Dec. 15, 2000

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

TENNESSEE TECH Golden Eagles (3-4) at
20/21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-2)

IRISH ITEMS FOR THE TENNESSEE TECH GAME: Notre Dame (4-2) plays the third of six consecutive home games this afternoon when the Irish entertain a first-time visitor to the Joyce Center, Tennessee Tech (3-4). Head coach Mike Brey’s squad will be looking to snap a two-game losing streak after suffering back-to-back setbacks to Indiana (86-78) and Miami-Ohio (73-64). Notre Dame has not played since Dec. 9 because of final exams.

Today’s contest starts a stretch of three games in five days for the Irish before the holiday break. Following this afternoon’s matchup, Notre Dame entertains Canisius on Tues., Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. and Vermont on Thurs., Dec. 21 at 7:30 p.m., before playing its final game in 2000 against Long Island on Fri., Dec. 29 at 7:30 p.m.

Tennessee Tech is playing its third consecutive road game and is on the road for the seventh time in eight games. The Golden Eagles have only played one home game thus far this season, but following this afternoon’s contest, will not be on the road again until Jan. 18 when they travel to Austin Peay.

Notre Dame fell to 21st in the Associated Press Poll and 20th in the ESPN/USA Today ranking after being ranked 10th in both polls the previous week after its 4-0 start.

Brey’s squad is enjoying its first stint in the rankings since the 1989-90 campaign when they began that campaign as a ranked team (19th in the first AP ranking before dropping from that poll the following week).

RECAP OF MIAMI (OHIO): Notre Dame lost to the RedHawks for the third straight year as Miami (Ohio) defeated the Irish 73-64. The deciding factor in the contest was the 44-26 advantage the RedHawks owned on the boards. Miami outrebounded Notre Dame on both the offensive (18-8) and defensive (26-18) boards.

The RedHawks held a nine-point lead with 8:25 remaining, but the Irish were able to cut the difference to one point at the break (28-27). Notre Dame led 42-37 with 14:57 remaining in the contest, but a 12-0 run gave the visitors a six-point lead less than three minutes later. Although Notre Dame was able to cut the lead to one on several occasions, the Irish never led after the 14:57 mark.

Five RedHawk players, including four staters, scored in double figures. Troy Murphy led four Irish players in double figures with a game-high 22 points. Ryan Humphrey had 17 points and six rebounds, while David Graves and Matt Carroll scored 13 and 12, respectively. Martin Ingelsby played 40 minutes for the second time in three games and finished with six assists and just two turnovers.

POLL POSITION: Notre Dame stands 21st in the Associated Press Poll and 20th in the ESPN/USA Today. The Irish were ranked in both polls last week, which marked the first time since the 1980-81 campaign that a Notre Dame team was ranked in the top 10 of both polls.

HEAD COACH MIKE BREY: Mike Brey was named the 17th head coach in the programs history on July 14, 2000 following five seasons (1995-2000) as head coach at the University of Delaware. Brey earned his first victory as Irish head coach on Nov. 18 with a 104-58 triumph over Sacred Heart. The win marked the 100th of his coaching career and came in the 152nd game of his coaching career. He has an overall record of 103-54 for a .656 winning percentage. He guided the Blue Hens to a 99-52 record during his tenure while earning berths in three postseason tournaments. Under Brey, Delaware appeared in two NCAA tournaments (98 and 99) and played in the National Invitation Tournament in his final season (2000). His .656 winning percentage among Division I coaches with five years as a head coach stands second only to Tom Izzo of Michigan State (.726). Prior to his arrival in Newark, Del., he spent eight seasons (1987-95) on the Duke sidelines along Blue Devil head coach Mike Krzyzewski, and before that stint was an assistant coach at DeMatha High School under legendary coach Morgan Wootten from 1982-87.

BREY AND MENTOR KRZYZEWSKI REACH MILESTONES ONE DAY APART: First-year head coach Mike Brey earned his 100th career victory (in 152 games as a head coach) against Sacred Heart on Nov. 18. That win came just one day after his former mentor, Mike Krzyzewski, earned his 500th win at Duke on Nov. 17. Brey was an assistant under Krzyzewski at Duke from 1987-95

NOTRE DAME vs. TENNESSEE TECH: This is the second-ever meeting between Notre Dame and Tennessee Tech. The only previous game played was in the first round of the 1958 NCAA Tournament East Regional in Evanston, Ill., as the Irish earned a 94-61 victory.

