Basement Breakdown

It's the 2020 season wrap episode of the Basement Breakdown. Four of our five football beat members — sports editor Hayden Adams, senior sports writers Charlotte Edmonds and Ellen Geyer, sports writer Aidan Thomas — got together to hash out a variety of topics:

• Notre Dame's 31-14 loss to Alabama — now the national champs — in the Rose Bowl in Dallas (00:29).
• Wisconsin transfer QB Jack Coan committing to the Irish and the outlook for/possibility of elite quarterback play in the coming seasons (15:30).
• NFL and transfer decisions from last season's roster (36:02).
• An unexpected debate over the need for College Football Playoff expansion; thanks, Charlotte (41:10).
• Notre Dame's home run/grand slam/slam dunk defensive coordinator hire of Marcus Freeman; is he an upgrade, a downgrade or a net neutral after Clark Lea's three years as DC in South Bend (46:27)?
• Fact-or-Fiction returns once again: Notre Dame has three different QBs getting meaningful snaps next season (52:14)? Tommy Tremble's departure is a net gain offensively (59:42)? ND at No. 15 in the way-too-early preseason poll is a fair placement (1:04:16)? The Class of 2022 is Notre Dame's highest rated recruiting class ever under Brian Kelly (1:08:08)?
• And we end with parting words from our football beat reflecting on the 2020 college football season; we share our favorite moments and what it meant to us to be able to cover Notre Dame football in this most unprecedented of seasons (1:14:04).

Thank you to everyone who has supported the podcast this year. It's been a blast for us and we hope it's been the same for you.

It's 2020 as of the recording of this podcast, but when Notre Dame takes the field in Dallas to play Alabama in the Rose Bowl — yes, a Rose Bowl in Dallas — the calendar flips to 2021. Thank you to all our loyal listeners who have stuck it out with us through this craziest of years both on and off the field, and a Merry belated Christmas and happy early New Year to you and yours.

On this edition of the Basement Breakdown, the trio of sports editor Hayden Adams, senior sports writer Charlotte Edmonds and sports writer Aidan Thomas:

• Recap Notre Dame's 34-10 loss to Clemson in Charlotte in the ACC Championship game (0:33) and preview the Irish taking on the Crimson Tide for the first time since 2012 (6:18).
• The group also highlights Notre Dame's numerous accolades and briefly discusses the College Football Playoff and what they think of the selections/rankings (18:42).
• As always, Fact-or-Fiction: do the Irish suffer another devastating quarter against the Tide as they did against Clemson in Charlotte and two years ago at the Cotton Bowl? Is this Notre Dame team as good as the Alabama team that crushed the Irish in 2012? (26:15).
• Time for a new segment! It doesn't have an official name, but "This-or-That" or "Would You Rather?" will suffice (credit to Aidan for introducing this bit where we give our preferences for hypothetical scenarios); would you rather the Irish key in on DeVonta Smith or Najee Harris? Who would you want taking a jet sweep/end-around for Notre Dame? If it's 4th-and-goal with one final play to win the game what are you drawing up? What's the one trick play you'd pull out in this matchup? Plus a few more nuts and bolts for discussion (35:18).
• And, finally, predictions, albeit not very optimistic ones (1:05:52).

In another bonus episode, sports editor Hayden Adams is joined by Megan Kinner, sports editor of The Tiger, Clemson's student newspaper. The two talk the Notre Dame-Clemson rematch this Saturday in the ACC Championship. 

Megan breaks down the 'new' additions to Clemson in this matchup that were unavailable against the Irish the first time around. She also highlights the strengths and weakness on both sides of the ball for Clemson and provides her X-factor for this contest. She even analyzes Notre Dame as the team who ended Clemson's regular season and ACC winning streaks, and offers a prediction for the game. Finally, the pair discuss the College Football Playoff and what happens — and what should happen — if either the Irish or the Tigers lose.

It's finally here. The rematch for which everyone has been waiting with bated breath since Nov. 7. Notre Dame-Clemson, pt. 2.

