Campus News:
The past spring semester had some small assorted news items:
Former Board of Trustees member and Monogram President Dave Duerson was sentenced on a misdemeanor charge of domestic battery for an incident with his wife at the Morris Inn. Duerson received $1000 in fines and was ordered to pay courts costs. He received no jail time or probation.
Lou was back on campus in the spring. He spoke at Stepan Center on March 31.
Reckers, the restaurant on the south end of South Dining Hall, had a fire in the spring. No one was injured and the damage was minimal.
All dorm phones will be removed for Fall 2006. Students can get a dorm phone for a fee but must provide their own phone set. Those having to pay would actually be paying double since the current cost of campus phone services are already figured into tuition costs. Some house phones will be placed in dorms but they will not be able to receive calls.
The Mendoza College of Business was ranked third by BusinessWeek amongst undergraduate business schools.
Hispanic Magazine recently ranked the "Top 25 Colleges for Latinos." Notre Dame placed 13th. The rankings were based on academic excellence, student-to-faculty ratio, percentage of Hispanic faculty and students, cultural programs, and availability of financial aid.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Because one charming tale of drunken release is never enough, the Gipp would like you kiddies to gather 'round the Magic Circle Story Rug to hear about a man seen loitering next to a garbage can in a girl's dorm. Some thought he was looking for a cell phone signal. Some thought he was thinking about how a certain university administrator manages to keep his youthful, wrinkle- free visage. Our tipstress, believing him to be engaging in a match of hand-to- gland combat, went to investigate. Why she thought he would choose a hallway trash bin as opposed to the privacy of the 10th floor of the library is a mystery to the Gipp. After scaring the stranger away, our informant realized that this man had actually been URINATING in the hallway of the girl's dorm. When this incident was reported to the dorm's rector, the rector responded by saying, "That's special." George Mason in the Final Four is special. South Dining Hall smores are special. A strange man confusing the two different kinds of "waste recepticles," my friends, is NOT special.
Hall Notes:
Notre Dame isn't exactly a haven for hazing. Maybe our sports team have a lil somethin'-somethin'. But the dorms seem pretty tame. I think I recall something from back in the day about one male dorm baptizing their newbies in the reflecting pool outside the library. Carroll sort of had a rite of passage. Then again, maybe it was just my frosh year.
I believe it was our first or second day in the dorm. The upperclassmen handling Freshmen Orientation got us up wicked early and made us run (literally) over to Walsh, I believe. The freshmen of Walsh were gathered and we had to step up and croon "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" to the young ladies. That was our little bit of hazing in the mid '90s. If it's good enough for "Top Gun," it's good enough for Vermin.
NDSportscenter:
The men's tennis team began the year ranked #26. The men climbed as high as #15. The team entered the Big East final at #16 but fell to Louisville. The Irish were 17-8 and received an at-large bid to the NCAAs. The #18 men faced Brown in the first round. Brown lost and then #19 Texas A&M fell 4-2. In the Sweet 16 we faced #1 Georgia. The Bulldogs came out on top 4-0.
One tennis player made some news in the NCAA Singles. Sophomore Sheeva Parbhu was ranked #32 and knocked off #8 to reach the Sweet 16. His Singles victory was the first for the program since 1998. He won again and made the quarterfinals. It's the farthest a Domer man has advanced since 1959. Sheeva was the lowest rank remaining and one of three Americans. In the next match he fell to #14. Parbhu achieved All American status with his run.
Both the men's and women's tennis teams performed well this year. Smash Magazine ranked us as one of the top ten tennis colleges.
After the first set of spring sports we were fourth in the Directors' Cup. At the previous set we were ninth. With this fourth place total we were 10 points greater than last year's FINAL total.
Some Kevin White news: We take our academics seriously. Did you know that our coaches have NCAA penalty clauses in their contracts? If their teams don't make the grade, they answer to our A.D. White believes we are the only school to have such a clause....This year the new BCS deal kicks in. If we make the BCS we only receive $4.5 million. White had to fight for that total. Did you know the BCS schools pushed for us to only receive $2.5 million? We had to negotiate for $4.5 million.
We have three games on Saturday nights on ABC: September 2 at Georgia Tech, September 23 at Michigan State and November 25 at USC. TV looooves the Irish.
Campus News:
In mid-May Athletic Director Kevin White shared some of the University's $100 million master plan to upgrade athletic facilities. The master plan took 18 months of study and survey with HNTB Architecture, Inc. The JACC is expected to be the next project but there is no timeline. The south dome, the basketball arena, will receive a $25 million renovation. (The entire JACC was constructed at a cost of $8.6 million in 1968.) The new arena will have all chair-back seats which will drop the capacity to about 10,000. A new south entrance will feature a retail store, Varsity Club room, and ticket offices. A second level will be built to hold a 4,000 - 5,000 square-foot club room with seats that open into a tightened bowl.
There are other projects in the master plan:
A 10,000 square-foot indoor golf practice facility north of campus that will be completed near the end of this summer.
The north dome of the JACC: an addendum that will house coaches' offices, locker rooms and a club area for hockey. Chair-backs will be added and the capacity will go to around 4,000. The projected cost is roughly $15 million.
Demolition of Moose Krause Stadium that hosts lacrosse and track and field to provide a wider roadway to the east of the JACC.
Three football practice fields - one artificial turf and two natural grass - adjacent to the Guglielmino Complex.
A soccer facility (capacity around 2,000) on the south end of what is now Moose Krause Stadium that would include locker rooms, a lounge and restrooms.
A lacrosse facility just to the east of the new soccer facility with amenities similar to that of the soccer building.
Relocation of the softball field to the southeast of the baseball stadium.
Additional practice areas for lacrosse and soccer along Ivy Road.
Relocation of the outdoor tennis courts to the land currently being occupied by the softball field.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Turning 21 can be a proud day for any man, but with the way some people behave, it can be an even prouder day for the Gipper. This tale begins at that bastion of scabies and Hepatitis, Club Fever (formerly Heartland), where our young protagonist was delicately sipping cocktails with a small study group of friends to celebrate his 21st birthday. After this relaxing evening of conversation and classy, disease-free behavior, Birthday Boy and his girlfriend made their way to an off-campus residence. The Gipp is sure that they planned to end the evening with a rousing game of checkers and head to separate beds in accordance with DuLac, but unfortunately, they were forced to change their plans when our young boy-genius regurgitated the night's beverages all over the sidewalk. In addition to this "stomach virus," he also must've had an inner ear infection, as he lost his balance and fell into the puddle of vomit, PULLING HIS DATE DOWN WITH HIM. The Gipp is sure she was charmed. For whatever reason, this late-night swim was a bonding experience, as within the hour, the two were in bed together. Our lovely lass locked on her chastity belt, refusing Birthday Boy's desires for some mattress dancin', but Mr. 21st Birthday didn't take this rejection lying down. Instead, his girlfriend woke to find him standing atop her, pants unzipped, preparing to do something to her that one would hesitate to ask from a "professional." Acting quickly, she managed to punch our handi-capable friend in the babymaker and flee screaming into the night. The Gipp is sure that one day, Birthday Boy will find a girl with as little self-respect as he has intelligence.
