Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1510995
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 18, 2023 11 UNDER THE DOME "Best case: Olivia Miles' leg is 100 percent by midseason, just in time for ACC play, and she and freshman point guard Hannah Hidalgo pair well together to form a dominating Irish up-tempo style. Unlike 2022-23, Notre Dame is at its best at the end of the season. The Irish repeat as ACC regular-season champs, with Sonia Citron a serious contender for conference player of the year. A No. 2 NCAA Tournament seed propels the Irish back to the Final Four for the first time since 2019. "Worst case: Hidalgo starts strong but the grind of ACC play is a challenge. Miles isn't ever fully recovered and can't perform to her usual level. Notre Dame hangs in the conference race, but difficulties defending the inside haunt the Irish all season and they fall short. A similar fate awaits in the NCAA Tournament, where Notre Dame is up- set in the second round." — ESPN's Charlie Creme on the best- and worst-case scenarios in 2023-24 for the Notre Dame women's basketball team, which he had at No. 12 nationally and as a No. 4 seed in his preseason rankings and bracketology, respectively "We have a really resilient group. We're calling it 'anti-fragile,' and with every bad play, we're going to follow with a good play." — Notre Dame gradu- ate student quarterback Sam Hartman "He's a pro. You watch him play, that guy shouldn't be playing college football. He's a pro. He's smooth. He's poised. He's very confident. He don't flinch. And I've seen him for 10 years now. So, I got a real good understanding for who he is. And a lot of respect for him. He's a great kid. But he is a pro." — Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney on Hartman "Al Golden should be a Broyles Award con- tender. Probably a finalist. He's also a reminder that public perception of assistant coach hires is completely worthless. When Marcus Freeman targeted Golden, the former head coach at Miami and Temple was perceived to be a retread, a failed head coach who didn't sizzle in recruiting. "After building a top-10 defense, Golden may be able to call his shot on his next job, whether that's NFL defensive coordinator or college head coach. Turns out, message boards were wrong at a level not seen since Brian Kelly hired some offensive line coach from the University of Tennessee. "The dream scenario for Freeman would be obvi- ous — Golden returns to Notre Dame for a third season. And Notre Dame should do everything it can to make that dream a reality." — Pete Sampson of The Athletic "I know the quarterback at Notre Dame is like the president. So, I know I'll get paid, but I'm not concerned about that. The people I've met at Notre Dame — I know that they're very success- ful." — Notre Dame 2025 quarterback commit Deuce Knight when asked about the role NIL played in his recruitment "Part of the reason why I felt really good in my game, personally, is because I have been lucky enough to train with some MLS teams this sum- mer. It helped me get and take my game to the next level. Really, it's the culmination of 20 years of hard work. "But to be honest, the main reason is because our entire team has bought in. I can't tell you how many times I see a forward sprint back to the top of the box or a defender put his body on the line to block a shot. From our starting 11 to the end of the bench, every single person has bought in to this brotherhood and are fighting for each other." — Men's soccer senior goalkeeper Bryan Dowd, who notched an ACC-best 8 of Notre Dame's 9 shutouts THEY SAID IT THEY SAID IT "After getting off to a strong start last season at Seton Hall, Davis saw his role diminish as the season progressed. Back home in Indiana, though, Davis is drawing rave reviews — and might be Notre Dame's best player." — ESPN's Jeff Borzello on ranking Notre Dame sophomore forward TAE DAVIS No. 79 in his "Newcomer Impact Rankings: Freshmen, transfers who will lead their teams in 2023-24" PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS IRISH ON SOCIAL MEDIA