the head coach at Michigan State, expressed a view shared privately by many rival coaches and recruiters: “If they had a winning program and all of that, it would be a different deal. If they had the greatest facilities in the world, then maybe they could sell them. But what are they selling?” He added, “Where there’s smoke, there’s probably fire.”

But Jim Delany, the commissioner of the Big Ten, made an unsolicited call to a reporter for The New York Times to say that “blogosphere smoke” was the reason for any suspicion surrounding the Illinois class. “Around signing day,” he said, “smoke does not equal fire.”

... In a telephone interview Monday, [Ilinois athletic director Ron] Guenther said the university hired an outside law firm to investigate anonymous tips and complaints about suspected recruiting improprieties, and to determine the source of rumors about the program. He said the investigation had cost the university thousands of dollars.

Guenther also said he and Illinois coaches were convinced that another university’s coaching staff had leaked unflattering personal information about recruits to a Web site. He would not name the Web site or the university, other than to say it was not a Big Ten program.

“I take this stuff so seriously,” he said. “I have an interest in the coach’s and the program’s reputation. It’s defamation of character, and it’s got to be challenged.”

Leave it to Johnelle to go off half-cocked; I laughed out loud when I read his comment. Apart from that slam, unfortunately, the article doesn't elaborate on the specific complaints against Illinois, nor who levied them, and the article ends with a shrug. Who knows?

The real story in this piece seems to be in Guenther's reaction: Illinois is mad as hell, and they're not gonna take it any longer. Still, no specific accusations...not yet, anyway. (Illinois fans, judging from message board posts, are pissed, and think the whole NYT story is a plant by a rival school meant to derail their recruiting class.)

Also Wednesday. Alan Goldenbach of the Washington Post puts out a story the same day, ostensibly about recruiting ethics and protocol in college football. The lead anecdote is a bit on Arrelious Benn, who has some unflattering things to say about Notre Dame and former QB coach Pete Vaas:

Throughout his junior school year, Benn said he had considered Notre Dame his top choice, but when he felt as though the Fighting Irish coaching staff was putting too much pressure on him to commit he stopped considering the school. Once Benn orally committed to Illinois, Notre Dame assistant Peter Vaas continued to pepper Benn with text messages and voice mails, some of which Benn provided to The Post:

"FYI, ILL is telling Robert Hughes that they will build their offense around him? Didn't they tell you that?

Coach Vaas," Vaas wrote Benn on Dec. 17.

Earlier that month, Vaas left this voice message on Benn's phone: "You don't want to do anything except bury your head in the sand. . . . I guess you're not tough enough to compete at the big level."

Vaas, who was let go as quarterbacks coach by the Irish after their 44-14 loss to LSU in the Sugar Bowl, did not deny leaving the messages. He said last night that even though Benn made his announcement on national television, that isn't necessarily a recruit's final word.

"Did he say [he was going to Illinois] to me? Did I see him on TV?" Vaas said. "There's an awful lot of rumors or innuendo out there . . . and kids change their minds after they do that. A lot of times, it depends upon what kind of conviction a kid has about a place. You know how you read between the lines? As a recruiter, I have to hear between the lines."

A Notre Dame spokesman declined to comment last night.

A couple of things struck me about Goldenbach's article. First of all, it's curious that this piece would come out the same day as the NYT story. In that article, we have Illinois accusing an unnamed school of slandering its good name; in this, we have an Illinois recruit backbiting the school that came in second place for his services. The WaPo story essentially fills in the blanks for Guenther. And why would the WaPo do a story on Benn -- focusing on events that happened roughly two months ago -- just two weeks after running a lengthy profile on Benn's first week as a college student? (Benn is an early enrollee to Illinois). It's interesting, too, that Goldenbach would be the reporter to present this; over the years he's done a number of pieces on Illinois recruiting coordinator Mike Locksley (while he was in the same position at Maryland). Did Locksley encourage Goldenbach to write this?

Perhaps on Wednesday night, this would seem like tinfoil-hat speculation. Given the stories that would appear over the next two days, I don't think it's far from the mark. It's the first salvo in an organized PR campaign.

---

Thursday. Signing day. Zook goes to Chicago for a media blitz, doing radio interviews and TV spots (here's a bit from ESPNU) and calls to reporters defending himself against the still as-yet-unspecified allegations. The Chicago papers pick up where the NYT story leaves off, and things get a little more specific. Herb Gould writes about it in the Sun-Times, and Teddy Greenstein has a piece in the Trib. The culprit is finally named.

"For people to say those things. One, we're not going to have people like that in our program. Two, if you get to know our people, you'll realize they are not that way," Zook said. "For the most part we know where [the accusations] are coming from. It's a shame for people to throw things out there and try to take away from a great university and program."

Illinois officials wouldn't acknowledge it, but there's little doubt they suspect Notre Dame is behind the accusations.

(By the way, at the Notre Dame signing day presser, Charlie Weis is asked about the Benn/Vaas story in the Washington Post. He responds:)

I think [Benn] put Coach Vaas out to dry on that one. I want to side with Coach Vaas on that one.

You ask me if Coach Vaas sent him texts. Sure, he sent him texts. You probably could go ask the kid if he committed to us beforehand, too, see what he says to that one. It comes down to those silent verbals, all that other type of stuff.

I wish Regis [Benn's nickname] well at Illinois. I don't think now is the time for him to be hanging Coach Vaas out to dry for sending him texts, because signing day for him was when he matriculated into the second semester. For guys that go midyear, the day they enroll in classes is like their signing day...

I don't think Coach Vaas was trying to do anything unethical. I think Coach Vaas was trying to give him everything he possibly could get him, to a guy who once verbally committed to us, then switched to another school. I think we should wish him well and not point a finger at Coach Vaas.

---

Friday. The fruits of the Zook media blitz on Thursday bloom; more stories in the Chicago papers (and around the country), more finger-pointing at Notre Dame, and still no specific allegations. Greenstein, par deux:

Zook actually does know where it's coming from this time. Or he thinks he does.

He won't publicly name the school, but it might be located 90 miles east of Chicago. The one where Rockne coached.

Notre Dame?

[...]

Zook doesn't want to seem, uh, paranoid, but it's clear he believes Notre Dame played a role in the Times' story. He believes the timing of the piece—it ran on national signing day—was intended to hurt Illinois' recruiting efforts.

"I've taken a lot of criticism," he said. "All I ask is that people be fair. If we need to be bashed, bash us. I don't have a problem with that."

But he has a major problem with rival coaches whispering that he and his staff used illegal inducements in signing blue-chippers Arrelious Benn and Martez Wilson.

Asked how he keeps Illinois boosters away from recruits, the coach replied, "I don't think [booster involvement] has been insinuated here. What has been insinuated is that our coaching staff has done things. I know what's being said to our recruits."

Most importantly, in this article we get (for the first time) a hint about the source of the allegations.

Illinois went so far as to hire a law firm to investigate charges that it had supplied cars to Benn and quarterback Juice Williams.

