UHND.com - Notre Dame Football, Basketball, & Recruiting

All this talk about the 2nd coming of "Rocket" only makes sense that it should begin with his own offspring...SR numbers not too bad 58 rec 1100+ yds 14 Tds

Link: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1503677/raghib-ismail-ii

(no message)

watch the pitt runs of 2 different years .... 1:19. 5:31

Link: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8Pe2tBtl09k

(no message)

he beat the angle so badly it wasn't even fair.

(no message)

Just kidding. But when Rocket came along, he was the first guy who I thought might be as fast as TD with a football under his arm. He's still the only one, after all these years.

(no message)

No one ever ran faster than Dorsett did on the screen pass he took to the house against the Irish in 1975.

As Luther Bradley recalled years later: "“We didn't realize how fast this guy was,” said Luther Bradley, a Notre Dame defensive back who was a 1978 first-round draft choice of the Detroit Lions. “He wasn't a big guy, but he was pretty ripped. Once he broke away, nobody was going to catch this guy.”

Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/college/pitt/5000131-74/dorsett-dame-notre#ixzz3PVu53TzO
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook

There have been other RBs faster than TD over the years. Bo Jackson was certainly faster. Herschel Walker had better open field speed but could not cut nearly as well.

Tony Dorsett had some serious wheels himself, he was past his sprinting prime in 1979 and ran the 100y dash in 9.5 at the Superstars Competition breaking OJ Simpsons record who was an NCAA runner up in the event in College...Dorsett was every bit a 10.3 100 meter runner while in college putting him ahead of Bo and slightly behind Herschel

Well one guy in the NFL was pretty fast, he ran back kicks while Rocket was in Carolina but I cannot think of who it was.

The guy you are referring to was 1992 Olympic Bronze Medalist Michael Bates a gifted 100/200 meter runner from U of Arizona.

Link: http://archive.azcentral.com/sports/preps/articles/20100806michael-bates-arizona-high-school-hall-of-fame.html

The guy you are referring to was 1992 Olympic Bronze Medalist Michael Bates a gifted 100/200 meter runner from Arizona St.

He was easily a tenth of a second faster than the second fastest man on the team (at the time, Rod Smith).

However, in the 100 M run, the sticky-fingered one (this does not refer to his pass catching abilities, which were shoddy), Marvin Lee 'Rusty' Setzer, actually beat him consistently.

Slow your roll there sailor...

CJ ran a 100m at state finals in 10.64...

Rocket ran 10.20.


Link: http://247sports.com/Player/CJ-Sanders-14833

Rocket ran 10.2 in COLLEGE.

CJ rans his 10.64 last year as a Junior in HS.

Still not saying CJ is the next Rocket but their track speed could be comparable. We'll see what CJ runs this year.

(no message)

Rocket holds the Fully Automatic timing record at ND in 10.34 which he did with only a month of track training...the 10.2h was his time at E.L. Meyers HS at the Districts but anytime that was hand timed from then has .24 added to it which makes it a 10.44

Link: http://archives.timesleader.com/2010_25/2010_05_16_District_2_Track__amp__Field_Championships_preview_-Sports.html

I thought the 10.2 was hand timed but I started my search based of Wikipedia said and went from there (someone needs to change that). Good find.

(no message)

The answer is he didn't. If you're following this thread another poster clarified and in fact, the Rocket's fastest collegiate time is 10.34.

http://irish.nbcsports.com/2012/05/08/speed-in-context-how-fast-are-the-atkinsons/

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nd/sports/c-track/auto_pdf/2013-14/misc_non_event/mens-outdoor-best.pdf

I was pretty sure Rocket never ran a 10.2 in college. That's why I asked. All this confusion easily could have been avoided.

I think their referring to this, scroll down to district 100 meter records or even the instance where Rocket himself stated he was timed at 10.2 in practice during his first practice in Track at ND.

Link: http://archives.timesleader.com/1994_7/1994_05_17_DALLAS_BOYS__HANOVER_GIRLS_FAVORED_TO_REPEAT_IN_AA_IF_MOUNTS_FAL.html

Funny thing is I don't think that people realize that Rocket only competed in all of 3 100 meter dash races (OUTDOOR) while at ND, but he was an All-American in INDOOR track.

Check his Wiki page and the link below for the certified results.

Link: http://www.all-athletics.com/node/291226

Your source is the only place I find that number. There are no other reports. If that is a pay site, you are paying money for trash.

No high school kid w/no training will run a 10.2 in PA in May. Not even Rocket (who was not, by any means, the best in state history). The all-time state record is 10.44 set 30 years ago.

