Campus News:
Last week the news item was of the new hotel to be built. The Notre Dame Inn will replace the security building. What about a new security building? Can you guess where that will go? Think hard. All you have to do is think about a location that would screw over the students. A new complex will be built near Stepan Center, at the current site of the basketball courts and a parking lot. Gee, isn't that nice. This new structure will obviously have to be completed first before the old one can be demolished and the Inn started. This new facility will also house the post office. Like the current post office, the new facility will be owned by the University and leased by the postal service. It will be designed using standards provided by the postal service. The new complex will require that the Stepan basketball courts be moved behind the center, in the area between Stepan Center and Douglas Road. So a playing field will be sacrificed as will the hillside seating for Bookstore Basketball.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
The first tip gets special attention because it was delivered by not one, but two residents of Farley Hall, who have the fortune of occupying rooms that overlook North Food Court. One of them writes: "Some Tennessee fans were walking around campus...when they stopped by one of the corners of [NFC]. To our surprise and disgust, these men decided to share some of their 'Southern Hospitality' by relieving themselves on the dining hall." The other tipster continues, "[We] started screaming, and the windows being open, we thought perhaps they might hear us and decide their little 'private viewing' was not so private. We even pulled down the shades, but not before two more of their little orange buddies stepped up and took their turn. And we thought Michigan State fans were horrible!" You thought right, dears - Michigan State fans ARE horrible. You just couldn't see them because their green apparel helped them blend into the bushes better than the Tennessee crowd.
Hall Notes:
The 4th annual celebration of "A Carroll Christmas" took place on the evening of December 7th. The events began at 6pm on the front lawn. Once again an enormous Christmas tree was the centerpiece. The tree lighting ceremony involved Christmas Carols and the music of the Notre Dame Glee Club. Yuletide refreshments accompanied the holiday cheer. The Vermin also requested that people give from the heart by donating a children's toy or book to "Toys for Tots." Hopefully pictures of this year's tree can be posted within a couple months. Last year's event was missed, unfortunately. The 2nd year was captured. So we are consistently catching all the even-numbered gatherings. All in an every-other day's work.
NDSportscenter:
For those of you that have been living under a Bob Fincutter and haven't heard, we are back in the hunt for a new coach five days after naming George O'Leary our coach. O'Leary resigned Thursday night. Here is his official statement:
"Due to a selfish and thoughtless act many years ago, I have personally embarrassed Notre Dame, its alumni and fans. The integrity and credibility of Notre Dame is impeccable and with that in mind, I will resign my position as head football coach effective December 13, 2001."
That was followed by this statement from AD White:
I have accepted the resignation of George O'Leary as head football coach at the University of Notre Dame. George has acknowledged inaccuracies in his biographical materials, including his academic background. I understand that these inaccuracies represent a very human failing; nonetheless, they constitute a breach of trust that makes it impossible for us to go forward with our relationship."
The specifics of the case are that O'Leary padded his resume. Listed in his biography in the Georgia Tech media guide is the statement that O'Leary was a 3-time letter-winner at New Hampshire at offensive line and fullback. Further investigation showed this was entered in George's own handwriting and was not a typo. O'Leary went to New Hampshire for only two years and never set foot on the field. O'Leary was on the team in 1967 and 1968, but unable to play. Mononucleosis was the culprit the first year and a knee injury ruled out any activity in year 2. The other misrepresentation concerned a master's degree in educationi supposedly earned in 1972 at New York University.
Again this was listed in the Georgia Tech media guide. However, records show O'Leary to have been enrolled for only two semesters during the 1970-71 academic year. Another school listed on O'Leary's 1970 resume was Azusa Pacific College under the heading "Graduate School." Officials at Azusa could not confirm he had ever even been enrolled.
This whole thing came about because of a reporter in New Hampshire. It was not malicious in nature. The writer simply thought he was doing a piece on a New Hampshire boy that had become Notre Dame's coach. Research on his "playing" days was the beginning of the end.
O'Leary actually resigned 3 times. (ESPN failed to tell you that.) The University rejected the first two and talked to George about getting through this issue. O'Leary faxed in his third resignation from NYC Thursday night. It was accepted.
Experts in the executive search field stated an academic background check costs a whopping $10. D'OH!
TO REPEAT: DO NOT BELIEVE EVERYTHING ESPN TELLS YOU. They threw out garbage about how much this will cost us. Wrong. The latest news is that we never bought out O'Leary's contract at Georgia Tech. The buyout was between O'Leary and Tech. We would have paid Tech is O'Leary had stayed. We may, though, still end up contributing some to help take care of the matter. ESPN also has a hard time hearing because they regurgitated the names of all the coaches that have already said they wish to stay put.
Hopefully we can provide the scoop on the new coach next year. This is the last posting under January 6th. Have a great Christmas and New Year.
Campus News:
A recent press release has outlined many future construction projects for the University. Over the next few months each project will be detailed. The first construction to be covered will be the new hotel.
The location for the new hotel has finally been determined. The Notre Dame Inn will be built on the site of the current Security Building and stretch toward Saint Mary's Lake. The new inn is envisioned as "quaint, English-pub style," not a high-rise hotel. It will most likely snap up all the ideal parking spots in D-6 for all dorms other than Carroll. The Notre Dame Inn will contain 220 rooms, conferencing facilities, and dining facilities. The new building will face Saint Mary's Lake with a view of the Dome and the Basilica. Because the building will generate revenue, funding for the at-least $50 million Inn will be different than for classroom buildings. University Executive Vice President Father Timothy Scully stated, "Our aspiration is that a large part of the money will be raised in private donations. My goal is to cover the capital with gifts and to use the revenue to keep tuition down....we are looking for naming opportunities of facilities within the inn." The fate of the Morris Inn is unknown. Speculation has the Inn being converted into office space and/or possibly more conference facilities.
By the way, I forgot to share this bit of news: The campus DID have its very own anthrax scare. Turned out to be harmless. Just laundry detergent in a care package to a foreign grad student.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Speaking of covert activity, you might want to keep your eyes peeled next time you're about the Huddle. One loyal tipster watched as two friends, one a Huddle cashier and the other a young man with an armload of groceries, conversed a few weeks ago. It seems that the cashier kept trying to wave his buddy through, unpaid groceries and all, but the theif-to-be did not notice and kept on gabbing. Finally, the cashier grew tired of the quickly stalling robbery-in-progress and blurted, "Dude, go ahead. It's OK." The young shoplifter took the cue and walked off. The Gipper doesn't feel safe anywhere on campus anymore.
Hall Notes:
Vermin Anthony Weaver has been considered a top 10 pick by ESPN's NFL Draft analyst, Mel Kiper Jr. Kiper believes he will either be selected by the Minnesota Vikings or the Indianapolis Colts. Look for him to start right away with either team. Hopefully they won't try to turn him into a defensive tackle.
Vermin Carlyle Holiday says he has no plans to transfer now that Davie is gone. In fact no players have said they desire to transfer.
NDSportscenter:
A New England reporter broke the story Saturday night on George O'Leary. The sports writer stated we had made an offer and that O'Leary had agreed in principle. The minor details were expected to be ironed out in 24 to 48 hours. Local news reported that the ND charter airplane was in fact in Atlanta and that it supposedly had flown back to the Bend. Then the search was certainly over. White has been on the road since last Sunday. He was flying commercial with as many as five assistants to aid him in the search for a new coach. It is good that the search ended so soon. One recruit was quoted as saying an assistant athletic director had said a new coach would be in within 10 days.
And that has proven the case. At 4 pm EST the University had a press conference. Monk and White introduced new head coach George O'Leary. White said he had interviewed four coaches and made only one offer. O'Leary was flown in on Sunday and arrived just in time for the press conference. The conference was an impromptu affair announced a mere 6 hours beforehand. The JACC south dome held the press conference and the masses turned out to watch the introduction live. The band was on hand to welcome George. O'Leary said this was one of two dream jobs in the country, with the other being the manager of the New York Yankees. The native New Yorker was wearing a golden dome lapel pin and proved quite charismatic on the mic. He will officially be in place on Wednesday and hopes to have his staff selected before Christmas.
Word on the street on Gruden: This is very interesting gossip. It was stated by a Gruden family friend that we were a heartbeat away from getting Jon. Supposedly White had offered and Jon had accepted. However, before all the details about when and how he would come to ND were ironed out, White had to take the recommendation to Monk. Apparently Monk has an investigator (or White simply told him) because it seems a background check was done. Well the issue came out about the DUI Gruden got last year. So there you have it. That's the rumor anyway. Same basic story/rumor as when Wadsworth supposedly recommended Majerus who was then denied because of his lifestyle and quotes in his book.
Final note on the previous supposed front-runner, Tyrone Willingham of Stanford... Buyout. That may have been the main problem in killing that possible deal. Local papers stated Willingham's agent threw out the amount of $2.5 million. It wasn't even known if that was the total cost to get him or just to buyout the contract. Our salary would be around $1 million so it could have cost....well, you can do the math. Then again we all know money really isn't an issue here.
More on O'Leary... I was a bit befuddled as to why his name was not more prominent from the get-go. Two years ago when we were 5-7 his name was the top one mentioned, followed closely by Tom Coughlin. Here are some pros concerning O'Leary... He's a solid head coach with excellent experience and discipline. He has recruiting ties in the south, obviously. He has done a great job in getting players, considering he is competing against in-state recruiting rival Georgia, the rest of the SEC, and the Florida schools. Georgia Tech under O'Leary also seems to have always had solid quarterback play. I would love to see Carlyle finally get some real instruction. Full story on O'Leary next week.
A couple Observer pieces have been posted on the "Articles of Interest" page.
DO NOT BELIEVE ESPN. ONLY BELIEVE WHAT AD WHITE SAYS. ESPN reported that we have contacted the Arkansas AD about their coach. Not true!
The men's cross country team finished 6th at the National Championships. Luke Watson finished 5th, one spot ahead of Ryan Shay. This is the team's highest finish since 5th in 1993. We have now finished in the top 10 in seven out of the last ten years. Coach Joe Piane, who has been the team's leader for the past 26 seasons, was named Cross Country Coach of the Year.
Over Thanksgiving the men's hoops team had the daunting task of journeying to God-forsaken Hawaii. They played in the Sport Tours Hawaiian Classic, also known as the Maui Invitation's ugly sister tournament. Ryan Humphrey made his debut after sitting out the season's first two games after a minor NCAA suspension. He scored a career high 31 and later claimed MVP honors after averaging 24 ppg. We were off to our best start since the 1979-80 season, until we lost to IU again.
The women's basketball team is hurting. They have fallen out of the top 25 and have numerous injuries. The team is starting two freshman and experiencing major growing pains.
Campus News:
Thomas Jemielity, a university English professor for the past 30 years, has filed an age-discrimination lawsuit against the University, claiming officials for years have paid him less than younger professors and forced him into retirement. Jemielity, 67, filed the suit on October 30th and is seeking back pay and unspecified damages. He has also filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Indiana Civil Rights Commission. From 1993 through 1996 Jemielity wrote letters and made inquiries on these issues. He received no legitimate response from the University.
The suit claims that ND creates a hostile work environment for older faculty in the department by underpaying them and mistreating them in private and publicly. Jemielity claims better pay has been given to those with fewer qualifications and that unfair teaching requirements have been applied to him. Probably the biggest allegation in the suit is that a senior chairholder in the English department has for more than a decade disparaged older faculty members both privately and publicly. It has also been stated that the English department chair had been instructed to increase efforts to speed retirement of older faculty. This was done by "unfairly and capriciously" applying new service course teaching requirements to Jemielity. Because of the supposed hostility and lack of recognition by the University, Jemielity requested retirement at the end of the 2002-03 academic year, three years before he had wanted to leave.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
The Gipp did actually get one juicy tip, concerning a young man in the ROTC. It became rather confusing, because the tipster insisted on using initials for all the characters, and the whole thing started to look like a card catalog (eg "He didn't have any ID and he was visiting DP from IUSB..."). Still, the Gipp thinks he deciphered it, so here goes: Two young lads got drunk one night and decided to steal the Air Force rock outside of Pasquerilla Center. The rock was too heavy to carry away, so they tried to roll it instead. Apparently, this also proved too tiresome, so they tipped over a trash can and placed the rock inside, hoping to facilitate the roll-away. The two were apprehended a few yards down Juniper by the NDSP, who smelled a high BAC, and demanded ID, ASAP. The young men concocted a BS story involving IUSB, and one of them landed himself an MIC. Charming. The clincher of this tipster's story, though, is that the guilty lad is in the Army ROTC. Unfortunately, the Gipper has learned through a connection in the Army that this is not actually true. In fact, the boy is in Pax Christi. It frightens the Gipp to think that such reckless and irresponsible young pacifists are in possession of possibly hundreds of hemp bracelets and unkempt beards - and right here on our own campus.
