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Personal Briefing

🌅Personal Briefing - Friday, May 1, 2026

Good morning. Here's your personal read.

🏃Training

🏃Today's Plan

🎯 5K - 2026-05-02 (1 days out) Phase: race → recovery starts 2026-05-02 (1 day) This week: Race day - trust the training. Next week: Back to base building. Why today: Pre-race shakeout - stay loose, don't dig in. After this: 10K on 2026-06-20 (50 days out)

🏃 Today (Friday): FULL REST - no run today · abs optional · 8–10 min stretch Race eve. Hydrate, eat well, sleep well. Trust the work.

Best window: Lunch - 73°F, sunny, wind 8 mph

📊This Week

Sat - 🏁 5K RACE DAY (3.1 mi) Target: Sub-24 (7:43/mi avg) · stretch goal sub-23 (7:24/mi avg) Strategy: Go out 7:30–7:40/mi for mile 1, settle in, push at mile 2 if feeling good. Trust the training. Go get it. Sun: easy 10-min jog or full rest - your choice · light 5-min abs · 10-min stretch · pace very - Recovery day. Pack for London tomorrow.

This week: 4 runs · 5.8 mi · 50 min Zone check: 38% in pace-Z2 (race target ≥80%). Recent easy paces: 10:11/mi, 8:49/mi, 9:02/mi. If those feel conversational, they may be fine - pace zones are proxies. HR data from the COROS will clarify your true zones once it's set up.

Recent runs:

  • Sat 04-25 · 3.2 mi · 32 min · 10:11/mi (easy)
  • Mon 04-27 · 0.8 mi · 6 min · 7:22/mi (Z4)
  • Tue 04-28 · 1.2 mi · 10 min · 8:20/mi (Z3)
  • Wed 04-29 · 2.6 mi · 23 min · 8:49/mi (easy)
  • Thu 04-30 · 1.2 mi · 11 min · 9:02/mi (easy)

✓ Nice walk yesterday (35 min). 3 family walks this week - lifestyle win, not a run substitute.

☘️Notre Dame Sports

🏈Football

Today is decision day for Champ Monds. Four-star 2027 quarterback Wonderful "Champ" Monds IV (6-2, 219, Vero Beach, FL) is announcing his commitment live on The Pat McAfee Show at 1:05 p.m. ET - choosing between Notre Dame, Florida State, and Ohio State. ND has been the runaway favorite for weeks, and a Monds pledge would stamp the long-term answer at the most important position in the 2027 class. He originally sat in the 2028 cycle and reclassified up on Dec. 31 - top-end physical tools, big arm, big upside. Worth tuning in over lunch.

There may be a second commitment in motion today as well - One Foot Down has flagged 2027 OL Aidan O'Neill as a potential same-day announcement. If both fall the right way, today turns into a double recruiting win on May 1.

The 2026 class continues to fill out around them: Adam Schefter highlighted on Wednesday that the class now includes WR Devin Fitzgerald, son of Larry Fitzgerald - the same Devin Fitzgerald who was the breakout receiver at the Blue-Gold Game (3 catches, 54 yards, a 28-yard TD). Carryover storyline from the spring is still 2027 four-star safety Zayden Gamble's commit over Miami and Ohio State, the 10th 2027 commit and fourth defensive back in the class.

NFL draft tail: Jeremiyah Love went No. 3 overall to Arizona (correcting the framing from earlier in the week). Jadarian Price went 32nd to Seattle, making ND the first program ever with both top RBs in Round 1 of the same draft. TE Eli Raridon went third round to New England, keeping the 20-year ND TE1 streak alive.

Upcoming:

  • Sun Sep 6 - vs. Wisconsin, Shamrock Series at Lambeau Field (season opener)

Last Result: Blue-Gold Game - Blue 41, Gold 40 (Sat Apr 25)

🏀Women's Basketball

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

Monday's headline was still KK Bransford transferring to UCLA - Bransford, the 2022 McDonald's All-American out of Cincinnati, leaves Notre Dame after averaging 7.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.1 spg as a senior; she becomes Cori Close's fifth and final transfer addition for the defending champs. With Cassandre Prosper (WNBA Draft), Vanessa De Jesus, Iyana Moore, and Malaya Cowles also gone, ND lost four of five starters from 2025-26.

