Thursday Tidbits—Wisconsin
Happy Thursday - These are your Thursday Tidbits - Wisconsin
Team 138
Notre Dame begins its 138th football season on Sunday with high expectations. According to DraftKings, the Irish are +600 to win the national championship (second only to Ohio). They also have a nation’s leading 88% chance of making the playoffs according to The Athletic.
If all goes as planned, Marcus Freeman (43-12) will surpass both Elmer Layden (47-13-3) and Dan Devine (53-16-1) in victories sometime in November, becoming the sixth winningest coach in program history.
CJ Carr enters the season as the Heisman favorite by DraftKings (+700) with a 13% chance to win the award. The last player to successfully buck the “preseason favorite curse” was Marcus Mariota in 2014. There are also a slew of other Irishmen on multiple preseason awards watchlists.
Captains
ND named four captains for this year’s team. Both Drayk Bowen and Adon Shuler are returning captains from last season. On the offensive side of the ball, there really was no question that CJ Carr has been a leader on this team for quite some time. He is joined by former walk-on Jordan Faison, who, by the way, knows what it takes to be a national champion at Notre Dame.
Lambeau
Built in 1957 as City Stadium, Lambeau Field was named for Earl “Curly” Lambeau in 1965. Beyond being a founder of the Packers, a player coach for eleven seasons, and head coach for another thirty while winning six NFL championships, he played for Knute Rockne for one season, missing the following spring with tonsillitis, never returning to school at ND.
Lambeau has an official seating capacity of more than 81,000. For Sunday’s game, 30,000 seats were given to the UW faithful. This is only the 5th time in history that the Irish have played in the Badger State.
Fans at an average Packers home game consume 7,900 brats and 10,650 hot dogs. While stats on beer sales aren’t publicly available, the combination of Wisconsin and the Fighting Irish promises to push the limits.
Freak out
Prior to each season, The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman publishes his annual “Freaks List” that highlights weight room exploits of players around the country. This year, four Fighting Irish make the list.
Pitt transfer Francis Brewu, Notre Dame, DT is benching 500 lbs while squatting 685 lbs;
Bryce Young at 6-6, 260 improved his broad jump from 9-5 to 10-2;
Anthonie Knapp improved his athleticism this offseason, hitting a 33-inch vertical jump as well as a 9-2 broad jump. He cleaned 345 pounds, squatted 585 and benched 405;
Finally, Elijah Hughes, at 300 pounds, broad jumped 9-9 1/2 this offseason. He also vertical jumped 33 inches, squatted 610 pounds and cleaned 345.
Hopefully this “freakishness” will show in a positive way for the Irish on the field.
On Wisconsin!
The Badgers are coming off a 4-8 season where they averaged 12.8 points per game and were last or near last among all power four teams in yards per game, first downs, passing yards, and plays over ten yards. They added 34 players (3rd most) in the transfer portal, including Colton Joseph (Old Dominion), a dual threat QB (think Riley Leonard-lite) who will lead what should be a much improved team. Fortunately, for the Irish, they are getting Joseph in his first big-time game.
The defense last season was respectable and they expect to have a formidable pass rush this season. Their linebackers and leading tacklers (#’s 56 & 61), are back, further solidifying a better than good rush defense. They held three of their last four opponents to 17 points or less. They will likely challenge the Irish early.
The media predicts them to finish 12th in the 18 team B1G, while Vegas projects an over/under of 6.5 wins. It is no secret that their coach, Luke Fickell is on the hot seat, and nothing will cool it more than a victory over his former player and defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman. Wisconsin will likely be the fourth best team the Irish face this season.
UW begins its 138th season, and is one of only 26 college programs with 700 or more wins. They have one NCAA-designated National Championship (1942), however the school does not claim it. Their coach that season was Four Horseman Harry Stuhldreher.
While many think the school’s nickname — the Badgers — is a salute to the weasel family, it actually originates from the prospectors who came to the state in the 1820’s searching for minerals, living “like badgers” in hillside tunnels.
The game
Sunday night will mark the 18th meeting between Notre Dame and Wisconsin, but only the second time the two sides have met since 1964 (Ara’s first game as Notre Dame coach). The Irish lead the all-time series 9-6-2. This game, only the third ever college game played in Lambeau Field, becomes the ninth unique venue used for a Shamrock Series game. The game was originally scheduled to be played in 2020 and was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Irish are 12-0 in the Shamrock Series.
ND will sport “deep blue” home uniforms paying homage to the 1920’s ACME Packers. There are eleven shamrocks on the back collar, representing Notre Dame’s consensus national championships. For the season, the gold helmets will adorn a “Lou” sticker honoring the legacy of Coach Holtz.
The Irish enter the game favored by nearly three touchdowns. Fans are asked to wear blue to create a “blue-out” game.
One of the biggest questions facing ND this season is how will the departure of Price and Love, both first round NFL picks, impact the offense. Wisconsin offers a barometer. Their rush defense is very good. Can ND, with a reconstructed offensive line and a new rushing backfield move the ball in the run game? A big day here, and Irish eyes should be smiling.
Since Freeman became Notre Dame’s head coach, just three Power 4 teams (Iowa and Va. Tech) have failed to have a wide receiver hit 50 catches in a season. One would think that a CJ Carr led offense will change this trajectory. Sunday’s game will hopefully shed light here as well.
Wisconsin’s offensive line is rumored to be injury-riddled, setting up the potential for a defensive highlight reel. Colton Joseph is a dangerous runner, and he will be doing a lot of it on Sunday (some by design). He also has accuracy challenges, so the best secondary in the country should have some fun.
The Irish are 20.5 point favorites with an O/U of 41.5. Expect some first game jitters and mistakes, however the game never should be in doubt — Irish 31-7.
Those are your Thursday Tidbits - Wisconsin
Stay thirsty, my friends.
Go Otters and Go Irish!