Sons of Saturday - Irish: A Notre Dame Football Podcast

The guys are back with a jam packed episode coming out of the 4th of July weekend. We discuss the bombshell dropped Thursday that was the news that USC and UCLA are joining the Big Ten in 2024. What does it all mean for Notre Dame? What does it mean for college football? We’re not sure yet, but we try to make sense of it all. On a more positive note, the Irish reclaimed the top spot in the 2023 recruiting rankings after bringing in a haul of top-100 commits over the weekend. Listen to us to discuss the significance of the recent run, and what it means for the future. Finally, we’re joined by Hunter Bivin, former Irish offensive lineman and current Director of Football Player Development. Hunter discusses his time in South Bend, the evolution of his experience over time, and how he's able to use his experience to help current players. 

The Guys welcome back Friend of the Program and leader in recurring appearances, Mike Singer of Blue and Gold Illustrated, to talk about the Irish’s recruiting operation. June was a massive recruiting month for the Irish, and the work done by Marcus Freeman and Co. should lead to some some major commitments in the coming weeks. Tune in to hear Mike run through the state of things, and learn just why he’s so high on Chansi Stuckey. Plus, Luke went to Omaha to watch the Irish Baseball team’s return to the College World Series. After a weekend with a win; a loss, a lot of Horns Down thrown and Jell-O shots, our host is ready to never return to Nebraska.

The guys are back to recap an exciting week in Notre Dame Athletics. The Irish landed their first 5-Star Quarterback commitment in over a decade with CJ Carr pledging to the Irish on Thursday. Not 72 hours later, Notre Dame Baseball punched its first trip to the College World Series in 20 years, stunning top-ranked Tennessee on the road in a decisive Game Three. For the first time on this podcast, we talk about Irish Baseball. We then discuss the significance of Carr’s commitment, both for the 2024 recruiting class, and in the context of Notre Dame’s pursuit of Dante Moore. We conclude with an exercise looking at the hit rate of top quarterbacks the last 5 years and reach a consensus that Notre Dame should certainly not be satisfied with just one top-flight QB on the roster.

The guys are back to touch on everything going on with Notre Dame football as summer approaches. We discuss our experiences seeing Marcus Freeman speak at alumni events in Chicago and Los Angeles, and draw attention to some unfortunate parallels between the new head ball coach and another former first time head coach. We get into “The USC Thing,” before discussing NIL and of course, recruiting. We conclude the episode with listener submitted questions across a wide range of topics. Tune in to hear about what Father Jenkins is doing to address the parking problem on campus. 

The guys are back with Friend of the Program Greg Flammang from Irish Sports Daily and the Single High Notre Dame Pod to make sense of what’s real and what’s fake coming out of the 91st Annual Blue and Gold Game. We deliberate over to buy or sell stock on each position group. Topics include:

-Steve Angeli will beat out Drew Pyne for QB2

-Chris Tyree and Jadarian Price will outgain Logan Diggs and Audric Estime (rushing & receiving yards combined)

-Jayden Thomas will have more receptions than Deion Colzie

-Patterson should move to Guard so Zeke Correll can play Center

-Notre Dame will field its best defensive line unit this season since 2012

-Either Prince Kollie, Jaylen Sneed, or Junior Tuihalamaka will be a starter at linebacker by November

-Brandon Joseph will have 5+ INT this season

-Current kickers will make us miss The Jonathan Doerer Experience

Come for debate, leave feeling excited about what Notre Dame what field defensively next year.

The guys are back to discuss the latest news coming out of Notre Dame spring camp, the addition of Tennessee State to the 2023 schedule, and some recruiting updates. Injuries have hounded an already thin receiver room, while depth has reflected at other positions like safety and linebacker. We discuss our reactions to the news that Notre Dame is playing Tennessee State in 2023, something that set Notre Dame Twitter ablaze last week. We’d love to hear your thoughts on the development. We’ll also discuss the waiting and longing for a Dante Moore commitment, and what might be going on there.

The guys are back to discuss some of the biggest storylines around the Notre Dame football team entering spring practice. All eyes are on Tyler Buchner, but we’re also curious to find out who is going to step up as a weapon for the young QB. After a disappointing finish to last season, the secondary remains a question mark, providing underclassmen with lots of opportunity this spring. We close with some notes on recruiting and the NCAA Tournament. Join us as we start to gear up for the start of another spring campaign. 

The guys are back to discuss Notre Dame’s coaching staff for the 2022 football season with Ashton Pollard from blueandgold.com. It’s been over two months since Brian Kelly left Notre Dame to become the head coach at LSU, and after a series of unexpected twists and turns, new head coach Marcus Freeman finally has his first staff complete. We share our thoughts on each of the new hires and go over how each assistant ended up at Notre Dame. Please subscribe, rate, and review! 

Former Notre Dame All-American left tackle Mike McGlinchey joins the show again to discuss his time with the San Francisco 49ers, Harry Hiestand’s return to ND, why he returned for a fifth-year, playing in a Super Bowl, and a lot more. 

We’re back to discuss the 2021 season in full. After discussing the National Championship Game and touching on some news surrounding the roster and coaching staff, we do a retrospective on this year’s campaign. Join us as we revisit our preseason predictions and revise those, where needed. We’ll be back next week for a forward look at 2022, but tune in for one last look at a downright ridiculous 2021 season.