Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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10 NOV. 30, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME It's that time of the year. The weather is getting colder and the holidays are right around the corner. That means it's college football awards season. Many Notre Dame football players are in the running for season-long ac- complishment awards, from on-field, performance-based honors to off-field, humanitarian-focused accolades. Here's a rundown of which Irish players — and one coach — could come away with hardware at the end of the 2024 season. • Head coach Marcus Freeman is on the watch list for the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Award. • Graduate student safety Xavier Watts is a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award, Lott IMPACT Trophy, Bednarik Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year. • Walk-on kicker Eric Goins, a former US Army infantry and communications officer is a finalist for the Armed Forces Merit Award. • Senior tight end Mitchell Evans is a semifinalist for the Mackey Award, which goes to the best tight end in the country. • Sophomore wide receiver Jordan Faison is being nominated for the Burls- worth Trophy, which is given to the most outstanding player in the nation who started his career as a walk-on. — Tyler Horka Notre Dame Sweeps Weekly ACC Women's Basketball Awards This is the first time this season for Notre Dame to have two players recognized by the Atlantic Coast Conference for receiving weekly awards, but it probably won't be the last. Sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo was the league's Co-Player of the Week in the second week of the season, and freshman center Kate Koval was the Co-Rookie of the Week. The ACC an- nounced the honors Nov. 18. Hidalgo averaged 26.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.5 steals and 3.0 assists in Notre Dame's two wins in the award period. She shared her weekly title with Florida State senior forward Makayla Timpson, who averaged 23.0 points and 12.0 rebounds per game in a pair of Seminoles victories. Timp- son had 38 points in one of those while Hidalgo was a bit more consistent from a scoring standpoint in going for 24 and 29. Koval put up a staggering 17.5 rebounds per game in Notre Dame's triumphs over James Madison and Lafayette, meanwhile, to go along with 12.5 points. Equally as impressive as her rebounding number, she also posted 6.5 blocks per game. The 6-5 post player also averaged 2.5 assists in those games. She's side-by-side with Georgia Tech guard Dani Carnegie this week. Carnegie averaged 17.5 points per game in two Yellow Jackets wins. In Notre Dame's first four games, Hidalgo averaged 25.0 points, 6.3 re- bounds and 5.3 steals per game. Koval put up 12.8 points, 13.0 rebounds and 5.5 blocks in the first four games of her career. — Tyler Horka Notre Dame Guard Sir Mohammed Undergoes Surgery, Out Indefinitely Notre Dame freshman guard Sir Mohammed underwent successful surgery for a lower-body injury and is out indefinitely, the Irish an- nounced Nov. 19. While "lower body" was as specific as Notre Dame's statement got, Mohammed missed the game against Georgetown Nov. 16 with an "ag- gravated left knee," according to a program spokesperson. He missed time with a knee injury over the summer as well after enrolling in June. "Sir is a big part of our present and future," Irish head coach Micah Shrewsberry said in a statement. "Under the guidance of our medical staff, led by our athletic trainer, Nixon Dorvilien, we are very confident that Sir will receive the best care for his long-term health as he rehabs and returns to 100 percent." With Mohammed out, sophomore guard Logan Imes is likely to play more minutes as a backup ball handler to sophomore guard Markus Burton and graduate student guard Matt Allocco. Mohammed, a 6-foot-6 guard from Charlotte (N.C.) Myers Park and the son of former longtime NBA forward Nazr Mohammed, was a four- star prospect and the No. 82 player in the On3 Industry Ranking. He's the only one of Notre Dame's freshman class to play significant minutes early this season, averaging 13.0 per game. In those 13.0 minutes per game, Mohammed averaged 2.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. He contributed to wins over Stonehill and Buffalo amid Notre Dame's hot start to the 2024-25 season. "His ability to pass right now is his best ability," Shrewsberry said Nov. 4. "Now, as he starts to go, as he starts to get more comfortable, I think he'll start to make the open shots, the open catch-and-shoots that he gets. But being able to have an extra ball handler, an extra ball handler with size that can see over the defense, is probably his best asset for us right now." — Jack Soble Players Are Up For Awards Graduate student safety Xavier Watts is a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award, Lott IMPACT Trophy, Bednarik Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER