Blue and Gold Illustrated

Nov. 9, 2019

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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10 NOV. 9, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME 4 Notre Dame football players who hail from the state of North Carolina, where the Fighting Irish play Duke Nov. 9: junior kicker Jonathan Doerer (Charlotte), fresh- man linebacker Osita Ekwonu (Charlotte), senior drop end Julian Okwara (Charlotte) and sophomore running back Jahmir Smith (Sanford). Notre Dame's football record in the Tar Heel State against the four Atlantic Coast Conference members from there is 7-4. Notre Dame lost its lone previous meet- ings at Duke (37-13 in 1961) and North Carolina State (10-3 in 2016). It is 5-2 at North Carolina, most recently a 33-10 win in 2017, and 2-0 at Wake Forest after defeating the Demon Deacons 56-27 in 2018. Notre Dame next year will play Wake Forest (Sept. 26) at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., the program's first visit there and a record fifth straight season play- ing in the state. 7 Major conference men's basketball players to average a double- double in points and rebounds last year, with Notre Dame senior forward JOHN MOONEY among them. Selected as a 2019-20 preseason first-team All-ACC pick, Mooney averaged 14.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game last season, the latter ranking No. 1 in the league. He led the ACC in overall double-doubles (20) with 13 of them occurring in conference play — second most to Wake Forest's Tim Duncan with 15 in 1996-97. 9 Ranking of the men's basketball team at the University of North Carolina, where Notre Dame opens this season Nov. 6. It marks the first time in head coach Mike Brey's 20 years that the Fighting Irish begin a campaign against a ranked foe. The last time it occurred was when Brey's predecessor, Matt Doherty, debuted with a stunning 59-57 victory at No. 4 Ohio State on Nov. 16, 1999. That would be Doherty's lone season before getting hired by North Carolina, his alma mater, the following summer. 10 Finalists named Oct. 30 for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, which was established in 1987 and honors the nation's top senior or fourth-year quarterback. Notre Dame's Ian Book was among them for his body of work. Former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn won this award in 2006. This year's winner will be presented with the award Dec. 11. Joining Book as the finalists are, alphabetically: Joe Burrow (LSU), Jacob Eason (Washington), Justin Herbert (Oregon), Tyler Huntley (Utah), Jalen Hurts (Okla- homa), Bryce Perkins (Virginia), Nate Stanley (Iowa), Zach Thomas (Appalachian State) and Brady White (Memphis). 999 Victories posted in Notre Dame women's basketball history, prior to the program's opener at Fordham Nov. 5. The initial varsity season for the school was 1977-78 — the year the men's basketball program advanced to its first and still lone Final Four, and only five years after the university first began admitting women as undergraduates. The overall record entering this season is 999-333 (.750), with 33rd-year head coach Muffet McGraw posting an 835-234 (.781) ledger. Despite losing all five starters to the WNBA, plus two more reserves leaving via the transfer route, the Fighting Irish opened the season ranked No. 16 in the Associated Press poll. 2007 Marked the last season until this one that Notre Dame has three home games in the month of November. In addition to the game versus Virginia Tech (Nov. 2), the Irish host Navy (Nov. 16) and Bos- ton College (Nov. 23). Notre Dame has not played a home game past Nov. 23, since 1962, when it defeated Iowa 35-12 Nov. 24 in what was fourth-year head coach Joe Kuharich's final home game. ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO COURTESY FIGHTING IRISH MEDIA

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