The allegations came from anonymous letters sent to university officials.

Gould, in the Sun-Times, has another salacious bit of gossip about Notre Dame recruiters, care of Martez Wilson's dad:

Wilson's father, Michael Whitehead, told the Sun-Times he was shocked when a Notre Dame assistant coach got into a shouting match with a Simeon [Wilson's high school] assistant at their home. The discussion centered on what Illinois football would accomplish during Wilson's time there.

''It was like we weren't even in the room,'' said Whitehead, who was taken aback by the argument.

An old Florida beat writer, Mike Bianchi, blasted Notre Dame in the Orlanda Sentinel:

"This is typical Golden Dome arrogance. How could high-and-mighty Notre Dame lose a recruit to those lowly bumpkins in Illinois?

As somebody who once went on a recruiting trip with Zook, I can tell you how: Because the guy works harder and cares more. I still remember that 13-day span during the May recruiting period before his first UF season when Zook jumped in a car and visited 71 high schools in the state (an average of almost six per day) and gave speeches to 12 Gator Clubs. I'm just guessing Charlie Weis isn't driving alone at midnight through the back roads of Indiana, gulping down convenience-store coffee to try to stay awake."

Sure, Mike. Charlie doesn't work hard on the recruiting trail or anything.

---

Sunday. Mark Tupper in the Decatur, IL Herald & Review hints at the next shoe to drop:

As soon as Guenther has the results of the law firm's investigative work, he needs to come forward and identify the source of the original postings. We're all going to find that the author has an agenda closely tied to another university.

Expect Guenther to speak very soon.

While doing so, Guenther needs to strongly defend his football coach, which he will.

Then, the New York Times needs to revisit the subject, vindicating Zook and pointing a harsh finger at the real culprit. My guess is that won't happen, nor will TV personality Regis Philbin, a blithering Notre Dame mouthpiece, apologize for his comment this week ("Isn't that fishy?") made to explain why Irish coach Charlie Weis had not been able to pad an already strong recruiting class with players like Illini-bound Benn and Wilson.

And here's another thing you can count on: There will be a mad scramble of denials attempting to place distance between any school and the author of the original message. That will be fun to watch.

...And the law firm Guenther hired will uncover the real culprit and the true motivation behind these venomous accusations.

Tupper also had a blog entry along those same lines. The comments section provide a nice glimpse into the Illinois mentality about all this.

---

Notes & Questions.

1. Illinois has played this pretty well so far in the media, turning suspicions into sympathy. (Zook is a natural at playing the victim.) The story should be about how Illinois garnered such a spectacular recruiting class in the face of the program's indemic futility, but they're deflecting the skepticism and making the story about Notre Dame's sour grapes. Zook, Guenther, Illinois players, their families, and the commish of the Big 10 have all weighed in against ND; but what are they talking about? Do you see any concrete allegations from Notre Dame levied against Illinois in any of these articles?

2. But let's be realistic: you don't need a university's coaching staff to plant the speculation that maybe Zook is cheating. All you have to do is look at the facts of the situation, and your eyebrow will almost involuntarily raise. He got the best receiver in the country, a player from Washington DC, with offers from just about everywhere, to commit to a cold-weather program halfway across the country, one with a decidedly mediocre coach and one that's won 4 games in two years. He also pulled a four-star defensive tackle out of Florida that was coveted by both Bowden and Urban. Anybody who followed recruiting this year is wondering how the hell Zook did it (and probably still wondering, even after the explanations given by Zook & co. in the articles above).

3. Guenther can't be serious about bringing a defamation of character suit. Does he want to open Illinois up to a discovery phase in an actual case? Heck no. It's a scare tactic: a lot of bluster and hot air meant to dissuade further rumor-mongering.

4. We've heard from several sources that there was a post on the Michigan Rivals board that told how Michigan sent a letter (or letters) of complaint to the Big 10 about Illinois' recruiting practices. Delany made no mention of this in his public statements above. If I were a reporter doing a follow-up story, I would ask Delany if he's received any complaints from other Big 10 schools about Illinois.

5. Let's not forget who we're talking about here: it's Illinois. They have a long record of violations in both major men's sports. Locksley, too, has some dirt on his resume: at Maryland, one of his coaches was caught giving cash to recruit Victor Abiamiri. Historically, this isn't a squeaky-clean operation.

6. I'm really curious to see how Guenther plans to tie the allegations back to Notre Dame. He better have something substantial, or else this drama that's been unfolding over the past week is going to look less like an honest defense and more like a petty attempt to shift the blame.

Spit-Take | by Jay

from the AJC, a note on one of the de-committing Littles, specifically Chris, who reportedly as late as 11:20am on signing day still hadn't made up his mind:

"It is hard to tell a coach from a university, 'I don't want to take your scholarship,' " said Georgia signee Vince Vance, who had to say as much to none other than Steve Spurrier. "It is kind of awkward to say that."

Ask for help if you must. Twiggs County All-American Chris Little suggests consulting your high school coach for assistance with the wording.

Little's simple, to-the-point message: "Thanks, but no thanks. It's not the place for me."

"It's better to tell them so you're not wasting their time and they can move on," Little said.

Quotes & Notes | by Pat

"The integrity of (coach) Charlie Weis sold me. At no time did I feel he was being anything but totally honest with me."

- Mike Ragone, Courier Post

"With us totally changing the defensive scheme, I hope it improves a lot."

- Aaron Nagel, Herald News

"Coach Weis called this morning and said they were moving around some of the recruits, guys who were possible (defensive line) prospects. They have guard in mind for me, which is fine. They're giving me the opportunity. It's up to me to go get it."

- Taylor Dever, The Union

''It was just the allure of Notre Dame."

- Emeka Nwankwo, Miami Herald (bonus audio here)

''I'm not one of those cocky kids who is going to say I'm going to come in and take a starting spot. I am going to come and push the older guys. If that's good enough for me to come in and play, so be it.''

- Ian Williams, Chicago Sun-Times

"I still can't believe I'm actually going to Notre Dame. Take football out of the equation and you can't beat a degree from Notre Dame."

- Andrew Nuss, LoudounPrepSports.com

---

and a short recruiting roundtable...

Biggest Get?
Teds: Kerry Neal. He might not be the very best prospect in this class, but I think Neal provides an element that the team has been sorely lacking the past couple years, which is an extremely athletic end with the potential to terrorize opposing quarterbacks. Given the proposed shift to a 3-4 defense, lining up a versatile defender like Neal as an outside linebacker may prove to be an invaluable piece of Corwin Brown's new puzzle and a key component in ultimately finding success.

Mark: Kerry Neal/Armando Allen. Neal ended up with offers from Miami, Florida, Nebraska, Alabama, etc. ND needs speed off the edge in the worst way and Neal should hopefully give us that. Allen hopefully gives the offense what it's lacked - a breakaway threat, SEC-level speed at a key position.

