Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/567260
BY LOU SOMOGYI F or the first time in its 128 years, the Notre Dame football team will play a game in the state of Virginia when it visits the Cavaliers in Charlottesville Sept. 12. Among the 50 states in the Union, Virginia will be the 36th Notre Dame will travel to for a football game. The Fighting Irish have never played either Virginia Tech, VMI or William & Mary (where Lou Holtz was the head coach from 1969‑71) in football, and the one previous time it faced the University of Virginia was as the reigning national champion in the 1989 Kickoff Classic at East Ruth‑ erford, N.J. (a 36‑13 Irish win). In addition to playing at Virginia this year, Notre Dame will host Vir‑ ginia Tech on Nov. 19, 2016, and then make the return trip to Blacksburg on Oct. 13, 2018. Meanwhile, Virginia will visit Notre Dame for the first time on Sept. 28, 2019, and the two schools also have been scheduled to meet in 2021 and 2024. In 2021, the Irish will visit both Virginia and Vir‑ ginia Tech. With the school's part‑time ACC football membership that began in 2013, Notre Dame is seeing the state of Virginia become more visible not only on the slate in coming years but also on the recruiting circuit. According to our research, only 26 football players from Virginia have seen game action at Notre Dame. The first was reserve tackle Frank Albert (Covington) on head coach Elmer Layden's 1937‑39 Notre Dame teams. However, Notre Dame has signed a player from Woodberry Forest School, in Virginia, three straight years: run‑ ning back C.J. Prosise (Petersburg, Va.) in 2012, defensive end Doug Randolph (Richmond, Va.) in 2013 and outside linebacker Greer Martini (Cary, N.C.) in 2014. Its most recent addition from the state came during the June 19‑20 Irish Invasion weekend this year when Chesterfield athlete Jalen Elliott, a state title‑winning quarterback who is projected as a safety with the Fighting Irish, gave his verbal to Notre Dame for the 2016 recruiting haul. This state has become more promi‑ nent for Notre Dame in recent years and should continue to be, maybe to the point of having three or four on its roster over a five‑year period. THE RECRUITING FUTURE Because of Notre Dame's union with the ACC and its greater empha‑ sis now on the mid‑Atlantic and Sun Stately Growth Virginia is becoming more prominent on the schedule and in recruiting