Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 29, 2022 9 UNDER THE DOME 3 Media outlets — The Athletic, Pro Football Focus (PFF) and ESPN — tabbed Notre Dame junior tight end Michael Mayer as a first-team midseason All-American. Georgia's Brock Bowers beat him out for the top spot on the teams put out by CBS Sports and The Sporting News, while Utah's Dalton Kincaid earned the honors from the Associated Press. "Michael Mayer has dominated in South Bend since his 2020 true freshman season," PFF's Max Chadwick noted. "He has an 87.4 receiving grade in that span, ranking third among active FBS tight ends. Mayer is the ultimate security blanket. His 24 receiving first downs are the third-most in the country for tight ends. He's also been targeted on 30.6 percent of his routes, the second-highest rate at the position." 6 ACC women's soccer teams were ranked in the United Soccer Coaches poll Oct. 16, the most of any league in the country: North Carolina (No. 2), Florida State (No. 4), Notre Dame (No. 5), Virginia (No. 8), Duke (No. 10) and Pitt (No. 20). No. 9 Ranking in the 2022-23 preseason As- sociated Press Top 25 for the Notre Dame women's basketball team. It is the program's highest ranking since claim- ing the No. 1 spot in 2018-19 — the season after Notre Dame's second-ever national championship. 10 Was the projected seed for Notre Dame's men's basketball team in ESPN analyst Joe Lunardi's 2023 NCAA Tour- nament Bracketology released in early Oc- tober. The Irish were included among the last four byes and were slated to face No. 7-seeded Purdue in a first-round contest. 11th In the country wa s w h e re graduate student punter Jon Sot's average of 45.4 yards per attempt ranked midway through the college football season. Notre Dame also ranked 11th as a team in net punting. Sot, who was named to The Athletic's midsea- son All-Portal team, boomed at least one punt of at least 54 yards in five of Notre Dame's first six games. He also dropped 13 of 27 punts (48.1 percent) inside the opponent's 20-yard line, in- cluding 6 inside the 10-yard line. 20 Candidates were included on the pre- season watch list for the 2023 Nancy Li- eberman Point Guard of the Year Award, including Notre Dame's OLIVIA MILES. She was a finalist last year after leading the Irish in scoring (13.7 points per game), assists (7.4 per contest) and steals (1.8 per outing). She scored in double figures 30 times and had eight games with double-digit assists last season, while no other ACC player had more than one. 22 Teams were included on the Joe Moore Award 2022 Midseason Honor Roll. Among them was Notre Dame. The award, named for 1988-96 Notre Dame offensive line coach Joe Moore, "annually recognizes the toughest, most physical offensive line in the country, making it the only major college football award to honor a unit or group." The Irish were one of 17 Power Five teams on the list. Through Week 7, Notre Dame ranked 50th nationally in yards rushing per game (170.67) and tied for 51st in sacks allowed per game (1.67). Their most impressive of- fensive line stat, though, was No. 13 national ranking in stuff rate (12.6 percent), per Football Outsiders. Stuff rate is the consistency at which a defense tackles the opposing player at or behind the line of scrimmage. Notre Dame last won the Joe Moore Award in 2017 and was one of three finalists in 2020. 112.4 Yards allowed per game below the opponents' average for the Notre Dame defense through its first six games this season. That figure ranked 10th in the nation, per Phil Steele: 115 -Spot increase Oct. 18 for Notre Dame commit Glen El- lyn (Ill.) Glenbard South wide receiver Cam Williams in On3's national rankings, which slots players regardless of position. He went from the No. 136 to No. 21 and also went from No. 17 to No. 5 among wide receivers, after hauling in 37 receptions for 793 yards and 11 touchdowns in the first seven games of his junior season. "The wide receiver group in 2024 is strong, and in going through that group, we thought Williams was one of the better ones we watched," On3 director of scouting and rankings Charles Power told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "We love his athleticism; he stands out in basketball and track as well. He's hav- ing a very strong junior season. "He has very good verified length, and that, combined with his athleticism and how well he's played this year, has us excited about him. Notre Dame fans should be excited about him, too. He has the potential to be a difference-maker in their passing game." ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS Rk. School YPG Below Opp. Avg. 1. Georgia 162.2 2. Iowa State 138.3 3. Ohio State 136.5 4. Illinois 133.9 5. Alabama 132.6 6. Texas 117.8 7. James Madison 114.5 8. South Alabama 113.6 9. Kentucky 112.4 10. Notre Dame 112.4