Pat: Ian Williams. Jimmy Clausen and Armando Allen are two great prospects, but landing a ready-made defensive tackle was the biggest priority for this class and Williams fits the bill. Whether ND is running a 3-4 or 4-3, Williams has the opportunity to see the field early for the Irish and adds much-needed size and depth to the tackle position.

Mike: Armando Allen. It almost feels like cheating to pick someone other than Jimmy Clausen, given that Clausen amassed a prep resume unrivaled in recent years. However, given how quarterbacks have played under Weis (particularly Vinny Testaverde and Ray Lucas), it's hard to worry about the quarterback position. There's also a strong argument in favor of selecting a defensive player given Notre Dame's current needs. Yet Armando Allen has the potential to be one of those players that a defense is forced to account for on every play, thereby creating big-play opportunities for his teammates even when he doesn't touch the ball. For the last two years, the Irish offense leaned heavily on Quinn's ability to lead long, error-free drives. Hopefully, Allen's quick-strike potential will make such consistent quarterback play a bonus rather than a necessity. (Lastly, it's great that we've reached the point where a blue-chip cornerback prospect like Gary Gray isn't the obvious answer to this question.)

Biggest Miss?
Mark: Lorenzo Edwards. This guy would have given ND even more speed at the LB position.

Teds: Chris Donald. He certainly wasn't the only blue-chip linebacker ND ultimately missed on, but Donald may have been the most ready-made and versatile of the group, with the size to man the interior and the physical ability to thrive on the outside.

Mike: Will Blackwell/Martez Wilson. Will Blackwell is a huge miss for two reasons. First, because he was a talented player with an affinity for Notre Dame at the position that has been the most difficult for Notre Dame to recruit in recent years. Second, because the coaching staff apparently felt confident enough in their ability to land Blackwell that there wasn't much of a backup plan once Blackwell chose LSU. Martez Wilson is a big miss because of Corwin Brown's defense. Like Neal, Wilson seems to be a perfect fit for the 3-4 OLB position.

Pat: Martez Wilson. If the Irish are indeed moving to a 3-4, then they will need to get big, fast, athletic outside linebackers. Wilson embodies all of those aspects and would also have seen the field early at ND.

Class Sleeper?
Pat: I'm not sure I want to pick one of these this year. Over the past two years I've picked Luke Schmidt and Kevin Washington. So far it seems like a "sleeper" pick by me is a one-way ticket to the end of the bench. Hopefully the trend will end this year. Kerry Neal is the easy pick since he has tremendous potential yet has been overlooked a bit by recruitnik rankings as well as Irish fans looking forward to the next big recruit. Still, I'm going to go with Harrison Smith. Seeing how much local fans hated to see Smith get away from the hometown Vols leads me to believe he's going to quickly work his way into the rotation for the Irish.

Mike: Kerry Neal/Robert Hughes. Does Kerry Neal still qualify as a sleeper? I think so. His early commitment (and subsequent refusal to entertain offers from Florida, Miami, et al) kept him under the radar. Additionally, some of the self-appointed gurus argued that he had "tweener" size in a 4-3. However, Neal seems to possess the perfect size/skill combination for a 3-4 OLB, the position he is likely to play in Corwin Brown's defense. Given the importance of this position in said defense, I think Neal could become the star of Notre Dame's defense in the future. Even though I predicted big things for Armando Allen, I still pick Robert Hughes as my sleeper on offense. Under Weis, Notre Dame's most dependable short-yardage back was Brady Quinn. Hughes could mean a lot to Notre Dame's third-down and goalline offense, both for his ability to run between the tackles and for his reportedly excellent hands.

Mark: Golden Tate. Early offer from Tennessee, offers from the majority of the SEC. Another speed guy that ND has missed in the last few years.

Teds: Harrison Smith. Not that he wasn't highly regarded, but Smith got a bit lost in the shuffle, eventually committing long after it was suspected he was ND's and in the midst of waiting on the big undecideds headed to San Antonio. Similar to Neal, Smith appears to possess traits that were missing in the 2006 defense, particularly good instincts on angles and playing the ball. If fulfilled, his potential represents a serious upgrade for the Irish secondary.

---

Bring us on home.
Teds: Weis was thisclose to landing a superstar class, but the late-season fade on the field ultimately provided rival coaches enough fodder to derail Irish hopes with a handful of major defensive talents. Regardless, the fruits of the campaign provide another group of players who will raise the talent level of the team significantly in future seasons and offer further reinforcements for what could be a juggernaut offense that gives that of SC and anyone else a run for their money.

Going forward, the emphasis has to be set squarely on a commitment to restocking the defense, particularly in the front seven. Fortunately, ND appears to have hired a very strong recruiter in new DC Corwin Brown, someone who can not merely relate to these kids but excite them, as well. With Brown and new quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus added to a staff that already includes Mike Haywood, Rob Ianello, Bill Lewis and John Latina, this may now be the most capable and effective group of recruiters that the school has ever seen. Given the exemplary work ethic and coordination that have been hallmarks of Weis' tenure thus far, it's more than reasonable to expect ND to continue to attract top-10-level talent in the foreseeable future. The difference between another merely excellent class and a #1-type effort next year will come down to how successful the 2007 team is at proving that it won't be outclassed by any opponent and is squarely on-track for future greatness.

Rise from Obscurity | by Pat

It's probably safe to say that Taylor Dever is the least-known player in the current recruiting class. Even the official ND Signing Day release is rather light on information about the California offensive lineman. The truth is, Dever was inconspicuous all through the recruiting cycle...until the middle of his senior season at Nevada Union High School, when all of a sudden offers started to pour in.

For those who wonder what turn of events trigger late flurry of offers like this, in Dever's case it was thanks to a local TV announcer.

So last fall, while going over game film in preparation for a Comcast SportsNet broadcast for a high school game, Lamb couldn't stop raving about the left tackle from Nevada Union. Formidable and ferocious, he was Taylor Dever.

"I thought, Oh my God, look at this kid!" Lamb recalled. "I thought, That's the best tackle I've seen in my 10 years doing high school games. He's big-time."

Big-time with little notice or fanfare at that point.

Lamb tracked down Dever's father, a mountain of a man himself at 6-foot-4, after that Nevada Union-Del Oro broadcast -- one in which Lamb asked producers and camera techs to track Dever extensively -- and raved about the kid's upside.

At that point, Tom Dever said his son had generated a sprinkle of interest. Before long, it was an avalanche, thanks mostly to Dever's skills and 6-6 size, but also partly to the benefits of modern technology and the media.

Recruiting's often a matter of serendipity, especially for a lower-profile recruit; ultimately, it comes down to having the right person see you play at the right time. In Dever's case, that TV broadcast on September 22nd turned a high school kid with no college offers into a top prospect, with offers from around the country.

A new beginning | by Pat

Ok, then. Let's dig right in with all the links you need to catch up on the Recruiting Class of 2007.

• The official Notre Dame press release
• Charlie Weis Press Conference Transcript
• the South Bend Tribune - "Irish Signs 18, Loses 2 late"

Rank 'Em. According to the four major recruiting services, here is the final class ranking for ND's Class of 2007.