Hall Notes:
One more Vermin Christmas story. This one is truly a classic. "Heatfest on Wheels" is told by Mark Vives '93...
Okay, I thought of a Yuletide absurdity from Christmas 1990.
In the years before the "Pearl Harbor SYR" was invented to perk up our holiday spirits, early December was a time in which not a whole lot happened on a dorm-wide scale. So, somebody on Dorm Council got the incredible idea to organize a dorm excursion to the roller rink behind Grape Road, despite all the obvious potential for destruction. So it was that "Heatfest on Wheels" was born.
Needless to say, it was a zoo. Just about everybody was butt- wasted, and those who weren't dizzy enough from alcohol were soon dizzy from being crashed into at high speed by those who were. At any given time, within you field of view, somebody was either falling down or getting knocked on their ass. Tom Sullivan displayed his linebacker skills by tackling Tom Giblin at least 50 times. Giblin was such a feeble skater that he could never escape, even when he would hide behind innocent-bystander chicks. Sullivan would simply hunt him down, rocket toward him and annihilate him. Sullivan was charging Giblin so hard one time that he undercut a passing Matt Baumgarth, who achieved hang time that would shame must NFL punters before landing on his hip with a thud. Ask anybody who attended this thing: people had never been bruised so much in their life. We were like Vietnam vets afterward, comparing our wounds. Giblin was still limping in February, I swear to God.
Humanity wasn't the only thing getting abused, though. Mike Graf spent the entire time in the bathroom performing "roller-boot". I was skating desperately towards the bathroom in hopes of emptying a dangerously full bladder when I was struck, in succession, by Sullivan, Kirkwood and Jay Lubanski. Suddenly I was knuckleballing towards the wall outside the Men's room at about 55 mph. As I crashed into the wall I reflexively grasped for something to stop me, and I accidentally tore the gigantic wooden "E" in the word "MEN" right out of the wall. I still have the damn thing.
But the coup de grace was yet to come. In the center of the rink, directly under the disco ball and with 90 drunken Vermin swirling around it, was a Christmas tree. Not a Charlie Brown deal, but a pretty big one. All night I had heard buzz that Jay Lubanski and Mike Canz were sowing the seeds of its destruction, but I saw nothing but occasional evil stares at the doomed fir. Finally, around 30 minutes before the end of the session, it happened. Lubanski and Canz were wrestling each other as they rounded the turn in front of it, and then, suddenly, Lubanski pushed Canz so hard that he went hurtling towards the tree. Canz hit the thing so flush that it appeared about to spill over right into the crowd, but some conscientious employee had tied the tree to the disco ball with wire. And so, under the force of Canz's impact, the tree simply swung up into the air like a pendulum, with tinsel falling everywhere.
Amazingly, the same rink let us come back the next year, but I think the relationship ended when one Vermin over-heated and had to go to the hospital. But it was fun while it lasted.
NDSportscenter:
At 3pm Sunday afternoon the University called a press conference. AD Kevin White announced that Bob Davie "will not be retained" as head coach. White made his decision at 8pm Saturday night. He called Monk at 8am Sunday morning. Monk agreed. White told Davie at 9am. White then informed all the assistant coaches individually. He also met with the team. The assistant coaches will not be retained, however, they will remain on staff until a new coach is brought in. White stayed true to his promise to Davie that no other possible coaches would be contacted until after the final decision was made. White's "search will begin immediately." Everything that is not stated specifically by White is nothing but a rumor. He does have a short list but does not have a timetable. White took responsibility for Davie's contract extension saying it was a "misread on my part." Davie was let go because the program was "not continuing to move in the right direction." Davie had had a 5 year contract, not 5 one-year deals. White stated there were no performance clauses in the contract. White would not talk about money issues. He also would not name any possible candidates even though he said he had a short list. White has said he will keep the team informed on the search. Gary Godsey, Jeff Faine, and Shane Walton are the team leaders he will speak to that will pass on any news.
Quick and dirty on Gruden: He has one year left on his deal with Oakland. Gruden and his agent had given Oakland owner Al Davis a deadline for an extension. The deadline came and went.
Quick and dirty on Stoops: He has a $2 million buyout clause after signing a new 5-year deal. He attended a catholic high school in ohio and is a longtime family friend of the DeBartolos.
Recruiting really hasn't been hurt yet. However, one putz said he shied away from us because of the coaching controversy. Know what position? Kicker. A freakin' kicker rules us out because of a head coach. That idiot will fit right in at Tennessee.
Got two articles on Davie. One is a scathing Letter to the Editor. Stay tuned for more posts in the coming days.
Watch the men's basketball team beat Indiana this Tuesday on ESPN at 7 pm EST. We beat DePaul by 27 points on Saturday. Ryan Humphrey is on fire, averaging about 22 points a game. Chris Thomas is the real deal. His assist-to-turnover ratio is 5 to 1.
The men's soccer team entered the Big East tournament as a surprising #2 seed. They advanced to the semi-final with a 1-0 win over Georgetown. This was the first time we had reached the Big East final four since 1997. The Irish then fell to St. John's 1-0 in the next round. However, the lads proved solid enough to earn a spot in the 48-team NCAA tournament. We were bounced out right away by Maryland, 1-0. They scored the winning goal with less than 2 minutes to go in the game. The Irish finished the year 12-7-0.
The women's cross country team finished 19th at the NCAA Championships. This was the ladies highest finish since placing 15th in 1993. Freshman Lauren King was our highest finisher this year, at 27th.