COMMON OPPONENTS: Loyola (Chicago) is the only common opponent on both schedules. The Irish defeated the Ramblers 107-68 at home on Nov. 22, while Tennessee Tech lost a 76-73 decision on the road.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: In the loss to Indiana on Dec. 5, all five starters scored in double figures. That’s the first time that has happened since the 1998-99 campaign when all five Irish starters scored 10-plus points three different times during the season against Stetson, St. Francis (N.Y.) and Boston College.

LOGGING THE MINUTES: Four of Notre Dame’s five starters ? Troy Murphy, David Graves, Matt Carroll and Martin Ingelsby ? are averaging 32-plus minutes per game. Ingelsby is averaging 35.7 minutes per game and Murphy 34.5, with Graves and Carroll averaging 33.0 and 32.7, respectively. Only Harold Swanagan (11.8) and Torrian Jones (10.5) are averaging more than 10 minutes per game. In the loss to Indiana, no reserve played more than nine minutes as the starters averaged 36.4 in the contest, and against Miami, Jones, Swanagan and Ivan Kartelo combined for just 19 minutes. Ingelsby has played 158 of 160 minutes in Notre Dame’s last four games. He played 39 minutes in both the Cincinnati and Indiana contests, while playing all 40 minutes against Vanderbilt and Miami (Ohio).

Overall, Notre Dame’s starters (which includes Murphy despite the fact that he did not start against Miami) have played 726 of the 800 minutes in their last four games against the Bearcats, Commodores, Hoosiers and RedHawks for an average of 36.3 minutes per starter.

OVER THE 100-MARK PLATEAU: The Irish went over the 100-point mark in its first two games of the season posting victories over Sacred Heart (104-58) and Loyola (107-68). It marked the first time since the 1985-86 campaign that a Notre Dame team registered back-to-back 100-point contests. It also was the first time in school history that an Irish team began the season scoring 100-plus points in its first two contests.

NOTABLES FROM THE LOYOLA GAME: Notre Dame’s strong outing against the Ramblers on Nov. 22 produced some noteworthy numbers in the contest:

• Set school record for three-point field goals made (16) and three-point
• field goal percentage (.727 – 16 of 22).
• Tied the school record for blocked shots (12).
• Matt Carroll had a career-high nine assists and tied his personal best
• with 22 points.
• Second time since 1985-86 that the Irish recorded back-to-back outings
• 100-point outings (vs. Manhattan – 102-47 and vs. Miami (Fla.) – 126-73).
• Martin Ingelsby had 10-plus assists for the fifth time in his career when
• he dished off 11 assists in the game. It was the first time since his freshman
• season in 1997-98 that had had 10 or more assists. During that season, he posted 10-plus assists in four games.

500TH GAME AT JOYCE CENTER: Notre Dame played its 500th game at the Joyce Center on Nov. 18 against Sacred Heart. The Irish are 387-115 all-time at the Joyce Center for a .771 winning percentage since it began play in the inaugural 1968-69 season. The Irish were 16-4 (.800) at home in 1999-2000, marking the third time in school history they had 16 victories (the most at the Joyce Center). Notre Dame also recorded 16 wins at the Joyce during the 1976-77 and 1982-83 campaigns.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: There have been three Irish players to score 17-plus points in three of Notre Dame’s first six games. Balanced scoring has contributed to the team’s 83.2 scoring average this season. Here are the games in which three players have scored 17 or more points.

• Sacred Heart (Troy Murphy-31, Ryan Humphrey-19, Matt Carroll-17)
• Loyola-Chicago (Troy Murphy-23, Matt Carroll-22, David Graves-18)
• Vanderbilt (Ryan Humphrey-24, Troy Murphy-23, David Graves-19)

FOLLOWING TROY ON THE WEB: Follow All-American Troy Murphy on the world wide web at www.und.com/troymurphy. The site includes biographical information, statistics, pictures, a weekly diary, a listing of awards and honors and links to articles on the web which have been written on this Irish junior. For more information on the site, contact the Notre Dame Sports Information Office at (219) 631-7516.