Yes he was at the time and that is what he ran handtimed at the PA Distict meet ' '88, which is still the record today.

Then if it is his Senior time (hand-time)

I'll even take CJ's State Title time instead of the 10.64 mentioned, cause State Title times are usually e-timed.

CJ ran 10.76 as a junior
Rocket ran 10.44 as a senior.

Does CJ have a chance to match that? Of course. IS that too hard to fathom?

Wikipedia says the same thing - Ismail was also a track star at the University of Notre Dame, where he ran the 100 meters in 10.2 seconds. He also competed in the 55 meters, with a personal best of 6.07 seconds. At the 1991 NCAA Indoor Track Championships, he finished 2nd in the 55-meter sprint.

And the most important parts... CJ's numbers are from his JR year, and CJ is not the next Rocket but their track speed could be comparable.

So even if this was Raghib's HS time it doesn't matter. Also, e-times weren't even used in HS. Now nearly every track meet I attend is using computer timing vs hand times.

Ultimately, none of this really matters. CJ can come to ND and be everything the Rocket was and people will still slight him because of nostalgia, its how fandom works. The Rocket is probably the single greatest reason I became an ND fan. Doesn't mean I won't allow people to debate if there will be another kid to come along and be as great. The chances of that happening are ultra slim but its the hope that makes the games that much more worth watching.

He ran a 4.53 forty at the Nike camp in Atlanta last March. I'm sure he's very fast, but these aren't Rocket numbers, at least not yet.

Were comparing a kid's soph and junior times to a guy in College.

The Rocket's miracle 4.16 40 wasnt during his time in HS in Pennsylvania. It was after a few years of training at one of the premiere universities in the country vs a HS kid at a camp. So lets slow down on that.

Next, the difference between 10.2 and 10.6 is notable but not huge. Florida's Chris Rainey was a 10.6/10.7 runner in HS and his running mate Jeff Demps set the record in HS at 10.01. Yet, when you saw them run there wasn't much difference on the field. In fact, many reports had Rainey beating Demps in footraces at practice. So the difference isn't huge.

And as for the 40 at the Atlanta Nike Camp, many kids suffer when they run E-Timed 40s because they're unaware of how to do it. Which makes sense considering the next time CJ Sanders ran the 40 which was the first round of the Opening, he ran a 4.32.

Rocket had natural "elite" speed but without training which he didn't do for the 100 meter, you will not improve that much and in alot of cases guys who play Football will end up running slower times as compared to their HS Senior or in some case Freshman year in college....Someone even brought up Rusty Setzer and his fastest time at ND was 10.57, he won states at 10.4 in HS.

I think that is partially true more 20yrs ago than now. Hand times were all they used in HS. Now, there's a mix of both. I think now many post their fastest time vs the most legitimate then you go to College when everything is e-timed and the times drop. Like Deanthony Thomas ran 20.6 at City meet but 21.64 in the State Finals. Once he got to college he ran the 200m at 21.26 in the Pac Championships. So he got faster from the State Title time, not that City meet time.

Yes, De'anthony Thomas did indeed run 20.61 in the 200 meter at the City Finals, the time was just over the wind legal limit (albeit by only .1) and had legit world class 200 meter speed, he also sustained a hamstring injury in a relay race at the same meet which would hamper him for the rest of his HS career and he only competed in 2 meets as a SR.

Link: http://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/Athlete.aspx?AID=977779

Well I know how the track circuit goes due to running at the NCAA level and once there and beyond everything is electronic timed, prior to the NCAA level electronic times were done at AAU, State Championship, Regional/District Meets, but not at the Conference championships and at regular season meets which used manual (hand timed) timing.

In between signing them, and getting them on the field something happens. They seem to lose a step or two.

I'm just not afraid to think he might. I totally agree with what you're saying. I remember thinking...

Devante Neal, Armando Allen, Munir Prince, DJ Hord, Ambrose Wooden (started at WR) in recent years might have a chance and not so much.

BUT, Golden Tate certainly came close and provided a ton of AMAZING plays. He had a brilliant career at ND. Yet, I don't want to tarnish his legacy because he wasn't the Rocket. Probably be best to let CJ be CJ actually.

He played defense.

Your post is awful.

Homer = completely unrealistic sports fan who will do or say anything to make himself feel better because he can't face the reality that his team will never be as good as they once were. God Irish, but keep some perepective, bro.

(no message)

(no message)

(no message)

(no message)

(no message)

(no message)

Let's wait before we anoint him. But I hope you are right.

(no message)