6th - Lemming/CSTV
8th - ESPN
8th - Rivals
11th - Scout

BGS Breakdowns. For those silly readers that think we know what we're talking about, here's what we said about each recruit when their commit was made public

Offense
QB - Jimmy Clausen
RB - Armando Allen, Robert Hughes
TE - Mike Ragone
WR - Duval Kamara, Golden Tate
OL - Matt Romine, Taylor Dever, Emeka Nwankwo

Defense
DE - Kerry Neal
DT - Ian Williams, Andrew Nuss
LB - Aaron Nagel, Steve Paskorz, Brian Smith
CB - Gary Gray
S - Harrison Smith
K - Brandon Walker

Switcheroo. Both Andrew Nuss and Emeka Nwankwo started out life as a Notre Dame commit on the offensive side of the ball. But now one, if not both, will be entering their freshman year lumped in with the defensive tackles. Nuss is already listed with the defensive tackles on und.com, while Nwankwo is still grouped with the OL...for now. Both played the position extensively in high school, but offensive line was the position at which most schools recruited them.

Switcheroo part Deux. This saw a number of flipping, flopping, and flip-flopping as three commits altered their original plans and headed to Notre Dame while three others did the exact opposite and bolted ND for other destinations. Kicker Brandon Walker (Louisville), linebacker Brian Smith (Iowa), and corner Gary Gray (South Carolina) flipped into ND's class while defensive end Justin Trattou (Florida), wide receiver Greg Little (North Carolina), and offensive lineman Chris Little (Georgia) flopped out.

State of recruiting. Unlike the 2006 and 2003 classes, there are no high school teammates in the class of 2007. But in a nationally diverse class that draws from 12 different states, 5 states feature two or more recruits. Florida - Allen, Williams, Nwankwo. Tennessee - Smith, Tate. California - Clausen, Dever. New Jersey - Kamara, Ragone. Illinois - Hughes, Nagel.

More to come with the BGS take on the class and reactions from Signing Day...

Fax me a letter | by Pat

Today's the day when many months of hard work boil down to a few nerve-wracking hours. A day when fax machines become the most important piece of equipment on campuses throughout the country and employees across the nation keep hitting F5 to know the very instant when their favorite recruits transition from verbal commit to an official member of the team.

Charlie's press conference will be at noon today at und.com and once they update the site with a link we'll update this post.

Personally, I can't remember such a crazy stretch run to National Signing Day. Rumors have been flying hot and heavy the past few days and still are as multiple Irish recruits are apparently wavering on their ultimate destination. The smoke should clear soon enough, but it's still a wild and woolly end to one of the crazier recruiting years I can remember.

Update: You can check out the Charlie press conference live using this link.

7 out of 10 isn't good enough. | by Pat

National Signing Day is tomorrow so to get you in the mood, here's a trio of links to introduce the concept and execution of recruiting for those who aren't hopelessly and pathetically obsessed. (I keep telling myself that admitting it is the first step towards recovery.)

First things first. Before the recruiting process can even start, a coach needs to pass an NCAA-administered test on the complicated rules of recruiting. In order to be eligible to contact recruits, a coach must score an 80%. A practice version of the test is available online here. Can you pass it? In the interest of full disclosure, I took the test and scored 70% which suits me just fine. It's high enough that I don't feel dumb, but not so high that I feel like I'm paying way too much attention to this stuff. (ok, I am paying way too much attention to this stuff.)

Ahhhh, but coaches aren't the only ones with a big impact on the recruiting process. With the huge interest in recruiting websites like Rivals.com and Scout.com, the evaluation of recruits and the resultant "star" rankings is reshaping a booming cottage industry. And this particular niche market is becoming so powerful that it in turn is affecting not only the recruiting habits of college coaches, but also their job security as assumptions based on said rankings affect the levels of expectations for particular schools. That leads to one big question. Who are these guys doing the rankings? The Washington Post has a very interesting insight into the lives of one of the well-known recruiting analysts with a recent profile on Scout.com evaluator Bob Litchenfels. It's a worthwhile read that gives a behind the scenes peek at how the industry works and the people that run it.

Finally, while we spend tomorrow fawning over the final class recruiting rank and project these players future, it's interesting to look back and see just how accurate these rankings we love to recite actually are. Thanks to Wizard of Odds for pointing out that Brent Schrotenboer of the San Diego Union-Tribune investigated the past four years of recruiting rankings and came up with a very interesting graphic detailing the cumulative four-year recruiting class ranking and the accompanying finish in this year's Top 25. Notice that Penn State and Cal are the only two teams out of 11 that finished lower in the recruiting ranking than the Irish and still managed to remain ranked this year. Does the dropoff mean that the schools with lower ranked recruits yet managed to be ranked have better coaches? Or are the unranked/lower ranked schools with high recruiting rankings merely benefiting from name recognition in the recruiting process? Probably a little from column A and a little from column B. Still, previous recaps done on BGS (here and here) show that while there are plenty of misses among the top ranked guys, there are still enough hits to warrant paying some sort of attention to the consensus rankings.

Best in the land | by Pat

We rarely venture away from football related topics here, but news like this is too noteworthy to pass up. For the first time in the program's history, the Notre Dame hockey team is the unanimous #1 team in the nation. Both the USCHO and USA Today polls have the Irish in the top spot after spending the past few weeks in second place. In honor of this great achievement we've fired up the #1 light high atop BGS headquarters and indulged in a few drinks in honor of Coach Jeff Jackson and his kick-ass team.

The Irish are currently 23-5-2, which is a dramatic turnaround for a team that finished 5-27-6 two years ago when Jackson was brought in to revitalize the program. Playing in arguably the worst hockey facilities in the nation, Jackson has the team playing a level never before reached in the 39-year history of the program. Helping to lead the way is goaltender David Brown who is one of the frontrunners for the Hobey Baker award, college hockey's version of the Heisman. Part of the voting process includes an online fan vote, which you can do here if you so desire.

With a season for the ages underway, a top notch recruiting class on its way, and upgrades to the hockey rink reportedly part of the JACC renovation, the future for ND hockey is very bright. But for now, let's all raise a glass to the Irish hockey team for their stellar season as they enter the stretch run to the post-season. Go Irish!

Video star | by Pat

It looks like Brady Quinn has made the first major marketing move of the newest crop of NFL rookies-to-be. In a recent press release, it was announced that Microsoft and X-Box are teaming up with Quinn to provide college football fans and video game players a behind the scenes look at how players prep for the NFL Draft.

The deal will feature video clips and blog updates from Quinn starting this Friday and apparently will even give fans chances to play him via X-Box Live.

"Our gamers love football, and football players love to game," said Mike Fischer, director of U.S. Marketing for Xbox at Microsoft. "Brady Quinn exemplifies what we were looking for in an athlete: He's focused and driven, and generates a lot of excitement when he's on the field. I'm looking forward to giving football fans a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make it in the pros."

