Let's review: Predictions vs. reality for Notre Dame

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Five weeks into the season, Notre Dame has been involved in four of the most exciting games in college football and has come out on the right side of three of them. Now at 4-1, this Irish team is only the second in history to be 4-1 after five games and not be ranked, according to the Associated Press, not that I blame the pollsters for being skeptical. On top of the fact that three of the four wins have been squeakers against teams that are not considered the strongest in football, recent history is not on the Irish's side. The other Irish team to win four of its first five and not be ranked is last year's Notre Dame squad, which dropped five of its last seven games, including an embarassing loss to Boston College and an inexcusable 24-23 finish against lowly Syracuse. Will that happen again this year? While I can't tell the future, I can certainly look back at the past and see just how accurate I've been in my predictions for the Irish from my July 13th preview.

Nevada at Notre Dame
What I predicted: Nevada boasts one of the most dynamic offenses in football, ranking fifth in the country last year. The Irish struggled with the run last season as opponents were averaging about 4.1 yards per carry, which makes the Wolf Pack an interesting first test for Notre Dame. However, the Nevada defense gave up an un-Godly 321 yards per game through the air (ranking them dead last in college football behind Central Michigan by about 35 yards) and surrendered 29 touchdowns though the air.
Result: Notre Dame 38, Nevada 24; 1-0
What really happened: The Irish did have trouble controlling the run as Nevada averaged 5.3 yards per carry and Via Taua rushed for 118 yards. But the Irish controlled Colin Kaepernick, keeping him uncomfortable in the passing game, which Nevada had to turn to when Notre Dame took a 28-0 lead after the first half. As expected, Notre Dame victimized the Wolfpack through the air. Jimmy Clausen completed 15 of 18 passes for 315 yards, four touchdowns and no intereceptions.
Result: Notre Dame 35, Nevada 0; 1-0

Notre Dame at Michigan
What I predicted: Michigan is in year two of its rebuilding process, making them a team similar to Notre Dame last year. The talent is developing and could hurt some people, but is also very susceptible to let-downs. Tate Forcier is expected to be a talented quarterback, but if Notre Dame can put pressure on him, it could make for a long day for the Wolverines' offense. You can't count Michigan out of any game played at The Big House, but Notre Dame appears to have too much firepower for Rich Rodriguez's reclamation project.
Result: Notre Dame 27, Michigan 13; 2-0
What really happened: Tate Forcier's coming out party, that's what happened. The Irish threw almost every blitz package imaginable at the freshman, but he created things with legs and found open receivers on the run. Notre Dame trailed by 11 at 14:16 in the fourth, but came back to take a three-point lead with 5:13 remaining. Michigan drove and on second and goal from the two, Forcier completed a pass to Greg Matthews with 11 seconds left with the deciding score. Clausen tried to get down field quickly, but Golden Tate failed to get out of bounds in the final seconds.
Result: Michigan 38, Notre Dame 34; 1-1

Michigan State at Notre Dame
What I predicted: Notre Dame continues to have issues with the Spartans at home. In fact, the home team has lost in eight of the last nine meetings between these two teams. Michigan State ended that streak last year by beating the Irish at Spartan Stadium. While there's no Javon Ringer to carve up the Notre Dame defense, if the Spartans can control the Notre Dame ground game the way they did a year ago, they will put Jimmy Clausen in a situation he hasn't done particularly well in so far in his career - putting a team on his back and carrying them to a win.
Result: Michigan State 21, Notre Dame 17; 2-1
What really happened: Notre Dame trailed by one at the half, but after some trickery in the form of Armando Allen passing to Robby Parris from the Wildcat formation for a touchdown and a field goal, Notre Dame took the lead. but Michigan State came charging back with a field goal and touchdown pass of their own to take a four point edge. The Jimmy Clausen took the team on his back. Clausen completed all four of his pass attempts on the drive, including a 33-yard pass to Golden Tate for a touchdown. Kirk Cousins then tried to do the same for the Spartans and almost did, but overthrew a wide open Larry Caper. One play later, the Irish got pressure and force Cousins to throw an interception to Kyle McCarthy to seal the victory.
Result: Notre Dame 33, Michigan State 30; 2-1

