Sports

Men's Basketball: Bison hand ND third loss

Men's Soccer: Team set to face Lobos

Men's Basketball: Notre Dame looks to establish streak

Kelly: Second half to test ND (Dec. 11)

Men's Swimming: Irish travel to Puerto Rico for training trip

Track and Field: Renwick leaps into new season

Club Sports: Men's hockey splits weekend

Men's Soccer: Irish build on history

Zuba: More than just managers (Dec. 11)

Monardo: Pinstripe Bowl lacks meaning (Dec. 10)

Brian Kelly was adamant during his press conference Sunday that the Pinstripe Bowl was a worthwhile destination for his football team. And maybe it is, for a variety of reasons. But that doesn't make Notre Dame's Dec. 28th meeting with Rutgers any less disappointing.

Men's Basketball: Irish take second victory at Gotham Classic

Notre Dame notched another victory in its second game of the BlackRock Gotham Classic, and it was not any more comfortable than the first. The 70-59 victory over Bryant came after the Irish (7-2) struggled to pull away throughout the game and held a lead as tenuous as four points with two and a half minutes to play.

DeFranks: Cards, 'Canes, set to thrill (Dec. 10)

SMC Basketball: Belles fall in close contest

Track and Field: ND athletes dominate at Blue and Gold Invite

Lorton: Irish are set for run at title (Dec. 10)

Maybe it was not having the weight of the No. 1 seed on their shoulders this time around.

Green: BCS never lacks excitement (Dec. 9)

I hate to admit it, but I'm going to kind of miss the BCS. Sure, it seemed fickle at times, with rankings produced by a combination of humans and computers looking at strengths of schedules, big wins and probably even uniforms and styles. But it also produced down-to-the-wire, win-and-you're-in games like yesterday's Big-Ten and SEC Championships. If this situation had taken place next year, when the college football playoff is in place, Ohio State need not have worried about dropping the conference title game to Michigan State. The Buckeyes still could have claimed one of the four postseason slots and retained their chance at a national championship. But with the BCS this year, Urban Meyer and his squad knew its season was over, at least in terms of capturing the crystal football, as soon as the clock hit zero and the Spartans started to put on their official championship caps. The same goes for Alabama, which did not even play in its conference championship game. The Crimson Tide needed losses from Florida State and Ohio State to have a prayer of advancing to Pasadena and claiming their third title in a row, but a big Seminoles win thwarted those dreams. There are many BCS critics who say the current system is unfair because it helps one-loss teams that fell early in the season, like BCS Championship-bound Auburn, and hurts one-loss teams that gained their only blemish later down the road, like Alabama and Ohio State. Yes, that certainly is not fair if your team is one of those that dropped a critical game late in the season. But if your team was also that vulnerable so close to bowl time, how would it have fared compared to a team that lost early and had more time to regroup and address its weaknesses? From the perspective of a fan of the game with no cheering ties to schools with hopes of taking the title, there is nothing better than the drama that comes with the Saturday lineup of conference-championship games precisely because the implications of those matchups can be so titanic. Look at the 2009 SEC Championship, which pitted undefeated No. 1 Florida against undefeated No. 2 Alabama. With a playoff system, both teams would have already had virtually guaranteed spots in the bracket, so the game might not have been as exciting and certainly would not have had as many consequences as it did. But there was not a playoff system in 2009; there was the BCS, and Alabama took its spot in the championship by beating the Gators 32-13, while Florida and a crying Tim Tebow had to settle for a Sugar Bowl appearance. Not only did this game quell any fears of fans outside the South of a potential all-SEC championship matchup, but it gave weight to a final contest before bowl season began. It provided an all-in, for-all-the-marbles game that entertained fans, no matter which team they rooted for. The BCS has its faults, as any system does. If your school ends up on the short end of the stick when it comes to bowl selections, it is understandable to criticize the system that slighted you and your team. But when you are just a fan cheering not for any particular team but just for a good game, the BCS keeps you filled up on drama, unpredictability and excitement. I guess I'm just afraid we will lose that late-season magic, when every game has something on the line, this time next year. Contact Mary Green at mgreen8@nd.edu  

