It took some serious $$ for the phone call to Moscow. We here at SAS are on a tight budget. Her E-mails and Twitters went unanswered. She was not easy to locate as you can well imagine. Anna was so extremely busy with debriefings and considering some very important and lucrative offers with her agent from Playboy and Penthouse magazines concerning a centerfold and certain exposure. We here at SAS are not talking about exposing spy secrets though. Although, when I finally tracked Anna down, we did have some frank and useful discussions about 2010 predictions for the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.
Here is what she predicted, although I’m not sure she knows the difference between the Notre Dame in South Bend and the one in Paris………
In a nutshell Anna quickly stated: 8-4 with obviously a non-BCS bowl appearance.
Losses include; U$C, Stanford, Pittsburgh, Utah.
Her analysis is a bit sketchy but still you have to give the redhead spy her due.
Anna points out:
** Notre Dame lost six games last year by a total of 28 points and no more than 7 points in any one game (U$C and Stanford). Where the heck was the defense? Notre Dame could be a sleeper team this year she mused.
** New coach, new scheme, new defense, new towels in the locker room.
** Easy (cupcake) schedule.
ARMY Army's coming off a 5-7 season with a win over the SEC's Vanderbilt.
WESTERN MICHIGAN WMU is coming off a 5-7 season, without a good win.
TULSA Tulsa's another team coming off a 5-7 record in 2009. They lost 46-45 to top 25 Houston.
PURDUE Purdue finished 5-7 last year but beat Michigan and Ohio State. Everyone remembers their loss to Notre Dame in the last minute (24-21). They also lost close games to Oregon (38-36) and Michigan State (40-37). This one could be an upset for Purdue.
MICHIGAN Everyone remembers last year's 38-34 road loss to the Wolverines. Michigan finished 5-7 with tough losses to Iowa (30-28) and Purdue (38-36). They also finished strong with a gutty performance against Ohio State. Rich Rod could have his job on the line this year, especially with some dumb record keeping on practice time. Sanctions and a losing season will be it for Rich.
NAVY Navy finished 10-4 last year with a Texas Bowl win over Missouri. They lost in the last minute to Ohio State (31-27), and some thought 2009 was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Middies. Anna suggests a couple extra Hail Mary’s in the locker room before the game.
MICHIGAN STATE Sparty finished 6-7 in 2009 with a three point road loss to Notre Dame (33-30). The biggest question for them is if there will be repercussions from last year's infamous rumble, where 11 players were arrested. They have got to stop recruiting street thugs.
BOSTON COLLEGE The Eagles finished 8-5 last year with a 20-16 road loss to Notre Dame. They play Notre Dame tough and hate their Roman Catholic guts.
STANFORD The Cardinal finished 8-5 in 2009 with a close Sun Bowl loss to Oklahoma (31-27). They beat Notre Dame (45-38) at home. Jim Harbough is a nasty but effective coach. He’s not long to stay with the Cardinal. A top tier school is but a year or two away.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA USC finished a disappointing 9-4 last season but managed to beat Notre Dame in South Bend (34-27). The Poodle is gone but the new coach is capable of self-destruction at any time. Watch out for flying body parts.
PITTSBURGH Pitt finished 10-3 in 2009 with a Meineke Car Car Bowl win over North Carolina. They beat Notre Dame in a very close game (27-22) in Pittsburgh.
UTAH Utah went 10-3 in 2009. They went undefeated in 2008 and 2004. They haven't had a losing season since 2002 (5-6). This loss could hurt. ND has trouble from schools from Utah.
Anastasia Kushchenko
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