In this episode of the BasementBreakdown, we break our usual routine and get the Syracuse game and other Notre Dame sports out of the way from the outset. After that, we jump straight into our discussion:

• What we think of Tuesday's College Football Playoff rankings and what it means for Notre Dame's Playoff chances, win or lose.
• The CFP Committee is awful and rightly being criticized. Where is the Group of 5 respect?
• Should the Playoff be expanded to eight teams? There's some dissent in the group.
• How many times out of 10 would Notre Dame have beaten the Nov. 7 version of Clemson? How about this Saturday's version?
• Talking pros and cons in this matchup, from Ian Book's sustained elite play to the return of four Clemson starters.
• Fact-or-Fiction: Notre Dame is a lock for the Playoff? Can the Irish replicate their defensive performance on the ground and in the turnover margin from six weeks ago this Saturday? Has Ian Book performed better than Trevor Lawrence this season? Get our hot takes in this segment.
• Predictions, with inverted positivity and negativity from the football beat members.
• And we wrap discussing our football beat's poor showing in the Fantasy Football playoffs, plus we trash talk the 2020 Turkey Bowl and Observer basketball game (hopefully) set for the spring.

We're less than a week away from the College Football Playoff Committee announcing the field of four vying for the national championship. To preview that, sports editor Hayden Adams takes turns with members of the Observer Roundtable — Nate Moller (0:57), Patrick Gallagher (16:52), Dominic Gibson (32:23), Aidan Thomas (40:14) and Liam Coolican (57:06) — a group of sports writers who preview college football and NFL matchups for the paper in the fall semester. Topics discussed include:

• Conference Championship and CFP picks.
• Is Notre Dame a lock for the Playoff, regardless of what happens this weekend in Charlotte?
• Could a two-loss Clemson, Florida or Big 12 champion get into the Playoff?
• Is this the year for the Group of 5?
• Do the Pac-12 and Big Ten deserve representation in this year's CP?
• For whom should Notre Dame fans be rooting, aside from the Irish, during this championship weekend?

In a very special episode of the Basement Breakdown, Fr. Pete McCormick, C.S.C. — director of Campus Ministry, rector of Stanford Hall and chaplain of the Notre Dame men's basketball team — sits down with sports editor Hayden Adams to talk all-things basketball, but specifically Notre Dame basketball. Topics of discussion include: 

• Shooting a basketball on sloped/narrow driveways... 
• The journey to a permanent basketball chaplaincy... 
• Some Holy Cross Seminarian trash talking in the Bookstore Basketball Tournament... 
• Favorite Notre Dame men's basketball moments, games and players... 
• What it's like to minister to players... 
• The contrast between ACC and Big East styles of play... 
• An OUTSTANDING impression of Dick Vitale... 
• What makes Mike Brey special among coaches... 
• Talking what makes this year's Notre Dame team unique... 
• Notre Dame's biggest rivals... 
• Playing alongside student managers against those of other teams... 
• And more...

Special thanks to Fr. Pete for joining the podcast. You can follow him on Instagram @petecsc and @ndministry.

Observer sports editor Hayden Adams is joined by Danny Emerman, senior staff writer at The Daily Orange, to preview Notre Dame's upcoming matchup with Syracuse on Saturday, Dec. 5. The two go over the Dino Babers era in Syracuse, as well as the struggles the Orange have endured this season after posting a 10-win season two years ago. Danny also provides insights into the Syracuse offense and defense with players to watch out for.

It's a three-man (or, more accurately, one-man-and-two-woman) podcast as sports editor Hayden Adams is joined by senior sports writers Charlotte Edmonds and Ellen Geyer on this week's edition of the Basement Breakdown. here's what to expect from the episode:

• A recap of the North Carolina win courtesy of Ellen, plus discussion of some of the more memorable moments, from Kyle Hamilton's ejection to Ian Book's mind-boggling scrambling and flick pass ability (0:38).
• Then we take a look at Syracuse and what they have to offer on both sides of the ball, courtesy of Charlotte and Hayden (6:06).
• After that, it's time for a bird's-eye view of college football, and discussion about College Football Playoff implications with Ohio State in danger of missing out on the Big ten Championship because of too few games played. Can OSU or another Big Ten team still make the CFP with so few games? Will there be two SEC or ACC teams in the final four? Is this the year for Cincinnati to break into the Playoff on behalf of the rest of the Group of 5? All that and more in this segment (12:09).
• A look at other Notre Dame sports in action, with men's and women's basketball having played their season openers this past weekend and hockey continuing their season with a sweep of Michigan. There's a little bit more lively discussion of the men's basketball team than anticipated, especially with regard to how valuable a piece point guard Prentiss Hubb is to the Irish men's team... (22:05).
• Fact-or-Fiction: Notre Dame manages to hold Syracuse under 50 yards rushing as a team? Kyren Williams is under 12 carries in this contest? Notre Dame record five or more sacks against the Orange/ Hear how the crew weighs in on these topics (29:01).
• And we conclude, as always, with predictions (38:29).

