Spring Break
It was a step Chris Stewart knew he had to take, but that didn't mean it was going to be easy. That step was getting off the plane in South Bend following Stewart's leave of absence in the middle of Notre Dame's 2007 season. Stewart had taken a week off to travel home to Spring, Texas, to deal with a variety of issues, some too personal for Stewart talk about now, but one of them was leaving Notre Dame, as some of his other teammates - quarterbacks Zach Frazer and Demetrius Jones - had done and others would later do that season.
Notre Dame is 16-1 all time against North Carolina. The team's .941 winning percentage against the Tar Heels is the highest against any opponent the Irish have faced at least 12 times. Traditionally North Carolina has been a cakewalk for the Irish. This time around it's a much different story.
One of the biggest reasons for Notre Dame's turnaround so far this season is their new quarterback, Jimmy Clausen. Obviously, it's the same person, but I think we can all agree that this year's signal caller is sort of a Jimmy Clausen, version 2.0. He's got most the bugs and kinks out of the system.
Raeshon McNeil has looked forward to the North Carolina game since he saw it on the schedule. Little did he know it would force him into a mad scramble to find tickets for his friends and family. "It's started a long time ago," the junior cornerback said.