Notre Dame at Purdue
What I predicted: Purdue had one of the worst rushing defenses in the league last season and are not expected to be much better this year, so this could be the game Armando Allen and company truly have their coming out party. Throw on top of that the fact that last year's third-string quarterback is now the Boilermakers' starter and the picture becomes pretty clear.
Result: Notre Dame 35, Purdue 6; 3-1
What really happened: With Armando Allen out with an injury, the Irish turned to Robert Hughes and Golden Tate for the rushing attack, including using Tate in a big way as the quarterback in the Wildcat formation. Clausen, playing in his first game with a turf-toe injury, was less than spectacular and didn't play the majority of the second half, but again came through in the clutch. After blowing a 17-7 lead in the fourth quarter, Clausen led the Irish down the field and completed a fourth and goal pass to Kyle Rudolph for a touchdown with 24.8 seconds left.
Result: Notre Dame 24, Purdue 21; 3-1

Washington at Notre Dame
What I predicted: For the second-straight week, the Notre Dame backfield tears up the opposition - this time against last year's third-worst rush defense - and gains more much-needed confidence. Jake Locker will do better than Randy Fouch did last season against the Notre Dame defense, but not nearly well enough to make up for his inept defense.
Result: Notre Dame 42, Washington 16; 4-1
What really happened: Jake Locker did do a lot better than Fouch, but neither team found the end zone with any regularity as eight field goals were kicked between the two sides. Notre Dame's defense came through in a huge way with three goal line stands, including one final one with just over three minutes remaining. On that stand, Irish stopped the Huskies twice on the one-yard line, forcing a field goal to keep the team within striking distance at 27-22. Clausen again game through in ahuge situation, completing a pass to his new red zone favorite Kyle Rudolph and Robert Hughes converted the two point attempt. But with the time left, Washington drove and kicked a tying field goal. In overtime, Clausen hit Golden Tate, bringing the Irish to the three. After an offsides penalty, Hughes scored from the one. On the Huskies' last play of the game, Locker scrambled and put up a prayer to D'Andre Gooden, which would have been caught if Harrison Smith and Kyle McCarthy hadn't sandwiched him so hard it nearly knocked him unconscious.
Result: Notre Dame 37, Washington 30; 4-1

So things have not gone exactly as expected, but at this point, the Irish are just about where I thought they'd be heading into the bye before the biggest game of the season against USC. How good is this team? That game will be more of a barometer than anything that has happened to this point in the season. All we know at this point is the Irish have heart and a true leader in Jimmy Clausen, something that seemed to be lacking from last season. Stay tuned.

Monday Night Football: Favre not a great quarterback; Pack will win

By Dan Shouse

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

ESPN has been running promos for tonight's game between the Packers and Vikings with John Gruden stating that Brett Favre is fresh off yet another "legendary" win, referring to last week's heroics against the 49ers.

Yes, it was a great win and yes, Favre made the play (although the catch by Greg Lewis was better than the pass by Favre). But the fact remains for every great play by Favre to win a game, there are bad plays that cost his team the game.

Look no further than the 2007 NFC Championship Game, when Favre's INT in overtime cost the Packers a chance to go to the Super Bowl. Then there was the 2001 playoff matchup against the Rams, a game in which Favre threw six, yes six, interceptions. I won't even bring up last year with the Jets, when after an 8-3 start, Favre still could not get New York into the postseason.

I realize that Favre has thrown more TDs and passed for more yards than any QB ever, and that he has won a Super Bowl. He is Hall of Famer and a legend, there is no agruement there. Having said that however, I would not put him on the Mount Rushmore of great NFL quarterbacks.

If you had to pick one QB to lead your team to the Promised Land, do you really want Favre to be that guy? The "gunslinger" mentality that Favre brings to the game is fun to watch, but it would scare me to death if he was the QB at the helm of my team in a big game.

