SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore said the Irish are on a “revenge tour” after being excluded from the College Football Playoff last fall, and players aren’t shying away from talking about the importance of their Nov. 7 home game against Miami as part of it.

Moore said last year’s 27-24 season-opening loss to Miami used to keep him awake at night, but so did the Week 3 loss to Texas A&M — an 0-2 start that ultimately kept the Irish out of the CFP.

“We’re on a revenge tour now,” Moore said. “We got to get back. We got to make it right from last year.”

Quarterback CJ Carr, who is entering his second season as the full-time starter, conceded it’s “impossible” not to think about facing the Canes at home this year.

“Watching that tape, it was probably the worst first half of football our offense played all year, and to be in that game in the end and the second half we put together was special,” he said. “It’s hard to watch. … There was some resilience shown in that game that’s going to help us this year. We’re excited for them to come into town and see what this team’s got.”

When told of his players’ candor during an interview in his office on Tuesday morning, coach Marcus Freeman smirked.

“We spend too much time daydreaming about Miami, we’re going to lose to Wisconsin,” he said of Notre Dame’s Sept. 6 season opener. “You’ve got to focus on the task right at hand. That’s no different than saying, can we go back to the national championship? If we want to focus on the national championship, we’re going to lose the opportunity we have right here. It’s my job to make sure I’m directing the focus where it needs to be. That’s an everyday message, an everyday reminder to struggle. Struggle has to be hard mentally and physically and to sacrifice and put Notre Dame in front of yourself.”

Moore said the defensive backs shouldered a lot of the blame for the loss to Canes, as Miami quarterback Carson Beck completing all but 10 passes (20 of 30) for 205 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

“That’s what used to keep me up at night,” Moore said, “just thinking about maybe one or two plays in that game that I could’ve made that would’ve changed the course of the season. That and the Texas A&M game, just as a DB room, we put that all on us.”

Following the loss to Miami, Moore said Freeman was blunt in his assessment of the secondary.

“He told us we was weak, we was soft,” Moore said, “all that type of stuff. It’s serious to him, too. That’s something he’s not used to seeing from us.”

This year, Notre Dame’s secondary should be one of its biggest assets on a defense that returns nine of its top 10 tacklers, including safety Adon Shuler (53) and Moore (31).

Senior linebacker Drayk Bowen, who was wearing pads on Tuesday morning’s practice for the first time this spring since his offseason hip surgery, said Freeman showed the team video of their reaction on Selection Day. The loss to Miami, though, wasn’t the only mistake over the past few years.

“… There’s always one little thing we didn’t do, maybe at the beginning of the season or the middle of the season,” he said. “There’s always something where we could have been better. Going through four years of it now … we understand everything from now until the time we either get voted in or don’t get voted in, everything’s important.”

In each of the past four seasons under Freeman, the Irish haven’t been able to finish September undefeated, losing at least one or two games each year. He said the team has to start faster, and that’s “not just a last year deal.”

“We’re going to play good teams early because of conferences, we have to get the teams that are willing to plays that in conferences early,” he said, “but it’s no excuse to not be as close to your best as possible. We’ve got to do a better job of making sure our teams is prepared in playing and executing in a better sense than what we’ve been in the past.”

Carr said the team continues to use last year as motivation but also has to move forward.

“You can sulk and you can blame and you can point the finger or you can say, ‘alright, we got punched in the face, we’ve got to get back up,'” Carr said. “We’ve got to go back to work. We’ve got a new team coming in. We’re going to be really good. We have draft picks all over the field. We have a chance to be really special.”

Living up to a legend’s name is no easy task, and no matter where EJ Smith goes on a football field, he’s looked at a bit differently than most.

That’s because the Texas A&M running back, who hopes to be drafted later this month, is the son of Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher.

Smith worked primarily as a backup in college, but at the very least, he did get a workout with his dad’s former Dallas Cowboys earlier this month.