It's my guess that Quinn will play against online foes in either EA Sports NCAA 2007 or Madden 2007. I'd also guess that he'll get crushed by some 13 year old kid from Tulsa who keeps running the same play over and over.

Many thanks | by Pat

A quick thank you to everyone that voted for the Blue-Gray Sky in the recent college football blogger awards. BGS was named best blog in the Big East/ND category (that's right Big East....first we steal your bowl bids, now we take your blog awards) and finished as the runner-up for the Post of the Year award to the very deserving Orson over at Every Day Should be Saturday.

The entire list of winners can be found over at RockyTopTalk and I highly suggest you check them all out as the winners and runners-up are all high quality blogs. Of special note is the strong entry into the blogging community by a pair of blogs run by ND fans.

Fire Mark May, run by irishoutsider, won Best New Blog and should definitely be added to your bookmarks and/or RSS news reader. Fire Mark May also finished as the runner-up in the Best Gag category for the hilarious "I hate your favorite team" letter from Glenn Philips, professional referee.

Likewise, Mark May Be Wrong, a creation of Brian, Dan, and Tom, took home the Best Critic award for their on-going attempt to track the predictions of college football pundits and bring some level of accountability to the so-called "experts". Combing cold hard facts with exceptional layout and programming skillz, not to mention the always fun Suck-O-Meter, Mark May Be Wrong is a definite addition to any ND fan reading list. Mark May Be Wrong also took The Conversation concept Jay wrote about earlier in the year and turned it into a fully-fledged internets widget that makes sorting teams by different Conversation criteria a snap.

So again, many thanks to those who voted for us. And make sure to check out/keep checking out those blogs that were a part of the inaugural blogger awards. There are some exceptional writers out there covering college football and many of them aren't the ones getting press passes to the games.

Super showdown | by Pat

It's the unofficial last day of football for the 2006 season and unless you already have a favorite team to root for, the Super Bowl tiebreaker for many ND fans usually falls to whichever team has more former Irish players.

Here's the breakdown for this year's big game:

Chicago Bears
Mark LeVoir (practice squad)

Indianapolis Colts
Rocky Boiman
Hunter Smith
Jerome Collins (injured reserve)

So there you have it, Indy is the more ND-friendly team if former ND players is your criteria.

Super Bowl XLI will bring the total number of former Irish players who have been in a Super Bowl to 50. Of those 50, 29 were on the winning team and earned a ring. With players on both sides, that number will increase today.

When it comes to ND and Super Bowl success, no one can touch Rocky Bleier and Joe Montana. Not only do both players have four Super Bowl rings, tops among ND players, but both also won a national championship while playing for the Fighting Irish as well.

Can he kick it? | by Pat

The Class of 2007 added its 20th member as Ohio kicker Brandon Walker joined Brian Smith on Tuesday in committing to the Fighting Irish. Like Smith, Walker had been committed to another school, in this case Louisville, only to change his mind and wind up giving a pledge to Notre Dame. Unlike Smith, Walker's switch came about after the head coach of his original school, Bobby Petrino, left Louisville to take over the Atlanta Falcons head job.

"I wasn't sure if my scholarship would be good or not," Walker said. "So I stared contacting schools that had offered me before."

At the top of that list was Pitt and Michigan State. Then came a call Walker wasn't expecting.

"It was right out of the blue," Walker said. "I was leaving the house one day and I got the call. They wanted some film on me and my mom said, 'Are you sure it's Notre Dame?'

"It turned out to be the best offer yet, and not just for football. Academically, it's one of the best schools in the nation for what I want to get into."

A few days after Walker sent his film to ND, the Irish offered and invited Walker up to campus this past weekend for an official visit. Upon returning, Walker made the decision on Tuesday night to accept the Notre Dame offer.

Irish fans might be wondering how the Irish decided to offer a kicker a scholarship when they just offered one last year. Does it mean the coaches lack faith in Ryan Burkhart? If ND needed a kicker, why wait until mid-January? Will Notre Dame ever be able to kick the ball into the endzone on kickoffs?

It seems to me that the somewhat unexpected decision by Carl Gioia to not seek a 5th year of eligibility combined with the sudden decommitment of Walker and the fact that ND has a few extra scholarships this year led to the last minute kicker recruitment. It also doesn't hurt that Walker is versatile enough to switch to punter if kicking doesn't work out.

"They put a kicker on scholarship last year. He's going to be a sophomore but I guess he didn't make the adjustments they felt he needed to make," Walker said.

"They said the competition for field goals and kickoffs is open. Their punter will be a fifth-year senior who's actually near the top of the Ray Guy (Award) list right now.

"I've kicked since fifth grade and I feel more comfortable kicking field goals. But I'll do whatever gets me on the field."

Ranked as the #16 kicker by Rivals and the #6 punter by Scout, it seems that opinions are mixed on just what Walker will wind up doing in college. The above quote does make it sound like the coaching staff is a bit worried about Ryan Burkhart, but let's not forget that many had written off Geoff Price at punter until his breakthrough season last year. You never know when a boost in confidence or tweak in technique turns an inconsistent kicker into a dependable weapon.

Walker's chances at kicker will likely come down to the performance of Burkhart this spring. If he has a solid set of practices and earns the trust of the coaching staff, then Walker might find himself on the fast track to becoming Price's heir apparent at punter. If not, then the 2nd Team All-State kicker will likely be right in the mix for the starting kicker job and Irish fans will be able to enjoy another pre-season of uncertainty at kicker.

Smith Switch | by Pat

After just losing defensive commit Justin Trattou to Florida, Notre Dame rebounded by securing the commitment of another defensive recruit in the form of Kansas linebacker Brian Smith. Smith, who publically committed to Iowa back in August, decided to take up the Irish on their late scholarship offer and made the switch late Tuesday night.

Coach Weis and the Irish had originally recruited Smith back during the summer, but after securing public commits from Aaron Nagel and Steve Paskorz, the Irish decided to pass on the then 3-star recruit Smith.

“We were contacted by the new defensive coordinator (Corwin Brown),” Smith said. “In the summer, (Notre Dame) was very well in the mix. I was just waiting on the offer so I could commit. But in June, I was told I didn’t fit into the old defensive coordinator’s plan. … I guess he wasn’t impressed with me, but the new defensive coordinator came in and liked what he saw.”

To be fair to Minter, Smith is an inside linebacker and at that time, ND was really in the hunt for speedy outside linebackers like Chris Donald, Martez Wilson, Lorenzo Edwards, and Malcolm Smith to upgrade the Irish defensive speed in the 4-3 defense. So in that regard, I can understand the decision to pass on Smith. However, with the likely arrival of the 3-4 defense, there is a greater need for inside linebackers and Smith certainly fits the bill.

Coach Weis, along with Coaches Brown, Ianello, Oliver, and Haywood all visited Smith last Sunday after offering on Friday. And after what I imagine was a pretty stressful decision, Smith scheduled an official visit to South Bend for this weekend. At that point, Iowa likely realized he was already gone and cut their losses.