NOTING THE WINS A YEAR AGO: Notre Dames 22 wins during the 1999-2000 campaign marked the most for an Irish team since the 1986-87 season when that squad finished with a 24-8 mark and advanced to the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament. It also marked the 19th time in school history that an Irish team had won 20 or more games. Notre Dame had not posted back-to-back 20-win seasons since the 1987-88 and 1988-89 seasons.

MURPHY AND THE WOODEN WATCH: Troy Murphy is one of the Preseason Top 50 candidates for the 2000-2001 John R. Wooden All-America team. Murphy, a member of the 10-member squad last season, has been designated as one of the top 25 vote-getters. He and Duke senior Shane Battier are the only two previous candidates among the list of 50. The Award Committee will release a Midseason Top 30 list with the 10-member Wooden Award All-America team announced on March 27, 2001. From that squad, one member will receive the Wooden Award Trophy as the nations ?Most Outstanding Collegiate Basketball Player.? The announcement will be made on April 6, 2001, and will be shown on a one-hour telecast on Fox Sports Net.

NAISMITH WATCH: Troy Murphy is listed as the second-leading vote-getter among 30 preseason candidates announced for the 2000-01 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The preseason candidates including Murphy are: Shane Battier (Duke), Lonny Baxter (Maryland), Charlie Bell (Michigan State), Carlos Boozer (Duke), Cory Bradford (Illinois), Eric Chenowith (Kansas), Jarron Collins (Stanford), Juan Dixon (Maryland), Joe Forte (North Carolina), Jason Gardner (Arizona), Tony Harris (Tennessee), Udonis Haslem (Florida), Brendan Haywood (North Carolina), Casey Jacobson (Stanford), Richard Jefferson (Arizona), Joe Johnson (Arkansas), Ken Johnson (Ohio State), Kaspars Kambala (UNLV), Jason Kapono (UCLA), Mike Kelley (Wisconsin), Terence Morris (Maryland), Tayshaun Prince (Kentucky), Kenny Satterfield (Cincinnati), Brian Scalabrine (Southern California), Jamaal Tinsley (Iowa State), Jason Williams (Duke), Loren Woods (Arizona), Michael Wright (Arizona) and Vincent Yarbrough (Tennessee).

MURPHY GOES HAWAIIAN: Troy Murphys travels took him twice to Hawaii within a two-week span in August and early September. The Irish junior participated in the Pete Newell Big Man Camp just before returning to campus for the start of the school year and met up with former Notre Dame standout and 1997 BIG EAST Player of the Year Pat Garrity. Murphy made a second trip across the mainland when he played for the USA Mens Select Team on Sept. 2 in Honolulu against the USA Basketball Mens Senior National Team. The game was televised by NBC and Murphy finished with four points and three rebounds.

IRISH IN THE NATIONAL STATISTICS: Two Irish players rank among the national statistical leaders ? Troy Murphy is tied for third in scoring (24.0) and Martin Ingelsby is tied for 16th in assists (6.8). As a team, the Irish are tied for 13th in three-point field goal percentage (.431), rank 15th in three-points field goals made (8.8) and are tied for 21st in free-throw percentage (.753).

GOOD WILL: Notre Dame has made the most of its opportunities from the free-throw line this season as the Irish have converted on 75.3 percent of their chances (110-146) from the charity stripe. The Irish are averaging 18.3 free throws made per game. Notre Dame opponents have made only 62 free throws (10.3 per game) and are averaging just 15.2 trips to the free-throw line.

THIRTY SOMETHING: Troy Murphy has scored 30-plus points in two of Notre Dame first six games this season. The junior forward had 31 in the season opener against Sacred Heart on Nov. 18 and 30 vs. Cincinnati on Nov. 25. He scored 30 or more points in nine games last season and has 14 career 30-plus outings.

THE ALL-AMERICAN CONTINUES TO POST ALL-AMERICAN NUMBERS: Troy Murphy recorded his 34th career double double (and second of the season) against Vanderbilt on Dec. 2 when he scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. It marked the 39th game of his career in which he scored 20-plus points. Murphy has scored in double figures in 69 of 70 career games and heads into today’s game having scored 10-plus points in 57 straight games.

HUMPHREY GETS FIRST DOUBLE DOUBLE IN IRISH UNIFORM: Ryan Humphrey registered his first double double in an Irish uniform when he scored 10 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against Cincinnati on Nov . 25 in the victory over the Bearcats. Before transferring to Notre Dame, he posted double doubles in 10 outings and grabbed 10-plus rebounds in 16 contests in two seasons at Oklahoma. Humphrey has scored in double figures through the first six games of the 2000-01 campaign.

IRISH THREE-POINTERS EXTEND TO 56 STRAIGHT GAMES: Notre Dame has had at least one three-pointer in 56 consecutive games, a mark that dates back to the 1998-99 campaign. The last time the Irish failed to connect on at least one three-pointer in a game was against Connecticut in a 101-70 loss in Hartford, Conn., on January 12, 1999. Notre Dame set the school single-game three-point mark when it nailed 16 three-pointers against Loyola.

INGELSBY RETURNS TO STARTING ROLE: Senior Martin Ingelsby returned to his role as Notre Dame’s starting point guard in the season opener against Sacred Heart. A starter in his first two seasons, Ingelsby lost his starting job in the seventh game of the season a year ago and averaged just 14.8 minutes and 4.8 points per game in 1999-2000. He is averaging 7.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists in six games. Ingelsby responded to his return as an Irish starter with 15 points nailing a career-high five three-pointers in the first game. He hit on all five of his three-point attempts from beyond the arc in the first half and finished with six assists and just one turnover in the contest. Against Loyola, he had scored nine points (all from three-point range), dished off 11 assists and just one turnover. In the win against Cincinnati, he had five points, five rebounds, eight assists while playing 39 minutes. He has played all 40 minutes in two of Notre Dame’s last three games (versus Vanderbilt and Miami). Ingelsby reached double figures for the second time this season in the loss to Vanderbilt when he scored 11 points and dished off five assists in 39 minutes of action.

DISHING IT OUT: Martin Ingelsby leads the Irish with 41 assists. His 11 assists (one shy of his career-high) against Loyola (Chicago) on Nov. 22 marked the fifth time in his career he had 10-plus assists. The previous four outings in which he had 10 or more assists occurred in his freshman season (1986-87). For the season, Ingelsby is averaging 6.8 assists per game and has turned the ball over just seven times in the six games. He has played a total of 214 minutes and is averaging a turnover every 30.6 minutes and just 1.2 turnovers per game. Ingelsby’s assist-to-turnover ratio is 5.85.

CONSISTENT CARROLL: No Irish player has been as consistent throughout the preseason and in the first six games as sophomore Matt Carroll. He registered double figures for the 22nd time in his career against Miami when he scored 12 points. Earlier this seaosn, Carroll tied his career best when he scored 22 points against Loyola (Chicago). In that game, he also dished off a personal best nine assists. Against Vanderbilt Carroll also established another career-high when he grabbed nine rebounds in the contest. He is shooting 54.2 (26-48) percent from the field, 54.5 (12-22) from three-point range and 83.3 (10-12) from the charity stripe. Even more impressive is that he is second in the assist columnn with 30 (5.0 per game).

HUMPHREY A SHINING STAR: Ryan Humphrey, who transferred from the University of Oklahoma prior in the fall of 1999 and sat out all of last season, led the Irish in scoring in back-to-back games against Vanderbilt and Indiana. He had a career-high 24 points (hitting nine-of-12 field goals), six rebounds and a season-high six blocked shots against Vanderbilt on Dec. 2 in the come-from-behind victory. He began his Irish career by scoring 19 points and grabbing nine rebounds in his official regular-season debut against Sacred Heart. Humphrey’s first two points as a Notre Dame player came on a dunk 2:37 into the contest. He connected on seven of 10 shots from the field and played a total of 26 minutes. Humphrey had 16 points and seven rebounds against Loyola and 10 points and 12 rebounds for his first double double in an Irish uniform versus Cincinnati. He scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the loss to Indiana on Dec. 5. Humphrey is second on the team in both scoring and rebounding averaging 17.2 points and 8.0 rebounds.

UNSELFISH IRISH: The most telling statistic from the first six games ? the 123 assists (20.5 per game). Notre Dame has made a total of 168 field goals in its first six games which translates into an assist for every 1.37 baskets. As a team, the Irish have committed just 80 turnovers, resulting in a 1.54 assist-to-turnover ratio and a turnover every 3.00 minutes. Last season, Notre Dame had more turnovers (656) than assists (643).

