IrishJohn.....you are a "Champion of Mediocrity." It's people like you that keep the ND program down!
Both Qb's to play against Texas.***
- Thread starter Pennick44
- Start date
Wax wouldn't take this out to the trash? BIggest hypocrite here .... feel the love .... I mean hate .... definition of under someone's skin when all they do is throw barbs .... typical post ... you just have nothing else to say
Never Lied ? ...... hmmm .... the funny thing is that not only are lies all you got ... it is painfully obvious .... sure .... the angry old guy crowd can roll with the guy with a 5th grade education .... who swears profusely ... and uses anal/phallic references .... sure .... believe that guy ....
My life sucks? ... another head scratcher .... I post once .... you post 2-3 times with dribble .... your obsession is obvious ... how many times can you use the 'A" word in one post .... angry? ... what you call ridicule I call adolescent immaturity ... keep showing your colors .... say hi to your "staff" for me ....
Right now I can only think of one person who cares more about me than you .... what drives this obsession .... I'll give you one guess ..... and one clue .... It is something old people do .... I should get paid for posting here .... not many with a bigger following than me ....
That took 5 mins to respond ... you don't have a job either?? .... no surprise there
I could help Kelly .... shouldn't you be out swearing at someone telling them what they can do with their behinds
What I'm good at vs. what you are good at ...
"I could help Kelly"....LMAO...thanks, that was funny. And "Lots of people" are in agreement with you....here's another thread approaching 200 hits and no one has agreed with you. What was the last thread, 400+ before it was deleted...and not ONE poster agreed with you...seriously, you been getting abused on a website for going on 15 yrs. You need some serious help....
Funny you think it is me .... I expect this type of delusional desperation .... Nobody is getting the near the disaster area that is you .... I on the other hand don't have a choice because you follow me around like a lap dog ..... can't disprove that
And yes out of the last 400+ posts on the last one is like this one ...... starts off with me saying something intelligent .... and then over half of what follows is you and your whining .... no counterpoint to my original posts ...... just whining .... oh ... and swearing .... calling you a little obsessed would be an understatement .... I'm probably your reason for living .... LOL!
"Starts off with me saying something intelligent." Let's examine that one....the deleted thread "intelligent" statement was that the ND Men's Basketball Team went to two consecutive Elite Eights, and won an ACC Title with the players coaching the team. The Head Coach had nothing to do with it. That intelligent statement was followed by 400+ responses of which ZERO posters agreed with you. I was not the only one who thought you were a moron. On that particular thread IrishJohn, Bodizepax, Irishblooded, NDSMC, DieHard Irish, some guy 756 and a slew of others also thought you were/are a complete turd...This thread's statement is basically that the current ND Head Football Coach(who not only has won at every level he coached, but won big, has already taken ND to a NC game and a major bowl) doesn't know how to run an offense, and that(as you stated 2 posts previously), you could help him out. Basically your saying you know more than him....how many on this thread have agreed with that statement? That's close to 600 posts and not one poster, intelligent people on an ND website, and you can't even get your grandma to sign up and bail you out. I get it now...you are correct, it's the rest of the website that's wrong....70,000 members...you know more than all of them...you are one effed up human being...
You mean Bodi ... the same guy that called you out for working 4 handles to feign support .... we know you are too dumb to know what you don't know .... and if the column says W you'd like to give Brey credit .... but you have to run the team to do that
When things went bad, the weight of Notre Dame basketball landed on Eric Atkins' raw-boned shoulders. Still he rested easy. After struggling to maybe five hours' sleep nightly as a freshman, a sophomore floor leader and captain for a team in free fall somehow managed eight or nine.
Maybe he saw what no one else saw in the imminent Irish revival. Though that bit of necromancy faltered Saturday when a nine-game win streak ended at St. John's, Atkins crouching with head in hands at the buzzer suggested what comes next: Tireless intent to redirect his team Monday at Georgetown.
"It's basically whatever Eric says, goes," said Jerian Grant, Atkins' backcourt mate. "Coach (Mike Brey) writes up the game plan, he shows us which way to go. Once we get on the court, it's all Eric."