Hall Notes:
Brian Buoye '98 is taking the east coast by storm. At ND he majored in Finance and History. After graduation he studied for three years to earn the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 2002. Brian has a lengthy work history: five years at Prudential Capital Group, the private debt investing arm of Prudential Financial; one year at GE Capital; and the current gig at Jefferies Finance, a joint venture between Jefferies & Company and Mass Mutual. Did I mention his title is "Vice President"? But his best job was..."a month drunk in Europe riding a bus with Australians." Buoye lives in Jersey and commutes to his office in Manhattan. A few weeks ago Brian became engaged to Yvonne, a Rutgers graduate. She is currently finishing up her residency in Toledo. (That's perfect because I'm pretty sure Buoye likes to play "doctor.") No wedding date has been set but it will most likely be Fall 2007. And like a true Domer the date hasn't been settled because Brian still needs to check ND's bye weeks.
NDSportscenter:
Last Saturday night Tommy Z fought at Madison Square Garden. For his pro debut he fought a 32-year-old Ohioan who was 2-2 with two knockouts. Tommy's opponent was almost 20 lbs. heavier and the chump wore a Suckeyes jersey into the ring while the Ohio State fight song was playing. Tommy Z received a huge ovation. Singer BeBe Winans sang the Notre Dame Fight Song and Tommy came out through a tunnel of about 30 teammates who were in attendance. Zbikowski was paid $25,000 and his fight was right before the main event. I believe there were four undercard fights before Tommy Z.
After final exams Z flew to Miami to work with Angelo Dundee, who had trained Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard. Tom has boxed since he was 9 years old and has an amateur record of 75-15. The first pro fight was over quickly. Tom pounded his opponent down to one knee and continued to pelt him as the ref got in and separated them for a standing eight count. The opponent got up. Z then threw a punch that spun the 230 lb-er around. The ref ended it immediately. It was over in 49 seconds. Tom signed for three fights. The next won't be until after football. Bring on Tyson.
A link is provided below if you wish to view the fight. Just skip ahead to the 10 minute mark to see the fisticuffs.
http://dietler.net/nd/videos/quickplay/?video=zibby_fight_extended
Jeff Samardzija was drafted in the 5th round by the Chicago Cubs. Baseball America had declared Jeff to be the 20th overall prospect. However, Jeff said he would play football this year no matter what. So he fell to the 5th round. Jeff plans to sign and pitch this summer. He will stop on July 30 and return for football. In addition to Samardzija, firstbaseman Craig Cooper was selected in the 7th round by the San Diego Padres. Also, righthanded pitcher Jeff Manship was taken by the Minnesota Twins in the 14th round.
Campus News:
Commencement was a few weeks ago. Thirteen individuals received honorary degrees. One went to Harper Lee, the author of the 1960 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird." The author received a standing ovation which was then followed by a second round of applause. Another honorary degree went to Gilburt Loescher, of Oxford, England. He is a former ND political science professor who was the only survivorf of the August 2003 bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad. Loescher lost both legs but has recovered and returned full-time to humanitarian work.
The spring meeting of the Board of Trustees was held in Washington D.C. in early May. The D.C. location was to help establish a higher profile for the University in the nation's capital. Some members shared coffee with President Bush and attended a reception with several Congressmen. The Board passed a "vote of confidence" in Jenkins' closing statement on academic freedom and Catholic character at Notre Dame: "The Board of Trustees passed a resolution expressing its confidence in [Jenkins] and its agreement in principle with the policies and the process developed for the evaluation of events at the University which touch upon the Catholic character of Notre Dame."
Typically the Board meets at the University. This spring meeting in D.C. follows the winter meeting in Rome in which the University was attempting to better establish itself in the universal church.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Here's the continuation of the drunk-group-gets-in-a-taxi-and-girl-gets-finger-slammed-in-the-door story....
However, not content with simply physically assaulting the other passengers of the cab, the girls then asserted that they would be unable to speak to the guy in question before he went tanning, implying, of course, that the pearly South Bend sheen a person's skin may acquire over month after cloudly month is somehow inferior to the flaky coat of melanoma sported by, say, a gaunt harpy screeching from the front seat of the Irish Cab. This line of reasoning soon devolved into the girl shrieking the phrase "Go tanning!" over and over for the rest of the car ride, thus earning a place in textbooks as the most uncomfortable 15 minutes in Indiana history. The girls also claimed that they would sue the passengers of the cab, while one claiming to be a "Golden Gloves boxer" promised to punch every other passenger in the face. Replace "boxer" with "crazy drunken harridan," and maybe then the Gipper can make some sense of things.
The truly tragic part of this story comes as the ladies, having arrived at their destination, turn to deliver their parting shot at the other fares. "Do you know why I almost didn't come here?" the injured girl asked the slack-jawed group remaining. The girl opens her mouth and...
WARNING: If you know or think you know the person to whom this story refers, do not continue. After reading this following passage, you will lose all respect for her, or, if you are the girl in question, for yourself. Consider yourself warned.
...screams at the crowd in the cab, "Because 95 percent of the people here are nerdbombers like you!" And slams the door.
Nerdbombers? Nerdbomber is the type of insult that gets a pitying look from nine-year- olds. Really, really lame nine-year-olds.
Hall Notes:
So all the dorms are in the process of being cable-ized. One of the reasons for allowing cable is to rid the campus of the supposedly unsightly satellite dishes. Even Carroll was getting in on satellite dishes. Our dorm isn't a good one for dishes. Carroll runs north-south with dorm windows on the east and west sides. Not good for satellites that need to point south. Anyway, here's a photo of the dish of some crafty Vermin. It looks like, for once, someone may have wanted non-Dome side room picks. And that's probably the only use that little foyer received all year.
NDSportscenter:
And then there were seven. A seventh recruit has verbally committed to play football for the Irish. Defensive lineman Justin Trattou is our third player from New Jersey. Charlie has snagged three of the top four players in the state. The Ramsey, New Jersey product is 6'4", 255 lbs and last year had 95.5 tackles and 9.5 sacks for Don Bosco Prep. Analyst Tom Lemming commented that Charlie told him when he first took over that he would own Jersey. One football person had this to say: "He comes in and basically has taken over New Jersey." Back to Justin. He has great ability to get off the ball, quickness, and athleticism. Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan and Florida lost out.
The women's tennis team started the year 15-0 which matched the best ever start of '83-'84. The ladies achieved a new best at 16-0 before losing to #11 Vanderbilt. The team finished 24-1 and were ranked #2. The ladies won the Big East for the second straight year and seven out of eleven. They received the #2 seed in the NCAAs. The Irish hosted the first two rounds and defeated Valparaiso and Kentucky to advance to the Sweet 16. Michigan fell 4-0 and we went on to the Elite Eight. The quarterfinals matched our deepest run ever ('96). Unfortunately an old nemesis, #7 Miami, took us down. There were some individuals recognized for the stellar year. Catrina Thompson was the Big East MVP for the second straight year. Jay Louderback was the Coach of the Year for the 6th time. Catrina lost in the 2nd round of the NCAA Singles competition. The Thompson Twins were the #3 seed in NCAA Doubles. Sadly, they lost in the first round to #8 USC and finished 22-7 on a three-match losing streak. Louderback was named the National Coach of the Year for our best season in the 30 years of the program. And Michelle Dasso was the National Assistant Coach of the Year. This is our first national recognition since 1985. Oh, and we have the #1 recruiting class coming in next year.
