Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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12 AUGUST 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom Kevin Conners — Golf The junior from Downington, Pa., was one of two Notre Dame golfers named to the ACC All-Aca- demic team, while also earn- ing a spot on the dean's list with a spring semester GPA of 3.852. During the 2018 season, Conners achieved two top-10 and three top-25 finishes while averaging 72.95 strokes per round. He carded a 6-under- par 66 at the Quail Valley Intercollegiate in Oc- tober to tie for the second-lowest single-round score in program history. Eric Gilgenbach — Baseball The senior from Rochester Hills, Mich., was one of four Irish baseball players named to the ACC All-Academic team fol- lowing the 2018 season. On the field, the finance major batted .270, led Notre Dame in RBI with 45 and tied for the team lead in home runs with 10. In addition, Gilgenbach was one of three Irish players invited to play in the prestigious Cape Cod League this summer. Sydney Kuhn — Volleyball The recent Notre Dame graduate signed a professional contract with the Evreux Panthers in Evreux, France, to continue her volleyball career. The out- side hitter will head overseas in August and begin her first pro season in September. Kuhn started 114 matches during her Irish career, and finished with a total of 1,040 digs and 950 kills. She is the 16th player in Irish program history to reach 1,000 digs in a career. Treasa O'Tighearnaigh — Rowing Following her senior campaign, the rower from Powell, Ohio, received several honors. The standout for Notre Dame's varsity eight received both All-ACC Academic Team and first-team All-ACC laurels, and was named the ACC Rowing Scholar Athlete of the Year. O'Tighearnaigh was also tabbed as a Scholar Athlete, a first-team all-region performer and an hon- orable mention All-American by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association. TOP OF THE CLASS ✦ GIMME FIVE Although Notre Dame consistently has ranked among the top 15 schools in football recruiting the past five cycles (2014-18), it has signed only two prospects that were rated as five-stars by Rivals: guard Quenton Nelson (2014), the No. 6 overall selection in the 2018 NFL Draft, and junior drop end Daelin Hayes (2016). Compared to the "Big Three" of Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State — which have ac- counted for all the national titles since 2014 and are favorites again to make this year's four- team College Football Playoff — that's where the most conspicuous disparity is, especially on defense. In those same five recruiting cycles, Alabama signed 25 five-star prospects (five per year), Clemson 16 and Ohio State 12. This past February, the University of Georgia signed eight players that were ranked as five- star recruits, a single-year record by any school in the Rivals era that dates back to 2002. In the last five years, Notre Dame has never rated lower than No. 11 or higher than No. 13 by Rivals. Here are the five highest-ranked play- ers it signed over that span, all of whom were in the top 50: Player (Year) Rivals Ranking 1. Quenton Nelson (2014) 29 2. Daelin Hayes (2016) 31 3. Tommy Kraemer (2016) 41 4. Houston Griffith (2018) 43 5. Brock Wright (2017) 44 Getting To Know … NOTRE DAME COMMIT KYREN WILLIAMS Kyren Williams verbally committed to Notre Dame June 15. Rivals rates him as a three-star prospect, the No. 11 player in Missouri and the No. 34 athlete in the country. He was recruited to play running back for the Fighting Irish. Hometown: "St. Louis." High School: "St. John Vianney." Nickname: "Nobody calls me this, but I call myself 'Siren' just for fun." Favorite Food: "Probably Mexican food." Favorite Movie: "All the 'Purge' movies." Favorite Music: "Hip hop and rap." Favorite Musician: "Probably NBA YoungBoy." Favorite TV Show: "'Criminal Minds.'" Favorite Part About Being Committed To Notre Dame: "It's knowing that right now, I'm going to college for free and my parents don't have to pay for anything. Plus I get to play on the highest level of football every weekend, and most importantly the education I'm going to get at Notre Dame." The Best Player You've Ever Lined Up Across From Or Played Against: "Probably [class of 2016 running back] Tre Bryant at Nebraska." CHARTING THE IRISH AVERAGE PRESEASON RANKINGS Last year, Notre Dame had an average preseason ranking of 21.0 in a sampling of Athlon, ESPN's Power Football Index, Lindy's and Phil Steele's. This year, the Fighting Irish sit just outside the top 10 (10.3) heading into the upcoming campaign. That mark comes in just behind Michigan (10.0), which is Notre Dame's opponent in the season opener Sept. 1. Four other programs on the docket for the Irish rank inside the top 25: Stanford (13.5), Florida State (16.3), USC (17.8) and Virginia Tech (23.0). The Irish play the Cardinal and Seminoles in South Bend, and must travel to Los Angeles and Blacksburg, Va., to take on the Trojans and Hokies. Ten of Notre Dame's 12 opponents rank inside the top 70, which is the same number as 2017. NOTRE DAME AND ITS 2018 OPPONENTS IN THE PRESEASON RANKINGS ESPN's FPI Lindy's Athlon Phil Steele's Average Michigan 11 18 5 6 10.0 Notre Dame 6 12 15 8 10.3 Stanford 13 13 18 10 13.5 Florida State 18 16 13 18 16.3 USC 17 19 21 14 17.8 Virginia Tech 22 17 16 37 23.0 Wake Forest 45 48 37 46 32.8 Northwestern 32 40 46 34 38.0 Pittsburgh 55 61 43 49 52.0 Syracuse 56 63 66 82 66.8 Navy 77 84 47 62 67.5 Vanderbilt 76 68 70 85 74.8 Ball State 121 122 120 112 118.8 MOVING? LET US KNOW! Call 1-800-421-7751