I'm a little forgiving toward fans under the age of 30.

I'm a little forgiving toward fans under the age of 30.
by RallyingSon (2018-12-14 11:14:50)
Edited on 2018-12-14 17:05:31

In reply to: NFTG: He Ain't Heavy, He's My History (link) posted by El Kabong

Post Reply Return to Rock's House

We have an entire generation of fans who have never seen ND win a major bowl game. Some of them don't even seem to realize that winning such games used to be considered a goal at Notre Dame. I have already read multiple comments on other Internet forums complaining that we can't recruit the same players as Clemson and that Dabo is dirty. Therefore this will have been one of ND's greatest ever seasons, even if Notre Dame loses in a blowout.

Many young ND grads say, without irony, that their greatest memory as a fan is losing to USC in 2005 or tailgating in Miami before being decimated by Alabama. Part of me can't really blame them.

What annoys the hell out of me, however, is when fans (of any age) take as their starting point the a priori belief that Brian Kelly is a legendary coach. It then becomes necessary to tear down the accomplishments of Holtz, Ara, and Devine by comparing them disparagingly to Kelly.

If you're going to make a statement comparing Holtz and Kelly, have the decency to do your research and educate yourself about the strength of schedule Notre Dame teams used to play.

During Holtz's run of 24-1 he played eight teams that finished in the AP top-10. He beat seven of them. Two of the opponents he beat were ranked number one at the time of the game. Two of the wins were on the road (against #2 at-the-time-of-the-game USC and #2 Michigan). Holtz beat a ninth team that was ranked in the top-10 at the time of the game but finished "only" #17. He won by a score of 45-7.

During Brian Kelly's current run of 22-3 he has beaten two top-10ish caliber teams. Last year's USC team finished #12 in the AP and #10 in the coaches'. This year's Michigan team will finish in the top-10 if they beat Florida.

During the last two years Kelly has one road win against a team that was ranked at the time of the game: #24 Virginia Tech. The Hokies are a poor team that probably shouldn't have been ranked then and have no prayer of finishing the season ranked. Last year's MSU road win was certainly solid; they ended up ranked #15 in the final AP poll. Oh by the way, I haven't even mentioned that Holtz went to Happy Valley in 1989 and beat a Penn State team that finished #15.

But yeah, Holtz sucked because he lost in 1989 to eventual national champion Miami, the 1980s version of Alabama. And though it was a sound beating, it was a fuck of a lot more competitive than the game Kelly mailed-in against Miami last year. The same Miami team that went on to lose their last three games and finish outside the top-10.

This is why it is critical ND beats Clemson.

We need to end the spiral of death and create at least one data point for anyone 30 or younger on WTF ND football really was, is now and should remain every single year under proper management.

Even if we follow that with a loss in the title game, winning a real game to get into the title game will go a long way toward changing the future arc of the program -- especially within the media.

Reality is anyone under age 40 doesn't know true ND football. They were 1-10 years old when Holtz had ND at it's peak and 8-10 years old is about the earliest age kids really remember well.

I agree.

A lot of planets aligned this year. A ton of upper-class defensive talent. Many of the "name" opponents having down years, especially FSU and USC. The toughest road game being Northwestern. A quarterback that fits the kind of offense Kelly wants to run (and well-coached, to the credit of Kelly and Rees).

It would be a shame to let this opportunity go to waste. You never know how long it will take to get back.

And I actually think on paper Clemson is the best match-up we have had in a major bowl since Holtz. An arguable exception is Ohio State in Weis's first year. But I think there was a bigger talent disparity between those teams.

2005 issue was they had no defense

There wasn't a talent gap for the starting units. If Weis had any kind of defense at all those first two teams would have been as good as any Holtz had.

My daughter texted me from the USC game during the 1st half

when ND was trailing 10-0.....

"this is more like the ND I remember".

I felt for a moment like I saddled her with a weight.

You misspelled 70 *

I tend to agree

I was in Dallas in January of 1994.

I know how young I was then, versus now.

I remember early season losses to Michigan and NW, which were crushing, because it most likely meant that winning the national title was out of the question.

That was the expectation going into every season, and it was disappointing when we didn't get there.

That said, people shouldn't confuse disappointment with not enjoying the season.

I enjoyed the shit out of the 1995 season, and we lost 3 games. Tom Krug damn near pulled it off against FSU. It was a fun season, especially destroying Texas.

But I understand. Someone born in January of 1994 is coming up on being 25 years old right now. Everything about the great ND teams transpired before they were ever born.

But I think "forgiving" is right. This isn't their fault. It's Notre Dame's for letting it come to this.