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But there was a time in high school, the Hall of Famer said, that his son began to feel the pressure of living up to the likes of his father.

“He came to me one day, he asked the question, ‘How do I deal with all the pressure?’ And I was wondering the type of pressure he was under. He said, ‘Just the pressure of living up to what everybody expects and everything else,'” Smith recalled in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.

“And I broke it down pretty simply. I just asked the one fundamental question. I said, ‘What is everyone saying?’ ‘Everyone expected me to be this and everyone expected me to be that and do this and do that.’ I said, ‘What are your expectations? Are your expectations any different than what they want for you?’ And he said, ‘No.’ I said, ‘Where’s the pressure?’

“Here’s the thing – you gotta run your race, and you gotta disregard what other people are saying. Because you have whatever ability you have, you have to be yourself. And you have to work at being yourself and work at what you need to do to hone your craft. Just go play the game. Put your blinders on. Run your race. You like the horses at the Kentucky Derby. And then when the blinders come off, you may look up one day and find yourself in the damn Super Bowl. You never know.

Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed hands the ball to running back EJ Smith during the first half against Florida at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida, on Sept. 14, 2024. (Matt Pendleton/Imagn Images)

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“But stay the course, disregard all the noise out there ’cause it is noise. And they’re not playing. They’re trying to put their stuff on you and their expectations on you. But if their expectations are different than yours, it don’t matter. Just go meet every expectation that you’re trying to meet. Everything else doesn’t matter.”

Smith said he and EJ talk about “everything under the sun,” making it clear that his top role in life is being a father. That, along with other personal experiences, is why he joined Narcan’s “Ready to Rescue” initiative to stop overdoses during the current opioid epidemic.

Smith’s sister-in-law had a “couple of overdose episodes” while on pain medication for chemo for colon cancer treatment. Smith also noted that his former teammates have had issues with opioids, and friends have even lost children. Although the circumstances are unfortunate, the recent partnership is a natural fit for Smith.

“I think that’s what makes it such a natural way to talk about it. There’s dealing with someone that you lost, or even growing up and seeing cousins, getting hooked on hardcore drugs, and then seeing them wean themselves off of it, going through that whole entire process of not understanding that there’s mechanisms out there that people can go to get help,” Smith said, adding his concern for the “rampant” run of fentanyl.

“Anybody is subject to get caught up in something at any point in time anywhere, and not even realize it. And so when that happens, you want to make sure that the people that are closest to you or around you have access to something like the Narcan nasal spray.

Jan 30, 1994; Atlanta, GA; FILE PHOTO; Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith (22) prior to facing the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XVIII at the Georgia Dome. (James D. Smith/USA TODAY Sports)

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The Smith family, of course, is hoping they get good news during the draft. But Smith has one more piece of advice for his son on how to deal with the pressure of waiting for a call.

“I told him on draft day, go play golf, go hang out, don’t even look at the damn TV,” he said. “Let your agent call you and say, ‘Hey man, we got something.’ Don’t even worry about draft day.”

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Ohhhhhh BABY, buckle up, because the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season gave us more thrills than a roller coaster at peak speed. We’re talking Diaper Dandies, Prime-Time Performers, record-breakers and coaching legends showing they still have the magic touch.

Here are Dickie V’s Dazzling Dozen moments from a season that had it all.

1. The Prime-Time Player: Cameron Boozer

National Player of the Year. Consensus All-American. Tied the program record for most double-doubles by a Duke freshman (22). Became the first freshman or sophomore to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in a season since Larry Bird in 1976-77. Cameron Boozer was awesome, baby. A legit super stud who brought the goods every night — no off nights, no soft nights, just dominance.

2. The Night of the Triple Forty Phenoms

Three freshmen — three — drop 40-plus points on the same night?!

Diaper Dandies Keaton Wagler (46), AJ Dybantsa (43) and Kingston Flemings (42) were Diaper Dazzlers, putting on scoring displays that would make Pistol Pete Maravich smile from the heavens. Each one set freshman records for their schools. Awesome with a capital “A”!

