Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 21, 2016 9 UNDER THE DOME 1 Notre Dame football player on the 2016 roster who hails from the state of Virginia: freshman safety Jalen Elliott (Richmond). That is a recruiting territory the Fighting Irish are seeking to tap into better since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013 in all sports other than football (partial member) and hockey (Hockey East). The Fighting Irish played in the state of Virginia for the first time last season, facing the Cavaliers, and they will have their first meeting with Virginia Tech this week. 2 Notre Dame basketball players for the No. 1-ranked women's team ranked among the top 25 players in the country by espnw.com: 6-3 junior forward Brianna Turner at No. 2, behind only South Carolina 6-5 junior forward A'Ja Wilson, and senior point guard Lindsay Allen at No. 10. The Gamecocks also have 6-4 center Alaina Coates at No. 9, which makes them and the Fighting Irish the only two schools with two players among the top 10. 2:28:13 Time of finish for former Notre Dame 10-time All-American MOLLY HUDDLE (2002-06) at the New York City Marathon Nov. 6. Among the record 51,388 runners, Huddle finished third among the women, making her the first American runner since 2010 — male or female — to finish among the top three in the race. Even more amazing was it was her first attempt at the 26.2-mile marathon distance. At the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics, Huddle set an American women's re- cord in the 10,000 meters with a time of 30:13.7 to finish sixth in the world. 6 Possessions Notre Dame's offense had during its 28-27 loss to Navy Nov. 5. Accord- ing to NCAA research, that is the fewest by a team in a Football Bowl Subdivision since Northern Illinois also had six during a 16-0 loss on Nov. 25, 2008. The opponent? Navy, of course. 15-14 Record of Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly after a 6-0 start in 2014 and prior to this year's Shamrock Series contest versus Army Nov. 12. Predecessor Charlie Weis was 15-14 in his final 29 games at Notre Dame from 2007-09 before getting succeeded by Kelly. Meanwhile, Weis' predecessor, Tyrone Willingham, was 14-15 in his final 29 games as the Notre Dame coach from 2002-04. 20 Games under head coach Brian Kelly, through the weekend of Nov. 5, that were deter- mined by three or less points, most recently the 28-27 loss to Navy on the aforemen- tioned date. He is 10-10 in such contests through almost seven seasons. Lou Holtz played the most games that were determined by three or less points with 22 during his 11-year regime from 1986-96. Holtz went 9-11-2 in those contests. Kelly was 42-18-2 (.694 winning percentage) in his first 25 years as a head coach in games determined by three points, but this year he is only 1-3. 358.8 Rushing yards per game entering the weekend of Nov. 12 by New Mexico to rank No. 1 in the country. The Lobos are coached by former Notre Dame head coach Bob Davie (1997-2001), who implemented the triple option. He has done a laudable job of turning around the team that had three straight 1-11 seasons from 2009-11 before his arrival. Davie took New Mexico to a bowl last season and led it to a 6-3 start this season. The Lobos are scheduled to play at Notre Dame on Sept. 14, 2019. BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS