Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 7, 2024 9 UNDER THE DOME .888 Winning percentage (40-5 record) for the Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium since the Campus Crossroads project was com- pleted in 2017. From 1984-2009, the Irish had just a .712 winning percentage (112-45-1) at home. "We consumed football here like theater. Everybody would sit, they ap- plauded at appropriate times, and it had no energy," former Notre Dame direc- tor of athletics Jack Swarbrick said in a story on FightingIrish.com. "We took the top 25 teams over 25 years, and measured home field advantage. We were dead last. I got so tired of the visiting ADs coming up to me and saying, 'We love playing here.' I'm thinking to myself, 'I don't want you to love playing here.'" 2 Golden Domers — graduate student defensive tackle RYLIE MILLS and senior wide receiver Beaux Collins — were among the 101 college football players name to the annual "Freaks List" compiled by Bruce Feldman, senior writer for The Athletic. He has been compiling the list since 2005, doing so after gathering submissions from schools, coaches, teammates, parents, NFL scouts, combine trainers and agents. Mills checked in at No. 27 and Collins was slotted at No. 36. Mills boasts a 445-pound bench press, 580-pound squat, 32-inch vertical (which would've tied him for third among defensive tack- les at the 2024 N F L S c o u t i n g Combine) and 9-foot broad jump. Collins boasts a vertical jump of 41½ inches (which would've been fourth among wide receiv- ers at this year's NFL Combine) and a broad jump of 10 feet, 11½ inches (which would've ranked fifth). Last year, Mills was No. 10 on Feldman's list. Irish cornerback Cam Hart (No. 32) and defensive lineman Ja- vontae Jean-Baptiste (No. 82) made the cut in 2023, and both were selected in the 2024 NFL Draft in the spring. 9 Schools — Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Michigan, Georgia, Texas, USC, Penn State and Notre Dame — were tabbed as cur- rent college football blue bloods by On3's Andy Staples. In addition, he tabbed nine others — Florida State, LSU, Clemson, Nebraska, Miami, Florida, Auburn, Tennessee and Oregon — as "blue blood contenders." "The Fighting Irish dominated the sport for generations, but they haven't won a national title since 1988," Staples noted. "So why are they still on this list? Because Brian Kelly made them nationally competitive again by taking them to a BCS national title game and two CFP appearances. "In the era of the 12-team College Football Playoff, though, Notre Dame is going to have to actually win some of these high-stakes post- season games to stay on the list." 11 Fighting Irish football players are projected to be selected in the 2025 NFL Draft by ESPN. The last time Notre Dame had 11 players drafted was in 1969. Since then, it has had 10 players selected four times: in 1975, 1979, 1991 and 1994. Only Ohio State (14) and Georgia (16) have more players predicted to hear their names called during the draft. The Irish joined the Bulldogs and Buckeyes in Tier 1, along with Texas (11 projected draft picks). Michigan (eight), Ole Miss (10) and LSU (eight) were slotted in Tier 2, while Penn State (nine), Alabama (nine) and Oregon (eight) were placed in Tier 3. Junior cornerback Benjamin Morrison, the Irish's lone projected first-round pick, was tabbed as Notre Dame's "top prospect to know," while graduate stu- dent defensive end RJ Oben was identified as its "sleeper prospect to watch." 12th Is where ESPN slotted Notre Dame senior quarterback Riley Leonard on its ranking of the top 25 newcomers (transfers and true freshmen) in college football for 2024. He was the fourth QB on the list. "Injuries slowed Leonard in 2023, but he still led a remarkable turnaround for the Blue Devils in his two seasons as their starter," ESPN noted. "He's one of just four returning power conference quarterbacks who has produced more than 4,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards [excluding sacks] over the past two seasons, according to TruMedia." Leonard was tabbed No. 11 overall —third among signal-callers — on The Athletic's list of the 100 most impactful transfers for the 2024 season. 14.4 Percent decrease for the cost of a game-day experience — the average price of two tickets, two beers, two sodas, two hot dogs and parking — at Notre Dame Stadium, per Oddspedia. In 2023, Notre Dame was No. 1 on the list for the most expensive game-day experi- ence at $285. This year, the cost has dropped to $243.96 — the eighth-highest in the country. UCLA now has the most expensive game day at $298 for the Rose Bowl. The breakdown of Notre Dame's game-day experience cost is: 2 tickets for $160, park- ing for $35, two beers for $24, two sodas for $13.98 and two hot dogs for $10.98. The 14.4 percent decrease in total was the eighth-best in the country. 1,300 Total yards (900 rushing, 400 receiving) and 10 touchdowns was the prediction for Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love by Billy Tucker, who is the recruiting coordinator for ESPN's Recruiting Nation. Tucker included Love on his list of eight sophomores ready to be stars dur- ing the 2024 college football season. "… He will cause plenty of matchup headaches to opposing defenses on perimeter runs and passes," Tucker noted. "Irish offensive coordina- tor Mike Denbrock has another formidable option at RB in Jadar- ian Price, but Love will get his touches in various alignments and will have Golden Domers seeing flashes of Theo Riddick's versatile 2012 production." ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER