Perhaps no university is more strict with their student athletes than Notre Dame. Do one thing of a questionable nature, and the chances are you will be suspended for the semester. Anything above questionable (DUI, actual criminal behavior), and you will no longer be attending Notre Dame.

Other schools give athletes multiple chances, no matter the crime. Go ahead, steal from teammates, wield guns recklessly, commit armed robbery, even swap a baby(check last 10 seconds of video) for an ipod. If you can play, the suspension will only last a game or two.

And (without debating the morality of it) this fact will downgrade Notre Dame in the eyes of high school students.

And even in players it already has.

Joseph Fauria is leaving because of Notre Dame’s stifling policies. You can see his thoughts by reading Eric Hansen (South Bend Tribune) or checking out this BGS article.

If you don’t believe that the university may be a tad bit unfair, check out some of the things that can lead to the ousting of a student (straight from university policy):

Notre Dame Policy (excerpts)

Section (I)
a.) Farting in a burst of longer than 3 seconds or at a noise level above 30 decibels (a whisper), or in any manner that may cause a giggle and distract a student from their studies.

Section (II-a)
f.) Adorning a dormitory wall with posters of scantily-clad women, or taking any other means that may produce unclean thoughts.

Strict. Strict. Strict.

My partner-in-crime (Adam H) is worried about the love that the Irish are getting from everyone. It doesn’t matter whether they are an ND homer or Sports Illustrated, but people are liking the Irish to do well this season.

And the main reason that these outlets are giving the love is the schedule.

Washington, Washington State, UConn, Nevada, Navy, etc. Interesting note: The Bleacher Report says that the ‘09 schedule isn’t all that different from the ‘08 (6-6) schedule.

At any rate, the Irish have had easier schedules recently that at any time most fans can remember. And it got me to wondering:

What on God’s green earth is easier than Notre Dame’s schedule?

I could only come up with 5 things:

5.) Makin’ Kool-Aid. Gotta start somewhere in the kitchen before you can become Gordon Ramsey. Every one of the world’s best chefs first great creation was this magic elixir: Powder mix. Sugar. Water. Combine and stir. Woolah! How did he make that great drink?!

4.) Sandals. Can’t tie shoes? Too weak to bend over and use your hands to pull a velcro strap? Well, pick your feet 2 inches off the ground and slide them between the sole and fabric of a sandal. Mission accomplished.

3.) Using Grey’s Anatomy as a conversation starter. Want to talk with a girl? Say hi, and ask her if she likes the show. She does.

2.) Breathing. Seriously, would you even think about if you weren’t choking on something or under water?

1.) Getting a boner when you’re 13. Sears bra ad anyone?

So I click over on NDNation and they are running an ongoing series of Crystal Ball predictions for this season’s games. Aside from a good breakdown of the upcoming games, they have outlined a pretty successful season (8-1 as of Wednesday). Wow, double digit wins over Michigan and MSU; a 3 point loss to USC. This makes me nervous.

Then I go to SI, reading that, with an upcoming easy schedule, ND will be in the BCS (deservedly this time). This makes me nervous.

Sporting News declares a 10 or 11 win season. This makes me nervous.

ND fans are palpably optimistic going into the ’09 season. I understand this. Returning starters, new coaches, an easy schedule….what could possibly go wrong? In fact, I almost feel the same way, I’m just fighting it off. I remember this mood in 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, and 2006 (10 wins, but disappointing).

Am I a downer? Maybe.

Am I ruining the fun? Perhaps.

Am I tempering my expectations? Absolutely.

Recent years have shown me that ND is fully capable of coming out flat and struggling with an overmatched opponent. Let’s just not start counting the wins until we at least see the product on the field.