Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/723105
14 SEPT. 12, 2016 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME ADVERTISE IN BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED CALL 1–877-630-8768 OR E-MAIL MICHELLE@BLUEANDGOLD.COM UNDER THE DOME Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom Jake Shepski — Baseball The junior outfielder had an impressive summer with the Mankato (Minn.) Moondogs of the Northwoods League that culminated with him being named its Most Valuable Player. The Lockport, Ill., product ranked fourth in the league with a .333 batting average, and also was first in doubles (21), fifth in runs scored (52) and home runs (11), seventh in RBI (56) and eighth in hits (81). Matt Landis — Lacrosse The former Irish defenseman was one of 44 players named by U.S. men's senior team head coach John Danowski to take part in an intra-squad scrim- mage during the US Lacrosse Grand Opening celebration Sept. 11 in Sparks, Md. The event will christen the orga- nization's new $15 million facility. Landis (2013-16) was a two-time first-team All-American and two-time ACC Defenseman of the Year while at Notre Dame. Kyle Palmieri — Hockey The former Notre Dame forward was named to Team USA's World Cup of Hockey roster. The event will take place in Toronto, On- tario, from Sept. 17 to Oct. 1. During the 2015-16 NHL season, Palmieri led the New Jersey Devils in points with 57 (30 goals and 27 assists). He was one of only 28 NHL players to score more than 29 goals on the season. Brandon Aubrey — Soccer The senior defender from Plano, Texas, scored on a pen- alty kick in the 41st minute to lead the No. 9 Irish to a 1-0 triumph over New Mexico Aug. 28, giving them the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tourna- ment championship for the seventh time in the 14-year history of the event. Aubrey also tallied a goal in Notre Dame's 4-0 win over UC Irvine Aug. 27, and he ranked second on the team with four points through two games. TOP OF THE CLASS ✦ GIMME FIVE According to FanDemonium, the official blog for Vivid Seats, Notre Dame leads all teams with a median price of $220 for 2016 regular- season home games (as of Aug. 30). This also includes the Shamrock Series versus Army Nov. 12 in San Antonio and the neutral-site game versus Navy Nov. 5 in Jacksonville, Fla. Of the top 25 listed, LSU, Washington and Oklahoma State are the most affordable with a median price of $99. The overall most in-de- mand game is Michigan at Ohio State Nov. 26, which has a median price of $539. For Notre Dame, the highest median price of any 2016 home game is $390 when it hosts Mich- igan State Sept. 17. When USC welcomes Notre Dame to the Los Angeles Coliseum Nov. 26, the median price is a relatively low $225. According to Vivid Seats, here are the top five schools with median ticket prices for home games: Rk. School Median Ticket Price 1. Notre Dame $220 2. Ohio State $199 3. Georgia $163 4. Oklahoma $150 5. Utah $145 Getting To Know … SENIOR CORNERBACK COLE LUKE Major: "Information tech- nologies management." Favorite movie: "' The Dark Knight.'" Fav o r i te p ro fe s s i o n a l sports team: "I'm going to have to go with the Dallas Cowboys because of my family. That's just in my blood. My uncle [five- time Pro Bowler Darren Woodson] played for them so that's kind of what I have to do." Favorite TV show: "Right now, probably 'How To Get Away With Murder.'" Favorite food: "Italian food." Favorite musician: "I think Ed Sheeran is a musical genius, but I'm a big Kanye West fan." LeBron James or Michael Jordan: "I wasn't really around when Michael Jordan was a thing. But with the respect that everybody gives him, I'll have to say MJ, because. He's the greatest." CHARTING THE IRISH NOTRE DAME'S MOST EXPERIENCED OPPONENTS IN 2016 Though many prognosticators rank Nevada as one of Notre Dame's easiest 2016 opponents, the Wolf Pack do have at least one significant advantage over the Irish: experience. According to college football expert Phil Steele — who has devised a metric in his preseason magazine that factors in returning seniors, returning lettermen, percentage of yards and tackles returning, and career starts on the offensive line — Nevada is the 30th-ranked team in college football in experience. The Wolf Pack — who return nine starters on offense and five on defense — bring back 11 senior starters and 75.4 percent of their lettermen, which ranks 17th in the country. They also return 84 starts on the offensive line, which ranks 26th in the country. Overall, Nevada is the third most experienced team on Notre Dame's 2016 schedule, trailing only Miami (24th) and Syracuse (28th). Steele, whose list is updated through the end of May, puts a large emphasis on experience in college football. The most experienced team in the nation this season is Kent State, while Ohio State — which had 12 NFL Draft selections — ranks dead last. Notre Dame, which had seven former players selected in the top four rounds of the NFL Draft in May, ranks low on this list at No. 121. Though the Irish are expected to match their 2015 produc- tion with new faces, lower-tier schools like Ne- vada rely heavily on veterans to carry the team. Moving? Let us know! Call 1-800-421-7751 PHIL STEELE'S COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS BASED ON EXPERIENCE Team National Rank Miami 24 Syracuse 28 Nevada 30 Army 35 USC 40 Texas 56 Virginia Tech 59 NC State 70 Duke 80 Michigan State 117 Notre Dame 121 Stanford 122 Navy 127