Notre Dame safety Tom Zbikowski will fight Saturday night at MSG. His opponent, Robert Bell, is an Ohio State fan and plans to wear a Buckeye jersey into the ring.

“I consider that a personal affront to myself and my teammates,” Zbikowski says, “and I’m going to look to punish him as much as possible before knocking him out.”

Also, Irish wide receiver Jeff Samardzija was drafted in the 5th round by the Chicago Cubs. Probably a waste of a draft pick considering…

“I had heard Jeff Samardzija tell every organization that there was no dollar amount they could give him that would buy him out of coming back to play football at Notre Dame,” said ND baseball coach Paul Mainieri.

But who knows? The Irish could lose two of their standouts.

Not that we are rooting for that to happen. We find Zbikowski’s boxing attempt admirable and Samardzija is a stud that likens himself to Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano.

So as much as we hate the Irish, it’s tough to dislike either of them on a personal level.

Fighting Irish [Sporting News]
Jeff Samardzija Post-Draft Press Conference [CSTV]