Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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UNDER THE DOME 14 AUGUST 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED Chris Guiliano — Swimming The Douglassville, Pa, native defied all odds and finished second in the 100-meter freestyle at the 2023 Phillips 66 USA National Championships June 28 in Indi- anapolis. In doing so, the rising junior qualified for the 2023 World Aquatic Championships July 14-30 in Fukuoka, Japan. Guiliano, who entered the meet seeded only 22nd, recorded a time of 47.98 in the event, best- ing his seeding time by more than a full second. Olivia Markezich — Track & Field Only about a month after claiming a national title in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, the senior from Woodinville, Wash., fin- ished fourth at the 2023 USATF Outdoor Championships July 8 in Eugene, Ore. She posted a time of 9:17.93, which was both her personal best and the second-fastest collegiate time ever clocked in the event. Markezich was named the 2023 ACC Women's Track Performer of the Year after the season. Arike Ogunbawale — Basketball The Milwaukee native and 2019 Notre Dame graduate became the Dallas Wings' all-time leading scorer since its move to Texas in 2016 with a 17-point effort in an 89-72 victory over the Washington Mystics July 3. That gave her 2,671 career points, surpassing fellow Irish alumna Skylar Diggins-Smith (2,670). Ogunbowale, who accom- plished the feat in just 133 games, entered the WNBA All-Star break third in the league in scor- ing at 21.6 points per game. Yared Nuguse — Track & Field The Louisville, Ky., native and 2022 Notre Dame graduate continued the tremendous start to his pro- fessional career July 8 in Eu- gene, Ore., winning the cham- pionship in the 1,500-meter run at the 2023 USATF Out- door Championships. The vic- tory, in 3:34.90, secured his spot on Team USA for the World Athletics Cham- pionships in August at Budapest, Hungary. Nuguse, the North American record holder in the 1,500 meters, won a national title in the event for Notre Dame in 2019. TOP TOP OF THE CLASS OF THE CLASS Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom ✦ GIMME FIVE Three young cornerbacks are set to take college football by storm in 2023. The best one, according to the On3 College Football Top 100, wears blue and gold. Notre Dame sophomore Benjamin Morrison edged out Colo- rado sophomore Travis Hunter and Michigan sophomore Will Johnson for the No. 3 cornerback spot on On3's Top 100 list. Morrison ranks No. 30 overall, while Hunter fell just behind him at No. 31 and Johnson came in a few places back at No. 35. Juniors Kool-Aid McKinstry (Alabama) and Kalen King (Penn State) took the top two spots, coming in at No. 9 and No. 10 overall, respectively. Morrison intercepted six passes in 2022, including a 97-yard pick six to blow the game open in Week 10 against Clemson, but that's not the only reason he's so highly regarded. The Phoenix Brophy College Preparatory product locked down op- posing receivers all season. Opposing quarterbacks targeted Morrison 51 times, completing 22 of them for 296 yards. That comes out to a meager 5.8 yards per attempt. Factoring in the 6 interceptions and 1 touchdown, Morrison targets resulted in a passer rating of 29.2. If a QB spiked the ball on every play, his passer rating would be 39.6. Morrison was a revelation for Notre Dame last season, to the point where Marcus Freeman told Blue & Gold Illustrated's Tyler Horka that even he might not have seen his performance coming. According to the On3 Industry Ranking, Morrison was the No. 37 cornerback in the recruiting class of 2022, making his rise much more stunning than Johnson's or Hunter's. Johnson was the No. 2 cor- ner in the On3 Industry Ranking coming out of high school, while Hunter was the No. 2 overall player in the country. He was listed as an athlete because he also plays receiver. The three of them look like the future of the position in college football. — Jack Soble CHARTING THE IRISH NOTRE DAME'S NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS BetMGM was the latest sportsbook to release its college football national championship odds, and it ranked Notre Dame No. 11 at +3000. The Irish slotted in behind most of the usual suspects: Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan, LSU, USC, Florida State, Clemson, Texas and Penn State, in that order. Three of those teams — Ohio State, USC and Clemson — are on Notre Dame's 2023 schedule. After a 9-4 season with home losses to Marshall and Stan- ford, both of which involved anemic offense and crippling turnovers, the arrival of quarterback Sam Hartman boosted Notre Dame's championship odds. Hartman and his five years of highly productive play at Wake Forest give the Irish credibil- ity, putting their odds ahead of teams like Tennessee (+3500), which was much more successful in 2022. Other sportsbooks give Notre Dame a similar chance to win the final four-team College Football Playoff. FanDuel and PointsBet list the Irish's odds at +3000 as well, while Caesars Sportsbook has them at +2800. While Notre Dame needs to make the playoff before it can think about a national championship, the Irish have a clear, albeit dif- ficult, path to get there. They likely need to win two out of three against Ohio State, USC and Clemson. Do that and take care of busi- ness against the rest of its schedule, and Notre Dame should be in. Ohio State and USC are home games, while the Irish will face Clemson on the road. If the College Football Playoff com- mittee has to pit Notre Dame's hypothetical one-loss résumé against others, the Irish would almost certainly have the edge in strength of schedule and strength of victory. — Jack Soble On3 tabbed Notre Dame sophomore Benjamin Morrison as the third- best cornerback in the nation head- ing into the 2023 season. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER BETMGM COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS Last updated July 10 Rk. School Odds 1. Georgia +200 2. Alabama +600 3. Ohio State +700 4. Michigan +900 5. LSU +1200 6. USC +1400 7. Florida State +1800 Clemson +1800 9. Texas +2200 10. Penn State +2500 11. Notre Dame +3000 12. Tennessee +3500 Oregon +3500 14. Washington +4000 15. Wisconsin +5000 Utah +5000 TOP FIVE CORNERBACKS IN THE ON3 COLLEGE FOOTBALL TOP 100 Rk. Player, School 1. Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama 2. Kalen King, Penn State 3. Benjamin Morrison, Notre Dame 4. Travis Hunter, Colorado 5. Will Johnson, Michigan