The Chris Gethard Show: The strangest story in public access history

Two weeks ago "The Chris Gethard Show" arguably became the most successful show ever to grace public access television.  Created and hosted by comedian Chris Gethard, the loosely structured call-in show has been airing live on New York's Manhattan Neighborhood Network and streaming online at thechrisgethardshow.com every Wednesday at 11 p.m. for the past two-and-a-half years. Due to the strength and growing popularity of the show, Comedy Central has ordered to film a pilot of TCGS.  Originally developed as a stage show for the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in 2009, this will be the second time Gethard and company have had to restructure the show for a different medium.

Men's Soccer: From out in the cold, into the College Cup

As the announcer counted down to zero and the horn blew to end the game, despondent Michigan State players sank to the ground and the No. 3 Irish rushed to embrace each other in celebration of a 2-1 NCAA tournament quarterfinal win, the first in program history. "It's an incredible feeling," sophomore midfielder Evan Panken said. "We've been working for it all year, all summer. Everyone worked so hard, and it's just a team win here, and we're all really excited." The Irish (15-1-6, 7-1-3 ACC) are now headed to their first ever College Cup, where they will face No. 7 New Mexico (14-5-2, 7-1-1 Mountain West) in the semifinal game in Chester, Pa., on Friday. "It's a huge win for us," Irish coach Bobby Clark said. "We've been knocking on the door for a while now. I think this is our third final-eight, but the first time we've actually gotten [to the College Cup.] Last year we felt we had a very good team and were the No. 1 seed going in but we fell [in the third round] to Indiana, the eventual winners, so that was disappointing. That inspired the guys." The Irish controlled the ball during the opening minutes of the contest as senior forward Harrison Shipp gave the Irish a couple of close scoring opportunities before Notre Dame cracked open the scoring in the 31st minute. An Irish corner kick landed near the far post, and though the ball was initially cleared, Panken corralledit. His first shot bounced off a Spartan defender, but he found the ball again, this time burying it in the back of the net. "We've been working on that corner kick for a while now," Panken said. "[Junior midfielder Nick] Besler got a great flick on it, and it came back post and I saw it, took a touch, and I just put it in the back of the net. I was at the right place at the right time. It felt great, scoring a big goal to put us up ahead in a big game like that. It's a great feeling." Michigan State coach Damon Rensing said his No. 11 Spartans (14-6-3, 3-2-1 Big Ten) were not worried after the first Irish goal. "You don't want to give up goals on restarts, but to their credit they finished it," Rensing said. "I never thought this was going to be a one-goal game, so I don't think that was the end. I think the goal that really hurt was the one that we gave up early in the second half." That second goal came from sophomore midfielder Patrick Hodan, who has now scored a goal in each of the last five games. Three minutes into the second half, Hodan dribbled the ball around multiple Spartan defenders and threaded a right-footed kick past another to put the Irish up by two. Clark described the goal as "a piece of beauty." The Spartans battled their way back into the game with a goal of their own following Notre Dame's second. With 31 minutes remaining, redshirt junior forward Tim Kreutz sent in a cross that sophomore midfielder Jay Chapman headed into the net to cut the lead to one. "It was good build up. [Redshirt junior Tim] Kreutz made a great serve, [sophomore midfielder] Jay [Chapman] flicked it in," Rensing said. "Our guys played well tonight from top to bottom, so I'm very proud of them." Each team had a few more close misses in the tense final minutes, but as victory drew closer and closer the Irish did their best to run out the clock. "You don't want to sit too far back and just invite them to hit balls behind us, so it's tough," Panken said. "We just want to get the ball down as fast as we can and try and play the ball in the corners and kill the game off." The entire match was played in sub-30 degree weather, and players on both teams occasionally struggled to find their footing on the frozen pitch. "It was a hard game on a very difficult surface," Clark said. "Our ground staff was getting it ready, but the longer we played the slicker it became. They took the cover off maybe at three o'clock, but by nine o'clock it's really quite difficult. I was glad it didn't go into overtime." Also on Saturday night, Clark's son, Washington coach Jamie Clark, was busy coaching his No. 2 Huskies in their own Elite Eight match against the Lobos. But Washington fell to New Mexico 1-0, and Clark and his son will not meet in the Final Four. The Irish will kick off their first ever visit to the College Cup against the Lobos at 5 p.m. on Friday at PPL Park in Chester, Pa. The game will be followed at 7:30 by the second semifinal game between No. 5 Maryland and No. 8 Virginia, the only team that has defeated Notre Dame this season. Contact Vicky Jacobsen at vjacobse@nd.edu  

