Print Edition for The Observer for September 16, 2022 by The Observer

GRAPHICS BY MAGGIE KLAERS,

| The Observer

PHOTO BY MAX PETROSKY

“I think a lot of the times that it comes down to the guys, we all love each other so much that we wanna make the play,” bauer said. “And not for some selfish reason or something. It’s ‘we want to win the game together to see our broth ers happy and successful’ and we just kind of have to make the game smaller. Just, ‘look, what’s my job this play’ and do that over and over and over again.”

“It all starts with me,” r ees said. “I have to be better, I have to do more to make sure everybody knows what is ex pected and what needs to be done. We are extremely driven to make sure that we will fix what we need to.”

After a devastating defeat against unranked m arshall, the Irish are looking to re group and revitalize this weekend at home against c al. The loss of sophomore starting quarterback Tyler b uchner due to injury threw an even bigger wrench for the Irish. b oth the defense and offense came out flat in last week’s game. And there is a dire need for improvement on both sides of the ball.

d rew’s care factor is about as high as anyone you can be around,” r ees said. “I told d rew, we are in a tough spot right now and we need you here. d rew knows the play book and has respect for his teammates. h e’s prepared himself for this for a long time.”Though this new change will certainly shake things up on offense, r ees foresees it as a way to pivot and create en hanced offensive play.

Golden, rees coordinate plans for major changes

“There’s certainly things that Tyler does at a high level that we’ll adjust to or pivot from,” r ees said. “We have a lot of faith and trust in d rew, and we are building that in s teve Angeli right now. o ur job is to make sure these two guys are ready to go and play in a football game.”

o ffensive coordinator Tommy r ees and defensive coordinator Al Golden shared similar sentiments about their mindsets and where they hope to go. Taking ac countability and standing be hind m arcus Freeman and the team, both coaches are deter mined to reverse the mistakes that were made the last two weeks.

see FeATUre PAGE 14

By EMILY DeFAZIO Associate sports e ditor

The observer | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com2 INSIdER

‘It all starts with me’

r ees recognizes that the success of the offense stems

passes coupled with the lack of holes created by the offen sive line made it difficult for the Irish to move the chains. With b uchner out, however, junior quarterback d rew Pyne could be the switch the Irish need. e xperienced and ready to assume b uchner’s role as starting quarterback, Pyne brings a different perspective to the table.

from him, and he takes own ership of the team’s perfor mance. r ees’ play calling has been largely conservative, so it will be interesting to see what he does this weekend.

It’s no secret that, at 0-2, the notre dame football team is feel ing some pressure. And the leader ship position that being a captain of said team can certainly amplify thatThispressure.certainly rings true for 2022 captain bo bauer. After notre dame’s home opener loss against marshall, the fate of marcus Freeman’s debut season hangs in the balance. especially with soph omore starting quarterback Tyler buchner’s season-ending injury, the Irish have had to rethink their entire game plan moving forward.

d espite all the negatives on the offense, there were some good moments. r ees em phasized the importance of recognizing these positives to stay motivated and repli cate them while replacing the negatives.

For bauer, he has focused in on his role on defense. despite the de fense looking like the Irish’s strong

“It’s probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do in my life, is to walk around the locker room and look these guys in the eye who’ve given me the greatest gift, the greatest trust in my life to be a captain and lead these guys,” bauer said.The team bond has added an emotional level to the issues at hand. bauer said that the strong re lationships he and his teammates have with each other influence the push to make a play happen. This can also lead to a strong response when it does not go their way.

“

The n otre d ame offense has consistently fallen short this season. s hortcomings and red flags seen during the o hio s tate game were only exempli fied in the disappointing per formance against m arshall. b uchner’s inaccuracy on deep

In addition to restructuring the offense around junior drew Pyne, the defense has had to take a hard look at itself to see what needs improvement in order to prevent fourth-quarter games of catchup. For bauer, this review began with a self-evaluation as a player and a captain.“Thefirst thing I said is ‘what could I have done to, you know, get these guys to the point,’” bauer said. “We’ve had great leaders who have not let the standard fall. And now that’s on my shoulders.” such high standards make a tough loss like the one to marshall

MAX PETROSKY | The Observer

an even tough pill to swallow. bauer said that the days following marshall have been difficult. but that this defeat was also a motivat ing factor for him.

r ees “believe[s] there can be expansion in the play book” and must put players in a place that is advantageous to the offense. r unning back c hris Tyree, said to be a key asset for the n otre d ame of fense this year, has seen little action on the field.

‘Find the better way’: captain bo bauer talks qualities of leadership, ownership ahead of cal

Irish graduate student linebacker Bo Bauer, captain of the Notre Dame football team, snaps the football to the quarterback during Notre Dame’s game against Marshall. The Irish will face Cal on Saturday.

After the Irish fell to Marshall at their home opener, head coach Marcus Freeman faces the task of rallying his team to victory.

cAPTAIn FEATuRE

“We have to continue to find ways to get the guys who will make our offense more explo sive and get more touches,” r ees said. “Tyree certainly falls under that category.”

By MADELINE LADD Associate sports e ditor

SARAH GRISHAM | The Observer

coAch FEATuRE

nd l aw school ditches earlyseeactionadmissions

By EMMA DUFFY news writer

By RYAN PETERS notre dame news e ditor

New N d leprechauns discuss journeys

Out of the Darkness walk aids in suicide prevention

“mental health is

By MARISOL BOHORQUEZ news writer

By MEGHAN LANGE and KATIE MUCHNICK saint mary’s news e ditor, news writer

p revention. The foundation hosts these walks across the country and this year, st. Joseph c ounty is hosting one of these walks in howard p ark.director of the office for student involvement and advocacy l iz b aumann dis cussed the importance of this walk and why it can con nect well with students from the tri-campus community.

something that’s important for all of us and especially im portant for college students. There are numerous statistics out there on how prevalent suicidal ideation is for college students… being able to ex pand our suicide prevention efforts and education and ad vocacy is something i’m very passionate about and excited to be doing with this walk,”

paGe 4

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention hosts Out of the Darkness campus walks as a way to show that those suffering are not alone. More information can be found at afsp.org/campuswalks.

even leading to an appearance on “dancing with the stars.” despite the fame that arose from her burgeoning career, she could not profit off her name, image and likeness (nil) while in col lege, former notre dame quar terback brandon wimbush said.

a lums advise nil student athletesseeadvice

The independen T newspaper serving n o T re d ame, s ain T m ary’s and holy cross To uncover T he T ru T h and repor T i T accura T ely volume 57, issue 11 | friday, september 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com news paGe 3 scene paGe 9viewpoin T paGe 8 m soccer paGe 16FooT ball paGe 14

singing along to the fight song with his dad every saturday. during his sophomore year, coury worked for Fighting irish media as a cameraman. he loved capturing the students’ excitement at games, and he was inspired by the role that past leprechauns have played in bringing energy to the crowd.“irealized, man, it’s a lot easier to hype up a crowd without a camera on your shoulder,” coury said. after hearing about the tryouts from friends on the cheer team, coury decided to apply “kind of on a whim,” he said.

o n a ug. 31, n otre d ame l aw s chool announced that they will be terminating their early decision pro gram. This means that all prospective students will now have the ability to ap ply to the non-binding reg ular decision application. o ne’s interest in attending the law school will now no

MAX PETROSKY I The Observer

ryan Coury coury did not think he would one day be the Fighting irish mascot. coury grew up in phoenix, arizona, “bleeding gold and blue,” he said. his parents both attended notre dame, and he remembers

a s a part of suicide p revention month, the s outh b end community is passion ate to show support through the o ut of the d arkness walking event taking place this s Theaturday.outof the d arkness walk is a national initia tive put out by the a merican Foundation for suicide

see leprechaun paGe 5

see walK paGe 3

statement.dillon yang, president of n otre d ame l aw s chool s tudent b ar a ssociation, discussed how low-income students were at a disad vantage applying early

longer be shown through the time they apply, but inter est demonstrated in “ w hy n otre d ame l aw s chool?”

in 2018, a rike ogunbowale hit back-to-back game-winning buzzer beaters in the national semifinal and championship to earn the notre dame women’s basketball team its first national title since 2001.

The Leprechaun, Ryan Coury, leads the student section in cheers during the first home game of the season between Notre Dame and Marshall University at the crowded stadium on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022.

“her fame just kind of ex ploded from that point on, and

The Fighting irish welcome four new leprechauns for the 20222023 year. seniors Jake house and Jamison cook, junior ryan coury and sophomore colin mahoney were selected. all four will be en tering the role for the first time. The new leprechauns reflected on their paths to the green suit and their hopes for the year.

paGe 3

The historic feat further pro pelled ogunbowale to stardom,

Courtesy of American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

“in my mind, being a leprechaun was always a dream, but never

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what self-care looks like for you, and making a commitment to carve out time for that, I think is re ally important, especially with college students,” she said.registration for the event takes place at 9 a.m. and at 10 a.m., then the walk will pro ceed until 1 p.m.

“We’ve provided a very seam less and a holistic solution for all athletes to take advantage of their nIL in a reliable and a compliant manner,” he said. “We’re doing it the way that we think is right, and it’s going to provide value for athletes, universities, and all the rest of the stakeholders in the nIL space.”

s aint m ary’s students can access transportation from the student center at 9:30 a.m.

“Thedeals.number one largest prob lem is that athletes don’t have the time or the resources to source these deals and brands need a seamless and easy way to source the talent,” syal said. “so, we’re solving that problem, while also ensuring that athletes are navi gating the space in an educated way.”moGL currently works with over 5,000 athletes and 1,400 brands, syal, the company’s ceo, said. Athletes on the moGL platform are able to connect with both nationally recognized and local brands.

Contact Marisol Bohorquez mbohorquez01@saintmarys.eduat

moGL also facilitates deals for division II and III and junior col lege athletes. syal said studentathletes outside division I often experience success in the nIL marketplace because they have to be more proactive to connect with brands. Amherst college wide receiver Jack betts has be come commonly known as a leader in the nIL space and uses moGL for a large portion of his deals, syal said.

recognized and to be more of a priority in our day-to-day lives.“In normalizing mental health, I also want to help others see the importance of reaching out for help and that although a lot of ex periences are normal, it’s normal to feel homesick. It’s normal to be stressed about academics. It’s also not necessarily normal to be having suicidal thoughts,” she said. “And so, helping people recognize the signs in themselves and each other and therefore helping each

As a former student-athlete, Wimbush knows firsthand the reach student-athletes have in their communities, even though he was never able to profit off his nIL during his col lege career. he estimated that he would have made around $100,000 each year he was quarterback.“Itwasalways in the back of your head that you couldn’t make money,” Wimbush said. student-athletes have proven to be effective advertisers for all sorts of brands, syal said. Unlike traditional influencers with national or international followings, college athletes are well-known within their cam pus community and alumni base and thus can better con nect with potential customers, he“Atexplained.theend of the day, people actually know these studentathletes. They’re in class with them, they can resonate with them,” syal said. “so, what we’ve found is it really has provided an

“What we’ve seen is that ath letes have been really harmed by long term exclusivity clauses that really inhibit their ability to monetize their nIL in an effec tive way long term in favor of a short-term opportunity,” he said.

Wimbush said.

Contact Ryan Peters at rpeters5@nd.edu

Walk con TI n U ed F rom pAGe 1

Wimbush said although the future of the current wide open nIL world is uncertain, he said moGL has and will continue to allow student-athletes to take advantage of the ever-evolving market in a safe manner.

Using moGL is free for stu dent-athletes. moGL primarily

incredible amount of value to these brands directly.”

News3 ndsmcobserver.com | friday, september 16, 2022 | The observer

that really inhibit their ability to monetize their nIL in an effec tive way long term in favor of a short-term opportunity,” he said.

Additionally, athletes tend to sign exclusive deals with agents who take large portions of their revenue from marketing deals, when they could source the deal themselves, syal added. The nIL market is new and constantly evolving, Wimbush said, mak ing it difficult to project into the future.“Ido think it’s gonna continue to evolve. As legislation comes about there’s more regulations, there’s more guardrails,” he said. “It could be a good or bad thing.”

As nIL continues to grow, syal said moGL hopes to educate student-athletes as they navigate the wide-open marketplace. one concerning trend syal has no ticed is athletes often rush into deals without considering their long-term opportunities.

other and themselves get help is really, really important. “ s elf-care is incredibly im portant for students to par take in but as well as being honest with yourself as to what works best for you in times of destressing.baumann discussed fur ther this concept of how not everyone can find relaxation through “traditional meth ods” such as bubble baths and exercising but rather through their own personal self-care journey.“making sure that you’re honest with yourself about

“What we’ve seen is that ath letes have been really harmed by long term exclusivity clauses

“We’ve provided a very seam less and a holistic solution for all athletes to take advantage of their nIL in a reliable and a com pliant manner,” he said. “We’re doing it the way that we think is right, and it’s going to provide value for athletes, universities, and all the rest of the stakehold ers in the nIL space.”

generates revenue by charging a fee for the company that strikes a deal with the athlete. Wimbush said moGL acquires about 175 student-athletes a week. one of the ways the company grows is through a referral program, syal said.“We have a pretty robust refer ral system with athletes who are on their campuses, where they get paid $5 for each athlete that they bring to the platform,” he said.during the start-up’s first few years, the notre dame network has played a large role in financ ing and developing moGL, syal said. Groups that have helped back moGL include Irish Angels and the Ide A center.

While football players draw some of the most high-profile marketing deals, syal said moGL facilitates deals for athletes in all sports.“over 60% of the deals that we’ve done have been in nonrevenue-generating sports,” he said. “We’ve really confirmed the thesis that all athletes provide value in this space.”

awesome effort and I’m really excited about it, but I don’t want it to end here,” b aumann said.Through normalizing men tal health struggles, it can become difficult to identify when to reach out for help. There’s a blurred line between what is categorized as a normal obstacle and what is cat egorized as a tell-tale sign that something is wrong.baumann discussed this idea further, saying she be lieves it is something to be

“her fame just kind of exploded from that point on, and she obvi ously couldn’t be compensated for it at the time,” Wimbush, who was a classmate of ogunbowale said. “It kind of crossed my mind that this was something that needed to change.”

“It was always in the back of your head that you couldn’t make money,” Wimbush said. student-athletes have proven to be effective advertisers for all sorts of brands, syal said. Unlike traditional influencers with national or international followings, college athletes are well-known within their cam pus community and alumni base and thus can better con nect with potential customers, he“Atexplained.theend of the day, people actually know these studentathletes. They’re in class with them, they can resonate with them,” syal said. “so, what we’ve found is it really has provided an incredible amount of value to these brands directly.”

soon after Wimbush com pleted his college football ca reer at the University of central Florida, momentum started to shift toward allowing col lege student-athletes to receive nIL opportunities. As a result, Wimbush teamed up with fel low notre dame alumnus Ayden syal and they created moGL in 2020, an online marketplace that can easily connect athletes with brand

she obviously couldn’t be com pensated for it at the time,” Wimbush, who was a classmate of ogunbowale said. “It kind of crossed my mind that this was something that needed to change.”soon after Wimbush com pleted his college football ca reer at the University of central Florida, momentum started to shift toward allowing col lege student-athletes to receive nIL opportunities. As a result, Wimbush teamed up with fel low notre dame alumnus Ayden syal and they created moGL in 2020, an online marketplace that can easily connect athletes with brand

advice con TI n U ed F rom pAGe 1

one of the advantages of moGL’s platform is it is fully compliant and automatically discloses all brand deals to the student-athlete’s university or college, syal said. All brands are vetted to ensure they are compli ant with state laws and universi ty protocols before moGL works withUsingthem.moGL is free for stu dent-athletes. moGL primarily generates revenue by charging a fee for the company that strikes a deal with the athlete. Wimbush said moGL acquires about 175 student-athletes a week. one of the ways the company grows is through a referral program, syal said.“We have a pretty robust refer ral system with athletes who are on their campuses, where they get paid $5 for each athlete that they bring to the platform,” he said.during the start-up’s first few years, the notre dame net work has played a large role in financing and developing moGL, syal said. Groups that have helped back moGL in clude Irish Angels and the Ide A center.AsnIL continues to grow, syal said moGL hopes to educate student-athletes as they navigate the wide-open marketplace. one concerning trend syal has no ticed is athletes often rush into deals without considering their long-term opportunities.

ceo, said. Athletes on the moGL platform are able to connect with both nationally recognized and local brands.

b aumann Throughsaid.promoting this walk, b aumann said she wishes to continue advoca cy for mental health aware ness within s outh b end with help from the tri-campus community.“Fromhere I hope this event is kind of a jumping-off point for us with expanding our programming for mental health and suicide preven tion. I think this walk is an

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University receives grant for quantum sciences

he has not heard much talk of this move throughout the law students, main taining that this may be that the move has been relatively recent. h owever, he stated he saw alum ni positively respond on Linked i n.

“a bunch of studies show that if you apply early de cision, there is an increase or boost in the L sa T score,” he said. “When you look at many different factors like that, the ones who are able to afford prep class es and the ones who are able to afford admissions counseling are the ones who have these sorts of re sources to be able to put together a package of early decision.”

“[ i n early 2020], we sub mitted a planning grant to ns F, and then in m ay 2021 we got awarded the planning grant,” s abre Kais, a distin guished chemistry professor at Purdue University, said. “a nd then they invited us to what they call the ‘boot campKaistraining’.”explained that in the training, they learned the expectations and the ways in which to collaborate with industries.Theresearch team then in vited companies in the area of quantum information to a planning meeting.

“

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Yang noted his pride in the law school’s commitment to diversity.“i’mdefinitely proud of the school for taking this big step and committing them selves to a more diverse law school.”

“Whatorganizations.industry means is not just companies like ibm , Google or a mazon, but also [the] a ir Force and government agencies,” o ritz said. “The kind of research in quantum technologies that we are proposing are those areas where these four universities are al ready some sense of world leaders.”

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decision, compared to those who could afford admis sions counseling.

TheWriterUniversity of n otre d ame, i ndiana University, Purdue University and i ndiana industryproblemsinandtechnology.industriescal,financial,toovercampusrUniversity(UniversityUniversity-PurdueindianapolisiUPUi)receivedarepeatablefive-yeargrantfromthenationalscienceFoundation(nsF)tofurtherresearchtheapplicationsofquantumtechnologiesinprivateindustries.asapartofanindustrycollaborativeesearchcenter,themulti-researchteamof100researchersaimsanswertheproblemsofpharmaceutihigh-techandotherwithquantum“itallowstheUniversitythegraduatestudentsparticulartoworkwiththatreallyareofinterest,”Peter

to o ritz. a dditionally, he pointed to the potentially widespread effects

“That [quantum infor mation] offers the poten tial of communication without the ability to have it intercepted,” he concluded.

a ccording to director of law school admissions m arisa s imon, the adminis tration’s decision was made to alleviate applicant stress. “ o ur main objective was to create less stress for ap plicants,” s imon said in an email.simon also noted the law school regularly reevalu ates the admissions process for applicants and that the need for this change was observed in the last applica tion“Wecycle.constantly consider changes to the admissions process which could im prove the experience for ap plicants, and the reasons for this change became more

i think that it might [hurt an applicants chances], but i think that also if you’re a good applicant, i think our admissions board would definitely see that. i f you are within the statistics of being the type of candidate that the school is looking for, i don’t think it should deter too much,” Yang said.hegoes on to explain that

“ i ’ve seen some alumni posts about this on Linked i n and how proud they are of their school and how proud they are of the University for taking this step,” he said.

a chance that this hurts the application process for stu dents that have their heart set on n otre d ame law. s till, he maintains that if a stu dent is a good applicant, the admission board will be able to see that with or without early decision.

“We got the industry to tell us more about the chal lenging problems in their industries, and the faculty from the four campuses gave a summary of their re search, which was of interest to the different companies,” KaisThesaid.companies then decided whether to pro vide additional financial

o ne particular area o ritz pointed to was quantum communications.“Therearesome industrial partners who are interested in quantum communica tions and developing smart fibers that can encode quan tum components to perform secure communications,” he said.Kogge stressed the impact that quantum technology can have on society.

Kogge mentioned the high demand in private industries for quantum studies, mainly to learn more about customer experience.“Weneeded 12 sponsors and we got 16,” Kogge said. “We seem to have hit a good spot for Gerardoindustry.”ortiz,an i ndiana University physics profes sor, explained the array of campus strengths and inter ested

apparent over the last appli cation cycle,” she said. s imon said that she does not anticipate that this change will bring significant changes to the number of applica tions received, but also ac knowledged she expects applicants were relieved to hear the elimination of ear ly “decision.innotifying prospec tive students of this change, we have sensed their relief in not having to make that difficult decision prior to applying,” she said in an email.Yang seemed to be more apprehensive about the fact, saying there could be

“We can have a big impact at the level of the United s tates and internationally, he said. “a nd in that regard, we need to be very strategic.”

GROW THE GOOD IN BUSINESS TM

Kogge, Ted h m c c ourtney professor of computer sci ence and engineering at n otre d ame, said.

support to the research team.Kogge pointed to the cutting-edge new ad vancements in the field of quantum earlyresearchadded.solvingthethingsaofdeveloped.coursesinedsaid.willoftheonetanglequantumproperty,“Quantuminformation.hasthisbizarrethatifyouhavebitsandyouunthemandputoneonsideoftheuniverseandotherontheothersidetheuniverse,theirvaluesbetheexactsame,”heKoggeadditionallypointtothelackofresourcesthequantumfieldatthemoment.“TherearenotalotofthatpeoplehaveThere’snotalottextbooks.andthere’spotentialforjustreallythatwilltransformwaywethinkaboutproblems,”hedespitealackofprecedent,isprojectedtostartnextyear,according

“i think it’s pretty rigorous,” cook said.eight to ten applicants are se lected to participate in the in-person events. over the course of three days, cook and his fellow leprechauns led a mock pep rally, conducted a mock media interview and worked as the leprechaun at the blue and gold spring game. They were also inter viewed by a panel of judges from the athletics department.

house continued, “i just felt so special because the Leprechaun talked to me and helped me out, and the chance to give that to other people, to make other people feel that way … i think it’s a gift, it’s really indescribable.”aresidentof dunne hall, house spoke on his previous high school experience that helped him grow into a student leader.

Jamison Cook unlike coury, cook did not grow up in a notre dame family, but that does not diminish his passion for fighting irish sports.

To conclude the conversation, in true fighting irish fashion, house had one final statement: “go irish!”

something that i thought was a pos sible reality,” coury said. “but the moment i realized it was on the ta ble, i went for it.”

all four leprechauns volunteer at other events to engage the notre dame fanbase. his favorite part of the job, though, is being a part of a team and working with the other leprechauns.“Wearenot only leprechauns ourselves, we are part of the cheer team,” coury said. “having those people behind you and with you at everything — it’s electric.”

“at the core of what we do as lep rechauns, we are ambassadors for the university. We are represent ing what [notre dame] stands for,” coury said. “That’s something huge for me.”

mahoney lives in duncan hall and is majoring in finance and spanish. he plans to pursue invest ment banking after graduation.

Leprechaun

coury is a finance major with a real estate minor, and he plans to pursue sports business or real estate after graduation. on campus, coury is the vice president of dillon hall and works as a tour guide for the ad missions office.

“i think that that’s something that the four of us really take very seriously but also have a lot of fun with,” cook said. “We’re kind of the impersonation of what the fighting irish is.”

Jake House

house then spoke on the com munity surrounding the university, saying, “notre dame isn’t just the students who go here, notre dame is the outreach to the south bend community, it’s the alumni of course and just fans all over the place.”house continued, “notre dame can sometimes feel like a bubble, it isn’t just the kids on campus bound by sr 933, angela, Twyckenham and douglas, it’s also saint mary’s and holy cross. The notre dame Leprechaun to me is about welcom ing people,” house said.

his favorite part of the job is when he gets to see a “tangible re sult.” mahoney recently visited st. adalbert elementary school in south bend to interact with young irish fans. he was handing out high fives before the kids decided to hug him

Contact Meghan Lange kmuchnic@nd.eduandmlange03@saintmarys.eduatKatieMuchnickat

“if i’m completely honest, i don’t think i would have wanted to be a mascot if i was at a different school where you had to wear a big head or a mask,” cook said.

“i think the leprechaun certainly has a presence on campus and has the resources and capabilities to be a force for good,” he said.

a romance languages and litera ture major originally from White Lake, michigan, house said that he “grew up a fan of other colleges, and [notre dame] just wasn’t on my radar.”“iapplied to notre dame a few days before the application was due, because a friend mentioned it. i never really thought of it as a place for me, but i came for a visit and that first sight of the golden dome, you know, just walking around campus … you just get this different feel like, ‘oh, this isn’t just a place to go to school, this is a family,’” house said. house recalled a story from his freshman year which put him on the path to becoming the iconic irish fighter.

mahoney hails from a family of farmers in omaha, nebraska. he was not originally committed to notre dame, but he switched his deposit at 11:45 p.m. the night of the deadline, partly because of the op portunity to be a leprechaun.

“i think [being the leprechaun] kind of gives me a unique perspec tive, especially for the field that i’m going into conveniently,” cook said. “i’m very much living the notre dame brand and trying to bring it to life for people.”

con T inued from Page 1

Colin mahoney mahoney believes the power of the leprechaun extends far beyond excitement at games.

“i think very early on, i bought into the mission of the university,” mahoney said. “ultimately, i want to be a servant for others, and i think that’s what led me to notre dame.”

“Thatinstead.certainly felt good, because i left feeling like i had made those kids’ days better and hopefully gave them a memory that will last them a lifetime,” mahoney said.

cook wanted to be a leprechaun to showcase his love for notre dame athletics.“Youdon’t have to be a lifelong

fan to do something like this,” cook said. “i wanted to share how much i have come to love notre dame on mycown.”ooktried out for the leprechaun position three times before making the team his senior year. The tryout process involves a written applica tion, a video application and in-per son events and interviews.

“i was class president in high school so i was always trying to get people to go out to events and be ex cited, but i was never a cheerleader or a mascot, it wasn’t my official title,” house said.

“The leprechaun is so special be cause you’re not in a mask, you get to see people face to face … and let them know that they are welcome … showing that notre dame is a place for everyone,” senior Jake house said.

he said he enjoys the creativity of being a “mouthpiece” for the uni versity rather than a faceless mascot.

“i transferred here from holy cross as a gateway student, and i was a little lost one day and Leprechaun conal [fagan, class of 2021] came up to me and helped point me in the right direction, asked if i was doing okay and every thing,” he said.