Campus News:
Last week details were given on a Domer that won a Pulitzer from coverage of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Over last winter break a group of students traveled to New Orleans to assist those in need for four days. The organizer of the service project was a New Orleans native and current undergrad. The trip received grants from the Center for Social Concerns, Campus Ministry, and the ND Alumni Club of New Orleans. The students were assigned through Catholic Charities' Helping Hands program. Their task was to deconstruct a house. They gutted a residence and removed the damaged and molded pieces of structure.
At commencement, the recipient of the Laetare Medal, the University's highest honor, responded with... music. Jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck received the medal, which is awarded annually to a Catholic who had advanced the arts and sciences, illustrated the ideals of the church, and enriched humanity. Brubeck, 85, sat down at a grand piano on the commencement stage. "I had serious classical pieces to choose from and I'm not going to play any of them... You people are going into the world and you need a piece called 'Traveling Blues.' " After playing the piece, the crowd went nuts. Always leave 'em wanting more.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Having piled into a crowded car, a group of friends were joined by two other girls on their way home to Clover Ridge, but one of the girls accidentally slammed her finger in the door.
Mistaking the group's laughter and general drunken reveling as being directed at her friend's pain, the other girl begins by shrieking at one of the gentlemen of the group for his apparent mockery of the girl's grave finger injury, which she claims to the cabbie is so severe that the finger nearly "popped off." In order to cover up the extreme awkwardness of the girls' insanity, the gent nervously continued to chortle. In response to his chuckling, the friend takes a wild swing.....and cracks the girl sitting next to him across the face. (Nice one.)
Hall Notes:
Carroll received a shoutout in Notre Dame Magazine. It was in the Winter 2005-06 issue. (Yes, I'm behind in my reading. Sad isn't? Falling behind on a publication that comes out QUARTERLY.) Anyway, Carroll was mentioned on the "Hall Portrait" page. It didn't focus on us, though. We were in Fisher's piece...
LORE: A friendly rivalry with Carroll Hall resulted in the prank of sinking Carroll's boat for the Fisher Regatta in 2003. Carroll's boat had won the four previous races. Fishermen good-naturedly retrieved the boat from the bottom of the lake the night before and helped get it ready for the race, which Carroll ultimately won.
NDSportscenter:
Charlie has added a 6th verbal commitment. Linebacker/running back Steve Paskorz of Allison Park, Pennsylvania accepted as soon as the offer was made. Steve attends Hampton High School near Pittsburgh. The 6'2", 220 lb. Paskorz is expected to be at linebacker but Charlie likes his running game and promised to give him a shot at the backfield. As a sophomore he ran for 2188 yards and 27 TDs. Last year he tallied 1400 yards and 14 TDs. He was slowed by a torn ligament in his right ankle. Steve had surgery and is expected to fully recover. Virginia, Michigan, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Iowa all sought Steve's services.
For the second year in a row, the men's and women's swimming and diving teams won the Big East Championship. The men at one point were ranked #18, their highest ever. They blew away the Big East challengers and won by over 220 points. The women eeked out a victory by 18 points and claimed their tenth straight crown. The men's team sent one competitor to the NCAAs. Freshman diver Michael Bulfin competed in the three meter and one meter diving. He's only the third men's swimmer in program history to make the meet and had the best ever finish. The women sent three swimmers. Junior Katie Carroll was our highest finisher. She came in 13th in the 200 meter Individual Medley and earned Honorable Mention All American.
The men's and women's track teams are about to finish the outdoor season. The indoor season was positive for the men and women. Senior Stephanie Madia was 4th in the 5000 meters. It was her second track All American and fourth total. The men's distance medley relay came in 6th. Junior Kurt Benninger was a part of the relay and received his third track All American and fifth overall. Finally, junior Thomas Chamney was named an All American after finishing sixth in the 800 meters.
Campus News:
A Domer won a Pulitzer Prize in late April. Michelle Krupa '00 is a reporter for the New Orleans Times-Picayune. She and the entire Times-Picayune staff won the prize for their coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Krupa, 27, is the third ND grad and former Observer employee to win the award in the past six years.
The Pulitzer Board awarded the paper the prize for "breaking news reporting" for "its courageous and aggressive coverage of Hurricane Katrina, overcoming desperate conditions facing the city and the newspaper." The paper won a second Pulitzer for public service. Krupa, The Observer editor-in-chief in '99-'00, is a city hall beat reporter. After graduation she wrote for the Beacon News in Aurora, Illinois. Then it was on to the University of Maryland graduate program for one year. From Maryland she went to New Orleans where she's been for the last four years.
Two other recent Domer Pulitzer winners were George Dorhmann '95 and David Kinney '94. Dorhmann wrote for the Saint Paul Pioneer Press and won the 2000 beat reporting award for a collection of articles exposing academic fraud and corruption within the University of Minnesota's men's basketball program. Kinney won as part of the Newark Star-Ledger's staff that received recognition for its coverage of the resignation of New Jersey governor James McGreevey after he admitted to appointing his extramarital male lover to a state security leadership post.
Individual Pulitzers have been awarded to at least two other Domers. Edwin O'Connor '39 won for fiction, "The Last Hurrah," in 1962. Sports columnist Red Smith '27 was bestowed the honor in 1976.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
This is the continuation of the girl-hooking- up-with-girl-and-throwing-up-in-a- bathroom-stall story from last time....
Having hit the hay with the force of a meteor plummeting from the stratosphere into the earth's surface, the vomitress from earlier in the night awoke sometime later that night to witness the situation in which one rarely anticipates finding her girlfriend: totally incoherent, stark naked and squatting over a decorative woven basket, about to unleash a torrent of what would most likely be 75 percent of her body weight in Long Island Ice Tea. When her lady love gently pointed out that perhaps their host had not thought to waterproof all of the home's ornamental handicrafts, our drunken urinatrix angrily dismissed her and marched righteously through the door. And into the closet. Where she became thoroughly disoriented and entangled in the hangers and had to be physically removed by her extremely tolerant girlfriend.
Hall Notes:
Willy Bauer '98 is a father once again. Scout Wa-la-de Bauer was born on May 13, 2006 at 3:30 am. She weighed in at 7 lbs, 9 oz and was measured at 19 inches long. Scout's middle name is Concow for "Fast Runner." Wa-la-de was Willy's great grandfather's name. And the mother, Kendra, is a workout instructing queen. So "Fast Runner" is extremely appropriate. Scout's older sister, Temerity, was born in 1999 and has the middle name Chlo-La-Ke. That name is the Wailacki word for "meadowlark."
NDSportscenter:
Charlie has a 5th verbal commitment already. Duval Kamara is a wide receiver out of Hoboken (New Jersey) High School. Tom Lemming has him as a top 5 receiver. Kamara is 6'5", 210 lbs with good leaping ability, deceptive speed and excellent skills. Last year he had 46 catches for 983 yards and 12 touchdowns. On defense he had 6 picks. Landing QB Jimmy Clausen helped lure Duvall. And he's after an education. That's why USC, Penn State, Miami and Tennessee became an afterthought. Charlie is expected to sign 3 receivers with this next class. Look for two more to try to get in on this before its too late.