During this two-month run, Atkins isn't No. 20 Notre Dame's leading scorer. He isn't even Notre Dame's assist leader. But he is, without question, its lead voice while on the attack.
He was handed the ball in October. He was handed the captaincy in December. He has been handed full rein of the offense, basically, and his choreography has produced an improbable NCAA tournament club.
"Coming out of a timeout, I usually call the play, or at halftime I call the play we're going to do at first," said Atkins, who averages 12.7 points and four assists. "(Brey) really trusts me and allows me to call out things on the offensive side of the ball. Whatever I'm comfortable with, we usually go with."
It has been a progression. Brey felt Atkins focused on floor generalship "to a fault" early, so the Irish coach encouraged his point guard to hunt his shot more.
When Atkins officially assumed the captain's role — Brey sought a complement to senior Scott Martin for Big East play, with Tim Abromaitis long gone after tearing his ACL — practices had a subtle soundtrack change.
"When we would call a set, instead of me saying it, I'd say it through him and let him voice it," Brey said. "Just trying to empower his voice. He's got such a good feel for how we want to play. He understands how to quarterback us now."
Consider one sequence in a win Feb. 18 at Villanova: Atkins made an adjustment late in the shot clock and freshman Pat Connaughton curled to a spot instead of fading, and he missed an off-rhythm 3-pointer when Atkins kicked it out.
"He says something to me and the next play, of course I faded, he found me and I hit a 3," Connaughton said. "His understanding of the game really lets us all flow."
Notre Dame's fulcrum in Atkins' first season was the combustible Ben Hansbrough. When the moment screamed for a stabilizing force this year, the Irish turned to a player of less flammable material.
Atkins barks occasionally but more often takes the quieter approach, evenly bending teammates' ears with directions, and everyone follows because it turns out he usually knows the way to go.
"I'm still a pull-a-guy-over type," Atkins said. "That's my method. That's how they seem to respond to me a little better. I'm still talking to them the same, and we're winning. So just keep it up."
bchamilton@tribune.com
Twitter @ChiTribHamilton
Copyright © 2012, Chicago Tribune
BABOOM!
When things went bad, the weight of Notre Dame basketball landed on Eric Atkins' raw-boned shoulders. Still he rested easy. After struggling to maybe five hours' sleep nightly as a freshman, a sophomore floor leader and captain for a team in free fall somehow managed eight or nine.
Maybe he saw what no one else saw in the imminent Irish revival. Though that bit of necromancy faltered Saturday when a nine-game win streak ended at St. John's, Atkins crouching with head in hands at the buzzer suggested what comes next: Tireless intent to redirect his team Monday at Georgetown.
"It's basically whatever Eric says, goes," said Jerian Grant, Atkins' backcourt mate. "Coach (Mike Brey) writes up the game plan, he shows us which way to go. Once we get on the court, it's all Eric."
During this two-month run, Atkins isn't No. 20 Notre Dame's leading scorer. He isn't even Notre Dame's assist leader. But he is, without question, its lead voice while on the attack.
He was handed the ball in October. He was handed the captaincy in December. He has been handed full rein of the offense, basically, and his choreography has produced an improbable NCAA tournament club.
"Coming out of a timeout, I usually call the play, or at halftime I call the play we're going to do at first," said Atkins, who averages 12.7 points and four assists. "(Brey) really trusts me and allows me to call out things on the offensive side of the ball. Whatever I'm comfortable with, we usually go with."
It has been a progression. Brey felt Atkins focused on floor generalship "to a fault" early, so the Irish coach encouraged his point guard to hunt his shot more.
When Atkins officially assumed the captain's role — Brey sought a complement to senior Scott Martin for Big East play, with Tim Abromaitis long gone after tearing his ACL — practices had a subtle soundtrack change.
"When we would call a set, instead of me saying it, I'd say it through him and let him voice it," Brey said. "Just trying to empower his voice. He's got such a good feel for how we want to play. He understands how to quarterback us now."
Consider one sequence in a win Feb. 18 at Villanova: Atkins made an adjustment late in the shot clock and freshman Pat Connaughton curled to a spot instead of fading, and he missed an off-rhythm 3-pointer when Atkins kicked it out.
