Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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14 PRESEASON 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom Jon Gallagher — Soccer The senior from Dundalk, Ireland, started 2017 off in a big way, netting both goals in No. 10 Notre Dame's 2-0 win at Omaha in the first exhibition of the year. Prior to the season, Gal- lagher was one of 31 candi- dates named to the watch list for the MAC Hermann Trophy, which goes to the top player in the nation. The team tri- captain led the ACC in scoring with 35 points (14 goals and seven assists) last year. Alex Lebedev — Tennis The junior from Island Park, N.Y., won the Intercollegiate Tennis Asso- ciation's National Summer Championship Aug. 15 at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. The win, Lebedev's first collegiate tournament vic- tory, earned him a wild-card entry into the Saint Francis Health System ITA Men's All-American Championships, which will be held Sept. 30-Oct. 9 in Tulsa, Okla. Arike Ogunbowale — Basketball The junior from Milwaukee picked up her fifth international gold medal Aug. 15 when the USA U-23 squad defeated Japan 103-71 in the final of the 2017 Four Nations Tournament at Ka- tayanagi Arena in Tokyo. Over the three games in the tournament, Ogun- bowale made 8 of 10 free throws and averaged 8.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per contest. Sandra Yu — Soccer The fifth-year senior from Strongsville, Ohio, was one of two Irish play- ers — sophomore forward Jennifer Westendorf was the other — to be named to the preseason All-ACC team Aug. 3. Yu, who has been tabbed as a team captain for the sec- ond consecutive season, received third-team All-ACC honors after totaling four points on two goals in 2016. During the summer, she played for the U-23 Women's National Team at the 2017 U-23 Open Nordic Tournament in Sweden. TOP OF THE CLASS ✦ GIMME FIVE During his 11-year Notre Dame career from 1964-74, the late Ara Parseghian saw his Fight- ing Irish ranked outside the Associated Press top 10 prior to a game only 15 times. Four of them came during his worst season (8-3) in 1972, leading to his lowest finish in the AP poll at No. 14. The only time they ever fell outside the top 20 was prior to game three in 1969. After a 42-28 win versus No. 14 Michigan State, the ensuing game vaulted them back to No. 15, and they never would fall lower than that in his final six seasons. Nine of his 11 teams finished in the AP top 10 — a poll that began in 1936, six years after Knute Rockne's death. Seven of those nine sea- sons resulted in a top-five finish, highlighted by consensus national titles in 1966 and 1973. Here are the most consecutive top-10 fin- ishes by Notre Dame coaches since the start of the AP poll: Coach Seasons 1t. Frank Leahy 7 (1941-43, 1946-49)* 1t. Ara Parseghian 7 (1964-70) 3t. Lou Holtz 3 (1988-90) 3t. Elmer Layden 3 (1936-38) 5t. Dan Devine 2 (1977-78) 5t. Terry Brennan 2 (1954-55) * Served in World War II in 1944-45 Getting To Know … SENIOR DEFENSIVE END ANDREW TRUMBETTI Hometown: "Demarest, N.J." High School: "Demarest." Major: "Management consulting." Favorite Food: "Chicken Parmesan." Favorite Place To Eat In South Bend: "Capri, the Italian restaurant." Favorite Movie: "'The Deer Hunter.'" Favorite Music: "I like house music." Favorite Musician: "John Mayer." Favorite TV Show: "'The Office.'" Favorite part about playing for Notre Dame: "It was my dream to come here as a little kid. Every single day is a blessing and every single day I'm thankful." Who's the best player you've ever lined up across from?: "Our offensive line. Every single day going against them has been a battle. Ronnie Stanley, Quenton Nelson, Mike Mc- Glinchey and those guys. Every single day I see them, so I would have to say those guys." CHARTING THE IRISH AVERAGE PRESEASON RANKINGS The fact Notre Dame is coming off a 4-8 campaign has led to a little more caution from major media outlets when ranking the Fighting Irish in 2017. Last year, Notre Dame began the season with an average ranking of 12.7 — higher than all of its 2016 opponents. This year, the Irish will begin the season with a composite rating of 21.0. Four opponents are held in higher regard, with archrival USC leading the way. The Trojans boast an average ranking of 6.0, followed by Stanford at 15.0, Georgia at 15.8 and Miami (Fla.) at 17.2. Nine of the 12 opponents the Irish will clash with this season are expected to finish within the top half of the Football Subdivision (130 total teams), and all 12 opponents are ranked inside the top 84. School ESPN's FPI Lindy's Athlon Phil Steele's Average USC 12 2 5 5 6.0 Stanford 11 18 17 14 15.0 Georgia 13 12 15 23 15.8 Miami (Fla.) 15 19 23 12 17.2 Notre Dame 20 28 20 16 21.0 North Carolina State 22 47 27 21 29.2 North Carolina 28 45 42 46 40.2 Michigan State 60 48 49 70 56.8 Navy 75 50 56 51 58.0 Wake Forest 58 73 52 60 60.8 Boston College 69 84 70 55 69.5 Temple 84 55 81 72 73.0 Miami (Ohio) 81 99 78 77 83.8 Moving? Let us know! Call 1-800-421-7751