Finals Finally Over

I have to apologize for the brief void in Nasties posts. I was a little pre-occupied saturating my body with energy drinks and pouring over pages of notes, but after taking all of the tests (and watching a few people cry during some of them), I'm finally back in the buckeye state and ready to spread some Irish cheer.

The coaching staff appears to be deciding whether or not a few major changes will be made for next season. Running backs coach Mike Haywood apparently fell short of earning the head coaching position for Houston, losing to Oklahoma State co-offensive coordinator Kevin Sumlin. However, the offensive coaching staff still doesn't appear to be set. Offensive line coach John Latina is rumored to be interested in joining former co-worker David Cutcliffe at Duke. Personally, I could see this situation being an addition by subtraction; Latina's line allowed a Notre Dame record 58 sacks and averaged a league worst 75.2 rush yards per game.

Fortunately, because of Weis' excellent effort to introduce all of the recruits to multiple coaches on the staff, it appears that if Haywood or Latina relocate, their actions would not affect recruiting too much. As national signing day draws closer, take some time to check out this article from the South Bend Tribune and this write up from the Sporting News. Both break down the recruits that are still being pursued by Notre Dame and tells readers how likely it is that the Irish will haul them in.

From reading around the blog circuit, future receiver Michael Floyd is quickly becoming one of my favorite players. Every article I have read about him praises him for his good work ethic and his humbleness. Here, Rise Magazine explains why Floyd is such a good leader, and why Notre Dame should be ecstatic to pick up a man of his character.

Speaking of recruiting, two future quarterbacks have attracted some attention to themselves. Ranked as the 30th best high schooler in the country by ESPN, Dayne Crist has been declared one of seven finalists for the first annual Joe Montana Quarterback of the Year Award. The other QB getting some attention is Montana's son, Nate, who will attend the University of Notre Dame next season as a preferred walk on. Irish fans can only help but be optimistic when looking at the future of the quarterback position; it isn't a stretch that ND could have two signal callers drafted in the next four years.
He doesn't even need to change his uniform

In enemy news, Irish fans would be advised to know that Michigan hired former West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez to replace Lloyd Carr next season. Challenging Louisville/Atlanta/Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino for back-stabber-of-the-year, Rodriguez will look to bring his dangerous spread offense to the U of M. It will be interesting to see how this situation develops; rising sophomore Ryan Mallet, the current quarterback, doesn't draw too many Steve Slaton comparisons as his big body is more suited for a pro-style offense, but if Rodriguez can land the Vince-Young-like #1 recruit Terrelle Pryor, the Wolverine's could see a rise to the top very quickly.

Here's to hoping that doesn't happen. Go Irish.

Case of the Mondays

The first Monday fully removed from ND's football season has undoubtedly left some of our loyal readers in a head-pounding Duds and Studs withdrawal, so the crew thought that it would be helpful to post something today, even if it is just a vain attempt to fill a void that likely won't be satisfied until after the San Diego State game.

While perusing NDLNA, I came across a decent writeup by MSNBC.com analyst Eric Hanse, which points out some highs and lows of the season. Hanse found some silver lining in the season both in the play of freshmen nose tackle Ian Williams and wideout Duval Kamara, and the statistical improvement of the defense from 2006 to 2007 is also worth taking a look at. Regarding Kamara, BlueandGold.com came up with a cumulative playing time chart for the season, and #18 was able to log the most playing time for a freshman receiver since Rocket Ismail on the 1988 squad. It's worth noting the presence of underclassmen that are either at or near the top of their position; hopefully these young players can build off of the quantity of experience they were able to get this year and use it to better prepare for next season.

The Charlie's Nasties crew always tries to present a fair and unbiased opinion whenever possible, so in order to attempt to do so, I give you this article defending the Nasties crew's favorite scapegoat, John Latina. Our friends at the Irish Roundup offer several factors out of the realm of John's control that have negatively contributed to the offensive line's performance over the last three years, and the post suggests that Irish Nation should (like the case with Weis) hold off on passing judgement until he is given another year to redeem himself. In my mind, however, a good coach is able to fix the type of problems (missed assignments, inability to adjust to defenses) that have plagued the line this year, and I am still blown away that Chris Stewart went unnoticed and unused for the first half of the season. I mean, come on, looking at this picture, doesn't one player kind of, um... stick out as possessing some good physical traits for excelling at the right tackle position?


Anyway, the point is that a player shouldn't have to threaten to transfer to see some playing time. I know that sometimes players perform differently in practice than in games, but when the team opens the first three games struggling to net positive rushing yards, then there's not really any excuse for not giving the bottom of the depth chart some opportunity.

In other news, if you haven't noticed yet, the Nasties crew has finally sold out. Contract negotiations with Brugg and the Golden Boy have resurfaced and have been proceeding amicably up to this point, but it looks like the site is going to need to generate some revenue to put up with their demands. So if you like what you read around here, I encourage you to support us by checking out the ads in the right column of the page. With the holiday season fast approaching, it never hurts to find some nice ND apparel online.

This picture is seriously from one of the ad sites.

Lastly, a quick congratulations to the men's bball team for a nice win over Eastern Michigan last weekend. I have a film screening in the DPAC tomorrow night during the Kansas State game (which will be played at the Madison Square Garden), but you can bet that they'll be at least one laptop in the theatre pulling up a gamecast.

Go Irish! Beat Wildcats!