“Me and my dad decided we were going to be up front,” Smith said. “We called (Ferentz) and let him know the offer came. Every time something new came up, we let him know what the status was.”

“I told them I was going to visit, and coach Ferentz said if I was going to make that visit, then we both have to move on.”

And so goes the vicious recruiting food chain cycle.

Currently a 4-star recruit on Rivals and a 3-star recruit on Scout, the 6'2" 225 pound Smith picked up offers from Nebraska, Michigan State, Arizona State, Kansas, Kansas State, and Missouri in addition to the Hawkeyes. ESPN's Scouts, Inc has him ranked in their Top 150, as player #150, and has few, hard to watch videos of him if you are interested.

What makes Brian Smith notable to Irish fans, other than the fact that he will join fellow linebackers Toryan Smith and Scott Smith, and safety Harrison Smith on defense, is that his father, Chris Smith, played football back in the early 80's for the Irish where he was a teammate of current coach Haywood. A bruising fullback, Smith was known for opening holes for Allen Pinkett as well as some solid individual performances carrying the ball. From the various scouting reports, Brian brings a similar physical mentality to linebacker, where he had 126 tackles and 9 sacks as a 1st Team All-State senior. Smith, though, hopes to make his own legacy.

“It’s great to follow in my dad’s footsteps, especially at a school like Notre Dame,” Smith said. “But I want to make a name for myself.”

A snowy welcome | by Pat

Taking a look at the ND webcams, I'm sure that California native Jimmy Clausen, South Carolina native Gary Gray, and Florida native Armando Allen are just loving their decision to show up at ND a semester early. Nothing like a dumping of snow to welcome the warm weather trio to campus.

Normally, the new freshman are placed off-limits to the media by ND while they acclimate to their new surrounds. But that didn't stop the Miami Herald, which interviewed local star Armando Allen about his famous roommate, Clausen. In a bit of an odd move for an established paper, they made available the recorded audio of the call as well. Just follow the original link to find it. The informal nature of the call makes me think that the Herald sneaked in a phone call past the ND Sports Information Department and will be quickly placed in the ND media doghouse.

The article itself is no great shakes, as it contains many factual mistakes, such as wrongly claiming that the Clausen commitment was carried live on ESPN. But it does contain some fun anecdotes about Allen and Clausen already being hounded for interviews, and the audio features Allen talking about his new classes and playing football in the snow. It also contains a casual reference by Allen to Clausen's elbow that I'm guessing is going to turn into one of the bigger points of fan interest heading into spring football.

Allen said Clausen has sat out a few of the early 7-on-7 drills because of bone spurs in his throwing elbow.

It's too early to tell if anything will come of this, but with a big four-way QB battle royale brewing this spring, "injury" is probably a four-letter word for the quarterback quartet. With a limited number of reps in spring practice, sitting out even a few probably isn't even a consideration for the four as long as they can move their arm. Most fans have in their minds already narrowed the race down to Clausen or charismatic freshman Demetrius Jones, but in a recent radio interview on Rivals.com, Darius Walker predicted that Evan Sharpley would come out on top. My guess is that Clausen will participate in the spring drills and, if surgery is required, get it after the Blue-Gold game when he has the summer months to recover.

He's Number Two? | by Pat

It's sounding more and more likely that Brady Quinn isn't going to be the #1 pick in the upcoming NFL draft. The latest bit of confirmation, if you can call it that, comes from that guy out in California.

Carroll hinted at who he expects the Raiders to select with the first pick of the NFL Draft. He said that Kiffin prefers a vertical passing offense that suits LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell better than Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn.

"The kid from LSU is exactly what they're looking for," Carroll said, "more so than the kid from Notre Dame."

Honestly, Quinn is lucky if the Raiders go after someone else. Featuring a former Southern Cal assistant that many Trojan fans wanted fired in Lane Kiffin and his lovable new boss, the Raiders organization is hardly a stable and promising environment.

It's still a bit early to speculate where Quinn might end up, as teams might decide to work a trade and move up in the draft, but with the second pick in the draft, the Lions are a possible destination for Quinn. If the Lions opt for another wide receiver, the third pick will fall to either the Cleveland Browns or Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A coin flip after the Super Bowl will determine which team gets the #3 pick.

Powlus to Prepare Pocket Passers | by Pat

Perhaps overlooked in the news of the hiring of Corwin Brown is the return of Ron Powlus to the Notre Dame sideline. Powlus served as the Director of Personnel Development the past two years, but this promotion gets him out from behind a desk and back on to the field.

Powlus joins offensive coordinator Michael Haywood as a former ND-player turned-coach, a situation that hasn't been all that common at ND lately, but has been pretty successful in the past. (I originally had a paragraph here wondering who the last player-turned-coach was, completely overlooking the obvious and easy answer in Haywood. Sorry about that Mike.) For the complete list of former ND assistants, check this out. How many former ND players can you find?

If you watched the press conference (the video is no longer available, but you can read the transcript here) you saw that Ron really seems eager to sell Notre Dame to future recruits. And what better person to do it than a guy who probably went through the ND hype and publicity ringer more than any other player in school history? If anyone can identify with recruits and give them a straight answer on the highs and lows of playing for ND, it's Powlus. He's already saying the right things about playing under the media spotlight.

People call it pressure. I call it attention. That's part of the game. That's part of what you buy into, and all the guys that come here expect to play and expect to be the starting quarterback of Notre Dame. If you don't, we don't want you on the team.

So every guy that walks in this door that plays the position of quarterback, I hope he expects to play. And that's the mentality that they should have coming in and that's the mentality of every one of the guys competing for that job, and we'll help breed a competitive environment and let the best guy get on the field.

Powlus reportedly did a bang-up job with the administrative aspects of recruiting last year and now will be in a position to hit the road and really test his abilities as a recruiter. However, despite having the background as a former ND student-athlete, once he's making in-home visits alongside head coaches from the SEC and Big Ten, it will take more than just stories about hanging out in Flanner Hall. Recruiting quarterbacks to Notre Dame likely won't be that difficult in the near future, so how Powlus fares with other recruits will be a sign of just how effective he can be.

As for the coaching aspect, it appears that at least initially, Powlus will take a backseat and serve more as an assistant QB coach to Charlie's lead.

Of course there's plenty to learn. I fortunately played the position for many years. Had a lot of experience. But bottom line I'll learn what it's like to teach the quarterbacks from one of the best quarterbacks coaches ever in Coach Weis. He's proven himself to be an outstanding head coach and outstanding quarterback coach. I'm going to be learning with the rest of these guys.