Not any Kentucky or fantasy football trash talking against Hayden this time, but sports writer Aidan Thomas will probably more than make up for that next week.

It's the season of giving thanks, and not just because of the holiday. It's because basketball is back, which means the Notre Dame men and women will be taking the court for the first time in the 2020-21 season this weekend. Sports editor Hayden Adams and sports writers Greg McKenna, Liam Coolican and Nate Moller hop on Zoom to discuss each team, first the women and then the men. They break down the guards/wings and bigs from both units and discuss several talking points, from when the university will build Muffet McGraw a statue to just what it says about the men's program that a walk-on is going to play a key reserve role.

Let us not take college basketball for granted. Cherish every shoe squeak and swish of the net because none of it is guaranteed. And have a happy Thanksgiving everyone!

It may be holiday break for Notre Dame students, but that can't stop student journalism. Sports editor Hayden Adams is joined by Brian Keyes, sports editor at UNC-Chapel Hill's student newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel. The pair discuss Notre Dame's upcoming matchup with North Carolina on Black Friday, with Brian providing insights into the second Mack Brown era with the Tar Heels. They also discuss strengths and weaknesses on both sides of the ball and players to watch out for.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! The Observer football beat is back in the Zoom studio to provide you with a preview of Notre Dame's Black Friday showdown with North Carolina. Discussion includes:

• A brief, brief, brief recap of Notre Dame winning 45-31 against Boston College two weeks ago (0:53).
• Looking ahead to North Carolina, with a high-powered offense and, for lack of a better term, a low-powered defense (2:23).
• Taking a glance around college football at: Alabama destroying Hayden's beloved Kentucky Wildcats; Ohio State escaping vs. Indiana; Dabo Swinney going off on Florida State; Cincinnati and BYU on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff top-4 (6:28).
• Other Notre Dame sports are going on. Men's and women's soccer have wrapped up with losses in the ACC Tournament, but men's and women's basketball are about to take off and hockey has their second series of the year this weekend (11:26).
• Fact-or-Fiction is back! On this week's edition: Does Kendall Abdur-Rahman see field action? Does Ben Skowronek sneak into the top-10 most single season receiving touchdowns this year? Does Notre Dame hold North Carolina under 50 (yes, 50) rushing yards? See how the beat ways in on those topics and a couple more (14:55).
• And we wrap with predictions, with a special appearance from Hayden's cat, Fuzzball. Hey, that's what you get when you gotta podcast from home. This winter break's off to a fantastic start (31:16).

And, of course, Hayden gets roasted for his fantasy league team. As long he doesn't finish in last place all is well.

In a special edition episode of the Basement Breakdown, Emma Healy, sports editor of Boston College's independent student newspaper The Heights, stops by to preview Notre Dame's matchup with the Eagles Saturday. Tune in to hear Emma discuss:

• The Steve Addazio era and its fallout.
• Jeff Hafley surpassing expectations in Chestnut Hill in his first season.
• Former ND quarterback Phil Jurkovec starting against his old team.
• The biggest strengths and weaknesses of the Eagles on both sides of the ball.
• Keys to the game for both teams.
• And as always we wrap the Basement Breakdown with predictions, and Emma sees a little bit of history repeating itself here...

It's a bit of a long-winded, rambling, all-over-the-place edition of the Basement Breakdown, but that's OK because Notre Dame just knocked off the now-former No. 1 team in the country. It's a three- and (for a brief period) four-person show tonight talking all things Notre Dame's win over Clemson, plus a bunch of other miscellaneous points of discussion:

• Notre Dame just beat No. 1 Clemson, so that was fun.
• Plays of the game and game balls from our football beat — you'll be shocked who Ellen gave hers to.
• Notre Dame belongs at No. 2 nationally, right? Ohio State's played Nebraska, Rutgers and a bad Penn State.
• Is Ian Book the best quarterback of Brian Kelly's Notre Dame tenure, best since Brady Quinn and maybe even better than Quinn?
• Boy oh boy, D.J. Uiagelelei is a beast.
• But hey, Notre Dame just held Travis Etienne to 28 rushing yards; let that sink in for a second.
• Boston College and former Irish quarterback Phil Jurkovec are doing a lot better than people expected, despite Phil's offensive line actively trying to get him killed (re: 22 sacks).
• Did Phil even come to Notre Dame to play school? Are he and his girlfriend still together? Was it really him at one of Hayden's dorm's parties back in 2018? We'll probably never know (but that last one is a no).
• Convince us that Dabo Swinney didn't intimidate the referees into picking up the flag on that fourth quarter non-defensive pass interference call.
• Speaking of the referees, ship them off to the Sunbelt already.
• Hayden did not really just call Alabama QB Mac Jones a game manager; time for one Hail Mary for each of his touchdowns as penance.
• Also, Charlotte thinks Mac Jones is cute; you heard it here first.
• Hayden and Aidan finally quash the beef (sort of) over how the Turkey Bowl went down, and Hayden brags about his not-brag-worthy 4-5 fantasy football performance; Aidan calling him "washed up" was a low blow, though.

And even more stuff sprinkled through an hour-long episode. Enjoy.

It’s Clemson Week. Officially, at least, because every Notre Dame fan has been talking about Clemson for about 12 months now. The Observer Sports football beat dives head first into the matchup with the Tigers in an episode chalk full of content:

• The briefest of Georgia Tech recaps (0:34).
• Talking No. 1 Clemson and how they matchup with the No. 4 Irish on both sides of the ball; oh, and trying to pronounce "Uiagelelei" correctly (2:30).
• Taking a quick bird's-eye view of what's going on around college football (8:52).
• Highlighting other Notre Dame sports on display, with track & field having a great showing at the ACC Championships (11:02).
• Fact-or-Fiction time! Will Notre Dame dominate time of possession against Clemson? Will it come down to who has the ball last? Does this game even matter? Could Trevor Lawrence actually play in this game? You don't want to miss this discussion (13:10).
• And, finally, predictions; you'd be surprised how the tables have flipped in terms of who's giving positive and negative predictions (31:10).
• And, for the second consecutive week, Aidan missed out on the podcast. His shame over throwing a pick-6 to Hayden in our department Turkey Bowl football game must be too great for him to show his face, but not too much to trash Hayden's fantasy football team in the football beat group chat. Hey, a win is a win, and Big H is officially streaking. He may be 3-5, but like Brian Kelly said, "winning is hard."

It's a two-person show on a Wednesday night as sports editor Hayden Adams and senior sports writer Charlotte Edmonds talk Notre Dame's upcoming matchup with Georgia Tech. Here's what they had in store:

• Wrapping a 45-3 performance against Pitt and Pat Narduzzi that was as sweet as it was dominant. Check out the last Instant Reaction podcast for more on that and what happened around college football (0:58)
• Previewing the Ramblin' Wreck and 2nd-year head coach Geoff Collins (4:35)
• A flyover of college football action this past weekend, with the Big Ten returning, Oklahoma fans quiet with two losses already, and Auburn getting another big break courtesy of SEC refs (12:52)
• Other Notre Dame sports in action, including volleyball wrapping their regular season and men's and women's soccer notching crucial wins. Oh, and women's basketball was back Monday with 1st-year head coach Niele Ivey holding her first press conference. It's almost basketball season people! (16:23)
• You already know what it is: Fact-or-Fiction! Apologies that it's a bit abbreviated (20:37)
• And as always we wrap with predictions (28:02). Too bad Aidan and Ellen weren't on this episode to trash Hayden for his fantasy football performance — although he is now 2-5 after winning last week.

Please consider following the podcast and checking us out on Twitter: @ObserverSports, @HaydenAdamsND, @jimmyyward, @char_edmonds99, @GeyerEllen

Sports writer Aidan Thomas joins sports editor Hayden Adams for a not-so-late night Basement Breakdown session to talk Notre Dame's win over Pittsburgh and a full day of college football action. Here's a taste:

• Aidan's three takeaways from the game
• Ben Skowronek/wide receivers/the passing game in general developing a pulse
• How much can we really read into this game without asterisks?
• Did Ian Book really silence the haters today?
• The ACC continues to tear itself apart, but Clemson keeps rolling (albeit in not as pretty fashion as expected)
• The Big Ten is back; Huzzah
• A Rice kicker pulled off a quadruple doink on a possible game-winner; God bless college football