Campus News:
Matthew Cullinan has succeeded Lou Nanni as executive assistant to University President Father Edward Malloyo. Cullinan assumed a wide range of responsibilities as executive assistant, including service on the University's budget groups and athletic board before taking the position in Malloy's office. This year he will help design the University's 10-year plan and will work on it execution. He also serves as the president's liaison to the athletic, development, and public affairs departments and communicates with other organizations that report to the president. His other duties include overseeing aspects of commencement and working on special projects as they arise. Cullinan received his bachelor's and master's degrees in American history from ND in '85 and '88, respectively. He earned his doctorate in '99 and also received a master's degree back in the day in public policy from Duke in '90. Cullinan previously served as a special assistant to Monk from 1992-98 and as assistant provost for academic outreach from 1998-2000. Matthew left his position as senior program officer for education policy at the J. Paul Getty Trust in Los Angeles to take this job.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Well, tipsters, that's it for this issue.
Be sure to keep your noses clean,
Don't be publicly obscene.
Stay away from Willy Kirk
(At tailgates he's known to lurk)
Lest he hit you with a fine
And blow your tailgating time.
But if you must shout out your feelings
About his underhanded dealings
Don't implicate yourself and trip-
Hide behind your friend, the Gipp.
In the valiant words of Gippers past,
Tell him to kiss the Gipper's ass.
Hall Notes:
Another Christmas Carroll. This one was written by Sean Donnelly. Let's call it.....Santa's "Endowment."
The only Christmas story that comes to mind right now involves Carroll Hall's Christmas decorations. (Sullivan) thought it would be good for morale to get a fake Christmas tree, holly, tinsel, and (for some unexplained reason) an inflatible Santa to decorate the 24 hour lounge. So after a Sunday night mass, some of us got together to trim the tree. The ornaments were the standard ball variety, but blue and gold instead of red. I distinctly remember Matt Caito, Paul Sughrue, and myself hanging them from the tree. All the while Paul echoed Mrs. Claus from CBS's Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, "Eat, Papa. Eat." Then in a flash of holiday inspiration, we decided that the inflatible Santa deserved some Christmas cheer of his own by making him anatomically correct. We promptly hung a pair of the golden balls from the hem of Santa's coat, allowing them to dangle just below--well you get the idea.
For some reason this struck us as hysterical. Santa's "endowment" was not immediately noticeable but to the keen observer. In fact the three of us had our picture taken with the newly-masculated St. Nick and an oblivious (Sullivan).
I still crack up just thinking about it. God, I need a life.
NDSportscenter:
The first triple double in school history was recorded in the season's first game. Freshman point guard Chris Thomas scored 24 points, stole the ball 11 times, and assisted on 11 baskets. We won that game 95-53 over New Hampshire.
Coach Brey officially signed the three recruits that had verbally committed. According to one analyst we have the 11th best class with #20 (out of 100) Torin Francis, #38 Rick Cornett, and #68 Chris Quinn.
The women's soccer team was upset in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Cincinnati knocked us out 3-2. Worse yet, it was at home. Son of a... This is the earliest exit since 1993. The lady Irish entered as the #7 seed. The home non-losing streak was halted at 40 games. Starting defender freshman Candace Chapman did not play as she was sidelined with a bout of food poisoning. Her replacement couldn't quite measure up.
Got another article chronicling Davie's demise. It refers to the top 5 faux pas. One more thing...Scholastic did a Q&A with campus barber Frank Franko, a favorite of a few Vermin. When asked "Who's your dream haircut?", Frank replied: "Jon Gruden. No, I can't say that. Ah, I'll just go ahead and say it - Jon Gruden. I'd also love to cut Bob Stoops."
Campus News:
D'OH! Busted. A sophomore has been charged with creating fake identification cards on a computer and selling them to fellow students. He faces one felony count of forgery, eight misdemeanor counts of furnishing false identification, and a citation alleging he possessed one of the IDs himself. The fake IDs were sold for $50 and were made to be from the state of Maine. He was arrested a little over a week ago. The student entered a preliminary innocent plea and was released on a $1,000 cash bond. ND Police were notified to lookout for fake IDs by police from Michigan who caught a student using a fake to try to buy alcohol on August 23rd. The female caught on the 23rd agreed to help the police catch the ID maker. Finally a student cracked and gave the full name of the forgerer. (That a word?) Court documents show that the student admitted to making the IDs after he learned how to make them on the internet. If convicted, he could receive up to 60 days in jail and a fine up to $500 on each charge of furnishing a false ID. If convicted of forgery, he could get up to eight years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
To his astonishment, the Gipper received not one, but two, SEPARATE reports of in-fridge urination during this last round of tips. All he can respond is, WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE? Honestly, Bob Davie's car is not that far of a walk.
Speaking of good ol' Bob, the Gipp would like to commend the Irish for thwarting Davie's losing tactics at the Pitt game. When he tries to destroy us with poorly planned offensive plays and awkward public statements, our boys respond in ways that poor coaching can't suppress: interceptions and goal-line strips. The Gipp takes this as sure evidence that there is some real playing talent beneath all the on-field embarrassment. But worry not, Gipplings; if the Gipper's sources have any merit, Davie won't be gracing us with his presence next year.
(Editor's note: I happened to pass the JACC while walking around campus prior to the last home game. The first parking sport was empty. Most of us know that the head coach always parks there. All the other spots had vehicles in them. Maybe Davie was worried about vandalism, or urination, and left his ride at home. Or maybe the repo man is a disgruntled Domer.)
Hall Notes:
Well, Thanksgiving is coming up. I don't have any Vermin Thanksgiving stories to share so I'll move right on to Christmas. Seeing as how I take off two weeks over the end of the year, I may as well start sharing the tales now. Three in all have been passed this way via Slim. The first Classic Moment in Vermin History comes from John Zeto and shall be titled "Dippers".....
One minor X'mas story I can remember from December 81. At this time there were a number of tobacco snuff users in Carroll, myself included. Mike McAullife (aka "Gunner") and I were roommates on the 2nd floor and had turned one of those 8 ft wooden clothes cabinets on its side to make a bar for our room. Being the holidays we decided a little christmas decorations were in order. We had acquired (can't remember where) the very top from an artificial Christmas tree and implanted the thing into the top of the bar. We were stymied however for decorations. Being poor college students we wanted to do this a cheaply as possible. We decided to decorated this thing with empty Skoal cans (being green) that we hung on the tree using red thread (thereby achieving holiday colors in the cheapest way possible). So we got all the empty skoal cans from our fellow "dippers" in Carroll. Then at the very top, in place of an angel or other such item, we stuck one Copenahgen can at the top of the tree. All in all the tree probably had about 50 + empty tobacco tins.
Just for the heck of it, we decided to take a photo of bar with the decorated tree and send it to the US tobacco company. This we did and about two weeks later we received an unexpected package from them in the mail. It turned out to be two rolls of snuff: one skoal and one copenhagen and a request to use the picture we had sent in their advertising.
I never saw the advertisement, but to the best of my knowledge, US tobacco DID in fact come up with some sort of ad using the photo.
NDSportscenter:
The women's soccer team bounced back. Since they were wearing sports bras, the bouncing had to be in the rankings alone. The team actually lost TWO Big East regular season games. They lost 2-1 at Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights became just the third Big East school to beat us since joining the conference. The lady Irish also fell 3-1 to #15 UConn on the road. The team plummeted to #8 in the rankings. They rose to #6 just prior to the Big East Tournament. We advanced to the finals and defeated West Virginia 2-1 to again take the title, just as we have every year. The ladies enter the NCAA tourney as the #7 seed.
Some basketball notes before the beginning of the regular season: Harold "Slim Fast" Swanagan lost 15 lbs. in the off season. The big man is expected to log major minutes and he wanted to be in better shape to get up and down the hardwood....Women's star Alicia Ratay has been selected as a pre-season candidate for the Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year. The junior shooting guard is one of thirty to be selected....Guess who made it as a walk-on? Dan White, the athletic director's son, is one of two walk-ons to make the team. White, a senior, transfered. Last season he played 6 minutes in one game, scored two points, and grabbed one rebound for Towson (Md.) University.
Well, the articles are officially flying about Davie getting kicked to the curb. We have posted 2 new articles on the subject. One just sums up why he is getting the ax and the other lists all the possible candidates to replace him. Check 'em out.
Campus News:
W just can't get enough of ND. Last May he was the keynote speaker at graduation and now he is inviting an ND professor to the White House. Father Virgilio Elizondo is widely regarded as a top Latino theologian. He is a visiting professor to ND and is being beckoned to counsel President Bush on issues facing the U.S. Latino population. Elizondo met with W and several hispanic Catholic bishops in Washington in mid-September. This meeting followed Bush's conference with Mexican President Vincente Fox. In January, Time magazine recognized Elizondo as a spiritual innovator in its series "Time 100: The Next Wave." Elizondo earned the distinction for his attempts to unite the Mexican- American community in his native San Antonio.
Major renovations are planned for the 33-year-old JACC and may take place as early as March. The 5,763 bleacher seats will be replaced with chairback seats. The seating capacity could shrink from 11,418 to 10,000. The building's four auxiliary scoreboards will be replaced with a large, easy-to-read scoreboard that will hang from the ceiling at center court.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
The Gipp would like to turn your attention to a little morsel from abroad; specifically, Spain. During the first few days across the pond, all the Toledo students are put into dorms together. Apparently one lucky young man by the name of Eric had been mistaken for an Erica, and was assigned to live amongst a group of the opposite gender. The mistake was cleared up, unfortunately, when his host family saw him for the first time and complained to the local administration. Nice work, Eric. The Gipp is considering changing his name to "Gipperlina" in hopes of sliding into a quad in Welsh Family.
Hall Notes:
James Leahy '93 is East Coast, baby. After leaving the Bend, James headed for NYC, the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps, Rudy's town, etc. Apparently his undergraduate degree in accounting was not enough. James is currently enrolled at Columbia where he is seeking his MBA. He is also working part time while attending school. James is a CFO with Wiedenbach-Brown Co., Inc. (I believe "CFO" is either Chief Financial Officer or Clown For Ollie. Jesters are all the rage now.) Amy is James' wife and they are raising two dogs.
NDSportscenter:
The men's soccer team posted its first 10 win season since 1997. In fact they finished the regular season 11-5, 7-3 in the Big East. The season finale was a 2-1 overtime win over Syracuse. At one point during the season the team had won 6 in a row with 5 of those being shutouts. The winning streak was halted with a 1-0 victory over #6 Indiana at Bloomington. Our previous 20 meetings with IU had resulted in 18 losses, 1 tie, and only one victory. The Irish have climbed to #20 in the rankings.
Football notes for the bye week: Safety Glenn Earl suffered a separated shoulder in the last game and is out for another week or so....DE Ryan Roberts has a torn MCL and is done for the year. Surgery will not be required. Ryan still has another year of eligibility remaining.... Not counting incomplete passes, we had 27 plays for 2 or fewer yards in the Tennessee game....Tennessee QB Casey Clausen wanted to come to ND. He attended our '99 summer camp and was told by one of our coaches that he wasn't good enough to play D-1 football. Clausen scored the final touchdown in Tennessee's 28-18 victory....David Givens and Tony Fisher are doubtful for next week because of hamstring injuries....Prior to the Tennessee game the students tried to spread word for everyone to wear one color to overshadow the orange of the Volunteer fans. A Letter to the Editor after the game proved very interesting. It has been posted on the Articles of Interest page. Give it a read.
The men's and women's cross country teams wrapped up their Big East season recently. The women continued to make strides as they placed 4th at the Big East Championships. The men took 1st and are preparing to challenge for the National Championship.
Campus News:
This Fall renovations began on the basement of Hesburgh Library. It is a two-year, $8-million project. The tentative completion date is the summer of 2003. The new basement will contain study space for students, a service desk staffed the same hours as the reference desk, the special collections department and additional undetermined library materials. Light wells are being installed to allow sunlight into the lower depths. Movable shelving on rails will be implemented to conserve space. The staff from the basement was dispersed throughout the second floor. The 2nd floor tightened up, but only lost 35 reader seats. The faculty lounge by the auditorium on the first floor was converted into the new snack area with vending machines. The card catalog was moved out of the first floor and most likely won't be back (seeing as how things haven't been put in the catalog for 15 years). Work on the basement has just begun. Workers have sealed off the basement and are removing asbestos. Mmmmm...asbestos. When asbestos abatement is completed, the current office walls will be demolished so that work on the new layout can begin.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
"She's pretty nice-looking. I got some naked pictures of her." Thus it was spoken to an unsuspecting tipster a couple of weeks ago. The young man was taking a taxi back to campus, having enjoyed a nice dinner in our fair town, when the conversation turned to the driver's girlfriend. He chuckled a nervous response to the cabbie's remark, and the next thing he knew, a stack of Polaroids was sitting in his lap. Our friend politely flipped through the stack and returned the photos to the proud owner. "She needs to gain about 10 pounds," the driver concluded.
Hall Notes:
Got the quick and dirty on an old school Vermin.
Chris "Wolfy" Keller '87 is - in the words of Vice President Cheney - "big time." After graduating with a degree in English, Chris went MBA. Cornell was the place and Finance was the concentration. Speaking of a Vice President, Chris is one, of Dealer Services with Goldman Sachs Mutual Funds. (Buy low, sell...if you're unpatriotic.) Mr. Keller has a Mrsl, named Julia. They spend their time doting on Sophie, a most likely precocious 19 month old. The family is squatting in Chicago's DePaul neighborhood and living quite contently.
NDSportscenter:
Court TV. Once again the University is involved in legal matters concerning athletics. Women's soccer player Monica Gonzalez went to court to preserve her ability to play with the team. She sought to set aside a University punishment that would make her ineligible for varsity competition the rest of the season. She was placed on "disciplinary probation" by Res Life after supposedly violating the University's policy concerning the use, possession, or providing of illegal drugs. (Pot, hemp, chronic, weed, doobie, reefer, Mary Jane, etc.) Probation = no sports. Gonzalez denied the allegations. The pre-season All American's suit contends that prohibiting her from playing could affect her future as a pro player.
The incident in question occurred last April while Gonzalez was enrolled in an international study program at the University of the Americas. At first Gonzalez accepted responsibility for the marijuana to protect a friend's brother, who already had problems. When she found out the punishment, she recanted the story and the man came forward and confessed that he was the guilty party. The University of the Americas placed her on probation, temporarily dismissed her, and alerted ND.
Monica won the court action against ND and is still playing. The judge is preventing ND from enforcing disciplinary probation against her. The judge said the other university already punished her and this basically constituted double jeopardy. ND was also found to lack jurisdiction to conduct a hearing on something that happened at another university while the student was technically not enrolled at ND but at another institution. Contrary to popular belief, Bill Kirk cannot single-handedly control the lives of every single student.
Following another dismal loss, this one to Boston College, Notre Dame returned to the practice field Monday afternoon only to find their practice stopped by Coach Bob Davie after 10 minutes. He instructed the players to head for the locker room while he and his assistant coaches examined an unidentified "white, powdery substance" on the field. Local CDC and state law officials were called in to inspect the substance and informed the coaches that practice could continue as planned. "We informed Coach Davie that the white, powdery substance he was unfamiliar with was the goal line" said an FBI representative.
Two articles have been posted on a recent issue between ND, Davie, and ESPN.
Campus News:
Campus security has been giving out citations left and right during pre-game tailgating. Roughly 60 tickets were given for underage drinking and minor in possession of alcohol. The director of ND Police stated that "this campus has a problem with alcohol abuse." This was by far the largest amount of tickets ever given out. Du Lac was quoted as saying "no student, student organization, or University housing facility may organize or sponsor tailgaters on campus or on any adjacent fields or parking lots at any time for the purpose of serving alcoholic beverages." This caused many graduate students to become disgruntled considering they are all over 21 and their non-student spouses were hosting tailgaters. In addition to the 60 or so youngsters cited, the grad students were given tickets that brought the total to about 100. Tickets were also given for disorderly conduct and public drunkenness. Apparently some tailgaters had more than 100 students in attendance where attendees were shotgunning and using beer funnels. Such activities received fines. One student had a breathalizer test of 0.2. Twenty officers were in on the monitoring, including undercover officers in civilian clothes.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Tailgating does seem to cause some riotous behavior on this campus. Consider the Michigan State game. One avid tipster, in an attempt to evade the depressing atmosphere in the student section, was waiting in line at the concession stands. A nearby fellow was schmoozing a young lady, lifting up his shirt to reveal a tattoo. Another guy, obviously stricken with jealousy at all the attention this boy and his ink were getting, barged in on the conversation and started harassing the woman. Finally, hoping to outdo the 'too, he dropped his shorts - all of them - and made a pubic statement. The loyal tipster concludes, "Though she was horrified and temporarily blinded by his move, she did say there was definitely no tattoo visible."
Hall Notes:
Thanks to current Vermin Robert Goodwin, alums can have the opportunity to get some Carroll wear. Some items are already available for sale. (Leftover, you see.) Maroon mesh shorts in large and extra large are on sale for $14. Blue hall t-shirts are going for $10 and come in XL and XXL. I believe the shorts say "Carroll" on one leg. The blue shirt says "Carroll" on the back with a picture of the dorm's facade (I think). First come, first serve. Quantities are limited. Email me and I can take care of picking them up and shipping them out.
Sweatshirts and sweatpants will apparently be ordered soon. No information is available yet on design and prices. However, if you are interested let me know. The dorm is only planning on ordering the amount of items actually requested, and no extra.
NDSportscenter:
Carlyle did NOT sustain any major knee damage. That's the report, anyway. The injury was diagnosed as a minor knee bruise. There has been no mention of him not starting next week against Tennessee.
Representatives for the Tangerine Bowl (which takes over for the Aloha Bowl) were on hand for the b.c. debacle. Not that it matters with Tennessee, Stanford, and Purdue left on the schedule. Odds are we will finish 4-7 and Davie will be kicked to the curb on Dec. 2nd.