News5 ndsmcobserver.com | friday, september 16, 2022 | The observer SEPTEMBER 21 AND 23 Registration Required. This virtual event is open to the public. ATTEND THE 2022 CARE CONFERENCE: Accountability in a Sustainable World! Experts will discuss accounting for sustainability and responsible investing. Hosted by the Center for Accounting Research and Education. Paid a dverT isemen T

cook is studying marketing and journalism, and he is originally from eerie, Pennsylvania. cook is currently recruiting for a career in brand management.

now many LIv golfers have danced around the question of their defection when the subject is broached. but harold varner III gave a blunt an swer that moved against this trend. he described his contract as “life changing money” and a “financial breakthrough”. but as these record contracts continue to be signed, I would like to point out that no amount of money ever bought another second of time. LIv athletes are going to have plenty of time in their shortened weekends to think about their adjusted contribution to the sport of golf, society, and to their new reputations as professional athletes. so, as these LIv defec tors enjoy their cash in a bathtub like scrooge mcduck, I hope they reflect on what master they serve. And as no man can serve two, I hope this reflection will lead to the collapse of the LIv tour and not to the landscape of professional golf as we know it.

The observer | friday, September 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com6 inSide Column

The unserious program that propped Freeman up on a mile-high cloud just so he could fall right through it is what’s at fault here. A serious program doesn’t play a hype video for a coach that’s 0-2 during the first quarter. A seri ous program doesn’t hold a “victory march” pep rally while the team heads to the stadium to lose to a sun belt team. A serious program doesn’t let a massive herd of marshall fans take up an entire lower bowl section and be louder than the home fans. A serious playoff contender doesn’t schedule an Fcs opponent when it doesn’t have to play in a conference championship.

If notre dame were a serious program, it would make an effort to make the stadium environment intimidating. Put the bands back on the sideline dur ing the game. bring back the natural grass field. And, for the love of God, stop playing “Let me clear my Throat” before the fourth quarter. It’s unoriginal and nobody jumps. still.

Ryan Peters notre dame news e ditor

Contact Ryan at rpeters5@nd.edu. The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

I read this tweet three months ago when it was penned during the height of the “he/she’s a ten” memes and the LIv/PGA tour drama that escalat ed this summer. The context of this tweet directly refers to the persona of brooks Koepka, golf’s resident bad boy and four-time major winner who spurned the PGA tour in favor of the endless riches that the LIv invitational series has come to offer. brooks’ reputation is one of a good-looking athlete who really doesn’t care much about anything, and as someone who follows the sport, I thought it was funny (sue me). The weeks that followed this initial internet hysteria saw many household names on the PGA tour defect for this newly mint ed rival syndicate, LIv Golf, which is bankrolled by the saudi sovereign fund (ssF). The ssF is one of the largest such funds in the world, bursting at the seams with $620 billion assets under manage ment. The sole purpose of the fund is to invest funds on behalf of the saudi Arabian government, and LIv ceo and major winner Greg norman un veiled the league’s vision as something that would change the face of golf for the better.

notre dame stadium is often called a “cathedral” of college football. This is true, if you’re talking about the noise level. If there is anything the past two weeks have revealed, it’s that notre dame does not have a serious football program. And no, marcus Freeman is not to blame. Fault lines such as a lethargic stadium environment and a diminish ing schedule date back way past the beginning of the marcus Freeman era, but were largely masked by brian Kelly’s genius. These faults quickly caused earthquakes once Freeman became coach and notre dame decided the football program was better off acting as reality Tv stars instead of football players.notre dame does not need to pretend they’re in “The hangover” or help Peyton manning produce his “Ghostbusters” spin-off segment to provide the entertainment fans desire. marcus Freeman has already set himself up for an emmy-winning drama this season by losing. notre dame stadium is vatican West. The head coach position of notre dame is a pressure cooker unlike anything else in college football. You’re expected to win with “less”. The drama writes itself.

Stephen Viz is a One Year MBA candidate and graduate of Holy Cross College. Hailing from Orland Park, Illinois, his columns are all trains of thoughts, and he can be found at either Decio Cafe or at Mendoza. He can be reached at sviz@nd.edu or on Twitter at @ StephenViz.Theviewsexpressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

oil empire, LIv golf is simply bad product. The name LIv derives from the roman numerals for 54, as LIv golfers only play 54 holes in a weekend tournament, with no cuts to be missed or made. compare this to the PGA tour, where a 72-hole tournament is played Thursday through sunday, with a cut that shrinks the field by half being de termined on Friday. currently, if you don’t make the cut in a PGA event, you don’t get paid for the weekend. In addition to this, four day events sepa rate the best from the rest, as the grueling rounds have made for memorable Tv narratives. John daly, Tiger Woods, Jack nicklaus, Jordan spieth and rory mcIlroy are all names that come to mind when you think of an excellent live sports narra tive. For LIv, the answer for “will anyone actually watch this thing” is a no, because nothing is at stake. no matter what, these golfers have millions in their pocket.

he’s a 10, but employed by the saudi sovereign wealth funds

And just as notre dame stadium is losing its identity, the team also faces an identity crisis. on saturday, the team will wear green jerseys with names on the back. The Irish have taken pride in the team-first symbolism of uniforms without names since the Lou holtz days. now here we are with names on the backs of the jerseys for a game against cal that feels like a toss-up. We can only assume cal was chosen for the green jersey game because the program decided the Golden bears lacked the talent for a “bush Push”-esque disaster. Well, maybe that was a miscalculation. notre dame has a swagger that it so far has not come close to living up to.

An interesting conversation with a friend who attended an LIv event in new Jersey saw her com ment to me, “It’s great, the players are treated much better on this tour than they are on the PGA”. And after it settled with me that this might be true, as I don’t know the realities of the differ ing working conditions for both groups, I realize in reflection the conclusion of my point. Golf is not only a rich’s man game, but a game that takes more mental stress on the body than it does physi cal. Golfers get to travel the world and enjoy a game where amateurs are routinely encouraged to drink like fish and gamble like heathens while playing. They are golfers. not coal miners, teach ers, first responders or rectors in residence halls here at notre dame. Its golf. For professionals, it is a tradition that nothing is given, but everything is earned. If you don’t like it, then take a day job and join where a country club that would be happy to have you participate in their events. Yes, as a busi ness student I know and believe that everyone is entitled to earn as money as they would like to. but when you complain about conditions making millions a year putting a ball into a hole, and then spurn your employer to be paid to do the same thing by saudi Arabia, I really don’t think you get a say in the matter.

This Irish team talks a big game and then looks lost on the field. sure, it’s great that assistant coaches take responsibility during press conferences. Linebacker and captain bo bauer’s proclaimed willingness to die for his team is inspiring. It’s great that the video of the team celebrating Freeman’s promo tion to head coach exists. but the hype is over. stop talking and buckle down. It’s time to get serious.

Take the names off the jerseys

ohio state did not care about notre dame’s feel-good offseason. heck (and with all due respect to the thriving sun belt), marshall didn’t either. since marcus Freeman became head coach, notre dame has spent a ton of time worrying about every detail that doesn’t have to do with their actual play. Golden throne photoshoot backdrops don’t teach you how to tackle. Green jerseys don’t make your offensive line open up the run game. opening up more players and staff to the media doesn’t cause your defense to force turnovers. Jersey reveals don’t strengthen ball security. Pregame mass doesn’t seem to improve quarterback play. notre dame needs to go back to the basics. They need to stop worrying about how they can get a seat at the big boy table with Alabama, Georgia and ohio state and instead make sure they don’t fall out of their chair at the kids’ table.

Again, the embarrassment notre dame experienced last week is not pri marily Freeman’s fault. sure, he could have coached better, but there’s no avoiding the learning curve a first-time head coach at notre dame experi ences. Let’s just hope he learns more than previous first-timers here.

Well thanks a lot, Greg, because it has only made things worse. before and after Koepka’s defection, notable tour card holders such as Phil mickelson, sergio Garcia, dustin Johnson, bryson dechambeau, Kevin na and Patrick reed all came join to LIv, thrusting the golf world into a civil war. now, as the LIv and PGA seasons have ended and the former looks for a television rights partner, I would be remiss to not argue that for the foreseeable future, the landscape of professional golf has been ruined. crushed like the Galactic republic. Toppled like the berlin Wall. The PGA tour may or may not be responsible for losing a dozen of its largest names to the LIv tour, but the conflict is here for good. As the riches of the saudi backed syndicate seep through the sport, let me explain what I think lies ahead for professional golf.Aproduct of the global pandemic, golf’s popu larity amongst amateurs has never been higher. Amongst spectators and the purchasing public however, the game has lacked the storylines out side of the LIv/PGA drama that generate interest, revenue and increased brand value. The decline of Tiger Woods since his riveting masters victory in 2019 has played a role in this, but people are just not consuming the game like they used to. now factor that the most idiosyncratic personalities in the sport (Koepka, mickelson, dechambeau, Johnson, etc.) have packed their bags and left, the PGA tour has a talent massive issue on their hands. but so does LIv. And yes, I could talk about how the league is funded by a country who has no care for basic human rights and is no friend of the West. but when it comes to dollars and cents, they are as flush as one can be, and this has kept LIv leadership has silent regarding these societal is sues. When asked about this track record of issues, norman simply stated, “We’ve all made mistakes”. If norman was referring to a 12-year-old who had stolen a candy bar from a gas station, that might’ve been the appropriate response. but for a country that didn’t allow women to drive until July of 2018, actively persecutes the LGbTQ+ com munity and puts journalists critical of the regime to death, do you really think they view their poli tics as mistakes Gregory? but along with the horrific implications that go with being bankrolled by a morally inept evil

some may be disappointed that the window of notre dame as an annual college Football Playoff contender closed. however, the excitement of bracing for a pummeling from Alabama or clemson has quickly been replaced by the excitement of wondering if the Irish will beat cal or whether or not drew Pyne will throw it directly to an opposing linebacker. college football is entertain ment, and notre dame football just got a whole lot more entertaining.

Stephen Viz stephen’s scrapbook

Alexa Schlaerth m ind, spirit and body Politic

Lauren Klein graduated from Notre Dame in 2021 with a major in Biological Sciences and minors in the Hesburgh Program in Public Service and Education, Schooling, and Society. She is a member of ND’s Write to Vote chapter.

These skills must not be confined to civics courses. science, math, history, literature … all subjects prime our future citizens. healthy debate in classrooms may allow students to share different interpretations of literature, and students may learn history through comparing and contrasting different accounts and perspectives. science can teach critical questioning and collaboration, while math can teach persistence and problem-solving. The more children learn to voice and consider different per spectives and use this acquired knowledge to influence their communities, broadly defined, the closer we will be to attaining a healthy democracy.Finally, we must amplify a diversity of voices in the classrooms. Learning environ ments should be a simulation of a democracy which reflects principles of equality and justice of voice where students can actively practice civic engagement. This means that courses have an obligation to highlight prominent people of influence who are of various races, ethnicities and gen ders. Again, this responsibility is not confined merely to

This stress did come along with a lot of self-compassion, though, and somehow I was able to be patient enough with myself and allow myself the time and space to make mistakes, knowing I’d have three more years to fix them and really hone my email sign-offs, amidst other things. now, a few years later, I’m learning from different mis takes, and the pressure is still turned to a 10. but I’ve noticed I am a lot less patient with myself. There’s an added “you should know this by now,” a judgment that has tacked on with time that is not conducive to a true growth mindset.Afterthis reflection, inspired by when “hand in my Pocket” came on after shuffling my spotify liked songs while walking to class, I want to make sure my lessons from my freshman self are not merely constructions of nostalgia or an oversimplification of what times really were like back then. I want to make sure there’s something material I can actually take away from 2019 Alexa.

engagement is something that must be learned, then we must teach it the right way. They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It will be far harder to un-teach civic disengagement, withdrawal and apathy. Teaching our children to be democratic citizens will require consistent, concerted and coordinated effort by the govern ment, schools, communities and organizations spanning multiple sectors. here are a few places we should start.

active share in the personal building up of his own prob lems and to participate in methods of solving them (even at the expense of experimentation and error), mind is not really freed” and democracy suffers as a result. next, we must prioritize social emotional learning and critical thinking in classrooms and incorporate opportuni ties to practice active citizenship across multiple subjects. According to civXnow, “civics must teach students to do what Americans are arguably worst at doing right now: holding productive discussions of current issues on which people disagree.” Learning to cooperate, discuss civilly, communicate effectively and manage one’s emotions are not only critical to success in life, but success as a U.s citizen. In fact, these skills are crucial to facilitating social cohesion, a cornerstone of a successful nation and a key purpose of educationat the heart of each nation’s education system.” As heyneman and Todoric-bebic argue, “it is pos sible to judge the performance of an education system as much on the basis of its contribution to social cohesion as on its attainment of learning objectives.”

professor in office hours, whether or not we did that one reading for theology, the people we wave to on our way to sdh — these little actions and decisions can carry a small but beautiful weight to them that can leave a mark on us and others long after they’re carried out. They can be a reflection of our integrity and of what we value.</p>

And I think that every now and then, it’s important to take a step in the shoes of my freshman self, to adopt the viewpoint of my younger, more nervous and turbulent alter ego to remember a couple things. Firstly, the small efforts we make here on this cam pus and here in this world matter. conversations with a

no one is born with an innate knowledge of American democracy; we only come to know what citizenship and freedom mean in context.

politics; historians, scientists and economists alike bear this responsibility in teaching our next generation. science courses should teach rosalind Franklin alongside Watson and crick, as literature courses should teach Toni morrison alongside charles dickens. democracy is predicated on equality of voice, and teachers must actually model giving voice to all equally in the classroom in choosing the content through which our next generation encounters our world. distinguished scholar, teacher and author carl A. Grant argues that the purpose of education lies in cultivating flourishing lives through multicultural, democratic, social justice education. To Grant, society is strengthened by in stalling in students the courage to question, challenge and act upon American democracy, a system that “can be made to work for you or against you” and pursue a truth inclu sive of histories, realities and experiences of marginalized communities. As Grant persuasively advocates, practicing democracy through education and taking social action are crucial to advancing a flourishing society.

how can we teach democracy correctly the first time? by offering children an active civic education that expands beyond civics courses from an early age. every opportunity we offer students within and outside the classroom has the potential to shape democratic citizens. The future of U.s democracy lies, in large part, in the strength and ability of our education system.

now, if you’ll allow me, I’d like to bring TikTok into this column, as I have oft-done (and as is my right!) When the trend of “being the main character” came about, I dis missed it as some sort of appeal to internal narcissism. but now, after going through this vivid flashback or montage of freshman year, I kind of see the light. Things feel nice and concise when we pretend we’re in a movie.

It is 2019. And for some reason, all I can think to play on spotify as I pace around campus is Juicewrld’s “ring ring” and Alanis morrisette’s “hand in my Pocket.” see the type of nervous and/or angsty vibe I’m feeling here? You can practically feel it.

This obviously amounted to immense stress I felt with every micro-decision I made. After all, did “sincerely” accurately reflect who I was as a person, or was “best re gards” a better fit?

It is almost 10 p.m. on a cold sunday evening in december, and I am walking across the quad on my way home from a (somewhat frantic) Principles of microeconomics TA review sesh, the likes of which I’ve never experienced before. It is chilly and dark, and the campus has a general “stressed out pre-finals” vibe about it. I, myself, have a general “stressed out pre-finals” vibe about me.

W2V is the Notre Dame chapter of the national Write to Vote Project, a non-partisan, pro-democracy initia tive. Its goal is to support democracy, encourage civic engagement and advance voting rights in the U.S. and around the world. You can contact NDW2V at ndw2v@ nd.edu.Theviews expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Freshman fall had been a whirlwind of an experience. The new friends and relationships, the different culture, the harsher weather — no one adjustment was too much to handle on its own, but the sum of these had thrown me in for a spin cycle (and paying for laundry was completely new).Things felt weighty. Like everything mattered immense ly. maybe some of this can be attributed to the sense of novelty that all my experiences carried along with them. I can still vividly remember the series of “firsts” that hap pened: my first home game, my first tailgate, my first sY r, my first philosophy paper, my first midterms (though I may wish to forget that last one). but even apart from that, I had a sort of first-year chip on my shoulder, not from any wrongdoing per se, but instead from the mere fact that I knew I had to prove myself. I had to live up to that notre dame name I had praised so highly in my admissions essays just a year before. There was a good feeling that came along with the importance I felt in even

Lessons from our freshmen selves

The observer | Friday, September 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com 7

In the spirit of romanticizing our lives, let’s take this firstyear throwback’s lessons into our slightly more mature adult lives. We are, after all, still in the freshman phase of our adulthood.

Learning (and teaching) democracy

And secondly, although even the little things carry a weight to them, it is important to remember that we are human, and we make mistakes. A cliché at this point, maybe, but remembering to not cast aspersions on my self after erring and just allowing myself to take things in stride has made a huge difference in my life.</p>

my freshman year abounded with small moments that became big because they were indicative of decisions I was making on my own. I began to really consider my priorities and what truly mattered to me, on even the most minute of a scale: what I wore on Friday, if I woke up early to work out this week, the tone with which I emailed my boss or my professors, the list goes on.

Alexa Schlaerth is a junior at the University of Notre Dame studying anthropology and linguistics. When she’s not slamming hot takes into her laptop keyboard, she can be found schooling her peers in the daily Wordle and NYT mini crossword, rewatching South Park or plan ning her next backpacking trip. As an Angeleno, Alexa enjoys drinking overpriced, non-dairy iced lattes and complaining about traffic because it’s “like, totally lame.” Alexa can be reached on Twitter at @alexa_schlaerth or via email at asch laer@nd.edu.Theviewsexpressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

no one is born knowing what comprises the process of voter registration, how to engage with congressional rep resentatives and where to research critical policies. That knowledge is shaped by experience. Long lines at the polls, gerrymandering which dilutes the power of votes and inac cessible politicians teach disillusionment, frustration and apathy.Ifcivic

First, we must re-envision civic engagement as a neces sary skill for the next generation. civic engagement is about more than just the branches of government; the civics courses which many states require tend to be factbased, teaching students about being a citizen rather than how to be a citizen. The Annenberg Institute identifies six proven practices to improve civic education: high-quality classroom instruction, discussion of current events and controversial issues, service learning, extracurricular ac tivities, participation in school government and simulating democratic processes (such as voting, trials, legislative deliberation and diplomacy). note that only two of these six occur in a traditional classroom setting. The answer to our civics crisis lies not in civics exams alone, but in encourag ing students to learn about civics through experiencing it. As John dewey puts it,“until the emphasis changes to the conditions which make it necessary for the child to take an

the most mundane of tasks.

Lauren Klein Write to vote

The observer | Froiday, september 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com8 MAGGIE KLAERS | The Observer

9The observer | friday, september 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

adding a humorous tone to her lyrics. In “Glasgow” she sings, “I touch myself / every time I see / What’s missing in my life.” Are we supposed to laugh? cry? both?

MAKAYLA HERNANDEZ | The Observer | Images courtesy of RAWPIXEL / JOY! NEWS / CGTRADER / NORTH COAST BREWING COMPANY

“I Love You Jennifer B”

since I know, Jockstrap sounds like the name of some late 70s british punk band whose lead singer thinks that not taking a shower for a month is giving a middle fin ger to the system … which is exactly what this band is! Actually, I lied, sorry to disappoint you, you were prob ably jumping out of your seats to grab your headphones, now you probably hate me. In actuality, Jockstrap is a collaboration between songwriter Georgia e llery and producer Taylor skye. Their debut album “I Love You Jennifer b” is an eclectic scrapbook of electronic sounds, glitchy synths, blown-out drums and a full 18-piece or chestra. sounds epic, right? Yes, it is.

The s eptember 11 attacks, a horror whose twen ty-first anniversary we celebrate this week, are not the only acts of terror bringing contemporary rel evance to this 2020 novel. Ayad, a former theater major at b rown, narrates fondly the influence of an Americanist professor with whom he completed an independent study his senior year of college. The final assignment his professor, m ary m oroni, gave Akhtar was to read “The s atanic verses” by s alman r ushdie, the Indian-born, b ritish-American au thor who suffered an assassination attempt in n ew York s tate on August 12.

By PETER BREEN scene Writer

As a final note, I will say that the record is missing a kind of cohesiveness, and it comes off as a hodgepodge of art pop earworms that lacks a strong theme or sound to tie it all together. It’s a bit all over the place, and this makes some of the song transitions a little janky and awkward.butthis is merely a slight fault in the grandiose spec tacle of this incredible album. “I Love You Jennifer b” is just Jockstrap’s first record, and it already shows so much potential for the band, so I am very excited to see where they go from here.

Though a work of fiction, the book reads like a memoir, tracking the life of a character who shares the author’s name. Akhtar, the Wisconsin-raised son of Pakistani immigrants, sings of the post 9/11 m uslim-American experience in ways which score the brain’s gray matter, “carving out new grooves along which old thoughts would reroute.”

The end of the novel welcomes a role rever sal of the parent-child relationship. n o longer must the struggling writer elicit his father for funds to replace a defective catalytic converter. It is the son, the now successful Pulitzer win ner, who is obliged to foot his dad’s A me X bill, who needs to bail his father out of jail, track down a passed-out m asood in a rural midwest ernThecasino.elegy, a lament for the dead, intertwines the traumatic circumstances of country and family. The novel shows us the oneness of love and hurt.

with horns and strings —and just as soon as it starts, the musical tide rolls back out and the song returns to spareness and simplicity. The composi tion wobbles between these two extremes for the duration of this six-minute epic, never definitively setting itself in one aesthetic, but nonetheless guid ing the listener through the story of the narrator’s tumultuous relationship with its abrupt switch-ups and sound effects.

I would like to imagine the novel in part as an Akhtar therapy space in which the writer feels comfortable expressing his vexations with America. Akhtar walks the reader through stand offish encounters with state troopers in s cranton, Pennsylvania to the penthouse apartments of billionaire venture capitalists. d iscussions range from the practical means of hiding a case of syphilis from one’s dying mother to the fall out of the U. s .- s oviet proxy wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. h ere, witness a corporate health care network lose medical malpractice suits to a small-town American jury and feel helpless at the plight of individuals in the LG b TQ+ community reckoning with traditional m uslim guilt. Watch

A playwright living in n ew York c ity as an adult, Akhtar will recount later in the novel what it was like to be a Pakistani-American in m anhattan the day the World Trade c enter was struck. Laying the groundwork for what is to come, in the novel’s opening chapter, Akhtar writes of the phone call he shared with m ary in the weeks following the 9/11 attacks. m ary tells Akhtar to “use the difficulty; make it your own.” Akhtar brings this instruction to fruition over the course of the novel’s threehundred plus pages. In doing so, the author not only assumes his personal struggles, but shoulders the sufferings of all who grapple with the idiosyn crasies of modern American life as well.

justice reign as the will of the strong borne by the weak.Alarge portion of this therapy session is de voted to Akhtar’s relationship with his dad. Akhtar’s father m asood is a cardiologist who im migrated to the United s tates in 1968 to pursue a medical residency following his graduation from medical school in Pakistan. m asood estab lished love for America and a firm belief in its supremacy as a creed in his household. d espite all of America’s pleasures, Akhtar must settle for the hope that his children may achieve happi ness, never being able to achieve this ultimate pursuit for himself.

By COBY McKEOWN scene Writer

While some songs, like the aforementioned “concrete over Water,” as well as “neon” and “debra,” whiplash between an intimate singer-songwriter ballad and pompous chamber pop, there are a handful of more straightforward songs, like “Greatest hits,” an over-thetop disco-era pop tune with a groovy daft Punk-esque bassline, as well as “Glasgow,” a folky guitar ballad with their signature glitchy sound effects sprinkled through out the track. The whole album sounds like some of björk’s earlier records if she had spent time at an edm rave, and also if she was british and also split herself in half so she became two people.

Contact Coby McKeown at jmckeow2@nd.edu

Artist: Jockstrap Label: Rough Trade Favorite tracks: “Glasgow,” “Concrete Over Water,” “50/50 - Extended Mix” If you like: Björk, SOPHIE, Magdalena Bay

Contact Peter Breen at pbreen2@nd.edu

There is a tense balancing act on this album, teetering between chaos and control, release and restraint. This is heard most prominently on the emotional centerpiece of the album, “c oncrete o ver Water.” The song starts out very simply with low, resonant synth notes complementing e llery’s melancholic lyrics reminiscing over a past lover. Then, suddenly, a wave of glitchy distorted vocals and beeps crashes into the song. c osmic arpeggios and a high-pitched synthesizer darting right and left across the stereo join the digital ensemble, and by the time the chorus arrives, the song has evolved into some kind of maximalist art pop conglomerate

“A day spent reading is not a great day. b ut a life spent reading is a wonderful life” – Ayad Akhtar. Frustrated with a particular persuasive brand of American exceptionalism, the n otre d ame football cult, I spent the s aturday of the m arshall home opener sifting through Ayad Akhtar’s novel, “ h omeland e legies.”

While ellery’s songwriting is relatively esoteric, we catch glimpses of the story she is trying to tell, one of grief, pain and resistance to change. It is a little ironic how much the lyricism and soundscape contrast: one is mired in regret and reminiscence, the other is forwardthinking and shape-shifting. ellery is doubtless aware of this fact, and she often plays into the melodrama,

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Following the ceremony, d isney ceo b ob c hapek took the stage, with many people in the crowd booing him. c hapek has garnered a lot of attention in the media for making ques tionable changes to the Walt d isney c ompany; in recent news, he was called out for his com mencement speech at Indiana University this past m ay when he switched up the nicknames of d isneyland c alifornia and Walt d isney World incFlorida.hapekannounced that many of the parks across the world are expanding and many new attractions were announced. In particular, the heavily anticipated T ron Lightcycle r un at the m agic Kingdom was announced, set to open in the spring of 2023.

As is the case with d isney in general, the d 23 e xpo announced a ton of new movies and T v shows that are under the d isney mantle. o ne film that is especially anticipated is the live-action re make of the classic 1989 film “The Little m ermaid,” starring h alle b ailey in the main role of Ariel and m elissa m c c arthy as the sea witch Ursula. The film is set to be released on m ay 26, 2023.

until he decided to go solo.

o verall, the d 23 e xpo made many announce ments that should satisfy all d isney, Pixar, s tar Wars and m arvel fans.

Contact Brendan Nolte at bnolte2@nd.edu

By NICOLE BILYAK scene

In addition to the live-action “Little m ermaid,” many interesting projects are also coming out.

b ecause there are so many, here are just a few that are the most anticipated. o ne project that fans of d isney are waiting for is “ d isenchanted” from Walt d isney Pictures, the sequel to the 2007 film “ e nchanted.” That movie is set to be released on n ov. 24 of this year. Another Walt d isney Pictures project that has been announced to join the liveaction remakes is “ s now White,” starring r achel Zegler in the titular role and Gal Gadot as the e vil Queen. The film is set to be released sometime in 2024.From Pixar, the biggest project that was an nounced is “Inside o ut 2,” set to be released on June 14, 2024. In addition to the massive list of projects from m arvel announced several months back, the biggest that is set to be released is “ b lack Panther: Wakanda Forever.” With a n ov. 11, 2022 release date looming, the film should carry on the legacy that c hadwick b oseman created with the character. m arvel also announced two new “Avenger” movies that are set to be released in 2025, titled “Avengers: The Kang d ynasty” and “Avengers: s ecret Wars.”

The event was originally planned for 2021, but due to the ongoing cov I d -19 pandemic, it was pushed back to 2022. It was also pushed back to highlight d isney’s plans for the 100th anniversary of the company on o ct. 16.

The “Actual Life” style of music began with a chance encounter Fred again.. had with a construc tion worker named c arlos on a night out in Atlanta. Gibson had recorded parts of their conversation and decided to try to make a song out of it the next morning. This random interaction would spawn a going-on-three album series of records produced in this manner. Gibson will take voice clips from his friends, random acquaintances and on occasion other musicians or videos and splice them into new meaning through his music.

Contact Nicole Bilyak at nbilyak01@saintmarys.edu

The d 23 e xpo stems from the d 23 o fficial d isney Fan c lub, which was founded in 2009. d 23 refers to “ d ” — which stands for d isney — and “23” for 1923, which was when Walt d isney founded the Walt d isney c ompany. The expo contains panels and events very much like s an d iego c omic- c on as well as a ceremony for the d isney Legends, a h all of Fame program that recognizes individuals who made an extraordinary contribution to the Walt d isney c ompany.

Panther”) also received an induction, which was accepted by his brother d errick.

While Fred again..’s style of production would conventionally fit into the house music genre, the melancholic pianos and ethereal synths scattered throughout the “Actual Life” series create an at mosphere much more somber than many house listeners would be used to. however, Gibson’s most fascinating innovation comes with his use of drums paired with these other elements along with his use of the human voice as an instrument, a technique which has become increasingly popular in hip-hop and the era of sampling, but has yet to be utilized in such a meaningful way. Fred’s use of light, crisp drum patterns, which deviate throughout the tracks unlike a lot of other house music, to complement the mellow beats he tends to craft create a feeling of op timism and perseverance, wherein the melodies and ambience of his records feel as if they are pulling the listener down below water while the drums push the

10 The observer | friday, september 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

about Fred John Philip Gibson (aka Fred again..) for far longer than you might think. The 29-year-old multitalented music producer and songwriter has spent the better part of the last de cade helping some of the biggest artists in the world create their own work, for the most part opting to remain behind the scenes. b ut since the beginning of the cov I d -19 pandemic in early 2020, Gibson has finally stepped into the spotlight.

The 2022 d 23 e xpo kicked off with the 2022 d isney Legends ceremony. n otable members who were inducted into the h all of Fame include Anthony Anderson (“black-ish,” “Law & o rder”), Kristen b ell (the “Frozen” films), e llen Pompeo (“Grey’s Anatomy”) and Josh Gad (also the “Frozen” films). Posthumously, c hadwick b oseman (“ b lack

MEG HAMMOND | The Observer

weekend, the biennial d 23 e xpo oc curred at the Anaheim c onvention c enter in Anaheim, c alifornia from s ept. 9-11.

By BRENDAN NOLTE scene

Fred again.. has been making music all of his life. however, his breakthrough into the music industry came as the protégé of world-famous re cord producer and musician b rian e no. Gibson’s first credited work is for writing and producing two collaborative albums between e no and Karl h yde of the group Underworld. While these records are certainly not what would win Gibson the 2020 b rit Awards’ Producer of the Year, they — long with Fred again..’s other work with e no at his studio in London — would set the foundations both artistically and business-wise for the songs that would put Fred again.. atop the charts. Gibson would go on to write and produce hits such as George e zra’s “ s hotgun” while also contributing to 12 out of 15 songs on e d s heeran’s “ no.6 c ollaborations Project.” In spite of all his successes in hit-making, Gibson’s most ar tistically significant achievements would not come

track along, providing hope of being pulled to the surface.“Actual Life” is quite obviously a reaction to the pandemic, both in timing and message. d uring a year when people were drawn apart due to sickness and the terror of the disease itself or by regulations to protect the vulnerable, Fred again.. has made mu sic connecting people to millions of others they will never meet through their words and emotions. The love of those around you and appreciation of their beauty as human beings which Fred again.. has been able to convey through his work is necessarily in spiring in a post- cov I d world and has revolution ized a genre thought to be meant purely for clubs and partying. As his most popular track from the “Actual Life” series, “m area,” reflects that “we’ve lost danc ing,” Fred again.. has made it his mission to ensure we keep dancing in spite of our misfortune.

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Fred again..’s all-encompassing body of work to date is his dJ set at b oiler room London, which in cludes new and unreleased solo and collaborative work spanning all sub-genres of house music and can be found on the b oiler room YouTube chan nel. h is first two solo albums, “Actual Life (April 14 – d ecember 17 2020)” and “Actual Life 2 (February 2 – o ctober 15 2021)” are available on all streaming platforms, with the third project in the “Actual Life” series set for release on o ct. 28 of this year.

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CANCER (June 21-July 22): Pay closer attention to how you look and present yourself and your ideas to the world. Stand tall and press forward with dignity and confidence. Work by yourself if it will alleviate interference.

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Happy Birthday: Put your energy where it counts. Consider your options, skills, qualifications and what excites you the most and head in that direction. This year’s adjustments will shape your future and encourage you to fill up your savings, retain knowledge and explore your ability to push your way forward. Personal gain and making your dreams come true will play out as planned. your numbers are 7, 12, 24, 26, 32, 39, 41.

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ARIES (March 21-April 19): Simplify your life. Back away from anyone asking for too much or from situations that can cost you financially or emotionally. Put your energy into what excites you, and do the best job possible to impress those who can help you reach your objective.

Don’t overspend or overreact.

Be blunt about your intentions.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Sit tight until you have all the particulars about a situation that can affect your position or reputation. Be a good listener, and counter with detail and precision.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Put pressing matters to rest. Ease your stress and head in a direction that restores your faith in what you have to offer. Start conversations and explore the possibilities others present. Patience is necessary when dealing with matters that can affect money matters.

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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Stop spending; look for cheaper alternatives. learning and taking better care of yourself mentally, physically and financially will lead to better days. find a routine that works for you, and progress will be yours. live in the moment.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): listen carefully in order to deduce what’s valid. Act on facts, and refuse to let anyone take advantage of your good nature or generosity. Put your energy where it will do some good, and don’t waste time on nonsense or people trying to lead you astray.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Pay attention to detail, and invest in something worthwhile. Too much of anything will drag you down. rearrange your space to suit your needs. An exciting proposal will grab your attention. use your skills uniquely, and you’ll boost your income.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t let interference stand in your way. Make your position clear and go about your business.

A passionate attitude and an energetic approach will help you gain ground and promote your desired success.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Be careful not to give in to what someone demands. Don’t limit what you can do because you feel guilty about looking out for yourself. Take the high road, refuse to argue and continue down a path you find rewarding.

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GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Don’t lose sight of your goals. recognize what’s possible, and inch your way in whatever direction pays off. helping others is righteous, but don’t forget to do what’s best for you. Taking care of business is all you must do to impress others.

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Explore the possibilities, but do only what’s necessary. Overdoing something will be to your detriment.

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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): look for an alternative way to use and promote your skills. helping others with services and skills you’ve honed will put you in demand and give you the edge when dealing with partnerships. Don’t let mixed emotions ruin your plans.

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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Don’t get pulled into someone else’s dream. Take pride in your accomplishments. Personal gain is apparent and will have an impact on the way others view you. Don’t be afraid to do things your way. Physical improvements and romance are encouraged.

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for him and for the unit to struggle for the rest of the season.

By TOM ZWILLER sports

Zwiller: What to watch for during n FL Week 2

4. No. 13 miami at No. 24 texas A&m (tA&m -6), 9 p.m., eSpN

Granted, this might not be a long-term problem. Key Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard was out on s unday with an ankle in jury. Assuming he comes back the Packers could get right back into form and m innesota is just this year’s n ew o rleans. I still think the Packers are going to end up missing d avante Adams, but only time will tell.Unlike the Packers, the Patriots do not have an absence they can blame their lack of a pass ing game on. The Patriots had just 213 yards in their game against the d olphins, and that might be a mark the Patriots hover around for the rest of the season. The offense lacks a dy namic weapon. And with quarterback m ac Jones entering his second year, I expect a bit of a slump

miami comes in with two wins against inferior compe tition in bethune-cookman and southern miss. however, the hurricanes were beat ing the latter just 10-7 at half time. new head coach mario cristobal is looking for a big win to set a potential campaign for the Acc title. In order to win, both teams need to put together what they haven’t been able to do so far: a complete game.

see WeeK 3 pAGe 13 see nFL pAGe 13 SportS Authority

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Another odd offen sive outlier was intercep tions, with c arson Wentz throwing a pair, d erek c arr tossing three, and Joe b urrow throwing an insane four interceptions.

By JOSEPH TUNNEY sports

The observer | fridAy, September 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

f umble Struggles: b aker m ayfield and m att r yan o ne of the odder re sults (at least to me) was Indianapolis at h ouston, a game in which m att r yan had a ridiculous four fum bles. While only one of them was a turnover, those fumbles did legitimately kill off some good drives for the c Theolts.first fumble was in the second quarter when r yan fumbled on the h ouston 30. It lost the c olts seven cru cial yards. It caused Indy to punt. The second fumble came on the h ouston 40 in the third quarter and the Texans were able to grab the ball.

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Wide r eceiving Struggles: New e ngland p atriots, i ndianapolis Colts, Green b ay p ackers

different. If, say, m ayfield does not fumble in side of the redzone with 1:25 left in the Panthersb rowns game. c arolina missed a chance to score a touchdown which proved critical in a 24-23 loss. If it happens again, it could cost each team another win.

What is even more infuriating to Aggie fans is that Fisher is 3515 in his first 50 games, whereas the man he replaced (Kevin sumlin) was 36-14. A&m’s of fense has been concerning, scoring just 14 points against Appalachian state, who allowed 63 points to north carolina the week prior.

2. No. 11 michigan State at Washington (Washington -3) 7:30 p.m., AbC

WithWriterthe conclusion of a crazy b roncos vs. s eahawks game on m onday n ight, a wild Week 1 has concluded. As we head into Week 2, I wanted to take a moment to look back on Week 1 and talk about some of the oddities.

In the offseason, a few of the teams that I suspect ed to have lackluster pass catchers were the Patriots, the c olts and the Packers. Last weekend the c olts had 352 receiving yards, with m ichael Pittman Jr. leading the way with 121 yards on 9 receptions and a touchdown.so,thecolts move from problem to suspect. It was the Texans after all, I am not inclined to trust their defense. The Packers and Patriots, however, looked all the more suspicious.

Week 3: Top games to watch

c arr’s first was an ag gressive throw that was risky, and the c hargers’ defense made him pay for it. The second interception came early in the fourth quarter on a deep-down field throw into double cov erage. I get why c arr threw it. The c hargers were ahead

n ext in the third quar ter, r yan fumbled on his own 20, recovered it him self and then the c olts punted. r yan’s final fumble came in over time. And while it did not kill the Indianapolis drive, it did lose them three yards, which proved critical as kicker r odrigo b lankenship missed a 42yard field goal.

LastWriterweek was another amaz ing week of college football full of upsets and extremely fun matchups. Texas gave Alabama a big run for their money. bYU got a marquee win over baylor. Washington state got a shocking upset in big 10 country against Wisconsin. nebraska lost to Georgia southern, resulting in the firing of head coach scott Frost. Texas A&m fell victim to another monumental upset by Appalachian state. notre dame was stunned by marshall. The slate this weekend provides us with a ton of action, so let’s get into the top five.

nebraska is currently wan dering in the wilderness after firing head coach scott Frost on sunday. even though nebraska could have waited until october 1st for Frost’s contract buyout to go from $15 million to $7.5 mil lion, they decided to pull the trigger anyway. Interim head coach mickey Joseph inherits a husker team with talent but a penchant for falling short time and time again. Last week, the huskers gave up 642 yards in a 45-42 upset by Georgia southern.emotions are running high in this rivalry game. Last year, nebraska struggled to a 3-9 record. but they played 11-2 oklahoma extremely tight, ul timately losing by a touchdown. This one could be closer than records would predict.

b oth games could have been dramatically

The spartans go out west to face a Washington team that has a lot to prove. michigan state is looking to continue its

The Packers had a total of 260 receiving yards which is fine. Until you realize that their leading pass catcher was running back AJ d illon with just 46 yards. And yes, there was a dropped 75-yard touchdown pass that could have changed everything. b ut al most only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades.

b y and large, these fum bles were the product of a poor center-to-quarter back snap. And in both cases, most of the blame is on the quarterbacks. While I would expect both r yan and m ayfield to get better as the season pro gresses and their prob lems with the snap to go down, it is something worth looking out for.

d errick h enry s ince his injury last sea son, I have been suggest ing that the Titans bell cow running back would likely not look the same as he did before his injury.

b urrow’s pick-six was a good play by s teelers safety m inkah Fitzpatrick. o n the second one, b urrow was hit while he threw. The third was just an ex cellent interception by Pittsburgh star T.J. Watt. And the fourth felt like a 50-50 ball that the s teelers just came up with.

In his return to the team in 2022, when the Titans hosted the b engals, h enry had 20 carries but only produced 62 yards, though he did have a touchdown. That game was a horribly inefficient game for h enry, who av eraged just 3.1 yards per carry.And while that can be explained away by rust following a large pe riod of recovering from an injury, his showing against the Giants is a potentially alarming in dicator. For the Titans of fense to work, h enry needs to be averaging a lot more per carry -- at the very least 4.5, but ideally closer to five per carry like he did in 2019 and 2020.

5. No. 6 oklahoma at Nebraska (oklahoma -11.0) noon, foX

The former big 8 rivalry is coming to memorial stadium for the first time since 2009. oklahoma is at the beginning of the brent venables era, looking to contend for a playoff berth. however, there have been some hiccups already. The sooners led by a score of just 7-3 at half time against Kent state before a 24-point third quarter put the game away. venables, the for mer defensive coordinator at clemson, will surely be looking for a better performance against a big rival.

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b aker m ayfield had an equally horrible fumble performance, racking up four against his former team, the b rowns.

have been, considering A&m is paying head coach Jimbo Fisher 75 million dollars over 10 years.

3. No. 12 byu at No. 25 oregon (oregon -3.5) 3:30 p.m., foX

h is first came in the first quarter on third down, and though the play resulted in a three-yard gain, the Panthers still punted. o n c arolina’s next drive, b aker fumbled again, though was able to pass for three yards. In the third quar ter on third and 12, b aker fumbled, though it was recovered by c arolina. Then in the fourth, b aker fumbled in the red zone. o nce again, he was able to recover, and the Panthers would kick a field goal.

The other matchup between two ranked squads is in Autzen stadium, where the oregon ducks face surging bYU. The cougars are coming off an im pressive 26-20 win over a ranked baylor team in double overtime. Their defense came in clutch, making plays down the stretch to win the game. The cougar offense was hurting, literally. starting receivers Puka nacua and Gunner romney were in jured, which ended up leading to a breakout game from chase roberts. roberts caught eight passes for 122 yards, including a highly acrobatic catch for a touchdown.bYUcertainly grinded out an impressive win. but now they face an oregon team looking to reassert themselves. oregon took good use of their get-right game against Fcs opponent eastern Washington, winning by a score of 70-14. After get ting shut down at every level in a 49-3 drubbing by Georgia in week 1, quarterback bo nix and the oregon offense responded by amassing over 600 yards. nix made much better decisions in his second game, crucially avoiding a turnover as well. Are the ducks ready to get back on track and derail a bYU team that is riding high? or can the cougars keep their momentum rolling?

This game would have had a great case for number one if not for the events of last week. If the Aggies took care of busi ness against the mountaineers, it would have been a colos sal showdown with college Gameday in town. one has to wonder if the Aggies weren’t looking ahead to their marquee matchup this week against the hurricanes. They shouldn’t

i nterceptions

1. No. 22 penn state at auburn (penn state -3) 3:30 p.m., Cbs big Ten and sec powers clashing in non-conference play: i love it! The nittany Lions are 2-0, coming off of an easy win vs. ohio which was pre ceded by a barnburner against Purdue. Quarterback sean clifford has been busy fending off incoming freshman drew allar for the job. his gamewinning drive against Purdue seems to have locked it up for the time being. but it will be interesting to see if head coach James franklin piv ots to the freshman if clifford struggles.

con

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resurgence under head coach mel Tucker, finishing 11-2 and ranked no. 9 in the country in Tucker’s second season behind the helm. although the spartans lost star running back Kenneth Walker to the nfL, new transfer running back Jalen berger has filled his shoes admirably in routs of Western michigan and akron. defensive end Jacoby Windmon has 5.5 sacks in two games for the spartans, making him a player to watch.Washington is in the third game of the Kalen deboer era. deboer came to the huskies by way of fresno state, after the huskies fired Jimmy Lake. The huskies finished 4-8 last season but have convincingly beat two inferior schools in Kent state and Portland state to open the year. The new quarterback for the huskies, indiana transfer michael Penix Jr., has experience beating the spartans (back in

Contact Tom Zwiller at twziller@nd.edu

Leo a fonso has lead the way for v irginia with four goals on a whop ping 30 shots (14 on goal) so far. h is four tallies are tied for 15th in the country as well as for fourth among players in the acc s triker Philip h orton, a breakout candidate for the c avaliers, scored two goals and added an assist. v irginia also ros ters an acc Preseason Watchlist honoree in se nior defender a ndreas u eland. v irginia has four players with at least two goals. a nd, ten c avaliers have found the back of the net at least once in this still young season.

Paid a dverT isemen T

Wentz’s first interception was in the fourth quar ter. a cornerback reading the play picked him off, perfectly jumping the out route. The second came the next c ommanders drive, not two game minutes later, when line backer Travon Walker picked him off as he pressured.Withsome of these in terceptions, they honestly feel like a fluke. i do not see b urrow having a fourinterception game again this season. a nd i would be surprised if c arr had three again as well. c arr has never had more than 14 interceptions in a season. i think of him as a quar terback who is good about not turning the ball over. Wentz, meanwhile, is well Wentz.Like the fumbles from earlier, these turnovers took these teams out of the game. o r, in the case of the c ommanders, put the Jags back in it. The b engals had to work their way back into the game and could have won it because of how bad the s teelers are. a nd the c hargers game was put out of reach by those two late interceptions.

Contact amcguinn@nd.eduMcGuinnessAndrewat

2020).The vegas line favoring Washington is a bit of a surprise. but they do have a tremendous home-field advantage. a win for deboer and the huskies would be a major shift in the program. but Tucker and the spartans need the win for national implications.

auburn also enters at 2-0 un der head coach bryan harsin. The Tigers opened with a 4216 win over mercer and won 24-16 over san José state last week. The latter game was a bit of a wake-up call, as auburn was actually losing at halftime. although the Tigers have had struggles, they have been lights out in the red zone. every trip to the red zone for auburn has led to a Lasttouchdown.fall,auburn went up to Penn state and played at beaver stadium for the annual White out game. The nittany Lions came out on top by a score of 28-20. This year, both schools want to send a message that they are here to contend for their respective conferences. a win for either would be a major boost.

Week 3 con T inued from Page 12

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, september 16, 2022 | The observer sports13

24-13, and the r aiders needed points. b ut it cer tainly hurt. h urting worse was c arr’s third pick, which came just a few minutes lat er as a low pass to h unter r enfrow was intercepted.

n otre d ame does come into this meeting with some recent history on their side. The c avaliers haven’t beaten the i rish in regulation since the 2019-20 season, with n otre d ame winning the last two meetings the teams have played. i t is worth noting that both of those games were at a lumni s tadium, however. The only other meeting since was a 1-0 overtime win by v irginia in 2021. That game would end as a 0-0 tie today under college soccer’s new rules. The i rish take on the c avaliers at 7 p.m es T in c harlottesville this f riday, s ept. 16. The game can be streamed on accn X via Watch es P n

NfL

The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessar ily those of The Observer.

soccer con T inued from Page 16

Due to His Excellency’s attendance at the State funeral for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, this lecture will now be online only.

The views in this Sports Authority are the views of the au thor and not necessarily those of TheContactObserver.Joseph Tunney at jtun ney@nd.edu

like a team that could give the i rish defense and junior goaltender b ryan d owd a handful.

Gross. i predicted notre d ame to go 10-2 this season, which, i guess, is techni cally still in play. however when you lose a game that i personally ranked seventhhardest on the schedule and start 0-2, that 10-2 dream is on very thin ice -- but still alive.The i rish currently have no semblance of an of fense. They’ve scored just 31 points, blowing a bevy of opportunities over the first couple of weeks. Untimely penalties, missed open deep shots, interceptions and no running game have thwart ed the i rish offense at nearly every turn. now they turn to longtime backup Pyne to make things right.

Liam Coolican, a ssociate s ports e ditor

i n terms of i rish offense, it’s not perfect. b ut Pyne’s structure may be the answer to ending the passing touch down drought. b oth Uc d avis and U n Lv were able to score through the air on c al. This should mean the i rish can as well. The defense gets the takeaway they’ve been striv ing for. a nd while it’ll be tight, some of the pieces fi nally come together. a t the risk of losing any credibility, i rish win.

Notre d ame 14, Cal 13

Date: 7:00-8:30 p.m.

Notre d ame 17, Cal 13

Predictions for outcome of notre dame against cal matchup as irish seek recovery from homeregularopenerseason.iseeplentyofparallels between last week’s marshall game and the south Florida game. and if the irish can clean up a couple of the things i mentioned, there’s no doubt in my mind that notre dame can get some wins this year and build con fidence into next season.

These next few weeks are cru cial, though. The Freeman era is currently teetering on the brink of disaster and how this football team finishes out this year will be piv otal in marcus Freeman developing himself as a legitimate head foot ball coach. marcus Freeman, i am rooting for you. but it’s time to win some football games. if these losses keep cascading into more defeats, the Freeman era might burn out as quickly as it took over.

Location: Pfeil Board RoomsponsoredGenerouslyby

i am counting on those sporadic moments of greatness he posted on the field last year to grow now that he is securely in the Qb1 posi tion. Utilize juniors m ichael m ayer and Kevin b auman for some tight end touch downs s aturday. s hould the offense rally under this new leadership, and the defen sive line tighten up their play, i see the i rish com ing away with their first win of the season. a lbeit a close one.

m annion m cGinley, a ssistant m anaging e ditor

Observer Sports Staff

m adeline Ladd, a ssociate s ports e ditor

i f you’re looking for some one to blame for the i rish’s struggles, look no further. not only did i predict the

especially this week. c al may be 2-0, but the i rish need the win and this is the space to get it. Plummer is a quarter back the i rish d -line knows, and knows well. They need to get to him just as they did when he played for Purdue.

he must do so against a c al defense that is stiff against the pass but has ex perienced struggles against the run. The lead back for each c al opponents this year averages 7.1 yards per carry. The i rish need to assert them selves in the trenches and dominate a below-average c al offense. notre d ame must win ugly this year. hopefully, that trend starts on s aturday.

weaker c al offensive line, not fading in the second half as they have in the previous two games. This is a game well within the i rish’s wheelhouse and i think they can pull off the win. b ut it certainly won’t be pretty.

The offense was already struggling, and the loss of sophomore quarterback Tyler b uchner is a tough pill to swallow. i have mixed feel ings about junior quarter back d rew Pyne stepping in. it is certainly his time to shine, but he will have to do just that. i nterceptions like s aturday cannot happen mov ing forward. however, this is an opportunity for r ees to structure a solid game plan that involves more than just the run game. Pyne has proven he can pass the ball well, and he should be al lowed to do so.

Notre d ame 24 Cal 13

N d 24, Cal 17

The views in this column are the views of the author and not neces sarily those of The Observer.

September 19 Time:

Contact Joseph Tunney at jtunney@nd.edu

Notre d ame 21, Cal 17

i f the i rish are going to win this game, the offensive and defensive lines need to be much better than the mess that was m arshall. i f Pyne doesn’t have time to pass and the run game can not be es tablished, the i rish could be in trouble yet again. i think this is going to be a sloppy game. a nd while it may not be a good win, i do expect notre d ame to find a way to get into the win column. a late m ichael m ayer touchdown gives the i rish just enough of fense to edge out the Golden b ears.

To be honest, i’m not sure what to say here after the dev astation last week. c oupled with the loss of b uchner, there are a lot of question marks going into this weekend. however, though notre d ame is down, they are not out. They will certainly be coming into the weekend hungry, and the changes made on offense may prove to be beneficial.

freeman con T in U ed F rom PaGe 15

a idan t homas, s ports e ditor

Nate m oller, s enior s ports Writer notre d ame s tadium is usu ally one of my favorite places in the world. b ut it was far from it last s aturday. The i rish looked truly awful through out most of the game. With Freeman being 0-3 as a head coach, this game feels like a must-win. Without b uchner at quarterback, that will make getting a win much more dif ficult. c al is by no means a strong power five team. b ut they have shown that they can close out games, which is something notre d ame has yet to do. r unning back Jaydn o tt has averaged an impres sive 6.5 yards per carry this season. s topping his produc tion will be key for the i rish.

Notre d ame 24, Cal 17

b ut c al’s defense is no joke. The notre d ame offense, now led by Pyne, will need to get it together in order to come out with the victory. i pre dict that Pyne will be effi cient and throw for two T d’s. i see junior running back c hris Tyree with more action on the ground as well. The defensive line will control the

i am not sure where to be gin in predicting s aturday’s outcome; i have few words left after having to eat so many of them last week. The i rish would have to win out in order for my 10-2 season pre diction to be correct, and with Usc and c lemson still left to take on, i have my doubts.

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team would go 11-1 and make the c FP, i also wrote last week that “notre d ame doesn’t lose trap games.” The good news is, my predictions, much like notre d ame’s fortunes, can’t get much worse. d rew Pyne clearly wasn’t ready to come into the game last week, but he showed flashes of brilliance last year and i believe he can be a solid, if not spectacu lar, quarterback at this level. however, the i rish do have to adjust their offense sub stantially to play to Pyne’s strengths rather than b uchner’s in just a week’s time.itmight be another slow start for the i rish as the of fense takes time to get used to Pyne under center. b ut the defense will keep them in the game against a lacklus ter c al offense. notre d ame should be more fired up and better prepared than they were a week ago. Pyne will get rolling in the second half, and the defense will come up with a couple of big plays in the fourth quarter. it may take a late score, but the i rish will pull this one out.

e mily d e f azio, a ssociate s ports e ditor

By David Campbell, Ph.D.

The i rish have started the season 0-2 for the first time since 2011. s eeing as that’s as many losses as i predicted on the season as a whole, the i rish are not where i expected them to be. Losing b uchner on top of that was just salt in the wound. There’s poten tial in the change up though,

footbaLL

The Irish again opened up their season fac ing the Golden b ears, this time in defense of their 1966 national champion ship. n otre d ame finished 9-0-1 in 1966, beating ev ery opponent except n o. 2 m ichigan s tate, who they infamously tied 10-10.

that the “honeymoon phase is over.” After the atrocious beginning to this season, the relationship is even more than post-honeymoon strained now. Freeman must do everything in his power to right the sinking ship that is notre dame this season. even though the Irish will be playing mostly for pride here on out, Freeman has to energize his team and get them back to playing notre dame football.

The defense has not been the issue this season. but they have struggled to get pressure on the quarterback, recording only three sacks this season. senior defensive lineman Isaiah Foskey has been relatively quiet for the Irish this sea son. he needs to energize the Irish front seven going forward and gen erate some turnovers to help out a struggling Irish offense.

matchup history

The second meeting be tween n otre d ame and c al opened the season for both schools. This was also the first time the Golden b ears would take the trip east to n otre

The Irish rolled to a 48-6 win, amassing 381 yards on the ground. c al head coach r ay Willsey said, “We have no excuses for this fiasco.” The Irish were up 9-0 after

notre dame games against cal: The history of the matchup

Contact Joseph Tunney at jtunney@nd.edu

column

In each of Freeman’s three losses, the Irish have led in the second half and have looked like the better team in parts of each game. And just like clockwork in all three of the games, the team utterly collapses, forgets how to play defense in the fourth quarter and fails to execute late in the game. It’s one thing to have less talent than the other team and be outplayed. but that hasn’t re ally been the case in any of the three losses. In each of those games (yes, even ohio state), the Irish proved they had the talent to go toe-to-toe with their opponent and win the game.Ultimately, those close losses come down to one thing: coaching. The Irish have been out-coached in each of the three losses, and ultimately, that has been the dif ference. I could point fingers at of fensive coordinator Tommy rees as well, but I think the problem has been bigger than him so far. This is, after all, the Freeman era. This is coach Freeman’s football team. There has to be some sense of urgency in this football program, and I don’t get the sense there is right now. A loss to marshall should be a big deal. but it seems like the fanbase and media are waving if off like everything is going to be alright.Freeman said after the loss to oklahoma state in the bowl game

Let’s take a quick detour and look back to 2011, the last time the Irish started 0-2. Last week was not the first time the Irish suf fered a horrible loss in the home opener. In fact, in brian Kelly’s second season as head coach, the Irish lost the home opener to south Florida — a game I was actually at as an excited ten-year old notre dame fanatic. despite the loss, the Irish managed to finish a respect able 8-5 and beat some quality opponents. The following season, the Irish completed a perfect 12-0

The Irish lost 11 start ers from the team the year prior, so new play ers had to step up. The Irish stepped up to the task, dispatching the b ears. Quarterback Terry h anratty completed 15 passes for 203 yards and two scores. b ut he also lost a fumble and threw two intercep tions. r eceiver Jim s eymour and captain r ocky b leier each caught touchdown passes. c al Quarterback b arry b ronk had an awful day, complet ing just 2 of 20 pass es and getting picked off twice.

I haven’t given up on Freeman this yet. but I am angry, confused and anxious. The recruiting has been great under Freeman, and I still believe Freeman can be a great head coach at notre dame. but I need to see something from him this year that proves that to me.

For that reason, this weekend at cal is a must-win game for coach Freeman. Another loss at home to a sub-par opponent will raise even more doubts about Freeman and could send this season into free-fall — if it isn’t already.

so, what do the Irish need to do to get into the win column?

The inaugural meeting between n otre d ame and c al was on the west coast, with 68,500 fans pack ing m emorial s tadium. The Irish had a great start to the game, recover ing a fumble on c al’s first play from scrimmage. Quarterback George Izo threw a 27-yard touch down pass two plays later to put the Irish up 7-0. The Irish defense was swarm ing to the ball the whole day, forcing a total of six turnovers.Latein the first quar ter, the Irish’s other quar terback, d on White, engineered a touchdown drive to expand the lead to 14-0. In the second half, the offensive drives be gan to stall out for both sides. The Golden b ears couldn’t get any offense un til late in the fourth quar ter after a 56-yard run play eventually led to a five-yard touchdown catch to make it 21-6.

d ame s tadium. Leading the b ears after Pete e lliott’s dismissal was head coach m arv Levy. Levy is today more commonly known for his later tenure as head coach of the b uffalo b ills, making four straight s uper b owl appearances but fail ing to win all four. h owever, 26 years before he took the job with the b ills, he was the head coach of c al. n otre d ame got on the board first as a result of a short field due to a c al fumble. b ut c al re sponded with a sustained drive that eventual ly led to a touchdown. c al outplayed the Irish in the first half, holding the Irish to a 7-7 tie at the intermission.butnotred ame came out of the break with a strong drive highlighted by a long kick return and a 33-yard touchdown run. Later in the third quarter, the Irish blocked a c al punt and took it to the house to finish the scoring.however, the Irish still had major concerns after the opening win. The pass ing attack was never able to get going, and the team seemed inexperienced. These would prove to be valid, as the Irish finished with a lowly 2-8 record. c al finished only margin ally better, going 2-7-1. s trangely, both teams beat their main rivals (U sc and s tanford, respectively) in otherwise terrible years.

By NATE MOLLER senior sports Writer

paGe 14

WhileWriter n otre d ame has strong rivalries with oth er c alifornia universities like U sc and s tanford, n otre d ame and c al will meet on the football field for just the fifth time in history this s aturday. These foes each share a mutual rival in the s tanford c ardinal. In ad dition, both schools are academic powerhouses that boast strong athletic pro grams. b efore the series is renewed on s aturday, let’s examine the pre vious matchups on the gridiron.

After another touch down by the Irish, the clock ran out a few minutes later. It was an important game for the Irish, need ing to rebound after an upset loss to Purdue the previous week. The Irish struggled in 1959 but ended the season on a high note, beating two ranked teams in Iowa and U sc to finish at an even 5-5. c al finished 2-8 in the last season of the Pete e lliott era.

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, september 16, 2022 | The observer sports15

It’s hard to believe that just last week, there were many notre dame fans across the country ex pecting the Irish to finish the sea son 11-1 after a hard-fought loss to ohio state in the opening week of the season. Fast forward a week and the narrative is completely different following a stunning Irish defeat to the marshall Thundering herd. being a lifelong notre dame foot ball fan, I have faced plenty of lows. Usc’s reign of terror over the Irish during the charlie Weis era. A 3-9 season in 2007. The national cham pionship blowout loss to Alabama in 2013. A 4-8 season in 2016. And of course, the pair of recent cFP losses.despite all of those painful memories, this might be an all-time low for me. That marshall game will forever be burned into my head as I sat in the student section in utter disbelief. notre dame usually finds a way to win games like that one. but that just wasn’t the case last saturday. I had never left a notre dame football game early. but I did on saturday after the drew Pyne interception because I didn’t want to waste more time on a team that had looked lackluster and effortless allLastday. december, when marcus Freeman was announced as head coach, I had full faith in Freeman. I truly believed that he would be the coach to finally get the Irish to a national title. After a stunning 0-3 start to the Freeman era, I am now beyond skeptical.

o ctober 10, 1959: n otre d ame 28, c al 6

When the game kicks off on s aturday it will be the first game in the series in 55 years. c al has been dominated by the Irish in all four previous out ings, mainly because they lost the turnover battles by wide margins. The 2022 Irish defense, which has not forced a turnover this season, surely is going to try to make history re peat itself.

s eptember 24, 1960: n otre d ame 21, c al 7

s eptember 18th, 1965: n otre d ame 48, c al 6 d uring the five-year in termission between the second and third games of the series, n otre d ame football had lost its iden tity but found it again. After three subpar sea sons where the Irish never finished better than 5-5, they hired the first nonn otre d ame graduate since Knute r ockne: Ara Parseghian.Parseghian instantly turned n otre d ame football around. The team was 9-0 going into the final game of the 1964 season, boasting the number one ranking. h owever, U sc upset the Irish to dash any national title hopes. e xpectations were sky high for 1965, and they opened with c al, who finished last in their con ference in 1964.

By JOSEPH TUNNEY sports

b y the time the fourth quarter hit, the reserves were in. c al scored late in the fourth, upsetting gam blers who had backed the Irish as 35-point favorites. The Golden b ears had an other middling season, going 5-5. For the second time, n otre d ame lost in an upset to Purdue the next week while carrying the number one ranking. The Irish finished 8-2, their other loss coming to U sc .

the end of the first quarter, but the lead had ballooned to 28-6 by halftime. Turnovers again plagued c al, lead ing coach Parseghian to remark that “ c al was most unfortunate; it yielded field position on turnovers all day.”cal went on to go 5-5. The dominant win propelled n otre d ame to the num ber one ranking, which they would relinquish a week later in an upset loss to Purdue. The Irish ended up finishing 7-2-1 on the season.

s eptember 23rd, 1967: n otre d ame 41, c al 8

moller: Freeman era teetering to disasterseeFreemAn

Losing sophomore quarterback Tyler buchner to a season ending injury certainly isn’t going to help, but hopefully the team can rally around drew Pyne. If Pyne is go ing to be successful, though, the offensive line has to improve dras tically. The Irish have failed to es tablish a run game in both games this season. And that, in turn, has made it difficult to find consisten cy in the passing game. The Irish should have three solid backs in junior chris Tyree and sophomores Audric estime and Logan diggs. now is the time to get those three goingAsideoffensively.fromthe offensive line, the Irish need to take care of the foot ball. They didn’t do that at the end of the marshall game, and it argu ably made the difference. The Irish might find themselves in a lot of low scoring games and handing the op posing team good field position will cost the Irish greatly.

AnyA Ruffino | The observer Irish senior midfielder PJ Bujouves prepares for a kick into the goal during an exhibition game at Alumni Stadium against Bethel University. The game took place on August 21, 2022, prior to the home opener.

their performance from last year. Then, they earned a perfect score by taking each of the top five spots. Last year’s race was won by freshman Kate Wiser, who emerged from a strong pack of n otre d ame runners. That included a pair of returners on this year’s team along with Wiser – d enner, who fin ished as runner-up, and se nior Katie r ose b lachowicz, who placed fourth. n one of these three runners com peted at valparaiso ear lier in s eptember, so the Irish lineup will likely look quite different from last year’s in their quest to retain the title.

o n paper, n otre d ame men’s soccer (1-2-1, 0-1-0 A cc ) matchup against the v irginia c avaliers isn’t an ideal matchup. The Irish are still looking to find their stride this season. They have scored more than one goal in three of their four matches. And while v irginia was picked last in their division in the A cc Preseason Poll, the c avaliers are off to a solid 4-2 start. Plus, the Irish can tell you how much preseason rankings matter as much as anyone. After all, they overcame the same projec tion a year ago to make the c ollege c up.

16 The observer | friday, september 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

cross country men’s soccer

Junior Amanda Tracy led the team in the 6k race with a

The n ational c atholic Invite will begin with the women’s race at 3:30 p.m. on Friday at n otre d ame’s b urke Golf c ourse. The men’s race will follow at 4:15 p.m., and the awards ceremony will be at 5 p.m.

By ANDREW McGUINNESS Associate sports e ditor

Irish seeking first Acc win against v irginia

junior Tom s eitzer, c ozean, sophomore c arter s olomon and senior Quinn Gallagher all return. The Irish should once again put a large pack at the front of the field. o n the women’s side, the n o. 6 Irish have similar goals for the Invite after a comprehensive openingmeet victory against com petitive Purdue and Western m ichigan teams. A more veteran team than the men, n otre d ame placed five in the top ten, led by gradu ate student Katie r yan, who placed second. Freshmen s ophie n ovak and c harlotte Turesson came in third and fifth, respectively. The Irish victory came with out appearances from AllAmericans graduate student m addy d enner and junior o livia m arkezich, along with other returners who will be gin racing later in the year.

31st place finish. s ophomore s usanna b ernovich, fresh man Isabelle Auch, and se nior Angela b annan finished as a pack behind Tracy in 48th, 49th, and 51st, respec tively. s aint m ary’s finished in 13th place out of 15 teams in last year’s c atholic Invite. A 59th-place effort from b annan paced the team. The b elles look to better that re sult on TemperaturesFriday. at race-time are expected to be in the mid-eighties. The warm con ditions will test the tough ness of the Irish in their final “tune-up” race before diving into the challenging slate of meets that the second half of the season will hold.

b ut v irginia certainly looks

n otre d ame cross coun try will serve as host for the n ational c atholic Invite on Friday afternoon at b urke Golf c ourse. The Invite will be the home opener for the Irish. b oth the men’s and women’s squads will be heavy favorites coming into a meet that the program has historically dominated as they look to build on sea son-opening victories. The meet will feature a field of 16 c atholic institutions, sever al of which are located in the m idwest region. The wom en’s race is a 5K, while the men’s race will be five miles. The n otre d ame men’s team enters the meet ranked n o. 13 nationally after tak ing each of the top ten places in a strong showing at the Winrow-valparaiso Invite. This was made all the more impressive by the fact that the Irish were not at full strength for the race. They rested several of their

Contact Matthew Crow mcrow@nd.edu

b ut Friday’s contest offers the Irish a chance to rise to the increas ing level of the c avaliers. s ometimes, good teams just need the right opponent to push them. A v irginia team with a roster not ex pected to produce a strong season but playing some

strong soccer right now could be the right match up. And if nothing else, the c avaliers provide the Irish a second chance to get their first conference win of the season, after the Irish fell in s yracuse 1-0 on s aturday.Afterdropping their sea son opener to Xavier 1-0, the c avaliers have emerged as a dominant offensive team. v irginia has scored at least three goals in four of its five matches since that game. The lone excep tion was a difficult match up against n o. 6 m aryland, which ended in a 6-1 defeat. b ut other than that, the c avaliers have run the table. In fact, v irginia scored five goals in its last game against La s alle (5-0), the same amount the Irish have in four games this season. o bviously, qual ity of opponent matters.

