Gody returns, Sharpley returns, and Texas might return (LOTD 6/18)

Sorry for the hiatus, I had some blogger issues, but it's all cleared up now. On to today's LOTD (which is really more of a weekly roundup at this point).

Luke Harangody will return for his senior season. The Irish power forward/center decided to remove his name from the NBA draft list, presumably after being told he would not be a lottery pick. " He has the chance to carve a unique place in the long and storied history of the Notre Dame basketball program," head coach Mike Brey said at a press conference Monday. 'Gody is a two-time All-American who is the only player to lead the Big East in scoring (25.2) and rebounding (12.8) in consecutive seasons. Furthermore, he was the only player in the nation to rank in the top 10 in points and rebounds last season. He ranks 4th all-time at Notre Dame with 50 double-doubles in his career.

Luke's return provides a cornerstone for a team on the rebound next season. ND will try to get back to the NCAA tournament after a very disappointing season last year, and it could provide a much better platform for Harangody to leave on. I'm not sure how much Luke's stock can rise with the help of another year (I tend to think that he has improved as much as he will in college), though finishing your college education never hurts.

On to football news: Evan Sharpley has been granted permission by the Seattle Mariners to cut his baseball season short to be on the Fighting Irish football team for his senior season. Sharpley will compete with Dayne Crist for the backup quarterback position behind Jimmy Clausen. I tend to think that Crist will get the position, but they play these things out for a reason. Sharpley struggled two seasons ago behind a terrible offensive line, but you have to admire his commitment to the squad, to Charlie Weis, and to the university.

HeismanPundit continues his breakdown of the top players at each position, examining the best runningbacks, receivers, and tight ends in the country. HP listed Armando Allen as an honorable mention at runningback, Michael Floyd and Golden Tate as the third best and honorable metion at receiver respectively, and Kyle Rudolph as the second best tight end in the country. I agree with HP that Floyd is a better receiver than Tate, seeing how Tate's production dropped significantly once the focus left Floyd and went 23's way. Furthermore, Floyd is listed above Julio Jones and AJ Green, both fellow true sophomores. The selection of Rudolph is surprising. I know he had a great season, but to see a sophomore as the second best at his position in the country is quite an honor.

A couple of scheduling notes: There is a lot being made of teams taking on cupcakes for an easy win and a big payday at home. This will inevitably come back at the Irish, who face an easy schedule this season, though not through any fault of their own. I'm not sure anyone expected Washington to be Willingham'd when the schedule was made, Michigan was not expected to be Rodriguez'd, and Boston College wasn't expected to hatchet their own coach out of the gig. Pitt, Stanford, and Michigan State could prove to be solid teams, though at this point no one knows. However, the Irish remain one of just a few teams to never schedule a D1-AA team. I guess you just have to play the teams they give you.

Furthering the discusison of the schedule, there is apparently some thought that Notre Dame will take on Texas in 2013. AD Jack Swarbrick told Jerry Briggs of the San-Antonio Express-News that we approaching a few significant 100-year anniversaries in 2013, one of which is the first time the Irish played the Longhorns. Said the Swashbuckler:

“I think Texas is one of the great athletic programs in the country. Not just now, but for many years. I’m a huge fan of the program, their coaches, and (athletic director) DeLoss (Dodds) is one of the giants of our industry. So, if we can figure out how to play Texas at some point, we would love to do it."

I would LOVE to see a matchup against Texas, even in the barnstorming non-sense, as opposed to a team like Washington State. Texas is one of the marquee programs from the past decade and a team who has had the success over the past 10 years the Irish are aspiring for at this point. The press surrounding the matchup would be great, and it couldn't hurt our recruiting attempts in a state with more talent than any other.

Speaking of teams with success in the past decade, Matt Hinton takes a look at which team was the best from the past decade. Their decision? The Texas Longhorns of 2005. If you remember correctly, that team, featuring Vince Young, beat the supposed best team ever, USC, which was crowned with such a title by ESPN leading into the game. Furthermore, ESPN matched that year's Trojan team against other teams that could be considered the best ever. Then USC choked, the WWL looked ridiculous, and Vince Young reached the highest point of his life. Surprisingly, none of the Notre Dame teams from the last decade were listed. I don't understand why.

It was Brady Quinn day at that Roller Coaster park in Ohio that everyone drools over. I only post this so that I can also post the accompaning picture.

In non-ND news, Florida State will have to vacate 14 victories as a result of the NCAA sanctions that everyone has been talking about recently. That puts Bobby Bowden in an asterisk situation, so I now believe he is behind Joe Paterno (BRAAAINS!) in the all-time win count.

Oh, and Congress is blabbering about the BCS again, trying to get some face time with a fruitless trip into the world of sports. Seriously, shut up Congress.