Blue and Gold Illustrated

August 2017

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com AUGUST 2017 7 UNDER THE DOME it was unfair to players already on the roster who had made a four-year commitment to the Fighting Irish. Times change, and back then Notre Dame basketball had recruiting ad- vantages as an independent and with national television coverage it doesn't possess now. Brey and his staff have benefitted greatly with past transfers such as cur- rent assistant coach Ryan Humphrey (Oklahoma), Dan Miller (Maryland), Ben Hansbrough (Mississippi State) and Scott Martin (Purdue), all of who helped lead the Irish to Big East, na- tional top 10 or Sweet 16 prominence. They also landed other big men such as Dennis Latimore (Arizona) and Gar- rick Sherman (Michigan State). That's not to say Brey is indiscrimi- nate about who his program takes. They still have to be a cultural fit to the school with an academic background that meets the university profile. He points out that there were about 700 basketball transfers at the NCAA Divi- sion I level this year and it's all about hitting the market at the right time. "Notre Dame has done a good job of adjusting to it," said Brey, who noted he still thanks predecessor Matt Doherty every time he sees him for bringing in Humphrey. "It's another pool to pick from that you can't ignore. "We get a bunch of calls [from transfers] because we reinvented transfers — and we've said no to a bunch of them. We felt we had to get the big fella [Durham] because it fit a need for us." The timing was ideal because while sitting out 2017-18, Durham — Ri- vals.com's No. 47 overall recruit in the country two years ago but also com- ing off two ACL injuries — can still practice with the team, develop his physique and learn the system, and then take on a much greater role after current big men Martin Geben and Austin Torres exhaust their eligibility at the end of the upcoming campaign. As for McGraw, she too has lost several McDonald's All-Americans to transfer in recent years — Taya Reimer (Michigan State), Ali Patberg (Indiana) and Erin Boley (Oregon) — but bringing two of her own in with Thompson and Shepard helps com- pensate for those departures. Earlier this decade, Notre Dame men's soccer player Ryan Finley be- came a two-time All-American and in 2012 was second nationally in scoring after transferring from Duke. Indeed, Notre Dame has learned about transfer of power, and the power of transfers. ✦ Holy Cross Village is a continuing care retirement community, sponsored by the Brothers of Holy Cross, with a tradition of caring, compassion and trust. Holy Cross Village welcomes people of all faiths. 54515 State Rd., 933 North, Notre Dame, IN 46556 www.holycrossvillage.com ... AND ENJOY THE GAME OF LIFE AT HOLY CROSS VILLAGE I magine making new friends and developing new talents, where everything you need to enjoy the game of life is right outside your front door. Nestled among three institutions of higher learning, Holy Cross Village at Notre Dame is a senior living community unlike anything else around. Our warm and inviting community offers: Independent Living Homes and Apartments Assisted Living Apartments Skilled Nursing Memory Care Rehabilitation Services Call (574) 251-2235 today for more information and to schedule a tour. Mike Brey's men's basketball program has ben‑ efitted greatly from several notable transfers over the years, including 2010‑11 Big East Player of the Year Ben Hansbrough. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND

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