Brady Quinn was the the MVP of  college football in 2005 and 2006.  Nobody meant more to their teams success.  Take him away, and both of those BCS teams are .500 at best.  He made the big throws, and he was the leader.  When he rose to the occasion, so did the Irish.  SC in ‘05 and Michigan State in ‘06 come to mind.  When he struggled, so did the Irish.  SC in ‘06 and LSU in ‘07 come to mind.  Nobody was the face of a program like Brady Quinn and the Irish could only go as far as he could take them.

In 2008, the Irish have a new face.  His name is Jimmy Clausen (you may have heard of him), and this team belongs to him.  If the Irish were an Armani cologne, Jimmy would be the chisled jawline, and high cheekbones pitching it to ugly people.  Anything good that happens does so because of Jimmy.

Don’t believe me?

The Irish play tough defensively, but good offensive teams will have no problem scoring.  The thought of ND playing a balanced offense is as nightmarish as peeing your pants in public (No, that presentation didn’t go as well as you had hoped).

The Irish have talented running backs, but cannot run the ball.  The offensive line has  more trouble making holes than Ally McBeal (Calista Flockhart) had eating a cheeseburger in the late nineties.

But, the Irish can assault with their passing game.  Jimmy Clausen can sling it to Golden Tate, Michael Floyd and Kyle Rudolph.  He can do it repeatedly, and without mercy (though Mr. Miyagi wouldn’t be too proud of him)  His right arm is basically a semiautomatic weapon, and his receivers are Kevlar-piercing bullets.

The point is that Jimmy bears the burden of this team just like Brady did.  The team will go as far as he can take it, just like Brady.  I still have a man crush on Brady but he wasn’t perfect.  He didn’t always throw the short and intermediate routes with enough accuracy, and he started some big games so jacked up that I think he refined pure testosterone to a powder and snorted it before the game.  (Come to think of it, maybe he is a better fit for the Cowboys than the Browns.)  Because of this, the big game results of his career were mixed (noted in 1st paragraph).  In other words, as good as Brady was, the Irish might need something superior.

Clausen may be just that.  He already throws a more accurate ball at this point in his career than Brady did.  He’s learning to take what the defense gives him.  His weapons are going to be more explosive than Quinn’s.  Against Carolina, he needs to take another step toward being better than Brady.  Her Loyal Sons has documented how dangerous the North Carolina playmakers are and it looks downright scary.  Clausen is ND’s answer.  The only way for that answer to be right is for Clausen to play like he never has before.  And maybe like Brady never has either.

It is another fall Saturday.  My name is Jerell Owens, and I am Big State’s best defender-their pure cover corner.  I’m the guy  who shuts down the other team’s best receiver-and allows my defensive coordinator to put 9 in the box to stuff the run, or dial up an exotic safety blitz to give yet another quarterback the Steve Young treatment.  (Damn!  Another concussion, seriously Doc?  My noggin gets busted a lot, doesn’t it?)  Hell, I’ve put 3 coaches in the NFL already, all because some some schmuck thinks they are some kinda x’s and o’s wizz.  My last coach, Steve Z, makes 4 million a year, and is married to an ex-stripper named Candy with titties so nice that Dr. 90210 wishes he could put them in the Smithsonian.

I am the definition of athletically gifted.  I don’t walk down the street, I somersault down it.  I tried to dunk a basketball once, and knocked myself out because I hit my head on the stadium roof.  I beat Usain Bolt in the 100m, but quit the sport and gave it to him, just so Jamaica has something to be proud of-and can forget about Cool Runnings.  My muscles are so defined that I counted 36 separate abs on my stomach the other day.  That’s right, I’m so ripped that my body produces muscles that normal people don’t even have.  I could go on, but I’m too humble to do that.

Yes sir, it’s just another Saturday except; except that this one is somehow different.  I just got burnt for a touchdown.  I don’t believe it.  I’m a 100m stud, and this guy just ran right by me.  What?!  He is #3 on the other team.  Now, I’m aware of him , and he won’t do that to me again.  Now It’s the 3rd quarter, and the ball is in the air.  I got me some serious hops, and I’m gonna get it.  I jump, but the dude from the other team jumps even higher and grabs the ball from me.  I hear the announcer yell “Touchdoowwnn, Notre Dame!”  It is that #3 again.  I go to the sideline, and my coach tells me that his name is Michael Floyd.  The game is now over and Notre Dame has won.  Michael Floyd caught 10 balls for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns, all on me.  I am in shock.

To all other corners-look out for this Michael Floyd dude.  He is one of the best young receivers in the game.  He burnt me-and I thought that couldn’t be done.  He’s coming for you too, can you do anything to stop it?

Perhaps September 27th 2008 was the first day that Notre Dame fans caught a glimpse of the “real” Armando Allen.  The Armando Allen that is a blur in the open field.  The Armando Allen that runs with toughness and can run through defenders’ tackles (causing them to question their own manliness).  The Armando Allen that wowed at the high school Army All American combine (fastest forty).  We had not seen him before, yet he was supposed to be there.  He was hiding, but where?

To wit:

Armando in 2007- A running back that moved so fast you were sure he was running in quicksand instead of Notre Dame Stadium.  A running back that showed us that we were all dealing with some type of optical deficiency, thinking that we saw open holes to run through, when clearly opposing teams had planted small barricades in the field that no man could pass.  (That had to be the reason, right?)  A running back that showed us all how to be a true gentleman by allowing linebackers to tackle him as if he were playing a game of high school 2 hand touch.  “Ok!  Ok!  You touched me.  I’m down!  I’m down!”

Armando against Purdue in 2008 was a different story (as mentioned above). After that game, Charlie has even named him the starter, instead of part of the committee.   It’s time to show that version was the Armando we had been expecting.  Stanford in next.  Time to put on a show, whether it means slipping through a hole that can’t be seen with the naked eye, running over a defensive back like BigFoot crushes useless Ford Pintos, or running toward the endzone with such speed that the cleats incinerate due to the friction.  Time to be real.