Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1546785
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 3, 2026 5 Letter From the Publisher Dear Readers, We have a problem. As many of you have noticed, mail delivery is taking longer. Recent changes in the postal system have added delays for both First-Class and Periodicals mail, and some of you are receiving an issue after the game it previews. We share your frustration. A preview that arrives after kickoff is not doing its job. Our phones have been jammed with more calls than we can handle,and we apologize if we were unable to speak with you personally. We want to assure you that our process has not changed. We prepare each issue after the game and mail it on Sunday, usually within 12 to 18 hours of the final whistle. But it is clear that our content must adapt to the time it now takes the United States Postal Service to deliver it. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW The USPS offers no guarantee that an issue will arrive before the next game, even with First-Class delivery. However, First-Class generally performs better than Periodicals deliv- ery. As of Sept. 25, tracking on the Michigan State game recap showed delivery activity for 25% of First-Class subscribers versus 0% of Periodicals. WHAT WE ARE DOING ABOUT IT We will continue to mail every issue on Sunday, but we are changing the timing of our preview coverage. Beginning with this issue (46-4, mailed Sept. 27 after the Purdue game) we have expanded our coverage of the game two weeks ahead. This issue includes previews of both UNC and Stanford, giving the Postal Service more time to get useful coverage into your hands before kickoff. Issue 46-5, mailing Oct. 4 after the North Carolina game, will include a BYU preview and a look ahead to Navy. A lot can change between the day we mail an issue and the day a game is played. Injuries, personnel moves and the result of the intervening game can all affect the matchup. That is why our pregame Wednes- day email newsletter will be an essential companion to your print edition. It will carry the latest personnel news, depth chart changes and other updates you need before game day. Thank you for subscribing to Blue & Gold Illustrated. As one of the few publications still producing a weekly print magazine during college football season, we value the chance to put an issue in your hands every week. We hope this adjustment makes those issues more useful, and we will continue monitoring delivery throughout the season. Go Irish! Jeanette Blankenship, Publisher Frequently Asked Questions When is the issue mailed? We mail each issue on Sunday after the game, generally by mid afternoon. Where is the issue mailed? The Papers in Milford, Ind., has printed Blue & Gold for more than 30 years. They work directly with the South Bend post office to get our magazines quickly into the mail. Why is my issue late? Postal delays can occur after an issue enters the mail, even when we mail it on schedule. Please see the postal changes explained on this page and at bluegoldonline.com/postal-updates/. Where is the postal backlog happening? Our tracking shows some mail moving through Indianapolis and Pontiac, Mich., add- ing distance to its route. We have asked USPS to help us understand why this happens and what we can do to improve delivery. Tracking does not always show where a piece is waiting or why it was routed a particular way. What You Can Do • Contact your state and U.S. representa- tives to tell them about mail delays in your area. • Make sure we have your current email address and that you have opted in to receive the newsletter. If you are not re- ceiving it, please email us at magazines@ on3.com. • Please be patient with us as we make this adjustment. We hope it helps you get more out of your subscription. We will continue monitoring postal delivery throughout the season, and we appreciate your patience and loyalty. Will my issue ever arrive? Most delayed issues do arrive, but we can- not promise that every piece of mail will be delivered. We also do not have enough extra copies to send every issue twice. How can I get the game information before the next game? The digital edition is the only issue delivery we can control and guarantee. Our pregame Wednesday email newsletter provides the latest personnel and depth-chart updates. We also hope that previewing games further ahead will give the Postal Service enough time to deliver that coverage to our print readers before kickoff. WHY IS THE MAIL TAKING LONGER? In 2021, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) published a 10-year strategic plan, which it has periodically up- dated, that aims to achieve financial sustainability after losing an average of $9 bil- lion dollars every year. Since that time, USPS has lengthened the expected delivery times of First-Class Mail to align with strategic plan initiatives intended to cut costs. Additionally, USPS low- ered its service performance targets — the percentage of mail it expects to meet ser- vice standards — in fiscal year 2021 and has not met most targets since then. While intended to achieve cost savings, USPS's strategic plan initiatives have slowed service for some mail and had a dispropor- tionate impact on rural customers. • Effective October 2021, USPS added 1 to 2 days to its expected delivery times for certain prod- ucts to accommodate its transportation change from air to ground. • In April 2025, USPS further changed expected delivery times by eliminating end-of-day or af- ternoon collection at the over 24,000 post offices that are more than 50 miles from a Regional Processing and Delivery Center. For more information and links to these sources visit bluegoldonline.com/postal-updates/. U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) Service Performance for Selected First-Class Mail Products, Fiscal Years 2021–2025 SOURCE: HTTPS://WWW.GAO.GOV/PRODUCTS/GAO-26-108527 OPEN MICAH OPEN MICAH Gilbert's career night provides the spark Notre Dame Gilbert's career night provides the spark Notre Dame needs in 27-10 win over Michigan State needs in 27-10 win over Michigan State EST. 1981 EST. 1981 INCLUDES PREVIEWS FOR PURDUE PAGE 20 ✦ NORTH CAROLINA PAGE 34 WWW.BLUEANDGOLD.COM WWW.BLUEANDGOLD.COM SEPT. 26, 2026 • $5.95 SEPT. 26, 2026 • $5.95 VOLUME 46 • ISSUE 3 VOLUME 46 • ISSUE 3