Basketball news: men's incoming recruit Tory Jackson is expected to compete right away. As a sophomore his team won state. As a junior he was the AP Class C Player of the Year. And for his senior year at Saginaw Buena Vista he was again named Player of the Year after scoring 30 ppg, dishing out 7 apg and snagging 7 rpg....Brey landed two other recruits for the April 10 signing period (to join Jackson and hoosier Luke Harangody). Jonathan Peoples is a wing from Bellwood, IL (near Chicago). He played for St. Joseph High School and led them to a 28-2 record. The 6'3", 210 lb swingman scored 15. 2 ppg and also recorded 4 apg and 3 rpg....The other new recruit is small forward Joe Harden. The 6'7", 210 lb Harden hails from St. Mary's High School in Stockton, California. He went for 20 and 10 during his senior year. We were selected over Oregon, San Diego, USC and Virginia....Brey has 2 scholarships remaining.
Running back Justin Hoskins has decided to transfer. The junior-to-be saw limited action at back and as a kick returner.
On May 15 Tony Roberts, the voice of the Irish on the radio, was let go after 26 years on the job. The play-by-play man had received a letter at Christmas saying he was going a great job. He will be replaced by Hall-of-Fame broadcaster and Domer Don Criqui. Allen Pinkett will join Criqui for his 6th year.
Campus News:
It seems too many undergrads are choosing to enter the College of Business. No student will be prevented from going the business route. But to address this imbalance, the College of Business is no longer accepting transfers from other universities. For the time being, at least. In the fall of 2005, the college admitted zero external transfers. Dean Carolyn Woo stated, "We're not obligated to take external transfers... We should serve Notre Dame students before external students." The University does not want the College of Business to grow larger. At one recent point, the college graduated 30% of undergrads. Peer universities have 8 to 12% of their students in business. The percentage has dropped somewhat. In the fall of 2005 there were 1,543 sophomores, juniors and seniors in business. In the fall of 2001 there were 1,806.
Two years ago, then-Provost Nathan Hatch brought up the possibility of enacting gates to gain admission to the college. The gate would require a rising sophomore to have a 3.0 GPA to enter. It was decided that gates go "against the culture at Notre Dame" and should be avoided. Woo declared, "Almost all schools I know have gates to the business program." Domers, though, will not have hurdles to clear.
About 15 to 20% of students change their major between when they apply and when they register for class the summer before freshman year. More than two-thirds of undergrads change their major between application and graduation. Many change majors two or three times.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Oh, hello, dear readers, you've caught the Gipper off guard. He was just a little misty, reminiscing already about the rum-drenched Mardi Gras so recently past, the only low point of which being when Gipp, confused by the shouts of drunken underclassman and crazed with his ape-like fascination with shiny objects, lifted his Hurricane- soaked shirt and revealed the downy white, stretch-marked expanse of his torso in the quest for beads. The image of weeping, trembling bystanders begging the Gipper to, for the love of God, put his shirt back on is the only thing that will enable Gipp to just barely make it through the 16 long days until St. Patty's Day, when innocent passers-by can once again suppress their gag reflex at the sight of green beads snarled in Gipp's luxurious pelt of body hair. To tide you over until that glorious day, Gipp asks you to please gather around and enjoy as he submits for your approval these daring tales of degradation and derision.
It would be Gipp's pleasure to call this campfire story: How Alternative Alternative Lifestyles Can Truly Be. Whilst at an equal opportunity establishment, having downed approximately one billion beers each, the couple in question was seized in an unbridled passion and retired to the more romantic of rendezvous locations, the crapper. While human decency suggests that getting it on within three feet of a public toilet does not qualify as what most people consider dreamy, it wasn't until one of the ladies vomited in that very same stall that it dawned on our duo that they should hop on back to the friend's home at which they were staying.
Hall Notes:
Last week the spotlight fell on the writings of Willie Bauer '98. Here's the skinny on Mr. Bauer....
Willie is currently in California finishing a book. He is an assistant professor in the History Department at the University of Wyoming. So what is he doing in Cali? He has a fellowship at the University of California-Davis. I believe the official title is "President's Postdoctoral Fellow Native American Studies." Willie is dedicated to his heritage. Hopefully the soon-to-be- finished book will be available on Amazon at some point. Oh, and Willie and his wife were expecting their second child in early May.
NDSportscenter:
Charlie landed the #1 quarterback in Jimmy Clausen. Now he's landed the #1 tight end, Mike Ragone. Tom Lemming has him as the clear #1 tight end. Weis was only recruiting one player at that position. And he got a fellow Jersey boy. Ragone attends Camden Catholic in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Ragone is 6'5", 230 lbs and turned down USC and Florida State. Mike runs a sub 4.5 - 40. His receiver-like speed sets him apart from the pack. Literally. He is coming off a knee injury, though, sustained during wrestling season. Last year he had 42 catches for 850 yards and 10 touchdowns. Six of his TDs were of 60 yards or more. He also had an 83-yard kickoff return TD.
Defensive end Travis Leitko has been re-admitted for this summer. Leitko has been at his home aiding his parents who are both suffering from cancer. Travis has been caring for them full time. Leitko, the top prize of his recruiting class, has one year of eligibility remaining.
We have added home games in 2008 and 2009. Our home opener in 2008 will be against San Diego State. In 2009 the first home game of the season will be against Nevada. And you're going to have to find a special television for this year's game at Air Force. The game on November 11 will air only on CSTV.
Three lads were voted football captains for next year. Brady Quinn is a captain again. Running back Travis Thomas will represent the team, as will safety Tom Zbikowski. Upon hearing Zibby was elected, Charlie had this to say: "I don't know if I'm going to be able to that this - a whole year of having to listen to some guy from the south side of Chicago."
Women's point guard Megan Duffy was drafted in the third round of the WNBA draft. She was taken 31st overall by the Minnesota Lynx. Duffy was reunited with Domer teammate Jacqueline Batteast. For about a minute. Batteast was then traded to the Detroit Shock. The Shock still have Domer Ruth Riley.
Campus News:
Current students are being busted for illegal file sharing on the University's network. During the 2004-05 academic year, computer usage violations were the fourth most frequent incident reported to Res Life. That accounts for 11% of the disciplinary violations. Companies such as HBO, Columbia Pictures and Universal Music Group have monitored downloading of movies, television shows, music files, and other software. Those companies have then contacted the University directly. The University does not monitor but it does address the issue when external organizations detect the activities.
One student stated he was emailed by Res Life to cease and desist and to schedule a meeting with them after he was tracked for downloading about three dozen songs. For first time offenders the punishment is usually verbal warnings and deleting the files. There is no guarantee the companies will not press charges. As of early April, 33 students had already been summoned to Res Life for the spring semester. Outside companies are coming after anyone downloading a mere handful of files or more than 100.
This isn't the only internet activity being watched. Facebook.com, a popular college blog/posting center, is being used by authority figures on campus. Photographs of dorm drinking led one student to be approached by a member of her hall's staff. The Office of Residence Life and some rectors maintain Facebook accounts. This site has been used to incriminate students on other campuses. Facebook, though, does have security features to limit the people who view personal information.
