Archives › Keith Arnold
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At long last, it’s finally an interesting fall for Irish fans. Thanks to an unblemished first half of the season, Notre Dame is in the national conversation, not to mention the hunt for the BCS. After an excellent victory over Stanford, people have started drawing conclusions. Bowl eligibility? Check. Inside track to a BCS bowl?…
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Whether or not Manti Te’o ends up a Heisman Trophy candidate is hardly the point. But you can’t blame many of us looking for ways to quantify the senior linebacker’s greatness, both on and off the field. At a position where stats only tell part of the story of a player’s dominance, midseason All-American nominations,…
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As expected, Everett Golson passed the final portion of concussion testing, clearing him to play this Saturday against BYU. Now, the sophomore quarterback needs to make the strides on the field to reward Brian Kelly’s faith in him. Golson’s first season has been like many other rookie debuts: a work in progress. As the Irish…
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There is no preordained headline for Notre Dame’s battle this Saturday against BYU. It won’t be in a historic location or against a natural rivalry. ESPN won’t be staked out in front of the library. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t a critical Saturday for the Irish. With BYU heading to South Bend, two independent…
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Brian Kelly spent over 45-minutes talking to the media today, getting everybody up to speed on Everett Golson’s recovery from a mild concussion to prepping his team for BYU, which many people are calling a trap game. There’s plenty of good stuff in here, so I’ll link to the video if you’ve got some time…
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Oklahoma stepped forward while Purdue and Michigan State stepped backwards. Oklahoma’s offense looked to be in peak form while USC’s defense did the job against Washington. As the season continues, the Irish schedule continues to come into focus. Let’s take a look at how Notre Dame’s opponents did over the weekend. *** NAVY — A…
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The polls and rankings are out. For the first time in a long time, Notre Dame is in the country’s top five teams, checking in at No. 5 in the BCS rankings, the AP Poll, and the USA Today Coaches’ Poll. With their third victory against a top 25 opponents, the Irish now shift their…
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Torrential rains. Phantom whistles. Heroic quarterbacking. And an epic (and disputed) goal line stand. Notre Dame’s 20-13 victory over Stanford played out like a Jerry Bruckheimer movie, with 80,795 soaked fans waiting for what seemed like eternity while replay officials decided whether or not Cardinal running back Stepfan Taylor was stopped short of the goal…
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It may not have been pretty, but it was a classic finish for the Fighting Irish defense. With Stanford having 1st and Goal at the 3, the Cardinal got the ball to within a foot of the goal line with two plays to get it in. But the Irish defense wasn’t about to give up…
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SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The skies opened up around 2 p.m., adding another wrinkle to a game filled with interesting subplots. While the hardest rain seems to be behind us, the Irish and the Cardinal will not just battle each other, they’ll battle the elements. As usual, a Notre Dame home game will give you…
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You’ll have to forgive me if my crystal ball seems a little cloudy this morning. I could blame the cobwebs from a long night of travel. But it’s getting a handle on what kind of team No. 17 Stanford is that I’m struggling with. While the Cardinal have one of the country’s most impressive victories…
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Usually a game between highly ranked opponents on a national stage is enough to get you excited. But for those of us that spend far too much time following the Fighting Irish, today gives you a unique opportunity to take a look behind the curtain of one of college football’s most storied programs. An hour…
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The Stanford Cardinal have quite a feather in their cap. Entering the season, they’re the only team in college football history to defeat Notre Dame and USC in three consecutive seasons. David Shaw’s squad has already extended their streak against the Trojans. They’ll look to do the same against the Irish, running their record winning…
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Another Thursday, another Irish Blogger Gathering. This week, I’ve drawn the godfather of the IBG, The Subway Domer. When he’s not leading the charge here, or putting a purple-faced Brian Kelly on a unicorn, he’s openly judging our Tweets. He’s also just picked himself up off the canvas and announced his non-retirement from blogging. (As…
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Even though David Shaw hasn’t lost to Notre Dame in three years, that doesn’t mean he’s taken the game against the Irish lightly. In fact, Shaw — just like Brian Kelly — settled in to his media obligations a few minutes late. He was studying Manti Te’o. Shaw talked about what his Cardinal face in…
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The Irish are well into their preparation for David Shaw’s Stanford team. As Brian Kelly and his coaching staff lay out the challenges in front of the team this week, they’ll be able to get a true measure of where this football team is from a physical perspective. The past two seasons, Stanford has plain…
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Brian Kelly strolled to his noon press conference six minutes late today. For a coach you can usually set your watch to, this was a bit out of character. But let’s cut the guy some slack, Stanford, a team that’s beaten this coaching staff twice and Notre Dame three seasons in a row, could have…
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This Sunday, the first BCS standings will be released to the public. For many, it’ll be the start of the second-to-last opportunity to kick dirt on one of the more ridiculous achievement measurements in sports history. For others, it’ll start the official countdown until the NCAA adopts its four-team playoff in the 2014 season. But…
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It’s that kind of season. With Notre Dame off to a 5-0 start, it’s beginning to feel like a Yogi Berra quote. Another Saturday, another biggest game of the year. If you wanted, you could probably make that argument just about every Saturday. The past three games certainly qualified. With Michigan State, the Irish had…
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It was an up-and-down weekend for Notre Dame opponents. A few big wins. A few shocking losses. And a few close shaves. Overall, the Irish schedule went 7-5 (including the Miami loss), with Michigan laying it on Purdue and Boston College loses in shocking fashion to Army. Let’s take a spin across the Notre Dame…
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It’s a good day to be Irish. With Notre Dame creeping its way up the national polls and the defense among the best units in the country, there’s reason to believe in South Bend. With Stanford’s defense looking a little bit less dominant after giving up 617 yards and 48 points to Arizona, the Irish…
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The Associated Press has released its most recent poll and Notre Dame climbed to No. 7 in the country. It’s lofty territory for the Irish, a ranking that hasn’t been seen since November of 2006, when the Irish were preparing to finish the regular season against USC in the Coliseum. The win turns next Saturday’s…
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After five impressive Saturdays, it’s getting pretty difficult to ignore. Notre Dame might just have a really good football team. On a Saturday where three of the top five teams in the country lost, the No. 9 Fighting Irish just kept rolling, dominating a young but talented Miami team 41-3. It’s Notre Dame’s most commanding…
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If you’re looking for an eye-opening victory, dominating Miami 41-3 certainly qualifies. After Hurricanes wide receiver Phillip Dorsett dropped two should-be touchdowns on the Hurricanes first drive, it was all Irish, with the defense settling into its usually suffocating self and the ground game absolutely dominating Miami’s defense. Notre Dame dominated the yardage battle 587-285.…
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It’s going to be a great night for football in Chicago, and while you might not recognize the team wearing multi-colored helmets, make no mistake, it’s the No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. As the Irish battle Miami, you’ll have plenty of ways to follow the action. Again, we’re here with the live blog. Our…
