Dave Schrage is embarking on his second season as head coach of the Notre Dame baseball program.

Countdown To Opening Day To Provide Various Preseason Online Offerings (release includes daily updated links)

Feb. 10, 2007

The Notre Dame baseball program’s first game of the Dave Schrage era officially is one week away and und.com is the place to be for a weeklong series of offerings, as we count down to opening day (full list contained later in this release). Note that this release will be kept on the und.com baseball main page throughout the week and will be updated regularly with the links of these offerings, for quick reference (each also will be released under separate headlines). Some of the headlines also will be posted on the und.com main page but others will only be posted on the baseball page – so be sure to check the baseball page on a daily basis during the coming week for plenty of preseason info. on the Irish baseball squad.

Here are the “Countdown To Opening Day” offerings (click on the underlined links for quick access to the offerings; links to be updated daily):

Friday, Feb. 9

  • Schedule Updates – there have been several adjustments to the ND baseball schedule since its original release

Saturday, Feb. 10

  • Season Preview – check out the position-by-position breakdown of Notre Dame’s 2007 team, with comments from coach Scrage
  • Academic Excellence – the Notre Dame baseball team has an impressive record of accomplishment in the classroom and that continued to be the case in the 2006 fall semester
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Brett Lilley is one of several Notre Dame baseball players who have been high achievers on the field and in the classroom (photo by Pete LaFleur).

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Sunday, Feb. 11

  • How to Follow the Irish – there are more ways than ever to keep up with Notre Dame baseball, including: free live-audio for every game; free live text-updates to your cell phone or mobile device (three times a game, every game); improved GameTracker live-stats for all home games and most road games; postgame wrapups on the ND Sports hotline; and in-game/postgame video offerings (details still being finalized)
  • Newcomers Overview – a look at the 15 newcomers on the Irish roster, who have been rated among the nation’s top-30 incoming classes; full biographies of the newcomers (with action photos) have been posted on und.com

Monday, Feb. 12

  • Veteran Biography Update – the online bio’s have been updated for Notre Dame’s 20 veteran players; click on the player’s name on the linked roster page to view the bio pages (which include action photos, plus links to feature articles and game-by-game stats)
  • Opening Night Dinner Coverage – a transcript of top comments from Irish coach Dave Schrage and keynote speakers Jim Leyland and Craig Counsell will be posted later in the week); archived video from the dinner and a photo gallery are linked belo:

2007 Opening Night Dinner Photo Gallery

  • Diamond Diary – junior second baseman Ross Brezovsky kicks off this weekly offering from members of the Irish baseball team with his first-person look at the 2007 Irish baseball season (diary entrants will rotate among players throughout the season)

Tuesday, Feb. 13

  • Meet The Coaches – online biographies for the Irish baseball coaches have been updated, including photos and links to earlier quotes and articles about each coach (plus video links on coach Schrage’s bio.)

Wednesday, Feb. 14

Thursday, Feb. 15

  • – the junior shortstop reflects on the return to his natural position and the overall excitement for the upcoming seasons (several other viedo interviews will follow throughout the season); see this link for introductory text to the Lilley video

* Practice Report – volunteer assistant coach John Fitzgerald, who spent the past three seasons as head coach at Illinois Tech, passes on his unique perspective on the 2007 team

* Preseason Game Notes – get the rundown on Notre Dame and its opening-week opponents

* ND Baseball A to Z – a full-color PDF version of the Notre Dame baseball glossary, including an updated “Where Are They Now” listing of ND baseball alums from the past 12 years

Friday, Feb. 16
* Opponent Scouting Report – Notre Dame’s 2007 schedule has more challenges awaiting it than might appear at first glance; a look at some of the top teams and elite opposing players who will be battling the Irish this season

* Captains Feature Story – senior centerfielder Danny Dressman and senior LHP/1B Mike Dury are embarking on their final season as co-captains of the Irish bseball team

* Catching Up With Dave Schrage (Part IV.) – the Irish head coach files a practice report along with his final preseason thoughts

* Online Media Guide – the award-winning Notre Dame baseball media guide for the 2007 season will be available online, in PDF format

Saturday, Feb. 17
* Trivia Challenge – Irish baseball fans can prepare for the opener by testing their knowledge of Notre Dame baseball history

* Summer Baseball Recap – several ND baseball players enjoyed strong 2006 summer seasons (a look back at those ’06 summer highlights, including links to the various ND Baseball Summer Diaries)

* Getting To Know … Wade Korpi – Notre Dame’s opening-day pitcher reflects on his baseball experiences (this will be a weekly offering with different Irish players)

* Postgame Coverage – in addition to the customary game recaps, 2007 postgame coverage also will include (when available) audio quotes (coach and player), gameday photos and video comments from select home games

Sunday, Feb. 18
* Signee Update – one of the challenges for college baseball coaches is focusing on the current team while also signing top players for the future; Notre Dame’s group of signees from the fall of 2006 (who will join the Irish in the fall of ’07) are a highly-regarded group who already have been rated as the nation’s 13th-best class

Monday, Feb. 19
* Week In Review – an overview of the previous week will be posted each Monday on und.com