The change from Vaas to Powlus makes the Irish offensive staff a lot younger -- and a lot less experienced. With a wide-open quarterback derby looming large this spring, Powlus will certainly have his hands full. He got a taste of on-field coaching two Springs ago when QB coach Dave Cutcliffe left the program for health reasons. Weis petitioned the NCAA to allow Powlus to step in and serve as a temporary QB coach in Cutcliffe's stead. It will be very interesting to see how he adapts to the coaching and full-time recruiting and how the players respond to him. Ron became somewhat of a punching bag while under center at ND due to all the unfulfilled expectations; who knows, maybe he'll help bring those two Heismans to Notre Dame after all.

Senioritis | by Pat

One of the more important NFL Draft prep weeks ended Saturday with the playing of the Senior Bowl down in Mobile, Alabama. The North defeated the South 27-0 in the game, but the outcome of the game is largely irrelevant when compared to the week long practice sessions in front of over 700 scouts that can help to make or break a college senior's draft hopes.

The Irish originally had five prospects in the game, but Brady Quinn sat out the week with a knee injury and Jeff Samardzija ended his football career when he signed a long term contract with the Chicago Cubs. Quinn still showed up to meet with various team reps, but didn't participate in any drills or practices. That left Ryan Harris, Rhema McKnight, and Victor Abiamiri as the lone ND players in the game.

The interesting thing about Senior Bowl week is that it just goes to show you that NFL draft scouting is very similar to the type of scouting that goes on with the recruiting websites. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and different sites will give you different takes on a player and his performance. Coming away with a clear consensus on how the Irish players fared is tough to do, although there seem to be a few common takes on the Irish trio.

Ryan Harris had perhaps the worst week of the Notre Dame players and his draft stock has likely dropped as a result. Technique-wise he impressed the scouts in attendance, but he struggled in the one-on-one drills with the speed rushers. One named mentioned as giving him trouble was Purdue's Anthony Spencer, and that makes sense as Spencer gave Harris fits during the regular season as well. Here's some video of the North team practice here where the NFL Network analysts discuss Harris' performance. NFL scouts surely do their homework before the Senior Bowl and already have a pretty good handle on what players can and can't do, but this week certainly won't help Harris and the former left tackle might find himself playing right tackle or even guard in the NFL. How he performs at the Combine in February might determine if he's a first day or second day draft pick.

McKnight struggled a bit early in the practice sessions with some drops on relatively easy passes before making it for it later with some great catches on the final practice day. Comments routinely mention his lack of top speed, but compliment him on his effort and willingness to fight for the ball. How McKnight runs at the combine will probably determine if he lands in the 3rd round or falls to the second day of the draft.

Victor Abiamiri had a strong week that didn't really help or hurt him too much. Physically he was mentioned as one of the most impressive athletes at the event and there certainly are NFL teams that draft based on "measurables". I have to think Victor had some fun in the one-on-one drills after facing nothing but a steady stream of double teams all regular season. There is still plenty of time left before the draft, but Abiamiri is looking like someone will grab him up in the 2nd round. I think it's safe to say that he'll be the highest drafted Irish player after Brady Quinn, but probably won't crack the first round.

There are some decent summaries of the week on scout.com and espn.com, but most of the interesting items on both sites are restricted to subscribers. NFLDraftCountdown has some free info, but keep in mind that it's just one amateur draftnik's opinion. If you want to make up your own mind, you can watch the game and video of the open practices here. It's a bit silly to realize you're watching a practice of a meaningless post-season bowl, but at the same time it's an interesting insider look for fans that don't really know what exactly goes on at a stereotypical collegiate/NFL football practice.

Shot Through the Heart | by Pat

In one of the bigger recruiting shockers that I can remember, defensive end Justin Trattou pulled a last minute stunner and flipped his verbal commitment from Notre Dame to Florida. The New Jersey native had committed to ND way back on June 2nd, but in the span of about a week, Trattou went from not seriously considering the Gators to their newest commit.

So what happened? How did it happen? Who's to blame? And where do we go from here?

What & How. The dizzying turn of events hit hard and fast. Last week, Justin Trattou and his dad made a trip down to Florida for a big Gator recruiting weekend. The trip was surprising news to ND fans, but many saw it as a chance to take a mid-winter vacation and hang out with a team still partying from it's BCS championship win. Justin returned, still committed to ND, and the Irish quickly set up an in-home meeting with him that Monday and arranged for an unofficial visit back to ND for this weekend. Charlie Weis and Jappy Oliver flew out to Jersey on Monday to meet with the Trattous, while Corwin Brown went to Chicago to visit Robert Hughes. Weis left with Trattou still in ND's corner.

Then, Urban Meyer flew up to Jersey on Thursday night (with two guys in tow who used to coach for the Irish, Greg Mattison and Steve Addazio, no doubt there to give Justin the "straight dope" on ND). Meyer left with a verbal committment from the talented defensive end, and Trattou's trip to ND was cancelled. As it stands right now, it appears that there's no chance for ND to get back into the race.

Who's to blame. It appears that the biggest culprit might be, ironically, our new defensive coordinator, and the new scheme he's bringing with him.

"Florida called me the day after they won the national championship and it really opened my eyes. Once Notre Dame changed defenses, I had to think about other options. Notre Dame is a great place, but it's just not for me...

"In a 3-4, they'd want me to play rush end or outside linebacker, and while that's tempting, that's not really where I see myself," Trattou said. "I've always been a down lineman and that's what I prefer. At the end of the day, that makes a big difference."

Irony of ironies: we clamor for a new defensive coordinator, and when we finally get one, it costs us our top defensive recruit.

Visiting sunny Florida in January and hanging out with the national champs certainly must have been a nice trip for the New Jersey native. But, in the end he made a football decision to attend Florida, and that's what really hurts about this. Notre Dame's defensive recruiting has been very shaky, and Trattou surely realized this (no doubt with some help from the Florida coaches) and made his decision. You really can't blame the kid for trying to find the best spot for his skills and cast his lot with a team that seems miles ahead of Notre Dame.

Where do we go now? The short-term consequence is that for the second year in a row, defensive recruiting will come up short. We've picked on Ty Willingham's lackluster recruiting and the holes he left in the depth chart, but now there are similar holes attributable solely to Charlie Weis. Consider that ND currently has six defensive recruits in the Class of 2007. Six. The quality of the recruits is higher than it has been in years past, but the quantity is sorely lacking, especially following a 2006 class that only had 9 defensive recruits (10 if you generously count Paddy Mullen, a TE/DL recruit). That's 16 defensive recruits versus 29 offensive recruits in the Charlie's last two classes.

It's clear that some of those offensive recruits will have to switch to defense. We're already seeing it with the news that OL recruits Andrew Nuss, and possibly Emeka Nwankwo, will start out on the defensive line. Furthermore, I wouldn't be surprised to see a number of different players already on the roster tested out at defense during spring practice, in an attempt to put the best 22 players on the field. That will make for an interesting and news-filled spring, but as we saw with the Travis Thomas to linebacker experiment, what sounds great in the spring doesn't always pan out in the fall.