Men's Basketball: Irish escape Delaware at home

In the opening game of the BlackRock Gotham Classic, Notre Dame needed a superhero-like performance from senior guard Jerian Grant to avoid Delaware's upset bid and defeat the Blue Hens 80-75. Grant scored 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting and nailed two late buckets to give the Irish (6-2) some breathing room with time winding down. "I just knew we needed a basket," Grant said. "They were creeping in and it's the end of the game, coach is giving me the ball, my teammates are giving me the ball and telling me to make a play. So I did." Notre Dame looked like it was going to blow the game wide open in the second half after junior forward Pat Connaughton drained a 3-pointer to put the Irish up 12 with 16:30 left in the game. The Blue Hens (5-4) chipped away at the Irish lead, cutting it to one on junior guard Jarvis Threatt's driving layup with 2:09 left in the game. Grant made sure the Blue Hens would not take the lead, burying two jumpers on the next two Irish possessions to quell the Delaware comeback. "He's one of the best bad-shot shooters I've ever played with," Irish graduate student center Garrick Sherman said. Grant's two shots, which were 36 seconds apart, were almost identical. He drove right before pulling up and knocking down his final two shots of the game. "I told them 'That was better offense than our defense, so no worries,'" Delaware coach Monté Ross said. "There's nothing you can do." The Irish closed the game with a 10-6 spurt to secure their sixth win of the season. Delaware, who had lost three games by a combined eight points, had three players score at least 19 points. Threatt led the Blue Hens with 23 points and 10 assists. Senior guard Davon Usher and junior guard Kyle Anderson each had 19 points in the losing effort. The Irish also had three players with 19-plus points. Sherman followed up a 29-point effort against Iowa with a 19-point, six-rebound performance against the Blue Hens and Connaughton added 19 points to go along with 11 rebounds. Connaughton, who has been starting as the second-biggest player for the Irish behind only Sherman, said his rebounding game will continue to be important for Notre Dame. "It's something that we need and it's something that I've really focused on throughout the summer, throughout practicing," Connaughton said. "It's something I've always been able to do, I've just kind of lacked the last two years. I just want to step up this year and do it." Notre Dame took an early 10-point lead following a 12-0 run in the first half, with Sherman notching eight points during the run. Delaware clawed back into the game with timely 3-point shooting. The Blue Hens made five straight 3-pointers in a span of three minutes to turn a seven-point deficit into a two-point lead. Delaware shot 43.5 percent from behind the arc for the game. "You're feeling like we're off to a good start and after the ... third [3-pointer], I'm going 'All right,' and then they bang down two more," Irish coach Mike Brey said. "And they're tough shots and I'm thinking 'You've got to be kidding me.'" The Blue Hens stretched their lead to five before the Irish closed the first half on a 13-1 run, taking a seven-point edge into the half. "We let them spurt us and that was probably the difference in the entire game," Ross said. The Blue Hens did not make a field goal in the final 6:06 of the first half and never led in the second half. "How we finished the half, I'm really proud of," Brey said. "We got in there, we defended. We hit a couple shots. That was a key for us to answer that charge right there. That gave us enough confidence and cushion, really, to win the game." Notre Dame will continue with the BlackRock Gotham Classic tonight when they take on Bryant and Wednesday when they play North Dakota State. "These next two teams are just like Delaware," Brey said. "They're veteran teams. They've won together before and they will come in here loose and letting it rip like the Blue Hens did." Bryant (6-3) lost to North Dakota State (6-3) 66-62 on Saturday. Bulldogs junior guard Dyami Starks leads Bryant with 23.4 points per game and has only scored in single-digits once this season. He scored 26 against North Dakota State. Notre Dame is in the midst of an eight-day stretch that features four games. Brey said the team would have minimal contact Sunday before playing Monday. "There's no day off until [next] Sunday," Brey said. "We're going right on through." The Irish and the Bulldogs tip at 7 p.m. tonight at Purcell Pavilion. Contact Matthew DeFranks at mdefrank@nd.edu  