Give Packers GM Ted Thompson credit. Not only did he not allow the Packers to be held hostage by Favre's inability to play or stay retired, he made a smart decision to hand the offense over to Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers gives the Pack the best chance to win today and in the future. Vikings fans can get excited for now. A perfect 3-0 start, and Favre has been solid (5 TDs, INT), but much like last season in New York things will eventually turn for the worse.

If the Vikings play it smart and just keep handing the ball off to stud running back Adrian Peterson tonight, then Minnesota could very well win.

I don't think this will happen.

Favre loves to be the man, and I don't think he came out of retirement again just to hand the ball off. This is why I am picking the Packers to come away with a win in the Metrodome. There are certain things in life that we can all count on - death, taxes, and Favre throwing a big pick. It may not happen this week, but sooner or later it will.

Prediction: Packers 24 Vikings 23

Week 4 Recap: Patriots hold off Ravens for huge victory

By Dan Shouse

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

It is hard to believe, but we are already a quarter of the way through the NFL season, and the race for the playoff is just starting to take shape.

Patriots 27 (3-1) Ravens 21 (3-1)

This was billed as one of the best games of the weekend, and it lived up to the hype. Thanks to a late Mark Clayton drop at the New England 5-yard line with seconds to play, the Patriots were able to hold on for a huge win in Foxboro. As an added bonus, Brady and Moss finally hooked up for TD for the first time this season.

Saints 24 (4-0) Jets 10 (3-1)

Mark Sanchez finally played like a rookie in New Orleans, throwing a pick-six, and fumbling in his own end zone to give the undefeated Saints 14 defensive points. The Jets defense continues to prove it is one of the better units in the league however, holding Drew Brees without a TD pass.

Redskins 16 (2-2) Buccaneers 13 (0-4)

After looking horrible in the first half, Jason Campbell and the Redskins offense actually showed some signs of life in the 3rd quarter, as Campbell hit Chris Cooley and Santana Moss for a pair of scores to lead Washington to the win at FedEx Field. Congrats to Jim Zorn. You get to keep your job for another week.

Jaguars 37 (2-2) Titans (0-4)

The Titans may now be all but eliminated from playoff contention after Sunday's loss in Jacksonville. Who would have thought that after being the No. 1 seed in last year's AFC playoffs, that the Titans would now be 0-4? The Titans pass defense was once again burned this week, this time by David Garrard who threw for over 300 yards and added 3 TDs.

Broncos 17 (4-0) Cowboys 10 (2-2)

Speaking of surprising starts, did anyone think that Josh McDaniels and his Denver Broncos would be perfect four games into the season? Even more surprising is that Brandon Marshall was the hero yesterday, hauling in a 51-yard TD pass with under 2 minutes to play, giving the Broncos the lead. The defense also came up big, as Champ Baily knocked down a last-second pass attempt by Tony Romo to preserve the win. It will be another long week in Big D for Romo.

Bengals 23 (3-1) Browns (0-4)

Once again the Bengals played a game that came down to the wire, this time sneaking by the Browns in overtime on Shayne Graham's 31-yard kick. Is there anyone who still thinks the Browns made the right move hiring Mangini?

Texans 29 (2-2) Raiders 6 (0-4)

This might as well have been a bye week for the Texans at home against Oakland. Steve Slaton finally showed up, getting in the end zone twice. That was all the offense Houston would need, as JeMarcus Russell struggled yet again, throwing for under 130 yards. Tom Cable said this week that he felt Russell has made major strides this year. I agree, but that is only because I don't want to get my jaw broke.

Bears 48 (3-1) Lions 24 (1-3)

This game was closer than the final scores shows, as the Lions and Bears were knotted up at 21 heading to the half. Johnny Knox's 102 yard kick off return to start the second half changed the complexion of this one quickly, as the Bears pulled away in the second half to get the win in Chicago.