Campus Watch from The Grapevine:
So there is some more news about all-world quaterback Jimmy Clausen. He made his announcement at the College Football Hall of Fame in front of 250 fans. Clausen was driven to the press conference in a white Hummer limousine. And he had a police escort. (Is that a tad much for a high school junior?...Nah.) The repercussions of Clausen's commitment are already being felt on campus. During a Bookstore basketball game, a boisterous crowd was taking in a game involving Brady Quinn's team. Quinn missed a shot. One heckler commented something to the effect of "Hey, Brady, Jimmy Clausen woulda made that shot." Is that any way to talk to next year's Heisman winner?
Hall Notes:
So when is the last time you were published? I had a music review in my high school newspaper back in the day. It has just come to my attention that Vermin William J. Bauer Jr. '98 has written a chapter in a book that is now on sale at Amazon.com. The book is titled "Native Athletes in Sport & Society: A Reader" and each chapter focuses on different American Indian athletes. Willie has 19 pages of Chapter 5 all to himself. His segment details Tommy Yarr, an Irish Indian football player. The book was published on December 30, 2005. Congratulations to Willie on his successful publication. If you go to Amazon.com and click on "Table of Contents" you can see Mr. Bauer's name in all its glory.
NDSportscenter:
Three Irish players were selected in last weekend's NFL Draft. Tight end Anthony Fasano was snagged in the 2nd round by the Dallas Cowboys. He was the #53 player taken. In the third round, receiver Maurice Stovall was the 90th overall player taken. Stovall will suit up for Tampa Bay. And on day two of the draft, the 205th player selected was guard Dan Stevenson. He went in the 6th round to the New England Patriots.
Six of our players were signed as free agents. Receiver Matt Shelton and linebacker Corey Mays will join Stevenson in New England. Kicker D.J. Fitzpatrick inked a deal with the New York Jets. The Colts called linebacker Brandon Hoyte's number. Lineman Mark LeVoir will be with the Chicago Bears and fullback Rashon Powers-Neal is moving on to the Denver Broncos.
Last weekend was the Bookstore Final Four. Normally Bookstore culminates the same weekend as the Blue-Gold Game. But Easter's late date pushed the tournament back a week. The overall #1 seed was U Got a Bad Draw, featuring football players Brady Quinn, Chinedum Ndukwe, and offensive lineman David Fitzgerald. Bad Draw won the championship two years ago and actually didn't lose last year. They lost by forfeit in the Final Four after a miscommunication about re scheduling the game.
Quinn, though, was out of town the weekend of the Final Four. Bad Draw faced #5 Clover Ridge which featured tight end Dan Carlson. Carlson was an All State basketball player in high school. Bad Draw came out on top. The other semi-final pitted #3 Club Fever vs. #10 The Saltines. The Saltines entered the tourney at #12. After re-seeding they were #10 entering the Sweet 16. They knocked off #7, #2, and then #3.
The final was a wet affair. The damp conditions helped keep the game close. The Saltines featured four sophomores and a freshman. Ndukwe scored 10 points on his way to winning Bookstore MVP. Freshman point guard Carl Andersen netted 13 points for The Saltines and laid claim to Mr. Bookstore. Ndukwe won the game on a free throw. The final was 26-24, the longest championship I can ever remember.
Campus News:
Once again the accepted future freshman class is the strongest academically in school history. This year's pool had 12,800 applicants, the largest ever. That total is up 13 percent from last year. Admissions sent 3,484 acceptance letters. The University hopes to enroll 1,985 freshmen for the fall of 2006. The yield, the percentage of admitted students who choose to attend, has ranged from 56 to 58 percent the past four years. Students are just aching to get in here. Our yield is unlike the average. Private U.S. colleges have an average yield in the 20 percent range.
The admitted students cover all 50 states and 32 foreign countries. The average class rank is in the top 4.5 percent of their high school classes. The average SAT score is 1398 and the ACT average is 32. Last year's class matched the 4.5 percent and ACT 32. However, they were pathetic on the SAT, scoring a far inferior 1392. The incoming class is projected to be 52 percent male and 48 percent female. The class will be roughly 84% Catholic and alumni children will be in the neighborhood of 23%. The University expects 23% ethnic minorities and four percent international students. Check this out... Admissions chose to accept only 438 or the 849 applicants who were ranked number one in their high school classes. They also rejected a student who had a perfect SAT score. Last year about 600 emails, faxes, and voicemails were received concerning those students that were not admitted. Even the Director of Admissions' son was not initially accepted. He transferred in after a year elsewhere.
Campus Watch by Me:
Charlie Weis is not only going around the country recruiting but he's also spreading good cheer around our nation. And he's doing it under the radar. Charlie sent some ND items to recovering West Virginia coal miner Randy McCloy Jr. He was the only miner to survive from that tragic accident that claimed a dozen lives. Word on the street is that Charlie saw McCloy on television in Irish apparel. Since Weis was on the east coast recruiting at the time, he thought about paying the miner a visit. But then he changed his mind because he didn't want it to be seen as some sort of public relations stunt. Apparently Charlie hadn't forgotten about the miner, though. I saw a recent photo of the McCloy in what looked like a brand spankin' new ND hat. Yet another victory for Charlie.
Hall Notes:
Did you key your name in the bricks of Carroll? Right by the south door? Below is a photo of the bricks to the west of the door.
NDSportscenter:
Is Jimmy Clausen the best high school football player ever? Or just the best since John Elway? According to analyst Tom Lemming, Clausen is the best he has seen in his 27 years. The 6'3", 200 lb quarterback verbally committed to the Irish before last week's Blue-Gold Game. Charlie is his reason for coming. Prior to Weis, he wasn't interested in coming to the Bend. As a sophomore Jimmy threw for 3,665 yards and 58 touchdowns. Last year he had 30 TDs and 2,778 yards. In those two years he has only thrown 11 interceptions. The southern California native turned down USC, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Clausen has been labeled "the LeBron James of high school football." ESPN had an entire half-hour program devoted solely to Clausen. Jimmy will be aiding Charlie in recruiting as well. He said he was going to convince as many top players as possible. Thirty big name recruits were in town last weekend at the Blue-Gold Game. Clausen has declared he wants to win four national championships and plans to start from day one. To make things even better, he will graduate next December and enroll here in January so he can participate in winter conditioning and spring ball. Clausen also complimented Ron Powlus in the recruiting process.
A record crowd of 41,279 attended the Blue-Gold Game. The #1 offense (Blue) faced the #1 defense (Gold). And the #2 offense battled the #2 defense. Blue won 10-7. Brady was 16 of 25 for 181 yards and one touchdown. Samrdzija caught five for 93 yards and a 35-yard touchdown. Darius ran for 78 yards and caught five for 42 yards. But the offensive MVP was Travis Thomas who ran for 104 yards, including an 83-yard touchdown run. Ambrose Wooden picked off one pass. Safety Ray Herring had 7 tackles. Defensive tackle Trevor Laws had two sacks and was the defensive MVP. Early enrollees G Chris Stewart and WR/KR George West both saw action. West caught punts but did not return them. Early RB James Aldridge was held out because of a nagging leg problem. The kicking game is looking very shaky. Carl Gioia only connected on 1 of 3 field goals. The misses came from 33 yards and 34 yards.
Campus News, Campus Watch & NDSportscenter:
The Censored List (2006)
Welcome to another edition of Bookstore team names that were blacklisted. This year Bookstore featured 568 teams. Over 135 team names were censored. A whooping 24%! That's higher than any current politician's approval rating. All of the offending team captains were contacted and 70% provided their dastardly monikers.
