Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1476446
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2022 13 UNDER THE DOME 3 Fighting Irish players were included on the 2022 "Freaks List" — which highlights 100 college foot- ball athletes "who generate buzz inside their programs by displaying the unique physical abilities that wow even those who observe gifted athletes every day" — put together by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. Senior cornerback CAM HART led the way at No. 38, while ju- nior defensive end Rylie Mills was slotted at No. 56 and sophomore wide receiver Lorenzo Styles was placed at No. 79. 4 Of Notre Dame's 2023 com- mitments were named to the 2022 Preseason MaxPreps All-America Team. Austin (Texas) Westlake four-star wide receiver Jaden Greathouse and Denton (Texas) Guyer five-star safety Peyton Bowen were named to the first team, while Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep five-star edge Keon Keeley and Mer- rillville (Ind.) Andrean four-star linebacker Drayk Bowen were included on the second team. No. 5 Ranking for Notre Dame in the preseason USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll. It is the highest preseason coaches poll ranking for the Fighting Irish since they were No. 3 in 2006. It also marks the fourth straight year the coaches picked the Irish in the top 10 — their best streak since eight straight from 1989-96. 6th Was where ESPN ranked senior safety Brandon Joseph — who transferred from Northwestern to Notre Dame in January — on its list of college foot- ball's top 50 newcomers (freshmen and transfers) for the 2022 season. Joseph also was slotted at No. 26 on ESPN's list of the 40 most impactful transfers over the past five years (QB Jack Coan also made the list at No. 39), despite having yet to play a game for the Irish. Joseph earned All-America honors for the Wildcats in 2020 and boasts 9 career interceptions. Freshman corner Jaden Mickey joined Joseph on the top newcomers list at No. 49. 14 Notre Dame alums have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame — tied for first all time with USC — after former Irish standout defensive linemen Bryant Young was enshrined on Aug. 6. 25 Assistants were listed as being deserving of strong head coach con- sideration in August, following a survey of college coaches across the nation by On3's Matt Zenitz. Among them was Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees. Pro coaches have also noticed Rees, including defending Super Bowl cham- pion Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay. "I've always watched Tommy from afar," McVay told the South Bend Tri- bune in June at Rams minicamp. "I love what he does, mixing up personnel groupings, different things they can present under- neath the center in the shotgun. He's a rising star in this profession. He's already established himself as a big-time dude." 46th Was where Notre Dame sophomore Tyler Buchner was ranked among Pro Football Fo- cus' top 50 quarterbacks entering the 2022 college football season. The Irish will face five signal-call- ers that appear on the list ahead of Buchner: No. 2 Caleb Williams of USC, No. 4 C.J. Stroud of Ohio State, No. 17 Jaren Hall of BYU, No. 33 Tan- ner McKee of Stanford and No. 37 Phil Jurkovec of Boston College. 50th Anniversary of both the passage of Title IX — which prohibits sex-based discrimi- nation in any school or educational program — and female students attending Notre Dame was cel- ebrated by the university when it announced that its storied fight song will now include rec- ognition of its female students. The song, which has become synonymous with Fighting Irish football, included the line, "While her loyal sons are marching/Onward to victory." The lyrics now will read: "While her loyal sons and daughters/March on to victory." The new version was performed for the first time at a gala on campus June 2. Former Notre Dame president the Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh made the decision to admit female students in 1972. Notre Dame's first women's varsity athletic teams (tennis and fencing) began competing in 1976. The school now sponsors 13 varsity women's programs. The "Notre Dame Victory March" has been played at the university's athletic events since 1919 after debuting on campus on Easter in 1909. Notre Dame band director Joseph Casasanta rearranged the song in 1928 to a version that has been played ever since. 1990 Was the last time Notre Dame opened the season with a matchup of top-five teams, prior to this year's showdown between the No. 5 Fighting Irish and No. 2 Ohio State. In that previous matchup 32 years ago, the No. 1-ranked Irish notched a 28-24 home victory over No. 4 Michigan. The last time the Irish opened the season against a top-five team on the road was 2001, when they suffered a 27-10 defeat at the hands of No. 5 Ne- braska. Notre Dame's last road win versus a top-five team was a 17-10 win at Michigan on Sept. 10, 2005. $250 , 000 Donation toward its Student-Athlete Scholar- ship fund was earned by Notre Dame after it captured the 2021-22 Men's Capital One Cup. The Fighting Irish's men's teams posted seven top-10 finishes in the final polls or NCAA Champion- ships en route to edging No. 2 Texas 78-73 in total points. This was the second time — with 2013-14 being the other — the Irish have claimed the Cup title on the men's side. Stanford (which leads the way with three titles), Florida and Virginia are the only other schools to win the competition multiple times. ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER