Football player to make pro debut During the past three years, many of Zbikowski's autumn Saturdays have been spent at Notre Dame Stadium. A strong safety with the Fighting Irish, Zbikowski is one of the top defensive backs in the nation, projected as a future first-round NFL Draft pick.
But before he returns to the Irish for his senior season in the fall, Zbikowski is giving football a brief break and taking a shot at professional boxing.
He will make his debut June 10 at Madison Square Garden on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto- Paul Malignaggi WBO junior-welterweight title fight.
Despite Zbikowski's lack of professional experience, the unique angle of Notre Dame football player-turned-boxer is attractive enough to land his scheduled four-round bout on the pay-per-view telecast.
''I'm swinging for the fences right away,'' Zbikowski said after a brief workout Tuesday at the Fontainebleau Resort in Miami Beach. ``I love that type of pressure.''
Although he is new to the pro game, Zbikowski, 21, is far from a boxing novice. He has been passionate about the sport since childhood, and boxed in 80 amateur bouts while growing up in Arlington Heights, Ill.
After accepting a scholarship to Notre Dame, Zbikowski realized boxing no longer could occupy his time.
''I love them both,'' he said. ``When I'm boxing, all I think about is boxing. When I'm playing football, all I think about is playing football. Whatever one I'm doing at the time is the one I'm most passionate about. But they're pretty much equal.''
Zbikowski needed to clear several obstacles before pursuing his professional boxing aspirations. Notre Dame and the NCAA approved the experiment without it affecting his eligibility. Coach Charlie Weis also gave his OK, with the assurance that Zbikowski would return to the team after the bout.
''I fought March 15 in a charity event and I felt the best I've ever felt in a ring,'' Zbikowski said. ``Then the offer came to fight in Madison Square Garden for my pro debut.
``It was great timing.''
[] [23/05/06 10:28 PM] [0 comments]
Pick A Bowl These options, which cover the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 seasons, are based in part on BIG EAST Conference relationships with the Toyota Gator Bowl, the Vitalis Sun Bowl and the Houston Bowl. For those four years, Notre Dame continues as part of the BIG EAST's secondary bowl package for those seasons in which it is not selected for a BCS game.
On that basis, Notre Dame most recently played in the Toyota Gator Bowl following the 1998 and 2002 seasons and in the Insight Bowl (in Phoenix, Ariz.) following the 2004 season.
The Toyota Gator Bowl, played on New Year's Day in Jacksonville, Fla., features an Atlantic Coast Conference squad as the host team that twice in four years will face a Big 12 Conference opponent and twice will meet a BIG EAST team or Notre Dame.
Similarly, the Vitalis Sun Bowl, played on New Year's Eve afternoon in El Paso, Texas, will feature a Pacific-10 Conference team as its host squad - with a Big 12 opponent in two of those years and a BIG EAST or Notre Dame team in the other two.
The alternating-selection agreement between the Gator and Sun Bowls is believed to be the first partnership of its kind in postseason bowl history.
The BIG EAST relationship with the Houston Bowl begins in 2006 and will feature a BIG EAST team against a team from the Big 12 Conference each of the next four years. The game will be played annually on Dec. 31 in Reliant Stadium in Houston.
The AT&T Cotton Bowl, played on New Year's Day in Dallas, Texas, normally features teams from the Big 12 and the Southeastern Conferences - but the new, four-year Cotton Bowl/SEC agreement permits the Cotton Bowl to select Notre Dame once in the next four years in place of an SEC team.
"As much as we would hope our football program will be good enough in any given year to play in a Bowl Championship Series game, if that doesn't happen we will have a series of extremely viable options in excellent locations against opponents from major conferences," said Notre Dame athletics director Kevin White.
"Notre Dame has a great history with the Cotton Bowl, and we've had excellent experiences in Jacksonville twice in recent years. In addition, the potential opportunities to play in El Paso and Houston would take us into a state in which we have a sizeable alumni presence and in which we expect to continue to have a major recruiting presence."
[] [21/03/06 7:47 AM] [0 comments]
Hall Of Fame for Four Former! The ballot hit the mail last week to the more than 12,000 members of the NFF and College Hall of Fame whose votes will be recorded and submitted to the Foundation's honors court, which deliberates and is responsible for selecting the class. The honors court, an 11-member panel chaired by Gene Corrigan (former Notre Dame athletic director, Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner and NCAA past president) and also including former Notre Dame associate athletic director and sports information director Roger Valdiserri, is comprised of athletics directors, conference commissioners, Hall of Fame coaches and members of the media.
The Hall of Fame class will be announced May 16 and then inducted at the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame's 49th Awards Dinner Dec. 5, 2006, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.
To be eligible for the ballot, players must have been chosen first-team All-America by a major/national selector as recognized and utilized by the NCAA for their consensus All-America teams, played their last year of intercollegiate football at least 10 years prior, played within the last 50 years and be retired from playing professional football. Coaches must be out of the college coaching profession for at least three years, coached a minimum of 10 years and 100 games as a head coach, not be coaching on the professional level and have won at least 60 percent of their games. In both cases, the candidate's post-football record as a citizen may also be weighed.
Once nominated for consideration, all player candidates are submitted to one of eight district screening committees, depending on their geographic location, which conducts a vote to determine who appears on the ballot and represents their respective districts. Each year, 15 candidates not selected for the Hall of Fame are named automatic holdovers and bypass the district screening process and automatically appear on the ballot the following year.
Here are details on the four Irish players on the ballot:
* Bob Golic - Linebacker -- Named unanimous All-America in 1978 and was a finalist for Lombardi Award in 1978 . . . co-holder of Notre Dame single-game record for tackles with 26 vs. Michigan in 1978 . . . second in school history with 479 career tackles . . . Cotton Bowl defensive player of the game and co-MVP of the Hula Bowl in 1978.
* Terry Hanratty - Quarterback -- Named consensus first-team All-America in 1968 . . . finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1968, sixth in 1966 and ninth in 1967 . . . led Notre Dame to a national championship in 1966 . . . set numerous school career records including passing yards (4,152).
* Jim Seymour - End - Two-time first-team All-America selection (1967-68) . . . led the team in receiving from 1966-68 . . . set Notre Dame career records for receptions (138) and receiving yards (2,113) and still holds records for pass receptions in a game (13 vs. Purdue in 1966) and receiving yards in a game (276 in that same game).
* Chris Zorich -- Defensive Tackle -- Two-time first-team All-America selection (1989-90), unanimous in 1990, consensus in 1989 . . . received Lombardi Award in 1990 and was an Outland Trophy finalist . . . member of the 1988 undefeated national championship team . . . named CBS Sports/Chevrolet Defensive Player of the Year in 1990.
With 119 chapters and more than 12,000 members nationwide, the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in America's young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, the NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield College (Mass.), the NFL-NFF Coaching Academy, and annual scholarships of nearly $1 million for college and high school scholar-athletes.
Notre Dame has 41 former players and five former coaches already enshrined in the Hall of Fame, providing more inductees than any other institution. The most recent addition is former quarterback and '64 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte, who was inducted in December 2005 and will be enshrined in August 2006.
[] [21/03/06 7:46 AM] [0 comments]
NFL Combine Invite! Fasano, from Verona, NJ, was one of college football's most productive tight ends over the 2004 and 2005 seasons as he made 74 catches for 973 yards in that span. Fasano bypassed the opportunity to return for a fifth season at Notre Dame to enter the 2006 NFL Draft and has been touted by head coach Charlie Weis as a tight end who "can do it all". A vital component of the Notre Dame offense the last two seasons, Fasano was one of four recipients of the 2005 Nick Pietrosante Award, presented annually to the Notre Dame player who best exemplifies the courage, loyalty, teamwork, dedication and pride shown by the late Irish All-America fullback. In 2005, Fasano made 47 catches for 576 yards and two touchdowns, the second-highest single-season receptions total by a tight end in Notre Dame history. A three-time monogram winner at Notre Dame, Fasano ended the 2005 season ranked second in Notre Dame history for career catches by a tight end with 92 and his 1,112 career receiving yards also ranks second in Irish history for a tight end. Fasano started 24 games for the Irish in his career. A senior enrolled in Mendoza College of Business, he is on track to graduate in May with a degree in Marketing.
Stevenson, of Barrington, IL, started 35 games for the Irish over the last four seasons, including 34 consecutive to end his career. He earned four monograms in his Notre Dame career, started at guard the last three seasons, but also played at tackle early in his Irish career. Stevenson was the winner of the 2005 Guardian Insurance Guardian of the Year Award, presented annually to Notre Dame's top offensive lineman by the Guardian Insurance Company. He started all 12 games at right guard in 2005 and was a major player in an explosive offense that averaged 36.7 points and 477.3 yards per game (330.2 passing, 147.1 rushing), helping lead the way as halfback Darius Walker eclipsed 100 rushing yards in seven games on the way to rushing for more than 1,000 yards on the season. Stevenson graduated with a bachelor's degree in Marketing from the Mendoza College of Business in May, 2005 and is currently enrolled in Graduate Studies.
Stovall, of Philadelphia, PA, finished his career ranked among the most prolific receivers in Notre Dame history. In 2005, Stovall showed remarkable maturity and improvement during his senior season, posting one of the top single-season receiving performances in Irish history as he finished his career third in Notre Dame history for touchdown receptions in a career with 18 and fourth in receiving yards with 2,195. Also, Stovall ended his career ranked fourth in Irish history for receptions in a career with 130. Stovall, who made 23 career starts, started all 12 games in 2005 and had more than 100 yards receiving in six games. He made 69 catches for 1,149 yards (16.7-yard average) and 11 touchdowns in 2005. The 11 scoring catches ranks tied for second on the Irish single-season touchdown catches list while the 1,249 yards is the second-most in Irish history. He set a Notre Dame bowl record for receiving yards with 126 yards on nine catches (second in ND bowl history) against Ohio State in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Stovall had a record-breaking day against BYU with a school-record 14 catches for 207 yards (fifth in Irish history) and a school-record four touchdowns. Stovall is currently enrolled in the College of Arts and Letters, majoring in Sociology and Computer Applications.
[] [21/03/06 7:44 AM] [0 comments]
