Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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Under the Dome Notre Dame Still No. 1 In Colley Matrix System In 1941, Alabama's football team finished 9-2, was shut out twice (14-0 by Mississippi State and 7-0 by Vanderbilt) during the regular season and finished No. 20 in the Associated Press poll. Minnesota was declared the "consensus" national champion by a dozen outlets, including AP. Nevertheless, the Houlgate System (1927-58), a mathematical rating system, voted the Crimson Tide No. 1 that year. Therefore, Alabama includes 1941 among its 15 national titles. That makes about as much sense as, well … Notre Dame claiming 2012 as a "national championship year" despite getting crushed 42-14 by the Crimson Tide in the BCS National Championship. Despite that result, Colley Matrix — one of six computer polls used by the BCS — still had Notre Dame No. 1 with an overall rating of .973997, bettering No. 2 Alabama's .961139. Starting in late October, Notre Dame had been rated No. 1 by the Colley Matrix while Alabama fell to No. 4 after its 29-24 loss to Texas A&M Nov. 10. It stayed No. 4 until moving up to No. 2 following the victory over the Irish. The BCS has included the Colley Matrix among its computer polls since 2001. It was created and is compiled by Dr. Wesley N. Colley, a senior research scientist at the Center for Modeling, Simulation and Analysis at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, of all places. If Houlgate is good enough for Alabama in 1941, should Colley Matrix be the same for Notre Dame in 2012? ✦ Gimme Five Lost amidst the 42-14 debacle versus Alabama in the BCS National Championship was that sophomore wide receiver DaVaris Daniels, in his first action since suffering a broken collarbone at Boston College Nov. 10, posted the first 100-yard receiving game for Notre Dame during the 2012 campaign. The previous high had been senior tight end Tyler Eifert's 98 yards (on four catches) versus Purdue Sept. 8. Had Daniels not topped the century mark in the bowl, it would have been the first season since 2007, and only the second time since 2002, that Notre Dame would not have had a game with a 100-yard receiver. In fact, Daniels' 115 yards on six receptions versus Alabama were the third most by a Fighting Irish player in the program's 32-game bowl history. Here are the top five Notre Dame players when it came to receiving yardage in a bowl game. Catches-Yards Result Rk. Player (Bowl) 1. Golden Tate (2008 Hawaii) 6-177 W, 49-21 2. Maurice Stovall (2006 Fiesta) 9-126 L, 34-20 3. DaVaris Daniels (BCS) 6-115 L, 42-14 4. Tom Gatewood (1970 Cotton) 6-112 L, 21-17 5. Michael Floyd (2010 Sun) 6-109 W, 33-17 Note: Tim Brown is the only other Fighting Irish player to break the century mark in receiving yardage during a bowl game, snaring six catches for 105 yards in the 35-10 loss to Texas A&M in the 1988 Cotton Bowl. Moving? Let our customer service department know your new address! Call us 1-800-421-7751