Colts 34 (4-0) Seahawks 17 (1-3)

Peyton Manning is playing as well as he ever has, going over 300 yards each game this season. Seattle struggled all day in Indy, getting a pair of late touchdowns to make the score look closer than it really was. The Colts are flying high on both sides of the ball. At the quarter mark of the season, Indy looks like the favorite in the AFC.

Giants 27 (4-0) Chiefs 16

Not to be outdone by his older brother, Eli Manning threw for 3 scores at Arrowhead, as the Giants remained undefeated. No Plaxico Burress, no problem, as Steve Smith has emerged as Manning's go-to receiver, finding the end zone twice and going over 130 yards receiving.

Dolphins 38 (1-3) Bills 10 (1-3)

The TO watch is on. How many more games until he throws Trent Edwards under the bus? The Dolphins ran all day, as Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown carried the load, giving the Dolphins their first win of the season.

49ers 35 (3-1) Rams 0 (0-4)

The 49ers scored 3 defensive TDs in a rout at home over the Rams. The Rams look like the worst team in the league. At this point the annoying Bud Light "Grooler" commercials are more entertaining than the Rams.

Steelers 38 (2-2) Chargers 28 (2-2)

Behind big games from Rashard Mendenhall and Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers held off a late rally by the Chargers to get the win. After jumping ahead 28-0, the Steelers almost let this one slip away, as Phillip Rivers and Antonio Gates connected for two scores, helping to pull the Chargers within a touchdown at 28-21 in the 4th quarter. Jeff Reed iced the game however, hitting a late field goal to put the Steelers back up by 10.

What we've learned in this week in college football: Week 5

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Miami is an elite team.
There are a lot of knocks you can make on the early-season schedule that the Hurricanes have played. Not the least of those is that they beat an Oklahoma team that was without its top offensive weapon. On top of that, Florida State proved they were overrated by playing three and a half horrid quarters of football in a loss to Boston College. Georgia Tech doesn't look to be as strong as advertised. But even if you look past the fact that the three teams they beat in their first four games haven't quite lived up to billing, you'd still be hard-pressed to find a team that has played a more difficult schedule in the early going. 3-1 against four teams that were ranked at the time you played them should be worth more than a No. 11 ranking. Apparently the pollsters are more impressed with beating up on FCS teams and weak FBS teams.

USC's defense is the real deal.
And just like that, USC ended any shot Jahvid Best had at the Heisman. The Trojans held the vaunted Cal offense to just three points on 286 yards of offense and kept them scoreless for the first three quarters. With that, the USC defense silenced quite a few doubters who thought the team was talented, but too young. Instead, people now have to realize the USC is a team that just reloads with NFL-caliber talent every year. The defense has allowed no more than 15 points in a game all season. But none of the teams the Trojans played have had the kind of clout the Golden Bears possess.

LSU will continue being overrated as long as it keeps winning.
LSU is still ranked No. 4 after their unimpressive 20-13 win over another overrated team in Georgia. The LSU offense still spends most of its time looking lost and without an identity, scoring a mere six points over the first three quarters before a frantic fourth quarter. Jordan Jefferson was sacked five times, bringing his total on the season to a ghastly 13. LSU's offense is ranked just behind Duke with 28.8 points per game and fans can't be feeling good heading into this week's matchup with Florida.

Some pollsters do care that Boise State plays a horribly weak schedule.
When you play in the WAC, you can't afford a weak out of conference schedule and get away with it. But Boise State still scheduled the Championship Subdivision's UC-Davis and beat them in not-so-impressive fashion and it cost them a spot in the polls, dropping them from fifth to sixth. As a whole, teams that the Broncos have played this year have gone 7-16 and four of those wins are owned by Oregon, whom they beat in the first week.

Notre Dame is still one of the most entertaining teams to watch on Saturday.
Still not impressing anyone who does any voting, the Fighting Irish are 4-1, thanks to three straight come-from-behind victories against Michigan State, Purdue and Washington. Certainly not the most impressive resume of wins, but you cannot dismiss the entertainment value. On top of the heroics, the Irish offense has been outstanding, even without Michael Floyd. Jimmy Clausen is the highest rated passer in the country and has one of the highest yard per attempt averages. As a team, the offense is 10th in the nation in total offense. Granted, the defense being 50th in scoring defense helps make games interesting, too. It will be interesting to see how the Irish handle their biggest test of the season in USC after this week's bye. Odds are stacked well against them, but it's surely going to be more fun to watch than the 38-3 affair last year.