Talk is rampant over who will replace Davie at season's end. Heavy media discussions have focused on current Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden. Gruden, 38, hasn't exactly shied away from the rumors. Two separate articles have been posted on the "Articles of Interest" page. One is local, from the South Bend Tribune, and the other is from the Bay Area.
Despite the swirling propaganda concerning Davie, no recruits have been scared off. Analysts believe a few will go elsewhere on signing day. Our verbal commitments are still being courted by other schools. As soon as Davie blew it this year, the vultures attempted to swoop in and peck away. Mudslinging is supposedly being used in attempts to woo recruits away. One of our recruits has a more pressing issue. Jamie Ryan is receiving treatment for a throat infection. He played his first four games in pain before coming off the field. He is out for the remainder of his senior year.
The men's and women's basketball teams conducted Midnight Madness together on the first official day of practice. Fifteen hundred spectators turned out. The highlight of the evening was a concluding dunk contestant that featured 6'9" Jere Macura throwing down after jumping a seated 7'0" Tom Timmermanns and Ryan Humphrey bouncing the ball off the floor, taking off his shirt, and two-hand jamming, all in one motion. Sophomore Torrian Jones has made the most progess in the off-season. He will be the 6th man and play the 2 or 3. Both our point guards have no experience. Freshman Chris Thomas (a high school McDonald's All-American) and red-shirt freshman Chris Markwood will be the starter and backup, respectively.
Campus News:
U2 rocked the JACC a week and a half ago. ND was the opening gig on the third leg of the Elevation Tour. Over half of the audience was made up of current Domers. The set list proved to be rather varied from previous shows on the tour. The band closed the encore with "Walk On" and brought out some members of the NYPD and FDNY that had been flown in from New York. The crowd went insane as they walked the stage while Bono performed that final tune.
The members of the NYPD and FDNY stayed around for the weekend also. They were honored before the West Virginia game. The stadium gave a standing ovation.
Fall break is this week. Most of the kids stayed for the USC game. Now they are gone, and a quarter of the school year with them.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
The Gipper was accidentally reading The Observer a few mornings ago (he had not quite woken up yet - he thought it was Common Sense) when he saw a reference to Bill "Officer Willy" Kirk handing out citations at tailgates. First he thought, "Isn't that sort of like the attorney general giving speeding tickets?" But the thing that really caught the Gipper's attention was that, unbeknownst to him, he could get a Res Life sentence for "blatant disrespect for university policy." Now, the Gipper has made a few enemies in the administration, and he's getting worried that this catch-all could be used against him next time he associates a prominent administrator with unsavory language.
Hall Notes:
The other Haunted House story from old school Vermin Carl Mayer....
Let's call it "The Chainsaw Guy"...
I had the fortune of being the chainsaw guy in '87 and '88. The joy of watching the Dillon and Alumni tools cowering against the wall with their women watching in disgust still provides me great pleasure. The only ugly incident I can add to the list is the year I hid in the basement food sales area with someone dressed in this goulish mask (I don't remember who it was). Freshman Dave Palumbo (sp) was a guide for this group of wasted dudes. The group was not supposed to come into food sales since I was hiding behind the door and would surprise them when they turned to continue through the dorm. One drunk went too far...as he walked into food sales, ignoring Dave's request to not go any further, I felt the rage burn in pit of my stomach. I gingerly transferred the chainsaw from my right hand to my left. As he took what would be his final step of the evening past the point of no return (he could see me), my clenched fist collided with his face. He collapsed into the chip stand and lay still on the floor. I thought he was dead. Since I did not go to prison, he obviously lived. I escorted him and his friend out the basement door. Fr. Mike came down a few minutes later to inquire about the event. After I told him the story, all he could say was, "Good, the son of a bitch deserved it."
NDSportscenter:
Next week's game against boston college will be a night game. The game will air on ESPN Saturday night at 6:45 pm central time.
Thirty six Domers are in the NFL. Despite the death of 1st and 2nd round picks the last half decade, ND continues to rank in the top 2 for pro football products. FSU is first this year with 40. Last year they had 38 while we had 37. We were first from '95 through '99 and have been either first or second for the last seven years.
Last weekend the men's and women's cross country teams competed in the Pre-National meet along with half of the other teams in the top 25. The women entered ranked 24th and placed 11th, with the top Domer taking 15th overall. The men came in to the meet #5 in the country and grabbed 2nd place behind #1 Colorado. And that was done without two Irish runners who fell ill and could not complete the race. Seven total runners competed, and with two dropping out, the rest had to pick up the slack. The top 5 participants from each team got recorded. Our first three runners came in 4th, 12th, and 14th. Not bad considering one of the two that dropped out was our top All-American runner.
The women's basketball team is getting NO props this year. They have gone from National Champions to barely being ranked 20th in many pre- season polls. Some even left the lady Irish off altogether. Well, this team may be green, but they will play with a vengeance. Look for them to be in the finals again in a couple years.
Campus News:
Professors Jinesh Jain and Clive Neal, both of the University's civil engineering and geological sciences department, studied samples delivered from Ground Zero of the fallen skyscrapers that were struck on September 11th. The professors analyzed the dust and debris to determine whether the ruins pose a health risk to workers at the site or to local residents. The New York University Department of Environmental Medicine shipped nine samples of Trade Center debris to ND. The professors' job was to test for toxic metals and look at elemental abundances to determine what exactly was in the dust. The goal is obviously to make sure there are no long-term health effects. New York University received the results and it is up to that University to decide whether or not to make the information public. It is unknown whether the results will ever be released. This ND lab has a history of conducting analysis in high-profile cases. Work has been done for the EPA, as well as on moon and meteroite samples. In 1996, wreckage was examined from the TWA Flight 800 explosion.
Gippwatch from ME:
I'm gonna step on the Gipp's toes once more and offer my own bit of insider information.... So I attended the so-called "game" against Michigan State. I was seated in Section 36 by the tunnel, row 17. Who's this I see ascending and descending the stairs with regularity throughout the game? Why the men's and women's basketball teams. Seems they don't have to occupy the student section like the rest of the undergrads. They, therefore, don't stand the entire game either. Nope. The ballers got to sit in section 36 with the alumni and subway alumni. And get this...they were in the front row. Can someone please explain to me why the tallest people in the stadium get to sit in the FRONT row? I think it should be noted that the second row was made up of frustrated dwarfs, angry midgets, a cursing Mini-Me, and an extremely volatile Gary Coleman. Whatchu talkin' 'bout, Harold Swanagan?