Football: Irish to face Rutgers in Pinstripe Bowl in NY

The schedule hanging in the Isban Auditorium inside the Guglielmino Athletics Complex since the beginning of fall had a bowl destination already picked out for the Irish - the BCS Championship Game on Jan. 6. But after a four-loss season, Notre Dame (8-4) had to readjust its postseason plans and will face Rutgers in the Pinstripe Bowl in New York on Dec. 28. "It's been a great place for us," Irish coach Brian Kelly said of the destination. "I remember us being at Yankee Stadium [in 2010 against Army] and the way we were treated there. New York is certainly a great place for Notre Dame, and we've got great support in that area, 'subway alums.' It's a home away from home ... the Pinstripe Bowl has been terrific to work with, they've done everything to make it a great event for our players." Rutgers (6-6, 3-5 AAC) enters the game coming off 31-6 victory over USF on Saturday, but have won only two of its past seven contests. The Scarlet Knights have been outgained by their opponents by an average of more than 30 yards per game this season, and in their six losses have been outscored by an average of 20 points. Despite Rutgers' struggles this year, Kelly said he does not view the Pinstripe Bowl as a game in which Notre Dame has nothing to gain. "I don't see how that's the case when they're a BCS team," he said. "They beat Arkansas this year, you know they played Louisville and Fresno tight. They're going to the Big-Ten, this team is going to be in the Big Ten next year, so if we don't play well they'll beat us. So we've got everything to lose. We want to win the football game." Notre Dame had considered participating in other bowl games before accepting the bid to play in the Pinstripe Bowl, including the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego and the Hawai'i Bowl in Honolulu. "There were three or four bowls that were certainly vying for Notre Dame as we were going through this process," Kelly said. "The Poinsettia Bowl was certainly one of those we were interested in ... But once Northern Illinois lost that football game [to Bowling Green on Saturday], that kind of evaporated any opportunity for us in that game. The other one was the Hawai'i Bowl, but because of our exam schedule, which took us through the 20th, we would have had to gone out there on [the 21st, 22nd and 23rd], and it would have been practice, practice, practice and play the game. And then they don't hold the hotel rooms after the game for you, so you gotta leave, or you gotta find other accommodations ... So it just didn't make a whole lot of sense to go there for three days and practice, play the game and then, 'sorry guys.'" Although the Pinstripe Bowl does not offer the warm weather some of Notre Dame's other bowl options did, the opportunity to spend Christmas in New York and the attractive gift package that includes clothes, hats and a PlayStation 4 were determining factors in the Irish players' excitement to face Rutgers in Yankee Stadium. "It's Yankee Stadium," Irish senior receiver and tri-captain TJ Jones said. "We went there my freshman year, we had a great time. Everything from the game to just being in the city, being around the area, it was a great experience for us and we are happy to be experiencing it again." The Irish will travel together to New York on Dec. 23 after the players finish exams on Dec. 20, but Kelly said they still have a lot of work to do to finish their season on a high note. "We've got to prepare our football team," he said. "We want a win for our program to get to nine wins, we want to win for our seniors. And then in that preparation if we can get some of our younger players some working during this bowl practice, this is a worthwhile time for us and very helpful for our program." Contact Joseph Monardo at jmonardo@nd.edu