The Big Bad Bruins Are Back

By Matt Ingram
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

The Bruins played the Carolina Hurricanes last night for the first time since the Canes knocked them out of the playoffs last year. Both were coming off disappointing first game losses and looking to rebound.

Right from the drop of the puck the B's came out flying. Just four minutes into the game Marc Savard scooped up a rebound and put it past Cam Ward to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.

The Bruins kept the pressure up and eight minutes later scored again after Zdeno Chara took a shot from the point that Cam Ward kicked out and was put right back in by Michael Ryder making it 2-0 Bruins. It would take just 38 seconds for the Bruins to put in another one as Black Wheeler deflected one past Ward. The play would be reviewed and it showed that the puck did go off Wheeler's skate, but he had not kicked it so the goal stood.

The second period started out just like the first with the Bruins keeping the pressure on, but Carolina also got some of their own pressure. Then with a little less than ten minutes gone in the period Marco Sturm got his first of the year and his first since returning from an injury that kept him out of almost all of last year.

Just two minutes later the Bruins scored again. This time it was Dennis Wideman making it 5-0 and the third pp goal of the game for the B's. With the Bruins in total control they seemed to get off their game a bit and Carolina got their first goal of the game as Scott Walker deflected a shot pat Thomas which was eerily similar to his game winner in last year's Game 7.

That goal seemed to spark the Bruins who once again got the pressure back on Carolina and scored again as Shawn Thornton put a quick one past Michael Leighton who had replaced Cam Ward.

With the game well in hand you knew things were going to get out of hand very soon. Then it happened. With under a minute left in the period Milan Lucic checked Jay Harrison into the boards and Harrison decided he wanted to go with Lucic. It was a great fight with both landing punches, but Lucic landed the better as he opened Harrison up pretty good.

The very next play Andrew Alberts hit Marco Sturm into the boards up a little high, Sturm had sustained head injury last year and Savard took offense to this as he went right over to Alberts and started to throw a few punches although Savard still had his gloves on. Then everyone jumped in and pretty soon there was four guys in each penalty box.

The Bruins would get the final goal of the game as Matt Hunwick got his first of the season making it 7-2. The game had one more scrum as Shawn Thornton fought Andrew Alberts with Thornton getting the best of the punches in.


News and Notes
It was the first time the Bruins had seven different goal scorers in a game since Jan. 18, 2003.

The Bruins had 21 shots in first period which was more than all three periods of the opener, 20 shots.

The Bruins honored longtime broadcaster Fred Cusick, who passed away on September 15th at the age of 90. Cusick was the Bruins' Radio broadcaster from 1952-1970 and TV broadcaster from 1971-1997. During the first media timeout of the second period, the TV booth was dedicated at the "Fred Cusick Broadcast Booth." His trademark “Scoooore!” still gives me chills.


Who's next?
After 2 games in 3 nights the B's don't play until Thursday. The Anaheim Ducks visit the Garden for their only appearance in Boston this season.

Finally! The Dodgers get the job done

Jim Ingram

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Maybe I just predicted the Dodgers would win last night because I am a Dodgers fan. Maybe I predicted they would win last night because Joe Torre is their manager and is a proven winner. You know what, it doesn't matter because the Dodgers finally wrapped up the NL West Division as they beat the Colorado Rockies 5-0 on Saturday night. That wasn't the only thing they clinched last night. They also clinched the best record in the National League to secure home field advantage throughout the NL portion of the playoffs. For Joe Torre this is the 14th straight year he's lead a team to the playoffs.