Frankly I'm a bit disappointed in the students. The existence of The Vagina Monologues on campus was a hotly contested issue yet no one saw fit to make light of it with a Bookstore name. I was hoping for a man like "Tell Your Vagina to Shut Up" or "Why Does Your Vagina Talk So Much? Mine Has Very Little To Say."
Speaking of The Vagina Monologues, why didn't the faculty go to bat for Bookstore freedom? Hello? Censoring galore? They must be too tired from pretending they know how to run a Catholic university better than its president. For the faculty it must be exhausting maintaining such a high level of pomposity and pretentiousness.
And where were the boisterous students fighting for Bookstore Team Name Freedom? Surely they can cluster together and name themselves in a grandiose fashion with a plethora of capital letters. Maybe if they harness a PLS major an outstanding acronym would follow that would TOTALLY flip the Board of Trustees. Hopefully someone is hard at work on a t-shirt backing Bookstore Freedom that supportively declares: "Lewd? Fine By Me."
They all should have come out in defense of these censored teams because they are more benign than Canada...
Jared is a Jake
Betsy Flanagan Chicken Breast
The Cylindrical Depression Unit (referring to those roadblocks
on campus that sink into the sidewalk...really!)
Beads
Me Animal
Look Out for the Coathanger
Speed or Comfort
Crap, Nick Sorg is Our Best Player
If This is Anything Like NBA Live '03, You're Screwed
Slow Dip
My Quint Smells
Smiley and the Happy Rainbow Crew
Matt Biscaia, Man in Tights, & His Band of Merry Bricklayers
We're Going to Laugh When This Turns Into a Big Sticky Mess
The Nickle Tickle and Her Trix
5 Guys Who Sometimes Look Pretty OK with Their Shirts Off, Maybe
Smells Like Fish (Hello? Lent? How is this inappropriate? The
frickin' censors must be Protestants. No good, rotten...)
Since those names were rather mild, here are other tame names. These names were not censored, but have to be included because they are wicked funny....
Picked Last in Grade School
Someone May Have Pooped on or Around the Bookstore Court Area
It's All Fun and Games Until Someone Gets Mono
Bone Thugs in Armani
Rectum? Damn Near Killed 'Um!
Shawn Kemp is my daddy....and his daddy, and his daddy, and his
daddy, and his daddy
Top 5 Reasons Why Admissions is Flawed
Trying to Outscore Vince Young's Wonderlic Test
Your Face is the Backer Floor
We Shoot Like Dick Cheney (You Should Wear Orange)
Apparently a team cannot reference an ND higher-up even if it is complimentary. This group is a collective of Domer names. Maybe they were lacking the proper credentials. If it's a matter of sponsorship versus endorsement, then I'll provide both. I don't need a Department Chair unless it reclines and comes with a remote. I would have a panel discussion, but I don't really care what you think. So forget it...
The Three Weis Men (and Two Other Guys)
Charlie Weis' Waterboys
Traditioncontinues.com
The BroJoes (a rector reference)
4 Carroll Guys and Benedict Wenker (Wenker is a guy
moving out to Alumni Hall. Traitor.)
Timmermans Angry! (name of a past basketball player)
Size 8 & Bigger (female cheerleaders referring to their
shoe sizes)
Sparks, Full Bladders, Father Hesburgh & 2 Other
Things That Keep You Up At Night
Monk-a-licios and the Mid-West All Stars
Golden Dome Shiners
Bike Mrey & 4 Other Guys Who Shouldn't Be Back
Next Year
Wet N Wild: The Wetter the Better (women swimmers)
We Do It Better On Ice (women hockey players)
Brokeback Torin (sweet bust on our basketball bust)
Joking racial slurs are out too. Only non-white
comedians can say them without receiving a scarlet
letter. I'm hoping some year a team calls themselves
"The Uptight White People" to see if the censors
would actually axe themselves....
Whitewash
Da Goombas
4 Drunk Micks & an Asian With Knives
Team names referring to alcohol are not allowed. Makes sense, we are the Fighting Amish. How can you separate alcohol and college? They are a team. Each is dependent upon the other. Drinking and college go together like Notre Dame and a queer film festival.....
Tour de Franzia
Vive Le Vin
C is for Crunk
Absolut Kurlies
DJ Drew's Old Ball(er)s (the 'backer's DJ, adored by drunks)
King Cobra Inc. (sponsor of 40's at 4 before pep rallies)
7 Shots and She Dribbles Down the Hallway
The Shooters: Takin Shots, Not Makin Em
We Took More Shots Than That Last Night!!!
Joe Sweeney and the Blackout Experience
We Don't Have Much Game, But We Sure Can Pre-Game
Hoping to Draw a Team of Drunk Girls or Midgets on Unicycles
5 Drunk Easy Girls That's Don't Go To St. Mary's (male team)
The Vagina Monologues were not mocked but a few teams chose to jest about some current events or joke about pop culture references...
Charles Bronson and the Deathwish Five
That Other Guy Lied: We Are Deep Throat
Still PO'ed About Terry Shiavo
Charles Manson Strikes Back
We Know Kobe's Therapist (Yeah We're Pretty Sure He Did It)
Duke Lacrosse
Michael Jackson's Kiddy Ballers
The Child Photographers (I really didn't know what category
to put this in, but after Michael Jackson seems like a
safe bet)
One of Us May or May Not Have AIDS (why does this also
follow Michael Jackson? Because the name, like Michael
is freaky as hell)
As always, innuendo is frowned upon. It's difficult to make a quality double entendre if you can't use "dribble" or "balls." The following list is basically made up of the castrated teams....
It's a Jungle Down There
Off (as in they got "beat")
The Heavy Petting Zoo
Smack It
Two Timing Horse
Captain Karol & the Salty Seamen
Admiral Gimpy and Four Other Seamen
Girls Next Door Who Wanna Score
Balls and Beaver Connection
Shoot, Don't Dribble
Backcourt Penetration
Balls to the Wall
Come Honor
Dribble on Your Face
Deep "C" Divers
G Spot Aficionados
4 Hot Dogs and a Taco
Too Small to Penetrate
We'll Put Your Balls in Our Basket (rad chick team)
Super H2Hoes (another rad chick team)
Ballsacagawea (rad referencing-a-chick guys team)
LIXen DIXen VIXENS (bound for the Censored Hall of Fame)
The following names were snagged thanks to Urban Dictionary.com, whether they meant to offend or their names innocently coincided with an Urban entry. The site is a censoring tool used by censoring tools. So, quickly, take these names and scurry off to that website to find out the meanings. I've arranged them from Least-Likely-To-Offend to Sweet-I-Totally- Can't-Wait-To-Use-This-In-A-Conversation....
Would You Like Two CD's
The Globo Gym Purple Cobras
The Cashews
Mad Hatters
The Nuggets
BAMF
Runnin' Renobs
Team Dank III - Back in Action
Manwich
Chucha Frita
Lemonparty
The Motorboaters
Shockers
Team Skeet - We'll Make It Rain Out There
The Angry Dolphins
The Angry Pirates
The next two teams are in a category all by themselves. I don't know how they weren't sent to ResLife immediately. Seriously, how are they still enrolled?....