GRAVES WILL BE NEXT IRISH 1,000-POINT SCORER: It won’t be long before junior David Graves becomes the 41st player in Notre Dame history to reach the 1,000-point mark. He has 947 points in 73 career games and has nearly a 13.0 career scoring average.

MOVING UP IN THE BIG EAST: Notre Dames 8-8 mark in BIG EAST play last season marked the first time since the Irish joined the conference in 1995-96 that the team did not have a losing mark in league play. Notre Dame was 4-14 in 1995-96, 8-10 in both 1996-97 and 1998-99 and 7-11 in 1997-98. Notre Dame had never been two games above the .500 level in BIG EAST play until last years team began with a 2-0 record.

NEW KIDS ON THE BIG EAST BLOCK: Mike Brey and Miamis Perry Clark are the two new coaches in the BIG EAST this season. Hired by their respective schools within eight days of each other, Clark was named head coach of the Hurricanes on July 6 after 11 years at Tulane, while Brey was introduced as Notre Dames 17th head coach on July 14.

IRISH SHOW TRIPLE THREAT AGAIN: Notre Dame’s three-point shooting appears to be alive and healthy again this season as the Irish have canned an average of 8.83 three-pointers (53-123) in its first six games. David Graves leads the way with 16, while Martin Ingelsby is second with 13 and Matt Carroll is third with 12. Inglesby had a career-high five in the season opener against Sacred Heart. The Irish began that contest by hitting eight of their first nine from beyond the three-point arc. They also had a school-record 16 against Loyola on Nov. 22. Last season, the Irish averaged 7.8 three-pointers per game en route to establishing the single-season mark with 287.

BIG EAST DIVIDE: With the addition of Virginia Tech, the 14-team BIG EAST Conference has been split into two divisions. BIG EAST teams will once again play a 16-game conference schedule. Annually, teams will meet each divisional opponent on a home-and-home basis and will play four games against teams from the other division. Notre Dame has been designated to the West division, which also includes: Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Seton Hall, Syracuse and West Virginia. The East division members are: Boston College, Connecticut, Miami, Providence, St. Johns, Villanova and Virginia Tech. The Irish play Boston College, Connecticut, St. Johns and Virginia Tech in the single games this season.

BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIP FORMAT TO CHANGE: For the first time in the history of the BIG EAST Conference, every team will not advance to the leagues postseason tournament. The top six teams in each division will qualify for the 2001 AT&T BIG EAST Championship in Madison Square Garden on March 7-10. First-round tournament games will feature cross-divisional matchups (the No. 3 seeds will play No. 6 seeds and the No. 4 seeds will play the No. 5 seeds). The top two teams in each division will be awarded first-round byes.

MURPHY MOVES INTO TOP 10 ON IRISH SCORING CHARTS: Troy Murphy became the 40th player in Notre Dame history to score 1,000 points on Jan. 29, 2000 when the Irish defeated St. Johns. He started the season 16th on the all-time scoring list, but the 144 points he has scored in in his first five games have elevated him to 10th on the scoring list with 1,502 career points. Against Miami, he moved ahead of Elmer Bennett who finished his Irish career with 1,488 points. Murphy needs just four points to pass LaPhonso Ellis (1988-92) who scored 1,505 points during his four-year career. Murphy became the second-youngest player in Irish history to score 1,000 points at 19 years and 272 days old. Former Irish All-American Adrian Dantley (1973-76) was 18 years and 355 days old when he scored his 1,000th point. Murphy also joins Dantley as the only Irish players to reach the 1,000-point mark in their sophomore seasons. He scored his 1,000th point in his 48th career game ? the fifth-fastest among Notre Dames 39 previous 1,000-point scorers. All-time leading scorer Austin Carr (1968-71) needed just 35 games, while Dantley needed 44. It took John Shumate (1972-74) and Bob Arnzen (1966-69) 46 games to score 1,000 points.

DOUBLE THE PLEASURE FOR MURPHY: Among active Division I players according to STATS Inc. Troy Murphy is second with 34 career double doubles. He has scored in double figures in 68 of 69 career games he has played and has registered double figures in 57 straight contests heading into this afternoon’s matchup with Tennessee Tech. The only time Murphy has failed to score in double figures was against Syracuse on Dec. 29, 1998.