The man who should get most of the credit from last night is Clayton Kershaw. The 21 year old phenom was fantastic. While he didn't earn a decision, he did pitch 6 shutout innings, allowing 3 hits and 10 strikeouts. It's hard to imagine he's only 21 and posted an 8-8 record with a 2.79 ERA this season. Torre will be relying heavily on the young lefthander as they enter the playoffs. It looks like Randy Wolf will take the mound for game 1 and be backed up by Kershaw in game 2. After that, Joe Torre has yet to decide who the 3rd and 4th starters will be. He will have to pick from All Star Chad Billingsley, (my best bet for the 3rd spot), Jon Garland and Vincente Padilla. If I was making the decisions, I'd go with Billingsley and Garland hands down.

How will the recent offensive struggles affect the Dodgers in the playoffs? One has to be a little worried that Manny Ramirez, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, James Loney, Russel Martin and Orlando Hudson have all hit under .200 the last week of the regular season. One could also say they all went into a slump at the same time, and the time off before the playoffs will refresh and refocus the lineup. My guess is the latter will hold true. This lineup is too good, and too deep to not break out of the team wide slump.

You can wait for my prediction later this week!

Week 4 NFL Picks: Bank on Patriots winning

By Dan Shouse

Fan Fanatic Sport Staff

This should be easy. Anybody can pick the winners of NFL games each week, right?

Plus, it's not like I am picking against the point spread, so lets get to it.

Take it to the bank, here are your Week 4 winners in the NFL.

Patriots 21 Ravens 17

You can say I am picking this game with my heart, not my head, but I am not totally sold on the Ravens just yet. Yes they are 3-0, but two of the wins were against the Browns and Chiefs. Hardly what I would call playoff teams. The Ravens' other win came on the road in San Diego, a game the Chargers could have won if not for a couple of Phillip Rivers picks and a questionable call - running the ball with Darren Sproles on 4th-and-1 on the final drive deep in Ravens territory.

This is the week the Patriots look like the Patriots again.

Bears 24 Lions 7

Lions start up a new losing streak. Too bad the Lions can't play the Redskins every week

Bengals 34 Browns 10

If Derek Anderson was not the answer last season, why does Mangini think he will be this yea?Bengals build off last week's last-second win over the Steelers with an easy win this week.

Colts 30 Seahawks 17

Seahawks don't have the weapons to keep up with the Colts in Indy. Manning and the offense continue to produce.

Giants 27 Chiefs 6

Brandon Jacobs left, Brandon Jacobs right, Jacobs up the middle. Expect a big day on the ground for the G-Men again this week against the Chiefs. You won't see any offense from a punchless Chiefs team led by Matt Cassel.

Redskins 6 Bucs 3

Watching the Lifetime Movie Channel will be more entertaining than watching this game. Give the Redskins the win because they are at home.

Titans 20 Jags 14

Titans keep Maurice Jones-Drew in check and pick up their first win.

Texans 44 Raiders 6

How miserable must Richard Seymour be in Oakland? Check out JeMarcus Russell's numbers. They almost make Ryan Leaf look like an Hall of Famer.

Saints 40 Jets 20

The Jets will blitz, but Drew Brees will still have a big day. Jets drop their first game of the year in the Big Easy.

Bills 21 Dolphins 13

The Dolphins 2008 season must feel like a long time ago. T.O. has a big day, and helps keep the Dolphins winless, and the media off his back. For now anyway.

49ers 24 Rams 0

Mike Singletary's defense should have no problem with the Rams. St. Louis was bad enough with Marc Bulger, they will not be any better with Kyle Boller under center.

Cowboys 17 Broncos 14

With Felix Jones out, and Marion Barber banged up, the Cowboys may struggle a bit, but they will still have enough to get past the Broncos.

Chargers 27 Steelers 21

Phillip Rivers and Vincent Jackson have been a pretty good tandem this season. Chargers win on Sunday night, as the defending champs fall to 1-3.

Packers 24 Vikings 23

The Pack ruins things for Favre on Monday Night Football. Last week Favre was the hero. This week he will be the goat, as a late interception leads to the game-winning field goal by Mason Crosby.