The Reusable Condoms
Cock-Ball Torture (chick team; if you play
against them I suggest wearing 8 or 9
cups. Or zero, I guess, if you're into that
sort of thing. I ain't judgin'.)
The final team name (and my favorite) isn't really offensive. Or dirty. Or explicit. It's just plain mean. No wonder I love it so much. Here's a shoutout to America's favorite drug addict....
We Get the Rock More Than Whitney Houston
So the list comes to a close. Nothing like ending on a high note. Literally. Hopefully next year will feature more balls, some vaginas, and a lil sweet, sweet crack cocaine. Keep your fingers crossed. See ya.
Hall Notes:
Speaking of the basketball banquet, Vermin senior Rick Cornett was also put center stage. Rick finished his stint with a career-high 15 points versus Michigan in the NIT. At the banquet Rick spoke for 15 minutes. Cornett appreciated the support of the ND crowd. He thanked the fans for thei positive chants when he was on the bench. My thought is... if he heard us, then Brey heard us. And ignored us. That is so not cool.
Campus News:
So how did the Vagina Monologues and newly-renamed Queer Film Festival fair after their presence on campus was questioned by President Jenkins? Well, the festival's attendance was up. The six films were either sold out or nearly sold out. It didn't hurt that the films included the much-heralded "Brokeback Mountain" and "Happy Endings," which was written and directed by Domer Don Roos.
The Vagina Monologues was conducted differently. A panel discussion followed each performance. The discussion was titled "Female Sexuality and Violence Against Women." Each panel featured different speakers and included a Catholic perspective. Jenkins attended one showing of the play and said he had "difficulty seeing" the play as "the appropriate means" to the ultimate goal of promoting female empowerment and eradicating violence against women.
Ten weeks of discussion passed from the time of Jenkins first addressing the this topic. He announced his decision during the first week in April. The Vagina Monologues will not be prohibited on campus. Jenkins stated the panel discussions that followed performances this year appropriately placed the play in a Catholic context. (Expect the discussion panels to remain a fixture.) Jenkins said the panels "can bring certain perspectives on important issues into a constructive and fruitful dialogue with the Catholic tradition." To expand the goal of eliminating violence against women, Jenkins supports the future production of the play "Loyal Daughters" and the formation of a committee to address gender relations and sexual violence. Jenkins will chair the committee which will be made up of administrators, faculty and students.
Sponsorship of controversial events is still an issue. Jenkins has "reached a written understanding" with department chairs about sponsorship versus endorsement of views. The only types of event denied on campus is one "that is overt and insistent in the contempt for the values and sensibilities of this University, or of any of the diverse groups that form part of our community."
Rev. John M. D'Arcy, the bishop of this diocese, stated he was "saddened by the decision" to allow the continuation of The Vagina Monologues on campus.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
Our next story almost sent the Gipp into a tailspin of sadness and despair. But after some brisk sauntering, he was back on top of the world. Be warned: Ain't nothing funny about this story. But you avid readers already know to expect nothing less. And by less, the Gipp means more. Drained after a night of weekend bacchanalia, our protagonist, whom for the purposes of anonymity the Gipp will call "Stanton," groggily awoke from a stupor and began readying himself in earnest for the sweet oblivion of drunkend slumber. He reaches toward his eye, attempting to take out his contact, but to no avail. AN HOUR LATER Stanton stopped his insane scramblings, removed his fingers from his swollen peeper and sought medical assistance for the lost lenses. Fortunately before it occurred to anyone to bore into the poor boy's skull and release the demons trapped inside, or maybe slap some leeches into his oozing sockets, one of the "medical professionals" over at Health Services, or if the MAN won't allow full disclosure, the good folks over at Smealth Smervices, looked in his trusty spyin' glass and informed our special protagonist that he reckoned there ain't no way they can get them little fellers out, 'cept down at the big hospimital, there's a machine that can do it for you. And, the Gipp assumes, the theme from "Deliverance" blared on the intercom.
So Stanton, as it were, somehow blindly found his way downtown to be examined by an actual doctor, who informed him with horror that THE CALL WAS COMING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE. No, actually, she told him that in fact his contacts were no longer in his eyes, probably had not been in the entire time he had been jamming his thumbs into his retinas, and that all the furious scrabbling and clawing at his eyeballs had gouged scratches in his corneas, whichwould require antibiotics until his self-inflicted wounds healed themselves. Prescription in hand and a bashful grin on his face, he could finally sleep, bloody ocular cavities weeping all the way home.
Hall Notes:
Last week a picture was posted. Here's another one providing a reminder that 2006 is our building's 100th birthday.
NDSportscenter:
In June safety Tom Zbikowski will fight in Madison Square Garden. His pro debut will be in a four-round bout on June 10. He has signed a deal for three fights in 12 months. The other two boxing matches will take place after the next football season. The NCAA allows an athlete to be a pro in one sport and an amateur in another. No endorsement money is allowed. The boxing must be while school is out. Tom cannot fight and be on scholarship at the same time. Recently Zibby fought in a three-round exhibition in Merrionette Park, Illinois in mid-March. The TKO'd the amateur heavyweight who was 23-4. The 5'11", 212 lb. safety hadn't boxed in a year. Apparently a promoter was in the crowd. Now Tom is headed to NY. The dollar amount hasn't been revealed but Tom's father labeled it a "substantial amount."
The NCAA recently released a listing of the 100 Most Influential NCAA Student- Athletes. Two Domers were on the list. They were Knute Rockne and Alan Page.
Chris Quinn and Megan Duffy recently participated in an NCAA 3-point shootout. They were both one of eight competitors. Duffy came in fourth while Quinn was second.
After the first set of winter sports, we were still first in the Directors' Cup.
We sent the maximum number of fencers (12) to the NCAAs. Unfortunately the team did not perform as well as in the past. We came in fourth and didn't have a single fencer take a first place.
Campus News:
Big time recruiting is going on now. And it's not football related. The University is giving a fullcourt press to academic all stars. A few weekends back the University invited 85 of the most accomplished of the admitted students to campus. We are taking the extra steps needed to beat Princeton, Harvard, and Yale. The Reilly Visitation Weekend brought to campus the top of the early action acceptance pool. Roughly 1,200 who mailed in early were admitted. Of those about 120 were invited to campus. The invited were in the top one to two percent of their high school class, had SAT averages in the mid-1500s and averaged a 34 or above on the ACT. Of course their extracurricular activities were impressive as well.
The weekend is named after William Reilly, a Domer and a Board of Trustees member. He is the founder of Aurelian Communications and set up a scholarship fund for students who had "amazingly high talent." But the scholarship apparently was rarely used because we lost kids to other schools. There were years when the scholarship money went unused. The Reilly trust paid for the weekend for the fourth year in a row. The University estimates it will land more than half of the weekend's visitors.
The goal of the weekend is to give a glimpse of life at ND. The four-day weekend involved a campus tour, a stadium tour, Mass at the Basilica, and meetings with current students to discuss campus life. The visitors attended classes, talked with professors and learned about various programs. Past Reilly participants served as hosts.
