This blog shall live...barely

Hey kids,

It's been quite awhile. What can I say, school got real, then...well...umm yah, just kind of got out of the habit. Let's see if we can't wake this baby up a lil bit with all kinds of fun shall we:

Topic 1: Hawaii Bowl
Well, ND beat the hell out of Hawaii. Honestly it was fun to finally see the Notre Dame team I had expected all year to finally show up. HOWEVAH, for people who are saying that CW has shown a clear turnaround and solved all the problems, slow your roll. Yes, it was a big win, the streak of bowl futility is over, you get a defacto recruiting trip with the whole team for your top remaining prospect, you shellacked an opponent 49-21 on National TV when there were no other options on (well, except that whole Christmas thing I guess, but how many people haven't seen Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer by now). At the same time, this win came over a WAC team, not only was it a WAC team, but they were a (7-6) WAC team...not exactly a high caliber opponent there. Another storyline that needs to wait is that Jimmy Clausen finally figured it out. Dude had an absolutely sick game 22/26, 401 Yds, 5 TDs, 0 picks. You would be hard pressed to do better. In fact, because I loved it, let's see some video:

Buckets

Once again, you can see the theme developing of 7 to 23 for 6. It's one I hope to see many more times next year. Not to be outdone, Armando Allen decided to bust out this beauty:

The frustrating thing about this game is the fact that it took 13 games for the offense to finally click the way it should have. Do I feel great about the future? No doubt. ND returns most of its playmakers on both sides of the ball against a weak schedule. Further, the recruiting class is full of talent and hopefully will add a couple more before National Signing Day (please Manti Te'o please Manti Te'o please Manti Te'o).

There are still plenty of questions surrounding this team however. As many ND fans have called for in the past (including me here) coaching changes were finally made. Latina (OL) and Oliver (DL) have both "left" while Mike Haywood (RB/OC) has taken the head job at Miami(OH). A few replacements have already been made. The OL will now be headed by John Verducci (BGS take) while Tony Alford will take over the RB spot (UND story). These were a few changes that HAD to happen if Charlie was going to keep his job. Both new coaches are solid replacements who hopefully will get the job done. This is really all that there is to say at this point. So I will put ND to bed at least until NSD.

Topic #2: San Antonio Spurs
I feel bad for not having written anything about the Spurs really to this point. That doesn't mean that I haven't been watching. Not at all. This is the first year I've had NBA League Pass so I have actually watched more ball this year than I ever have before. It's a fantastic investment btw if you are an NBA fan. With the injuries the Spurs had at the beginning of the year, missing 2 of the Big 3, I feared the worst. Tim Duncan put up an amazing effort to keep the team afloat until reinforcements arrived and is well deservingly at the top of the Western conference Forward All Star voting (as of last check). However, two players have really stepped up that I want to mention...and eat some crow.

I have blasted the George Hill pick since draft day. I was angry that once again the Spurs didn't go with a guy from a big name school (such as Mario Chalmers or Darrell Arthur who I begged for). While his numbers right now may not blow your mind, watching his play has been fantastic. He has improved significantly already since the beginning of the year and gave solid minutes to a team that desperately needed him to step up while Tony Parker was out with an injury. Part of me still wishes that one of the Jayhawks names were called on draft night, but Hill has been great this year and I humbly apologize for doubting the Spurs staff and juding Hill before giving him a real chance (since I know both are reading).

The biggest addition for the Spurs this year in my opinion however is the dagger bringer, the heart breaker, the sun darkening, no fear, clutch shooting machine that is Roger Mason Jr. Why talk when I can just embed Youtube. First, one of my best Christmas presents:

Second, a huge shot against arguably (I say easily, too many big series over the last decade) our biggest rivals answering a sick shot by one of the games best

Roger Mason doesn't need Jobu or dancing Kobe(if you click no other hyperlink click this one for the vid, hilarity) he just needs a portion of a second. Mason's play has been huge, especially filling in for an ailing Manu who is just now regaining his stride (that Lakers game being the real sign of his comeback). Mase has been a huge boost to the Spurs O that has been surprisingly high scoring this year.

While the Spurs are up at the top of the standings right now, that doesn't mean that things are all bright and cheery. The defense of the Spurs has been...well, in the words of Pop himself: “We suck on ‘D,'” Popovich said, with the “D” standing for defense. (full article here) Knowing the Spurs though, this problem should be fixed come playoff time so I'm not too concerned.

I will try and come back later this week with some general NBA thoughts and NFL as well. Consider this last hiatus a winter break, I'll try to be back to at least 2 posts a week, at least until finals time again. As always please leave thoughts, questions, concerns, praise, or insults in the comments. Gooooooodnight now