HOME COOKIN’: Eight of Notre Dame’s first 10 games of the season are at home and only one of those games is on the opponents’ home floor. This afternoon’s contest is the third of six consecutive home games for the Irish who will not be on the road again until they begin BIG EAST play at Syracuse on Tues., Jan. 2. That will be exactly one month from its last away game when the Irish played at Vanderbilt on Dec. 2.

LIGHTS, CAMERA ACTION: Notre Dame will make nine national television appearances during the 2000-01 season as the Irish will be featured three times on CBS and six times on ESPN. It is the most regular-season telecasts since the 1988-89 campaign when that Notre Dame squad also had nine of its games nationally televised. The national lineup is as follows: Indiana (Tues., Dec. 5 on ESPN), at Syracuse (Tues., Jan. 2 on ESPN), at Seton Hall (Mon., Jan. 8 on ESPN), at Kentucky (Sat., Jan. 13 on CBS), St. John’s (Mon., Feb. 5 on ESPN), at Rutgers (Wed., Feb. 14 on ESPN), Seton Hall (Sun., Feb. 18 on CBS), at Connecticut (Mon., Feb. 26 on ESPN) and Georgetown (Sun., Mar. 4 on CBS).

BASKETBALL LUNCHEONS SET: The second of three basketball luncheons will take place take place on Mon., Jan. 22, 2001 (the day before the Notre Dame-Syracuse) with the third and final one being held on Tues., Feb. 20, 2001 (the day before the Notre Dame-Boston College game).

The luncheons, which begin at noon, will feature Brey, members of his squad, video presentations and other special guests.

Tickets are $16 each. Tickets are available by mail by writing Athletics Business Office, 112 Joyce Center, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556. Checks should be made payable to University of Notre Dame. No telephone reservations will be accepted. For more information, call 219-631-7246.

TICKET DEMAND: Season-tickets for the 2000-01 Notre Dame men’s basketball season were sold-out prior to the start of the season. A limited number of single-game tickets remain for contests Canisius (Dec. 19), Vermont (Dec. 21), Long Island (Dec. 29) and Rutgers (Jan. 6). All 3,200 student season-tickets allotted for the upcoming campaign also have been sold, a figure that has doubled from the 1,600 sold for the 1999-2000 season.

WNTS TO BROADCAST 12 IRISH BASKETBALL GAMES: WNTS Radio 1590 AM in Indianapolis, Ind., will broadcast 12 Notre Dame mens basketball games during the 2000-01 season in the Indianapolis market as part of the Notre Dame Basketball Network originated by Host Communications. WNTS 1590 AM, which is owned by S&M Broadcasting Company, Inc., has been broadcasting its signal in the Indianapolis area since 1974.

The mens basketball games on WNTS this season include: Nov. 22 vs. Loyola (Chicago) at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 5 vs. Indiana at 9:00 p.m., Dec.19 vs. Canisius at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 21 vs. Vermont at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 2 at Syracuse at 7:00 p.m., Jan. 8 at Seton Hall at 7:00 p.m., Jan. 16 vs. Pittsburgh at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 23 vs. Syracuse at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 5 vs. St. Johns at 7:00 p.m., Feb. 14 at Rutgers at 9:00 p.m., Feb. 21 vs. Boston College at 7:30 p.m., and Feb. 26 at Connecticut at 7:00 p.m.

IRISH LIFE SKILLS PROGRAM HONORED AS ONE OF NATION’S BEST: The Notre Dame CHAMPS/Life Skills Program has been identified as one fo the best in the nation by the NCAA Division I-A Athletic Directors’ Association. Notre Dame received one of four program of excellence award at the Association’s Sept. 25 awards dinner in Dallas. Honored along with Notre Dame were Arizona State University, the University of Iowa and Michigan State University. Notre Dame’s Life Skills Program currently is under the direction of Bernard Muir, associate athletic director for student-athlete welfare.

In existence since August 1996, Notre Dame’s Life Skills Program is committed to the total development of the University’s student-athletes. It fosters the cultivation of skills that allow for their maximization on and off the playing field. The program develops and implements events and activities which are designed to facilitate learning in five key areas: academic excellence, athletic success, career preparation, community involvement and personal development. By the time a Notre Dame student-athlete graduates, he or she will have participated in approximately 40 hours of required skill building and development workshops in each key area. All freshmen and their parents participate in orientation sessions designed to assist in the transition into the University and to inform them about the Life Skills Program as well as other support services.