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Wednesday, Dec. 05, 2001 - 3:32 p.m.

That's me on TV

Casey and I spent the night in MY apartment for the first time last night, and I still got pushed to the edge of the bed. Then I walked her to the bus stop and watched her get on and go off to school, her lunch all packed. Or something.

It was kind of surreal yesterday afternoon, watching a rerun of the 1996 Notre Dame-Indiana basketball game on ESPN Classic and seeing myself in the stands, wearing my blue IRISH sweatshirt, standing between Joe and Shannan in the front row with Tim, Matt, Mindy and Steve too. For some reason, that group got more of the air time, more than Joe and I did. At least once, the camera showed Shannan and those to the right (I was on the left) and then zoomed in. There was one shot where you could see Joe and myself in the same frame, but that was it. The money shot came toward the end, with just a few minutes to go, when they started with a close shot of a drummer, skewed and tilted, and then panned up and got the crowd of rowdy Irish fans -- your truly included -- screaming and cheering because Notre Dame was within striking distance.

Casey said yesterday morning that she finds it amusing how I can remember entire conversations nearly word-for-word, yet when I'm left to make the bed at her apartment, I cannot remember that the pillows not only go on top of the comforter, but then (I'm guessing here) all the tiny silk ones get stacked a certain way. It was funny watching the game, because I remembered certain events as the game wore on. I knew to look for myself in the blue sweatshirt, and I knew who would be in the row along with me. I remembered the technical foul called against ND coach John MacLeod, the play of freshman David Lalazarian, who transfered after the season, and Pat Garrity's career-high 36 points. I had forgotten that Shannan was at the game, and I cringed at seeing her on camera, but it was nice to see the rest of my friends there with us.

The game ended poorly, though, with a 3-pointer bouncing high off the rim and Garrity tipping it while it was still above the rim -- so while it may have fallen through for the victory, it didn't matter since the officials called Garrity for interfering with it. The score was 76-75 which, interestingly enough, was the final of last night's game between the Irish and the damn Hoosiers in Bloomington. It's a shame, too, because we're better than those damn rednecks (and shorts and shirts and warmup suits, etc.).

So I heard on the radio today that Notre Dame has asked Stanford for permission to talk with their head football coach, Tyrone Willingham. He'd be a good fit at Notre Dame, considering he's in a similar situation at Stanford -- a high-profile academic institution that's been able to put together a winning football tradition. He's not at the top of most fans' and alumni wish lists, but he'd be a good choice. (After all, there's no guarantee that any of the great choices would be available.) But the thing about Willingham is that he'd be the first black head coach at the university, far as I know. I don't know Notre Dame football history by heart, but I can tell you that before Bob Davie, there was Lou Holtz, Gerry Faust, Dan Devine, Ara Parsegian, etc., and could there have been a black head coach back in the early 60s? Perhaps, but something tells me No. This may be the time to do it. Of course, those with a rooting, financial or other interest in Notre Dame want the best coach available, and hopefully that's what we'll get (Hey, for the money my parents and I put into the place, I get to say "we" for the rest of my life, or until my loans are paid off -- whichever comes first). But should Jon Gruden or Tom Coughlin or Bob Stoops all say no, I think Willingham would be a good fit.

If for no other reason than the guy's beaten us two of the last three years.

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