Hall Notes:
Tis October. In the past the Vermin were preparing the house for a haunting. Such activities are no more. However, the memories remain. A couple Haunted House tales were passed this way by Slim '94. Both are told by Carl Mayer. One this week and the other next week. This one is short but still quality...
"I can't believe no one has mentioned the Knight Anderson chainsaw story. I think the story goes like this. He chased one poor girl out of the dorm onto the front lawn where she collapsed in tears. Knight then lifted his mask to help her up. When she reached for his hand, he pulled the mask back down, fired up the chainsaw and she is still in some 'special' home today."
NDSportscenter:
I was at the game so I'm not sure what NBC said, but the chief story this week in the papers was that of former Irish player Cooper Rego. He was permanently banned from campus in February of '98 as a consequence of a campus disciplinary hearing. A '01 Domer said Rego was expelled after she reported that he raped her in his dorm room in October of '97. Rego was a freshman at the time and left to go to West Virginia. No criminal charges were ever filed. The '01 Domer wrote the University months ago to see if they would uphold the ban when WV was slated to come this Fall. When she did not get a definite response she took her story to The Observer and the South Bend Tribune. The University director of Public Relations tried to spin the ban and then clammed up. Two national organizations that are victim advocary groups wrote the University to uphold the ban. One even vowed to take action with the U.S. Department of Education to review ND's compliance with federal law regarding handling of campus crime victims' rights if Rego was allowed on campus. WVU knew nothing of this. Rego issued a statement saying he never sexually assaulted the woman. He said he accepted the ban to end the ordeal and move on. Rego, though, was on the travel roster to come to the Bend. WV stated the ban did not apply in this case as he was part of a team. Then Monk sent an official letter to Rego stating that if he came to campus he would be arrested. Rego then decided not to come despite the fact that he said there was an "understanding" he could return as a player on a team. His attorney said Cooper is considering legal action.
Ryan Humphrey will have to sit out the first two regular season games. Ryan committed a secondary violation of the NCAA's outside competition rule. The rule states that a player can only participate in games within a 100 mile radius of a legal residence or campus. The Tusla native was clear to play in Chicago...but not L.A. The 100-mile rule was accidentally forgotten by Mr. Humphrey. He was in California watching some summer games. Other players challenged him to get on the court. The competitive juices were flowing. Ryan participated in two games. Therefore he must sit out two games. The two contests he will miss are against New Hampshire and Cornell.
Talk about tough. One of our recruits torn his ACL. New Jersey quarterback Chris Olsen was hurt early in his senior football campaign. How did he deal with it? He had decided to wear a brace the rest of the season and keep playing! Dammmmmmnnnnnnn. Surgery will take place after the season.
Campus News:
Five Domers were among those who were lost on September 11, 2001. Robert Ferris '62 majored in mechanical engineering. The Columbus, Ohio native worked on the 105th floor of 2 WTC. Rev. Francis E. Grogan, C.S.C. '51 was on United Flight 175. Lieutenant Colonel Neil Hyland Jr. '77 came from Claremont, California and majored in English. Neil worked at the Pentagon. Dora Marie Menchaca '77 was on American Flight 77. Dora studied biology and called San Antonio her hometown.
1995 Domer Greg de Sousa is a New York City firefighter. His department is 12 miles north of Manhattan. He was called to duty at Ground Zero to aid in the rescue and recovery. Greg's story was horrific. Greg lived in St. Ed's and was an economics major. Greg's story can be read through the link below:
http://www.nd.edu/~scholast/firefighters.html
After the first quarter of the Michigan State game, volunteers collected donations throughout Notre Dame Stadium for the families of New York firefighters and police officers who were lost in the line of duty. $271,000 was collected that day. The total University fundraising came to $350,000. The original aim was $50,000.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Well, this tip comes all the way from last April, after the year's final Scholastic had been issued. According to this tipster, he and some of his engineering comrades were buring the midnight oil at the DeBartolo computer cluster, engaged in their studies, when they noticed something odd over at the consultant's workstation: lots and lots of Internet porn. Now, perhaps these hard workers were simply hallucinating after a long evening of crunching numbers; or else DeBartolo has begun offering jobs to last year's horny Hesburgh high-schoolers caught in the act.
Hall Notes:
Some current dorm news...
Well, once again the Vermin apparently were not able to field a team for intramural football. Hopefully some Carroll players were able to join with another dorm. In years past they combined with St. Ed's. Whatever the case, the name "Carroll" has, unfortunately, not surfaced.
Contact will hopefully be made soon with a current Vermin Wear representative. A name has been passed my way and we shall see how willing the present lads are to sell some sweatshirts and other apparel to Vermin alums. Stay tuned.
NDSportscenter:
Well, Davie got bailed out by Carlyle and a butterfingerd Pitt receiver. Believe it or not, this is Davie's 15th October win in a row. (I don't believe it.) I guess that's a good sign for the rest of the month. Tony Fisher's knee and hamstring problems are not expected to be serious but chances are he will sit next week.
The campus has officially declared that Bob Davie go. The Observer's editor-in-chief (who defended Davie after the Nebraska game) and head sports writer called for AD White to downsize him at season's end. A sign outside Keough read "Fire Bob Davie." Signs on Dillon and Keenan stated "Save Irish Football." The writing seems to literally be on the wall.
The #4 women's soccer team continues to face top foes early in the season. A couple weeks ago they welcomed #3 Nebraska to Alumni Field. We came out the victor, 1-0. A week ago #19 West Virginia came a-knockin'. They, too, were sent packing with a 2-1 defeat. The ladies are 7-0-1 on the season.
The men's cross country team is pushing the women's soccer team for the best fall sport. The squad returned its top 5 runners from last year. The men started the year #5. All-American Ryan Shay has helped them climb to #4.