"He says something to me and the next play, of course I faded, he found me and I hit a 3," Connaughton said. "His understanding of the game really lets us all flow."
Notre Dame's fulcrum in Atkins' first season was the combustible Ben Hansbrough. When the moment screamed for a stabilizing force this year, the Irish turned to a player of less flammable material.
Atkins barks occasionally but more often takes the quieter approach, evenly bending teammates' ears with directions, and everyone follows because it turns out he usually knows the way to go.
"I'm still a pull-a-guy-over type," Atkins said. "That's my method. That's how they seem to respond to me a little better. I'm still talking to them the same, and we're winning. So just keep it up."
bchamilton@tribune.com
Twitter @ChiTribHamilton
Copyright © 2012, Chicago Tribune
BABOOM!
WOW! Thanks so much for posting this article!!! This little bit of reading really proves to me that the players run the show and Brey does nothing. I am actually going to use this article when coaching my team this season. No more teaching my point gds. how to run our sets and make calls on the fly. Every possession I will have them look over to me and I will call the set out....#1, Thumbs up, thumbs down, fist, pat the head, pull the jersey....all sets will be run through me. Amazing that ND got to 2 elite 8's and won an ACC title...all anyone has to do is read this article and you can see..."It's all Eric"! Thanks for printing this....
"IMO if they look the same in practice and it comes down to how they play in games ..... Zaire should start .... he is older .... likely more mature .... and Kizer has shown to be more likely to turn it over .... some of his turnovers were god awful." Coach Cockroach
Another quote from super-coach.
Kizer's stats: 215 yds passing, 5 td's, ZERO turnovers
77 yds rushing, 1 td, ZERO turnovers.
Sure, lets's start Zaire. He's older.
Another quote from super-coach.
Kizer's stats: 215 yds passing, 5 td's, ZERO turnovers
77 yds rushing, 1 td, ZERO turnovers.
Sure, lets's start Zaire. He's older.
MZ is a leader, an over the top guy who will not be put on iggy so HCBK, it seems, could not feel comfortable unless he gave the guy a fighting chance,,,, which calls into question Kelly's emotion / judgment ratio...
Whaaaaaaa!!!
215 yards passing, five touchdowns, no turnovers, added 77 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
or... was that Texas game just a scrimmage ????
Whaaaaaaa!!!
215 yards passing, five touchdowns, no turnovers, added 77 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
or... was that Texas game just a scrimmage ????
I get that you know nothing about any sport .... got it .... over and over again ..... ELite 8's had nothing to do with elite talent ... I see even Auguste was offered a contract .... that would make 4 NBA players .... if you are going to have somebody run the show .... better them than Brey .... it was all Eric .... even when the players tell you ... you can't comprehend it ..... no better proof though .... none
Try not typing in jibberish ...you need that hooked on phonics ... apparently if Kizer was the man he should've played the whole game .... which would've been better than 2 guys .... like I always said .... good to see enough time has passed so you could come out of your hole ..... let me guess .... another family tragedy happened .... LOL!
Bodizephax
I've posted how many times?
Buguit, laughing at someone's "Family tragedies" is beneath an Irish fan. Good Lord. I pray for your soul.
Buguit is a clown. Always has been. He only shows up when the Irish lose a game.
I get that you know nothing about any sport .... got it .... over and over again ..... ELite 8's had nothing to do with elite talent ... I see even Auguste was offered a contract .... that would make 4 NBA players .... if you are going to have somebody run the show .... better them than Brey .... it was all Eric .... even when the players tell you ... you can't comprehend it ..... no better proof though .... none
Hey I emailed Coach Kelly and told him you could help him out. He was pumped. He said his basement toilet has been clogged for about a month, so get your ass over there asap and take care of it for him.
BTW...awesome call on saying Zaire should be the starter. You really nailed that one. And just take notice to the hordes of people agreeing with you after that asshat article you posted. Only a moron like yourself would read that it says Brey doesn't coach the team. But, you'll post anything from a sportswriter to help fit your narrative. I recall an idiot-laden article from Yardbarker that you believed...
IJ...you are correct....absolutely nobody on this website respects or likes this turd. Why would a person continue to post on a site when they know they are going to get laughed at and abused? He must really be starving for attention...
You are absolutely correct. Remember it gets really lonely in his mama's basement.
Buguit, laughing at someone's "Family tragedies" is beneath an Irish fan. Good Lord. I pray for your soul.
Laughing at someone's tragedy would be in poor taste ... alas ... when ND got bounced in the 1st round this guy disappeared .... of course .... like always .... then came back and said .... "oh ... my son got really sick and I had to rush over to him" .... then later claimed .."it was his daughter in Europe that got in a car accident." .... he lies so often he can't keep'em straight. So it is actually funny
You wish that were true ..... irony here is how you disappeared until now .... the joke ... which is you continues ... tell us where you've been ....
Given he won the job when both healthy among a bunch of other reasons that are beyond your mentality ... Zaire made sense ..... I don't expect you to understand
It wasn't an article that said Brey doesn't coach the team .... it was the players themselves saying it (quoted so) in an article .... and it was The South Bend Tribune
Next
When I see you two showing up just to cast insults and swear .... it warms my heart to see you show people how classy you are ... Mama's basement? ... all 12 year olds will get the humor in that ...
Given he won the job when both healthy among a bunch of other reasons that are beyond your mentality ... Zaire made sense ..... I don't expect you to understand
It wasn't an article that said Brey doesn't coach the team .... it was the players themselves saying it (quoted so) in an article .... and it was The South Bend Tribune
Next
So find FIVE posters out of over 80,000 subscribers on this website to agree that the asshat article you posted is proof that Brey doesn't coach the team and I will stop posting. I have stated before, anyone involved in coaching who believes anything of what the read in the paper is a moron, anyone who believes anything of what they hear is an idiot. You have got both those bases covered fully! I believe what I SEE, because I do it for a living. You sit at the end of a bar and converse with some other hand jobs. Again...find 5...shouldn't be too hard should it?
Bodizephax
I've posted how many times?
The old "I am have no idea what you guys are talking about but i am going to stick my big Pom Pom nose into it anyway, then wind up saying I was just joking when I am proved to be a horses A$$" The oldest trick in the book.I was just messing with you Buguit.
I found something better than 5 posters .... I found 2 players for ND that say so ..... how's that humble pie taste? ...
WOW...1am in the morning and this moron has nothing better to do in his life than to post on an anonymous message board. Dude...that's why the Playboy Channel was invented. I mean really...your life doesn't suck??? Tell ya what...if I ever have nothing better to do at 1am on a weekend than to respond to this asshat....my next move is to put my Glock 9mm in my mouth. BTW...looks like HORDES of people are agreeing with your posts. LOTS OF PEOPLE AGREE WITH ME!!! lmao...1am in the morning! Unreal....this guy goes to bed thinking about me...
You are such an A-hole!I found something better than 5 posters .... I found 2 players for ND that say so ..... how's that humble pie taste? ...
Go back to mama's basement.
Bugnut is nothing more then an A-Hole. His mama doesn't even like the little turd.
I don't know what is funnier ... the fact that you've lost your mind or that your other buddy likes it .... LOL!
Sounds like and angry old man to me .... and classy ..... How come your cyberbuddy didn't like your post ? ... C'mon!
Posts like yours are what tells me I won this discussion .... if you want to call it one
Sounds like and angry old man to me .... and classy ..... How come your cyberbuddy didn't like your post ? ... C'mon!
Posts like yours are what tells me I won this discussion .... if you want to call it one
If it makes you happy, you won the discussion. Everyone knows in that poor pathetic life of yours winning a discussion on an anonymous message board is really important to you. Now you can go down to Chico's...buy a few victory suds for the other hand jobs you pal with, go home and dance around the house yelling, "I won, I won!" But please try and get some sleep tonite....don't be posting at all hours cuz you have absolutely nothing better to do...BTW...it looks like Kizer really stunk up the joint on Saturday. "Zaire should start, he's older!" LMAO....you know squat about coaching...
Former NFL head coach Bill Walsh once famously said that ten years in any position means that it is time to look elsewhere.
The college basketball world has seen this in full effect thus far this offseason. Former Pittsburgh head coach Jamie Dixon left the Panthers for his alma mater TCU after 13 seasons in the Steel City. He was replaced by Kevin Stallings, who left Vanderbilt after 17 seasons as the Commodores' head coach. Both Dixon and Stallings left their schools on their own terms, moving to similar jobs for a fresh start.
But take the case of Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey, who has just completed his 16th season in South Bend. Rather than the typical stress and staleness that comes with a decade-plus tenure, Brey has never been looked at more favorably, by both Irish fans and the national media, and his program has never been in better shape.
Let's be clear. Two years ago, this story would be an entirely different one. Many thought, following his worst season ever in South Bend, the end was inevitable for Brey at Notre Dame. After the previous 13 years of just one appearance in the Sweet 16 and zero in any conference tournament finals, the 2013-2014 Irish and their sub-.500 record may have been just about the breaking point.
What has happened since has been among the best two-year stretches in program history. The return of Jerian Grant. The rise of Demetrius Jackson. Pat Connaughton's leadership, Bonzie Colson's exuberance, Zach Auguste's intensity. Steve Vasturia from the corner in Greensboro. V.J. Beachem's perfect game against Michigan. Rex Pflueger and the tip.
All of this has resulted in a program-best 56 wins over two seasons, back-to-back Elite 8s, two ACC Tournament double-byes, two (soon to be three) NBA draft picks, and, of course, an ACC Championship. As his tenure was supposed to be coming to an end, Mike Brey has been too busy hanging banners and bringing home trophies.
What makes Mike Brey such an exception? For coaches of the blue bloods, Coaches Krzyzewski, Boeheim, Pitino, or Izzo, the answer is pretty easy. You win a championship at a place where you are given ample opportunity to do so. But for a coach like Brey at much less of a basketball destination, where tournament appearances and occasional draft picks are accomplishments, where your practice "facility" is aptly named The Pit, and where you aren't just playing second fiddle to football, you're barely in the same orchestra?
Of course Dixon and Stallings left. At some point, it becomes impossible to keep meeting ever-increasing standards, standards that you have raised by out-performing your school's historical norms. Brey faced this as well, as after 14 seasons, Brey's 9 tournament appearances were just not enough, despite the fact that Notre Dame missed the tournament for a full decade before his arrival.
But instead of changing jobs, Brey changed himself. The famous switch from mock-turtleneck to button-down portended a shift from Brey's tighter days earlier in his tenure to that of the "loosest coach in America", and his team has followed suit. He's funnier. He's more honest. His energy on the sidelines is different. In one game, you can find him tearing off his suit jacket, joking with the halftime reporter, pumping up the crowd, laughing off a bad stretch, and cheerleading his team coming back to the huddle.
Credit Jack Swarbrick for giving Brey a decade-long extension a few years ago to allow Brey to be more comfortable in his own skin. It's no coincidence that since that extension, Brey and Notre Dame have enjoyed nearly unprecedented accomplishments, and we need to look no further than his energy on the sidelines to figure out why.
Look at the Notre Dame bench when Steve Vasturia hits the game-tying three in last year's ACC Championship game - for my money, the greatest single play in program history. You don't often see a bench burst with that much sheer enthusiasm for a mid-second-half three, including and especially the head coach. You also don't often see a 24-2 run in a conference championship game to cut down the nets.
Or look at Brey laugh off a rough offensive first half against Wisconsin in this year's Sweet 16 match-up (around 1:14 in the video). A lesser coach would be screaming, lecturing, or grasping to find the right words. Not Brey. His calm, composure, and confidence permeated his locker room and stayed with them on the court, where Notre Dame's 8-0 run for the ages in the final minute earned them another Elite 8 appearance.
How about Mike Brey giggling and riling up his team as the ACC quarterfinal against Duke headed to overtime? It's no wonder his team came back from 16 down and dominated the overtime period. It's also no wonder his team has gone 13-2 in overtime games in the past five seasons, or that it has gone 5-1 against Duke and the much stiffer Coach K since joining the ACC.
The attitude of this team is just different than it ever has been. In 2013, Notre Dame collapsed under the weight of its own pressure after constantly talking about how important getting to the Sweet 16 was for them. They were, of course, thoroughly embarrassed by Iowa State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
In 2011, the pressure to get to Saturday night in the Garden caused them to slip up in the second half against Louisville despite having dominated that game, tournament, and most of the season up until that point. They could never recover, and that season's eventual second round beating at the hands of Florida State has loomed large over any discussion of Brey's tenure.
You can tell similar stories of losses against Xavier, Winthrop, Old Dominion, or Washington State, a team so visibly rattled on the biggest stage that it became just a shell of its otherwise talented and accomplished self. But now, the culture inside Notre Dame basketball is an entirely different one. Now, we've seen wins all over Tobacco Road. An overtime win over Butler and second half dominance over Wichita State. The comeback kids against Michigan, Stephen F. Austin, and Wisconsin. Three nights in Greensboro that included convincing wins over Duke and North Carolina.
A guy that was an NCAA Tournament mainstay, at a program where that is already nearly impossible, managed to top himself and turn his team into a force come March, in a new conference no less. After 14 years, a coach just does not lead that kind of turnaround. Not unless it's a truly special coach that is willing to change himself in order to change his program for the better. Dixon and Stallings could not do that. Others like Leonard Hamilton, Thad Matta, John Thompson III, and Lorenzo Romar are reaching similar breaking points at their programs.
Unfortunately for fans of those programs, there is only one Mike Brey, and the Irish are lucky to have him.
On second thought...I win.....BABOOOOOOOOOOM!
The college basketball world has seen this in full effect thus far this offseason. Former Pittsburgh head coach Jamie Dixon left the Panthers for his alma mater TCU after 13 seasons in the Steel City. He was replaced by Kevin Stallings, who left Vanderbilt after 17 seasons as the Commodores' head coach. Both Dixon and Stallings left their schools on their own terms, moving to similar jobs for a fresh start.
But take the case of Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey, who has just completed his 16th season in South Bend. Rather than the typical stress and staleness that comes with a decade-plus tenure, Brey has never been looked at more favorably, by both Irish fans and the national media, and his program has never been in better shape.
Let's be clear. Two years ago, this story would be an entirely different one. Many thought, following his worst season ever in South Bend, the end was inevitable for Brey at Notre Dame. After the previous 13 years of just one appearance in the Sweet 16 and zero in any conference tournament finals, the 2013-2014 Irish and their sub-.500 record may have been just about the breaking point.
What has happened since has been among the best two-year stretches in program history. The return of Jerian Grant. The rise of Demetrius Jackson. Pat Connaughton's leadership, Bonzie Colson's exuberance, Zach Auguste's intensity. Steve Vasturia from the corner in Greensboro. V.J. Beachem's perfect game against Michigan. Rex Pflueger and the tip.
All of this has resulted in a program-best 56 wins over two seasons, back-to-back Elite 8s, two ACC Tournament double-byes, two (soon to be three) NBA draft picks, and, of course, an ACC Championship. As his tenure was supposed to be coming to an end, Mike Brey has been too busy hanging banners and bringing home trophies.
What makes Mike Brey such an exception? For coaches of the blue bloods, Coaches Krzyzewski, Boeheim, Pitino, or Izzo, the answer is pretty easy. You win a championship at a place where you are given ample opportunity to do so. But for a coach like Brey at much less of a basketball destination, where tournament appearances and occasional draft picks are accomplishments, where your practice "facility" is aptly named The Pit, and where you aren't just playing second fiddle to football, you're barely in the same orchestra?
Of course Dixon and Stallings left. At some point, it becomes impossible to keep meeting ever-increasing standards, standards that you have raised by out-performing your school's historical norms. Brey faced this as well, as after 14 seasons, Brey's 9 tournament appearances were just not enough, despite the fact that Notre Dame missed the tournament for a full decade before his arrival.
But instead of changing jobs, Brey changed himself. The famous switch from mock-turtleneck to button-down portended a shift from Brey's tighter days earlier in his tenure to that of the "loosest coach in America", and his team has followed suit. He's funnier. He's more honest. His energy on the sidelines is different. In one game, you can find him tearing off his suit jacket, joking with the halftime reporter, pumping up the crowd, laughing off a bad stretch, and cheerleading his team coming back to the huddle.
Credit Jack Swarbrick for giving Brey a decade-long extension a few years ago to allow Brey to be more comfortable in his own skin. It's no coincidence that since that extension, Brey and Notre Dame have enjoyed nearly unprecedented accomplishments, and we need to look no further than his energy on the sidelines to figure out why.
Look at the Notre Dame bench when Steve Vasturia hits the game-tying three in last year's ACC Championship game - for my money, the greatest single play in program history. You don't often see a bench burst with that much sheer enthusiasm for a mid-second-half three, including and especially the head coach. You also don't often see a 24-2 run in a conference championship game to cut down the nets.
Or look at Brey laugh off a rough offensive first half against Wisconsin in this year's Sweet 16 match-up (around 1:14 in the video). A lesser coach would be screaming, lecturing, or grasping to find the right words. Not Brey. His calm, composure, and confidence permeated his locker room and stayed with them on the court, where Notre Dame's 8-0 run for the ages in the final minute earned them another Elite 8 appearance.
How about Mike Brey giggling and riling up his team as the ACC quarterfinal against Duke headed to overtime? It's no wonder his team came back from 16 down and dominated the overtime period. It's also no wonder his team has gone 13-2 in overtime games in the past five seasons, or that it has gone 5-1 against Duke and the much stiffer Coach K since joining the ACC.
The attitude of this team is just different than it ever has been. In 2013, Notre Dame collapsed under the weight of its own pressure after constantly talking about how important getting to the Sweet 16 was for them. They were, of course, thoroughly embarrassed by Iowa State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
In 2011, the pressure to get to Saturday night in the Garden caused them to slip up in the second half against Louisville despite having dominated that game, tournament, and most of the season up until that point. They could never recover, and that season's eventual second round beating at the hands of Florida State has loomed large over any discussion of Brey's tenure.
You can tell similar stories of losses against Xavier, Winthrop, Old Dominion, or Washington State, a team so visibly rattled on the biggest stage that it became just a shell of its otherwise talented and accomplished self. But now, the culture inside Notre Dame basketball is an entirely different one. Now, we've seen wins all over Tobacco Road. An overtime win over Butler and second half dominance over Wichita State. The comeback kids against Michigan, Stephen F. Austin, and Wisconsin. Three nights in Greensboro that included convincing wins over Duke and North Carolina.
A guy that was an NCAA Tournament mainstay, at a program where that is already nearly impossible, managed to top himself and turn his team into a force come March, in a new conference no less. After 14 years, a coach just does not lead that kind of turnaround. Not unless it's a truly special coach that is willing to change himself in order to change his program for the better. Dixon and Stallings could not do that. Others like Leonard Hamilton, Thad Matta, John Thompson III, and Lorenzo Romar are reaching similar breaking points at their programs.
Unfortunately for fans of those programs, there is only one Mike Brey, and the Irish are lucky to have him.
On second thought...I win.....BABOOOOOOOOOOM!
If it makes you happy, you won the discussion. Everyone knows in that poor pathetic life of yours winning a discussion on an anonymous message board is really important to you. Now you can go down to Chico's...buy a few victory suds for the other hand jobs you pal with, go home and dance around the house yelling, "I won, I won!" But please try and get some sleep tonite....don't be posting at all hours cuz you have absolutely nothing better to do...BTW...it looks like Kizer really stunk up the joint on Saturday. "Zaire should start, he's older!" LMAO....you know squat about coaching...[/QU
If we both agree I won ... great ... you can stop whining and showing your classy side to the world .... and no where in that article does it say Brey coached .... it also doesn't say that the roster was chock full of NBA talent .... more blathering and proving me right .... thx again ...
If we both agree I won ... great ... you can stop whining and showing your classy side to the world .... and no where in that article does it say Brey coached .... it also doesn't say that the roster was chock full of NBA talent .... more blathering and proving me right .... thx again ...