Given the opportunity to impact n otre d ame’s team score, the highly touted group of Irish freshmen stepped up. Izaiah s teury won the race, e than c oleman finished in fourth, and sev eral other freshmen placed in the top ten. n otre d ame’s more experienced runners also performed well. Juniors c arter c heeseman and Jake r enfree and sophomore r obbie c ozean earned topfiveFriday’sfinishes.meet will likely feature a similar lineup for the Irish men, as the team is unlikely to race its full top seven until closer to the postseason. At last year’s c atholic Invite, n otre d ame won the race handily, tak ing the top four positions and posting a near-perfect score of 16. Top finishers

The n otre d ame women enter the c atholic Invite as the 14-time solo defending champions. They’ll strive to make it fifteen and to match

s aint m ary’s will also be in the women’s field, aiming to continue a strong start to the season in what will be their third meet. The b elles placed sixth at last week end’s c alvin Knight invita tional, competing against several nationally ranked d ivision II and III programs.

see soccer paGe 13

By MATTHEW CROW sports Writer

Irish cross country prepares to host national catholic invite in hopes of opener victory

top athletes to provide ex perience for a talented but youthful group of under classmen. These runners will be counted on to play major roles for the team dur ing this season and beyond.

“It’s an honor to be able to help this team win,” he said “I’m focused on one thing and that’s preparing as hard as I can for c al and practicing to be able to have success this week.”

Tyree is also known to be a threat in the passing game. however, he has caught just three passes so far. Getting Tyree touches will be

“J d b ertrand’s been very good in terms of setting the front and communication. b o b auer’s obviously doing a great job on special teams. very pleased with all three of these guys but at the same time disappointed, because they’ve worked very hard and aren’t getting the results that they deserve. They gotta keep fighting and good things will happen.”

by comparison, sophomore running Audric estime has 10 carries, while sophomore Logan diggs has seven. estime and diggs are certainly tal ented, but they are averag ing just 2.8 and 1.5 yards per carry on the year, respectively. While Tyree only has nine carries on the season, he is averaging an impressive five yards per attempt.

one of notre dame’s most dynamic offensive threats has been largely absent from their game plan thus far. star junior running back chris Tyree has gotten just 12 touches for 65 to tal yards through the team’s first two games. In the defeat against marshall, he carried the ball just three times.

Contact Liam Coolican at lcoolica@nd.edu

at athomas@nd.edu Pyne con TI n U ed F rom PAGe 4

marcus Freeman is still search ing for his first win as a head coach, after starting his career off 0-3. Prior to the season, many predicted that this weekend’s matchup would be a walk in the park for the Irish. but the season has not gone as planned for anyone in south bend. oddsmakers, however, still believe in the Irish, as they are currently listed as 11-point fa vorites heading into the contest. notre dame will certainly have to make some adjustments if they hope to get the victory saturday afternoon. here are three keys to victory.

ndsmcobserver.com | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022 | The observer insider3

The defense was expected to be a huge strength for the Irish. b ut so far, their per formance has been less than stellar. m issed tackles, no turnovers and collapsing at the end of long drives at the end of the game have plagued the defense. Though they were able to keep the points down, the defense needs to step up. Golden recognizes this, feeling “disappointed by not discouraged” by the early results, getting straight to the point.

‘We have to do a better job tackling, number one’

Irish fans might be familiar with Golden bears’ quarterback Jack Plummer, who transferred from Purdue this offseason. notre dame handled the boilermakers 27-13 at home last year. but Plummer played well. Although he didn’t put up spectacular num bers, Plummer completed a solid 25 of 36 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown.Plummer has looked solid so far yardsinhisnewuniform.hethrewfor278incal’svictoryoverUnLvlastweek,and268yardsandthreetouchdownstheweekprioragainstUcdavis.Asateam,thebearshaverushedforjust119.5yardspergameagainstmediocrecompetition.sotheIrishwoulddowelltolimitPlummerandforcethebearstobeatthemontheground.Thismightbeafavorablematchupfornotredame,astheIrishsecondaryhasbeenabrightspotsofarthisyear.Againstohiostate,theyheldstarquarterbackc.J.stroud,whomanypredictedtobeaheismancontender,to223yardsthroughtheair.Forreference,stroudaveragednearly370yards

By LIAM COOLICAN Associate sports e ditor

Foskey has shown leadership and a late in-game energy. We have to keep find ing the matchup for him and help him get pressure on the quarterback,” Golden said.

Feature con TI n U ed F rom PAGe 2

or exceeded that output in 10 of their 13 games last sea son. The ground game has been nonexistent outside of buchner. And the passing game has been inconsistent at best and awful at worst. now, without their biggest running threat, and the offensive line continuing to struggle, what can Pyne improve upon in his first career start?

especially important in this game as the offense will still be adjusting to a new quarterback under center. establishing the running game will be important. but neither diggs nor estime have been overly impressive.Tyreehas certainly done enough to have earned the feature back role. If Freeman hopes to get his first win saturday, he should make sure the ball is in Tyree’s hands ear ly and often.

situations. In the passing game, only junior tight end m ichael mayer and sophomore wide receiver Lorenzo styles have more than three receptions. Pyne knows he must find a way to get them the ball. but he also needs to spread the of fense out.

This one’s pretty simple. one of the main reasons why notre dame was competitive against ohio state was because they took care of the football. Against marshall, sopho more quarterback Tyler buchner tossed two interceptions, includ ing a late pick-six which seemed to kill any energy that was left in notre dame stadium. To make matters worse, junior quarterback drew Pyne came in and immedi ately threw an interception of his own.notre

“I’m not here for personal accolades or for stats. I’m here to do whatever I can to help

my team win. I think the guys know that. r ight now, I play for [Jarret Patterson], for b o b auer, for A d [Avery davis], for guys like that,” Pyne said, name-dropping a few Irish veterans in their final year on the team. “I’m playing for all those guys on the team that have taken me in since I got here.”That preparation starts in practice, as it has for three years for Pyne. And he’s not letting anything get to his head, and he’s taking it day by day.“I’m not thinking longterm. The opportunity I see is after this I’m going to go watch film. It’s easy to fall into that trap of letting this get to my head, but the opportunity I have, from where I’m stand ing, is being able to… come back tomorrow and have a great practice… taking it prac tice by practice, rep by rep, as hard as I can and with as much focus as I can.”

It’s not a promising trend, and it’s one the Irish will likely have to reverse if they hope to get their first win of the year. The Golden bears have turned the ball over three times this year but have also forced three turnovers on defense. notre dame must be able to take care of the football on offense and force Plummer into mistakes.

“We have to do a better job tackling, number one,” Golden said. “And our fourth quarter execution has to im prove. That’s on me, I have to do a better job putting them in a position to execute in the fourth quarter, and we have to do a better job tackling as a unit in Golden’sgeneral.”ownership of the team’s shortcomings is simi lar to that of r ees, highlight ing the accountability of both“Wecoordinators.canmixitup and do a better job,” Golden said “We’ve limited explosives and have kept the points down. b ut what we haven’t done is turn the field on a takeaway. s o takeaways, more hits and sacks on the quarterbacks are things we can do a better job of.”

dame hasn’t been get ting any extra possessions on the defensive side, either. According to Pete sampson of The Athletic, notre dame is one of just eight teams that has yet to force a turnover.

These elements, especially an increasing emphasis on

If they can continue this trend on saturday, notre dame will put themselves in a good position to walk away with the victory.

notre dame’s keys to snagging a solid victory against cal

FooTBALL

Get Tyree the ball

Preparing for Saturday Golden, r ees and the rest of the coaching staff are looking at everything from “the top down.” Though the Irish have not gotten off to a strong start, there is no de nying they are trying hard to turn things around. n ot taking things for granted and recognizing the impor tance of each play, r ees says, is the name of the game this weekend.“Anytime you play this game the margins between wins and losses are very small,” r ees said. “You can have a number of losses that get masked because you won the game. We must not take things for granted. Play in and play out, it matters how everyone does their job.”

tossing an interception that sealed an already likely notre dame loss. Although he led a touchdown drive to give the Irish a last-gasp onside kick at tempt, it ultimately proved to be too little, too late. but now, with buchner an nounced out for the season, it’s truly Pyne time in s outh b end. but according to the redshirt sophomore, that hardly af fects his mindset. “ I’m going to keep preparing and treat ing practice like a game every day,” Pyne commented. “It’s easy to fall in a trap, to think that it’s different. I’ve pre pared as hard as I can no mat ter what situation I’ve been in. I’ve got to lead the guys on the practice field, push them as hard as I can every day and that’s what I’m focused on rightPyne’snow.” biggest challenge is sparking a lethargic notre dame offense. notre dame has scored 31 total points this season. They matched

“I think c oach rees does a great job of that. he knows how to get guys open and cre ate space. he knows how to put us and me in a great posi tion to succeed,” Pyne said. “I have full faith in him and ev erything he Additionally,does.”there was a lack of disruptive play defensively, punctuated by the zero turnovers the Irish have caused. Pyne can’t fix everything, but he needs to provide a spark. And Pyne is ready to do just that. not for his own benefit, but for the teammates that have helped him throughout his career, which has included a bevy of quarterback battles.

Pyne’s in a relatively unique position. Frequently, a four-star recruit who lost

but Pyne has first and fore most always been all in on notre dame. Last year, af ter the c incinnati game, he discussed his frequent trips to the b asilica, or his walks around campus that he used to calm himself and reflect after practices and games. Pyne has always bled blue and gold. now he gets a chance to do so on the field.

“There are positives and you gotta find them,” r ees said. “We need to make sure that everyone is doing their job and improving.”

Win the turnover battle

tackling, could make all the difference for the Irish de fense. h owever, despite the chaos, Golden recognized the three defensive captains as providing a constant for the Irish defense the past two weeks.“(Isaiah)

Contact Madeline Ladd at mladd2@nd.edu

Limit the Bears’ Passing Attack

The c onnecticut product was quick to point out that it’s hardly just one guy or one position that was failing the offense.“Ithink it’s easy to point fin gers on the offense, but it takes eleven guys to succeed on of fense to run the ball,” Pyne said. “It takes receivers, it takes a quarterback, it takes a running back. It takes 11 guys toesucceed.”veryplayer can certainly share some of the blame for this 0-2 start. There were dropped passes that could have been touchdowns. m issed blocking assignments from the offen sive line and tight ends that caused negative plays in big

per game in 2021. meanwhile, the Irish held the Thundering herd to under 150 yards passing last week.

consecutive quarterback bat tles (last year to c oan, this year to buchner) would hardly hesi tate before entering the trans fer portal. b y 247 sports, Pyne was the eighth-ranked prostyle quarterback in the class of 2020. he received interest from the likes of Alabama, ohio state, oklahoma and other premier programs.

A year ago, the Irish finished top-20 in the nation with a turnover mar gin of plus-9.

Contact Aidan Thomas

The first time Irish fans saw d rew Pyne take the field for the blue and gold, it was at the tail end of a 52-0 blowout win over s outh Florida. not exactly the most memorable moment. however, the sec ond time Pyne saw the field with the Irish tells you every thing you need to know about notre dame’s new starting quarterback.onJan.1,2021, notre dame was facing Alabama in the c ollege Football Playoff. When Ian b ook briefly left the field for injury, Pyne was thrust into the action. A true fresh man at the time, Pyne entered for two plays, completing his only pass attempt for seven yards. It was hardly a ground breaking play, nor was it an ex tended performance. but with no warning, playing in the rose b owl against nick s aban and the c rimson Tide, Pyne came in cold off the bench to quarterback the Irish offense.

That mindset has been evi dent throughout Pyne’s career at notre dame. Last year, he appeared in two games. First, he replaced an injured Jack c oan against Wisconsin, with the Irish trailing 13-10. he completed six of eight pass es, including his first career touchdown toss. That score pushed the Irish lead to 24-13. A week later, Pyne performed admirably in attempting to rally notre dame from a 17-0 deficit against c incinnati. he got the Irish within four points despite being forced into a one-dimensional offense that threw the ball 22 times in the second half.

4 The observer | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

FEATuRE

“my mindset has never

rep by rep: It’s Pyne’s time to lead Irish team to victory

QuARTERBAck

Junior quarterback Drew Pyne passes the football during the home game against Marshall in an attempt to spark an Irish comeback. Eyes now turn to Pyne after quarterback Tyler Buchner announced an injury.

MAGGIE KLAERS | The Observer see PYne PAGE 3

Last weekend, Pyne entered in relief of an injured quar terback once more, replacing sophomore Tyler buchner. This time, Pyne did struggle,

MAX PETROSKY | The Observer

By AIDAN THOMAS sports e ditor

changed since the moment I got here,” Pyne said on Tuesday. “I will always be pre pared and as ready as possible for any point that I need to help the team.”