Long-term, losing Trattou puts a real crimp in the depth of ND's defense. The defensive line and linebacker recruiting has not been up to par, and Trattou was a superstar. There definitely is talent there, but the numbers and depth are lacking, and that certainly will come back to bite ND in the future. And it also affects future recruiting. Great players aren't usually scared of competition (notice how Trattou is the 5th defensive end currently committed to Florida), in fact, it's just the opposite: great players want to be surrounded by other great players. Just listen to Trattou, back when he committed to Notre Dame:

I think with the next couple recruiting classes [at ND] that we’ll be competing for a national championship. I definitely want to play on a team with a bunch of good guys and I know over the years that I’m there that we’ll be a very competitive team.

Well, that's exactly what he's getting with Florida. As for ND...let's hope nobody else jumps ship.

BGS Bulletins | by Pat

A quick recap of some news of note that have occurred over the past week or so....

On Campus

The second wave of early enrollment football players are now on campus and taking classes with their new teammates. Jimmy Clausen, Armando Allen, and Gary Gray are all expected to participate in spring drills and play in the Blue and Gold game this spring. It's possible that Allen, who is still recovering from a leg injury, might sit out the game -- like James Aldridge did last year -- if his progress isn't to the liking of the coaching and medical staff. Clausen, who endured all of the spiky haired ridicule that Quinn somehow avoided will look to continue to follow in Brady's footsteps and take over the starting QB role as a freshman. Gray will hit the weights and try to crack a secondary that is quickly filling up with talented players.

He's got a knee

Speaking of Quinn, the Cingular Player of the Year announced that he will sit out the Senior Bowl this weekend due to a knee injury. Quinn will still take part in the week long meet and greets that are an integral part of the post-season bowl game, but after meeting with doctors decided it was in his best interest to rest his knee.

"I don't know exactly when it happened," said Quinn. "I don't think it was on a sack.

I think I got hit one time after I threw a ball away. "It's nothing major, just a minor issue with some swelling. It's similar to the injury Peyton Manning had after his senior season."

With Samardzija opting for baseball and Quinn sticking to the social side of the Senior Bowl, that leaves Rhema McKnight, Ryan Harris, and Victor Abiamiri as the last remaining Irish reps in the game.

Headed North by Northwest

I can't really find any other mention of this, but it looks like Joey Hiben, who left the football team to concentrate on his studies has transfered to Minnesota.

Joe Hiben of Waconia, who earned a football scholarship to Notre Dame and then decided to leave and enroll at Minnesota, will be a good addition to the Gophers track team. He threw the shot put 61 feet in high school.

I wouldn't be surprised to see him pop back up on the Golden Gopher football roster in the future considering he's an athletic tight end and Minnesota just hired the former Denver Broncos tight end coach.

Screen gem

Funny note from the practices for the Shrine Game last week.

Noteworthy: Notre Dame guard Dan Santucci got an offensive linemen's dream when Michigan State defensive tackle Clifton Ryan deflected a screen pass into Santucci's arms. Santucci ran about 30 yards with the ball, though none of the defensive players seemed too motivated to tackle him. …

Maybe those trick passes to Ryan Harris that ND tried a few times should have gone Santucci's way.

Stuck between stations

Coach Minter, who is in Mobile at the Senior Bowl with other recently displaced coaches looking for work, offered up his take on his dismissel to ESPN's Ivan Maisel.

"I understand because I've been in his shoes," said Minter, the head coach at Cincinnati from 1994 to 2003. "You have to make some hard decisions. Would I have let me go if I were in his shoes? No. But I think Charlie will be more comfortable with somebody from the Belichick-Parcells family. Charlie has brought in a young guy who doesn't have my experience. But he'll be more comfortable with him."

He has a good point about the experience aspect, but clearly things weren't going right with the Notre Dame defense. It makes you wonder if Charlie should have hired a different Rick Minter.

Hughes News | by Pat

Number nineteen is in the books. In front of family and friends, Robert Hughes selected Notre Dame and became the 19th public member of ND's Class of 2007. Irish fans may have been extremely happy with the aerial fireworks of the past two years, but I'd bet that a vast majority still have a soft spot for the kind of blue-collar, run the ball down their throat, power football that physically and emotionally drains the opponent. Good news for them then as Hughes is a 5'11" 225 pound running back with the size and strength to be an immediate and productive contributor to the Irish running game.

A two-time All-State selection at running back, Hughes had offers from Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, Miami among others and in the end decided upon the Fighting Irish over the home state program, Illinois.

Hughes, in announcing his decision before about 120 friends, family members and teammates at Hubbard, cited three key factors: 1) where he would have the chance to "showcase my athletic skills early and on a national level;" 2) "where I want to earn my degree from;" 3) "where I feel most comfortable."

The recruiting sites were also pretty unanimous in their take on Hughes' abilities as he was ranked a 4-star, Top 100 player on Rivals and Scout and included on ESPN's Scouts, Inc Top 150 list. He's only the 5th recruit in the current class to be included in all three lists (others are Jimmy Clausen, Gary Gray, Duval Kamara, and Mike Ragone). Combine Hughes with Clausen, Kamara, Greg Little, Ragone, Armando Allen, Golden Tate and I think this is the best offensive skill player recruiting class at ND in a long, long time. (We'll save talk about the defense for another time).

Hughes' commitment also gives ND another player from the Chicago area, joining Aaron Nagel and last's years recruits Demetrius Jones and Serigo Brown. Weis had mentioned the importance of re-gaining a foothold in Chicago and getting these players is a good first step. Hughes and Jones are also notable because they attended schools in the Chicago Public League, a fertile recruiting ground that hadn't seen many Irish players in year's past.

Former Notre Dame and Bears defensive tackle Chris Zorich, who attended Hughes' announcement, said he's encouraged by the Irish's recent efforts to sign Public Leaguers.

"There has been such a gap, and I don't want to blame the coaching staffs from that time period," said Zorich, a Chicago Vocational product. "But do you want to tell me that there haven't been good enough athletes in the Public League? Obviously, that's not true."

Given the surprise departure of Darius Walker for the NFL, the running back corp is short on experience and production for next year, but the collection of youth and talent is a great sign for the future. Hughes will add a very physical dynamic to the group and honestly I wouldn't be surprised to see him get the ball next year in short yardage situations. ND only averaged 3.42 yards per carry on third and short this year so getting a bruising running back with fullback size will certainly help. Especially one that relishes in the physical aspect of running the ball.

"That's just how to describe it," Hughes said. "Any time I see a tackler coming up, I take it personal."

Past player comparisons are all over the map for Hughes, but names like Greg Jones of Florida State and ND's own Ray Zellars keep popping up, and if that means we're in store for runs like this or, even better, this, then sign me up. You can catch a few video clips of Hughes in action here if you want to make up your own comparison.

ND is entering the stretch run of the 2007 recruiting season with only twelve days left until Signing Day. The Irish might pick up one or two more recruits, and there is always the chance for a surprise, but it's looking like this year's class will number between 19 and 22, meaning that next year there will be 30 players who are 5th years, seniors, or juniors, and 47 to 50 players that are sophomores and freshman.