The Wolverine Now

SEPT. 19, 2012 thanks to a pair of books prematurely fore- casting ND's rise to prominence. In 2003, Alan Grant chronicled Tyrone Willing- ham's first season in South Bend, a 10-3 campaign in 2002 that began with an 8-0 start. Two years after Return to Glory hit bookshelves, Willingham was out of a job. Then, in 2006, The New Gold Standard highlighted Charlie Weis' 9-3 record in 2005, but he was fired after a 6-6 season in 2009. Combined, the two head coaches went 37-36 after their inaugural, book- generating seasons. No one stepped up to pen a Brian Kelly RELEVANT AGAIN N otre Dame's rivals have mocked the Fighting Irish over the past decade GAME FACTS Notre Dame Believes Its 3-0 Start Is A Sign Of A Good Season To Come BY MICHAEL SPATH have to continue to grow as a football team. Our guys know how they got to this point, and they have to commit themselves to getting better. "I told them, 'How did it feel to get pat- ted on the back all day? Wasn't that a nice change? Having said that, here is what you want to do if you want to be there next week.' "You can't just say to your team don't listen to the positive talk. You work for those, but you have to keep it in perspec- tive." It has been only three games, and ND's literary work after he led the Blue and Gold to identical 8-5 records in his first two seasons, but a work of non-fiction could be produced if the early successes of this fall hold up over the long haul. Notre Dame is 3-0 for the first time since 2002, and a week ago beat a top-10 opponent (Michigan State) for the first time since knocking off No. 3 Michigan in 2005. "So is this the year the buzz is actually merited? Or is this merely a prelude to slapping ourselves in the face for the ump- teenth straight season?" SportsIllustrated. com's Stewart Mandel wrote Sept. 17. Kelly called the triumph over MSU — on the road, in a game in which the Fight- ing Irish held the Spartans to 237 yards of In his third season as head coach, Brian Kelly has Notre Dame 3-0 for the first time since 2002. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA offense, including just 50 on the ground — "a signature win" for the program, and one that could continue to pay dividends the rest of the season. "There's no question that when you go on the road against the No. 10 team in the country and you beat them, it's defi- nitely going to build the confidence in that locker room," he said. "They believe if they do the little things the right way … this win will help that development. "The thing I want to talk about is we first two opponents — Navy and Purdue — are not expected to be championship- caliber teams this fall. However, there has been much to like about Notre Dame so far, and reason to distinguish its perfor- mance from the multitude of strong Sep- tember starts that then faded in October and November. "Last year, they had 13 turnovers in three games," Blue and Gold Illustrated editor Lou Somogyi said. "This year, they have two. "Last year Notre Dame finished mi- nus-15 in turnovers, and the only team worse than that was 1960, which was mi- nus-16, and finished 2-8, so it's amazing this team went 8-5 a year ago. "I believe the front seven is the best Notre Dame has had in 20 years, and it can compete with any team in the coun- live. The game can be heard on the Michigan Sports Network (950 AM in the Detroit area, SiriusXM channel 129) with longtime partners Frank Beck- mann and Jim Brandstatter, and side- line reporter Doug Karsch. Coaches: Michigan: Brady Hoke (13- What: Michigan at Notre Dame. When: Sept. 22 • 7:39 p.m. Radio-TV: NBC will carry the game 3, second season). Notre Dame: Brian Kelly (19-10, third season). History: Michigan leads the series with Notre Dame, 23-15-1, last beating the Fighting Irish 35-31 in 2011. Notre Dame Notes: Notre Dame will leave the Big East for the ACC (in ev- ery sport but football, which continues to maintain its independence) most likely beginning in 2014, and as terms of its new deal must play at least five ACC teams each year … Brian Kelly is 3-1 all time against Brady Hoke, beat- ing Hoke's Ball State teams three times from 2004-06 while with Central Mich- igan before losing to Michigan last year … ND is 64-36-2 all time in night games, including 6-2 at home … The Irish are looking for consecutive wins over top-20 teams for the first time since 2002.

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