3. The Year of the Diaper Dandies

Never — NEVER! — have we seen a freshman class like this one. Ten first-year phenoms projected in the top 10 of the NBA draft?! Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Boozer, Caleb Wilson, Wagler, Darius Acuff Jr., Flemings, Mikel Brown Jr., Nate Ament and Brayden Burries — a parade of Diaper Dandy delights. It was like watching an NBA lottery preview every night.

4. A Winner from Day One: Jon Scheyer’s Historic Start

Scheyer Dazzler! The Duke head man is rewriting the definition of early-career success: 124 wins in four seasons, including 25 against ranked teams. That’s winning with style, baby. The Brotherhood is alive and well in Durham.

5. Darius Acuff Jr. Goes for 49 in a 50-Minute Marathon

Double overtime at Alabama, the crowd going wild, and the kid delivers the most points (49) by a freshman against an AP ranked team. That’s not just a performance, that’s a “call the fire department” moment.

6. The Assist King: Braden Smith

Move over, Bobby Hurley! Smith is now the assists leader in Division I with 1,103 dimes. A beautiful passer, a floor general, a facilitator with flair — Smith was the ultimate team-first player.

7. Dylan Darling‘s Darling Game Winner

A buzzer-beating layup to send St. John’s to the Sweet 16 — and his first points of the game? Talk about drama, baby! Darling became the first player in NCAA tournament history to score his first points on a game-winning buzzer-beater. That’s March Magic.

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St. John’s stuns Kansas at the buzzer to reach Sweet 16

Dylan Darling’s first basket of the game is a layup as time expires to win it for St. John’s in dramatic fashion.

8. Tom Izzo: Time Marches On, and So Does the Legend

He’s a PTP: Prime-Time Patriarch. Izzo reached the NCAA tournament for the 28th straight year, hit 700 wins at one school and passed Bobby Knight for the most Big Ten victories. That’s not longevity, that’s legendary.

9. Tarris Reed Jr. Makes March Madness History

Thirty-one points. Twenty-seven rebounds. Outrebounding Furman by himself. First 30-25 tournament game in 58 years. One of just three men ever to do it. Tarris Reed Jr.? More like Tarris Beast Jr. Put that in the record books with gold ink.

10. Kelvin Sampson Joins the 800 Win Club

This guy needs to be in the Hall of Fame. The Cougars keep clawing, keep winning, keep thriving — Sampson started the season with win No. 800 and added 29 more. Five straight 30-win seasons, tying Gonzaga’s record. He’s a maestro, a motivator, a master of March.

11. The Season of the 2K Kings

Seven players cracked the 2,000-point milestone, and that’s a testament to hard work, consistency and being a scoreboard-filling superstar. Tucker DeVries, Graham Ike, Nijel Pack, P.J. Haggerty, Jaron Pierre Jr., Bruce Thornton, Boopie Miller — each one a model of excellence.

12. Rick Barnes Keeps Rolling with Tennessee

Another bona fide Hall of Famer. What more does a guy have to do? Well, how about three straight Elite Eights? How about 861 wins? How about seven 25-win seasons in nine years? Rick Barnes doesn’t just coach, he delivers.

Bonus: Half a Hundred from Dennis Parker Jr.

Are you kidding me?! Fifty-three points. My guy Dennis Parker Jr. lit it up like Times Square on New Year’s Eve, going 19-for-24 from the field with 10 triples. A Radford and Big South record as well as the most points in a game this season. That’s what I call pure scorching supersensational supremacy.

Dickie V’s Final Take

From sizzling scorers to record-breaking rookies, from coaching titans to unbelievable tourney moments, the 2025-26 season had everything: drama, passion, performance and pride. College hoops was alive and electric, and the stars shined brighter than ever.

Bring on more hoops, baby! I love it!