Campus Watch by the Gipper from Scholastic:
After returning from Bookmakers (formerly Coaches) one night and setting off on the treacherous trek from D2, one lucky stiff convinced his date, or friend, or paid escort, or whoever was drunk enough to go along with this, that he simply could not wait the 10 extra minutes until they reached the privacy of his room in Fisher; they had to stop right then, in the holiest of academic landmarks, under the welcoming arms of the Lamb of God, in Hesburgh Library. Having made it in before closing time, the sniggering couple mounted....the stairs and sequestered themselves in a second floor study lounge.
Now, in the Gipp's mind, the somewhat odd part of all this is that of all the secret hidey holes and crannies to be found in the 'brary, someone would seek privacy inside what amounts to a human gerbil tank, complete with a glass wall exposing them to whomever might be innocently and totally not-on-purposely sauntering by. And since the Gipp now knows that this sort of study-nook hooking up is going on, that's pretty much constantly. He just spends hours sauntering and sauntering. Uh, that is to say, he is just, you know, checking. For security. Yes, that's it....security. The Gipp anticipates seeing your expentant faces fogging up the study-room glass right next to his own by the end of the week.
Hall Notes:
Did you know that the University posted a sign right on Carroll? The sign is to the right of the door the Vermin use to enter and exit. Now everyone will know the name of the building they are entering. The only downside to this is that some of Carroll's bricks have been covered. If you keyed your name on a brick to the right of the door...well, you should probably come back and find a new brick. Check out the photo below.
NDSportscenter:
Coach Weis has a second verbal recruit for next year. Aaron Nagel is a Chicago-area outside linebacker. Nagel visited campus during a Junior weekend in early March. Aaron is 6'1", 215 lbs and last year had 55 solo tackles and 4 interceptions. He also was a running back, wide receiver and safety. Nagel ran for 1300 yards and 20 TDs. He likes to hit, flies to the ball and has great instincts. His aggressiveness and very, very good speed and lateral movement has led Tom Lemming to rate him a four-star player with five-star potential. Aaron had 11 offers including Purdue, Michigan State, Stanford, and boston college. He runs a 4.5 - 40 and carries a 4.4 GPA (out of 4.0) while being third in his class.
Charlie is also working Florida pretty heavily. According to recruiting analysts Charlie is everywhere in Florida, especially in Miami Dade County. Of the top 50 players with grades, at least 30 have us in their top 5. This is our best recruiting staff since the late '80s. Know who's a vital cog in this machine? Ron Powlus.
Did you know Darius Walker and his family are very, very well off? While in 7th grade in Lawrenceville, Georgia, a 13-year-old Darius was thrown to the ground, choked, and handcuffed by a security guard at a movie theater who thought Darius was a thief. But Darius wasn't a thief. The Walker family sued for $300,000. A jury, though, awarded them $3 million.
Football alums will again take part in the Blue-Gold Game. The Rocket and The Bus will be offensive assistants. Mike and Bob Golic will help out the defense.
March 31 was the 75th anniversary of the plane crash that claimed the life of the legendary Knute Rockne.
Campus News:
zahm sucks. Check this out. At the beginning of February a group of zahm hall residents threw fruit and vomited onto Keenan Hall. You read that correctly....vomited on Keenan. Once the zahm rector discovered the incident, he banned all dorm social gatherings indefinitely in an email to his residents. The hall government came up with resolutions, including a public apology and a personal apology to Keenan's rector.
The story goes a little something like this: a group of about 50 zahm residents went to the dining hall together. After dinner a group of about 10 zahm residents ran to Keenan and vomited on the south side of the dorm. They then returned to zahm after Keenan residents came out of their dorm. So apparently alcohol wasn't even a main component of this incident. Fruit was also thrown and the majority of this debauchery took place at or below the windows of Keenan's rector. Real smooth, donkeys. In addition to direct apologies to Keenan, the zahm president said, "We have also agreed to look into purchasing an ad or [asking The Observer] to print a [Viewpoint] letter that we will draft as a community apologizing for actions that have upset the Notre Dame community." Lame. At least our Hall Notes incident was funny. If you're going to get busted, at least elicit quality laughs.
Last week news was given about the Ebersol family going on Oprah. Two episodes were taped with Charlie Ebersol. The first focused on the family tragedy. The second spotlighted the award-winning movie Ebersol co-produced during his junior year at ND. The documentary film was titled "Ithuteng [never stop learning]." It followed three children at a school for at-risk students in Soweto, South Africa. After seeing the film Winfrey donated $1.14 million to the school. The film will air on HBO in September. The story focuses on the students who are rapists, murderers, car thieves or rape victims. The school has 6,500 students and is run by one woman. It's the only school in Africa with a 100 percent graduation and retention rate.
Campus Watch from the Grapevine:
Rumor has it Charlie Weis is trying to get Bon Jovi to come to campus and do a show on the same weekend as the Blue-Gold game. Not sure if the show is going to be in the JACC or in the stadium. It snowed during last year's game so the stadium might be out. Supposedly the show would help to raise money for the foundation that Charlie chairs that benefits mentally- challenged children. There always seems to be a Bon Jovi rumor. There was speculation they would surface during a pep rally last year. Charlie and the band are friends so, basically, this rumor will persist until they actually come to ND. So they may as well come and get it over with.
Hall Notes:
Cris "Pimpi" Diaz '96 is coming back to the Golden Dome. Sorta. Pimpi most recently was the #3 man at Niketown in Miami. Nike is about to open a Factory Store at the Michigan City outlets. Diaz will be the Assistant General Manager, #2 in charge. In early April Pimpi will be searching for a place of residence in the Bend. He will rent for a year and try the daily commute. Pimpi becomes a Hoosier the week of April 17. Then there will be three weeks of training in Aurora, Illinois. Cris will get settled in around mid-May. The store opens May 31. Who says you can't go home again?
NDSportscenter:
Just prior to the beginning of spring football on March 22, Weis announced the players that would apply for a fifth year. Six starters and two backups were brought back. The defensive players are DT Derek Landri, DE Chris Frome, and CB Mike Richardson. On the other side of the ball you can look for WR Rhema McKnight, OL Bob Morton and OL Dan Santucci. The returning backups are TE Marcus Freeman and OL Brian Mattes.
Some players are out or limited for spring ball due to injuries and/or surgeries. LBs Maurice Crum and Joe Brockington will be limited after back procedures. D.J. Hord is out after abdominal surgery. DE Chris Frome and LB Abdel Banda are out because of knee injuries. Shoulder problems will hinder OL John Sullivan, RB Justin Hoskins, and CB Kyle McCarthy. OL Brian Mattes has a foot problem. Jeff Samardzija will attend only 6 of 15 practices and dedicate more time to baseball.
Rhema has been performing very well so far. Because of some 5th years not coming back and because of injuries, the depth of our offensive line is limited. Right now we can't even field two lines of five players. In all, six players were not asked back. And our secondary got thinner. Two players left the team. Sophomore CB/RB Junior Jabbie will no longer play football but will remain a student. Junior CB LaBrose Hedgemon is transferring to Jackson State.
TE Joey Hiben had already left the team. Because his scholarship opened up, recruit TE Will Yeatman will use it right away. He had planned to be on a lacrosse scholarship for a year and then switch over to a football scholarship. Yeatman will play both sports.
The University has signed a new bowl contract. The Cotton Bowl is now an option. Last year the Gator Bowl paid out $1.6 million while the Cotton Bowl paid $3 million. We have been to the Cotton Bowl seven times.