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Bama

All the, "hope they don't come out in the 2nd half comments" aside. How can ND contain or slow down Bama enough to make it a game? Not letting them take the "top off" I believe is key. In order to do that, can they leave Shaun in there, since as much as we all love him, he could be a huge liability size wise in this game. Harris isn't a real game breaker, as he picks up 10 to 15 yard carries consistently, and not 40 to 50 yarders. Do we just hope that the DL can slow him down, and our LBs can pick up scraps? I truly think it comes down to keeping Smith and Harris under 100 yards, can't be too hard.

OT: Championship in Miami

Out of curiosity, I checked flights and hotel to Miami from Chicago that weekend (and Monday, of course) and there are some insanely cheap prices. Does anyone know how many people they'll allow at Hard Rock Stadium? I was in Marco Island over the summer and it was almost like Covid didn't happen in Florida. Just curious in case a miracle happened on New Years Day (Bono voice)

Who do you respect more Nick Saban or Dabo Swinney?

Nick Saban:
13 Seasons at Alabama
163-23 at Alabama
5 National Championships
9-3 Bowl Games
#1 Rated Recruiting Class 9 out 13 Seasons (Avg. Recruiting ranking #1 best class).
Head Coaching Tree is ridiculous
Who's Who in former Head Coaches who want to coach under him
Graduation Rate for Players 88%

Dabo Swinney:
12 Seasons at Clemson
140-32 at Clemson
2 National Championships
8-4 Bowl Games
7 Top 10 Rated Classes (Avg. Recruiting ranking 9th best class).
Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables Best Defensive Coordinator in Country (10th Season at Clemson)
Graduation Rate for Players 83%

In my opinion, Nick Saban is the best head coach in football, but its come at a cost. Coach Saban went from Coaching SEC Power in LSU to rival Alabama after a short NFL stint which is typically considered a negative move. He took over a Traditional Power in Bama and was handed total control of the program. St. Nick has turned Alabama into a football factory and/or the NFL top minor league team the day he stepped on campus. Everything is done Coach Saban's way, as he runs his program like a Professional Sports Team. Coach Saban is no doubt the most powerful man in the State of Alabama which is a crazy thought to me. Instead of working for the AD and University President, its the reverse at the University of Alabama as they work for Coach Saban. Coach Saban tends to turn a blind eye to Boosters, SEC Bagmen and players who break rules. However, when your St. Nick you do whatever you want!

In my opinion, Dabo Swinney has done more with less than any other Top 25 Program in the Country. He writes the history books at Clemson and has turned an ACC regional power into a National Power overnight. The coaching staff might be the best in the Country at developing talent as his Average recruiting class is typically rated as the 9th best class in the Country. He has never had a #1 rated recruiting class unlike the University of Alabamas yearly ranked #1 recruiting class. Dabo Swinney is a players coach with his finger prints are all over the program, however he does not seem larger than Clemson.
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DAILY COVID-19 THREAD: Monday, December 28

• All thoughts on COVID, statistics, speculation, updates, etc. should be posted in the daily thread.

• COVID threads that pop up separately on the board will be merged into our daily thread — with the exception of sports news items that are related to COVID (school testing updates, announcements, etc.). These can have their own threads but our staff has final discretion.

• As always, political posts – whether in the COVID thread or not – will be deleted.

In the latest batch of testing released Monday, none of the 189 tests administered had a positive for the coronavirus.

Per Notre Dame's website, 16.5 percent of Notre Dame's undergraduate students (1,438 out of 8,731) tested positive during the fall semester that ended No. 20. The spring semester does not begin until the first week of February, and the school plans to continue in-person learning.

New Defensive Coordinator

Kelly’s decision regarding the next Defensive Coordinator will determine whether ND continues the run we have been on since 2016.

ND’s offenses, even with an experienced QB like Ian Book with receivers like Claypool, Boykin, Kmet, Mayer, Tremble, McKinley, etc. etc., and many RBs that are now in the NFL and top OL groups have in rare instances blown people away like the best offenses in college football today. thus the pressure will again be on the defense to hold the other team’s scoring down.

Nick Saban’s comments about how the game today has become a game of scoring points is true. Look at the offenses in the Playoff this season. ND has not been able to produce points like Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State... add last year’s Oklahoma offense and it is easy to agree with Saban.

To think that ND’s offense next season with a new inexperienced QB and a rebuilt (at least 3 starters) offensive line will outproduce the 2020 offense is a hope and certainly not a sure thing.

Therefore the DEFENSE will have to hold down the fort again next season for ND to have another 10+ win season. A nucleus of good players returns on defense so who coaches them will be important. THUS WHO KELLY PICKS AS THE DC IS HUGELY IMPORTANT. Even a partial miss at the hire will descent ND back into a 10-20 ranked team versus a Top 5 team that we have evolved to since Elko and Lea arrived.

A BVG type hire, without an offense that scores 40 - 45 points per game will produce losses that we currently do not experience.

Opening the search up to a national search seems to be the prudent choice. I certainly hope Kelly does a national search to find another elite DC and replicate what he did when he went outside for ELKO after the 2016 season.

Recruiting Rating The Recruits: BGI’s Insights On Notre Dame’s Early Signees

Although it's mentioned in the 4th paragraph of the article, let me be clear.. They are ranked according to national rankings, but for three-star prospects, we placed them according to our own opinion if there wasn't a clear distinction (EX: Evans is listed above Berrong in TE rankings, so Evans gets the nod).

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