The 2026-27 roster is essentially set: portal additions Anaya Hardy (Louisville - 4.9 ppg / 4.2 rpg as a Sweet 16 starter sophomore) and Madison St. Rose (Princeton - career 13.2 ppg, two-time All-Ivy) plus the No. 1 high school class headlined by McDonald's All-Americans Jacy Abii and Jenica Lewis. Niele Ivey is also coaching Team USA's U18 squad at the FIBA AmeriCup June 8-14.

Upcoming: Summer workouts begin in late May.

🥍Lacrosse

Tonight is the night. No. 1 Notre Dame men (10-1, 3-1 ACC) face No. 4 seed Virginia (8-6) in the ACC Tournament semifinal at 5:00 p.m. ET on ACC Network at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte. Virginia is the only team to beat the Irish this season - an 11-9 result on March 28 in Charlottesville. ND enters on a four-game win streak as the No. 1 team in the country.

Headline news from the conference yesterday: goalie Thomas Ricciardelli was named ACC Goalie of the Year - major recognition for the backbone of the regular-season title run. Championship game is Sunday at noon if the Irish advance; the second semifinal pits No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 3 Syracuse.

Women's lacrosse continues to wait. The Irish (12-5, 6-4 ACC) sit out of the ACC tournament after the 12-9 quarterfinal loss to Clemson on April 23. Their NCAA case rests on body-of-work strength against an uncomfortable RPI (29th); the NCAA Selection Show is Sunday May 3 at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPNU. First-round play begins Friday May 8, championship May 24 at Northwestern's Martin Stadium.

Upcoming:

  • Men: Tonight Fri May 1 - vs. No. 4 Virginia, ACC Tournament Semifinal, 5:00 p.m. ET (ACC Network), Charlotte
  • Men (if advance): Sun May 3 - ACC Championship, 12:00 p.m. ET, Charlotte
  • Women: Sun May 3 - NCAA Selection Show, 9:00 p.m. ET (ESPNU)

Last Result:

  • Men: Beat Syracuse 16-11 (Sat Apr 25)
  • Women: Lost to Clemson 12-9 in ACC Quarterfinals (Thu Apr 23)

📋Around the Program

  • Baseball opens a three-game home series with Stanford tonight at Frank Eck - first pitch 6:30 p.m. ET. Saturday and Sunday round out the weekend before the regular-season finishing kick. Coming off Wednesday's 16-2 run-rule blowout of Milwaukee.
  • Softball is idle this weekend before heading to the ACC Tournament May 6-9 at Virginia. The Irish (25-27, 11-13 ACC) are riding a six-game win streak after Wednesday's walk-off comeback over DePaul.
  • Men's tennis NCAA opener today: Fri May 1 at 4:00 p.m. ET in Champaign - No. 23 overall seed Notre Dame (21-7) vs. No. 24 Vanderbilt (17-12) in the first round. First NCAA appearance since 2022 for coach Ryan Sachire.

🔴Utah Utes

🏈Football

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

Monday's headline remains director of football sports performance Greg Argust resigning months after his January 7 promotion, with Steve Saunders (formerly Baltimore Ravens) elevated to the role. Spring practice closed without a spring game - Morgan Scalley made that official last week. Devon Dampier's command of new OC Kevin McGiven's offense is the most-watched offseason variable, and the rebuilt offensive line under coach Jordan Gross is the ceiling-defining unknown for 2026. The Sept. 26 game at Iowa State already shapes up as the tone-setter for Big 12 play.

Recent transfer-portal additions worth flagging: Tanner Cragun is back from UTEP, Will Monney is in from Oklahoma State, and Noah Bennee (23 catches, 264 yards at Weber State in 2025) joins receiver Braeden Pegan as the depth boost the wideout room needed.

Upcoming:

  • Sept. 3 - vs. Idaho (season opener, Rice-Eccles)

🤸Gymnastics

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

Tuesday's 2026 Final Analysis closed the books on the season that ended one-eighth of a point short of the program's 50th consecutive National Championship appearance - the streak finally snapped at the Corvallis Regional Final. Avery Neff was named WCGA North Central Region Gymnast of the Year, Big 12 Gymnast of the Year, and team MVP, with 27 wins this season alone (35 career) and back-to-back regional all-around crowns. Ana Padurariu was Big 12 Specialist of the Year. Neff and Ella Zirbes earned four total NCAA All-America honors at the National Championship Semifinals on April 16, where Neff finished fourth on floor and seventh in the all-around.

The 2027 reset rests on the full-team return of three All-Americans (Makenna Smith, Avery Neff, Ella Zirbes) plus regular-season All-American Camie Winger, with five-star Bailey Stroud headlining the incoming class.

Upcoming: 2027 season begins in January.

📋Around the Program

  • 🥍 Lacrosse - ASUN Tournament tonight. Utah opens the ASUN Tournament against No. 3-seeded Air Force at 6:00 p.m. ET / 4:00 p.m. MT on ESPN+ at Rock Stadium in Jacksonville, FL. Utes' offense is elite - 2nd nationally in goals/game (15.92), 1st in assists/game (9.77), 1st in points/game (25.69). Air Force won the regular-season meeting in OT to take a share of the regular-season title.
  • Softball senior weekend opens tonight. Utes (33-18-1) host No. 19/20 Arizona Friday at 5:00 p.m. MT, Saturday at 12:00 p.m., and Sunday at 12:00 p.m. on ESPN+ at Dumke Family Stadium. Big 12 Tournament implications - Utah sits 7th in the conference, half a game ahead of Arizona State and Iowa State for the final tournament spot.
  • Men's basketball roster nearly set. Craig Smith's offseason rebuild now has four transfers - Malek Gomma (Weber State), TJ Burch (Wright State), Taison Chatman (Ohio State), Jackson Holcombe (Utah Valley) - plus international additions Noam Yaacov (Israel), Alec Anigbata (Germany), Zati Loubaki (France), and Fynn Schott (Austria) joining returners Lucas Langarita and Babacar Faye. Still hunting a true center.

🌰Ohio State Buckeyes

🏈Football

The post-spring portal haul keeps growing into one of the best in the country. Alabama IDL James Smith - the No. 1-ranked interior defensive lineman in the transfer portal - is now in Columbus, the kind of plug-and-play piece that goes a long way toward replacing what was lost when Tyleik Williams went to Detroit in Round 1. The defensive line rebuild was the most urgent post-draft project, and Smith is the headline answer.

The Buckeyes also picked up CB Cam Calhoun (Alabama / Utah / Michigan transfer) for secondary depth and veteran RB Ja'Kobi Jackson out of Florida - entering his seventh year of college football - to spell true freshman star Bo Jackson behind the lines.

Spring-game tail: Julian Sayin is QB1 in 2026 even after a quiet performance. Five-star incoming freshman Chris Henry Jr. lit up the spring game (a 34-yard catch and a 40-yard TD) and is in the conversation for an early starting role at WR. Ryan Day expects to have C.J. Little back for training camp in August.

The credential keeps building elsewhere: 25 NFL picks across 2025-26 (tied all-time with Georgia), four picks in the first 11 in 2026 (first time in 59 years), and the only schools ever to put seven players in the first two rounds in back-to-back drafts (with Alabama). Sayin and Smith return as two of the top offensive players in college football, plus four of five starting OL.

Upcoming:

  • Aug 30 - season opener (Week 1)

📋Around the Program

  • Softball home regular-season finale opens tonight. After last weekend's series loss at No. 14 Oregon, Ohio State hosts No. 25 Washington - Friday at 6:00 p.m. ET at Buckeye Field - for the three-game series May 1-3. Washington enters 34-15, 15-6 Big Ten. Big Ten Tournament is May 6-9 in College Park, MD. (Friday is also Retro Night with Slap Bracelet giveaways.)
  • Recruiting note: 2027 five-star WR Jett Harrison is in Columbus this weekend on a visit.

🏔️Treasure Valley

🍽️Food & Drink

Two closures hitting in May. Whiskey Bar's last day is tomorrow, Saturday May 2 - owner announced via Instagram on Sunday after 12 years downtown; the goodbye coincides with the bar's annual Kentucky Derby party. And on Wednesday, BoiseDev confirmed Eastside Tavern at 1228 S. Oakland Ave. closes May 16 after 15 years - the dive bar with the pool tables, foosball, and darts is waiting until the end of the school year before pouring the last round. The location was the second home for Eastside, which moved here in 2022 after its original Eastgate Shopping Center spot became a Play It Again Sports.

The 2026 pipeline still in motion in the background:

  • The Boise Post rooftop atop the AC/Element on Grove tracking for spring.
  • Boise Thai Noodle House at 908 W. Main targeting spring.
  • Hemlock steakhouse moving into the old Richard's space.
  • Coa Cantina in Barber Valley, Cán Coctelería speakeasy above Amano, Bobby's Cafe in the old Original Sunrise space, and Idaho Burrito all opening this spring.
  • Handel's Ice Cream first Idaho location, late spring/early summer at 1581 E. State Street, Eagle.
  • Village at Meridian expansion - Apple, Pottery Barn, Tecovas, Tempur-Pedic, Gorjana, Culinary Dropout, The Capital Grille, Paris Baguette, and Flower Child all confirmed in the pipeline.

🎉Events & Things to Do

  • Tonight (Fri May 1): Whiskey Bar Kentucky Derby party / final night if you want to send it off properly. Sidepiece at Treefort Music Hall, 8 p.m. Boise Philharmonic: Sailing with Soft Rock Hits with Eric Garcia at the Morrison Center, 7:30 p.m. Disco, Always: A Harry Styles Dance Night at Knitting Factory's 9th St. Parallel, 8 p.m. (21+).
  • Sat May 2 - 🏁 Race day for the 5K. Boise River Marathon kicks off at 7:00 a.m. on the Greenbelt (5K, 10K, half, full options). Idaho Outdoor Expo May 2-3 - gear, demos, the whole outdoor lifestyle. Boise Area Spring Parade of Homes opens at noon. Capital City Public Market at The Grove, 9:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Music in the Park at the Gene Harris Bandshell (Julia Davis), 3:30–8:00 p.m. Boise Philharmonic at the Morrison Center, 7:30 p.m. Karrin Allyson at the Egyptian, 7:30 p.m. El Ten Eleven at Neurolux, 8 p.m. Tech N9ne & E-40 at Revolution, 8 p.m. Unknown Mortal Orchestra at Treefort Music Hall, 5 p.m. Dry Creek Historic Society opens for the season, 12:30–4:30 p.m.
  • Sun May 3: Idaho Outdoor Expo day two. Unknown Mortal Orchestra at Treefort Music Hall, 7 p.m. Celebrating Mom Afternoon Tea Social, 2 p.m.
  • Race-day weather (Sat May 2) - much improved from earlier in the week: High 82°F, low 52°F, partly sunny, no rain, SSE wind 11 mph with gusts to 22 mph. The dreary 61°F-and-showers forecast from yesterday has flipped warm and dry - plan for warmer-than-expected race conditions, hydrate well at the start.

📰Local Headlines

  • Boise Cascade fined $6.38M in federal Lacey Act case. DOJ announced the company pleaded guilty to a felony for buying $30M in illegally imported Chinese plywood from Horizon Plywood between 2018-2021 - Horizon was smuggling product through Malaysia to dodge tariffs. Boise Cascade kept ordering even after a January 2021 federal search warrant on Horizon's South Florida warehouse. The $6.38M is twice the gross profits from the scheme; Boise Cascade must also implement a compliance plan. Stock dropped 2.2% on the news.
  • New Expo Idaho park in the works - wetlands, skate features, and Greenbelt connection planned. Ada County is also proposing a bridge to reconnect the Greenbelt near Expo Idaho.
  • Carryover reminders: First Thursdays moves to Cherie Buckner-Webb Park starting May 7. ITD director Scott Stokes retiring June 30. Boise State's blue turf becoming a permanent Jeanty/Moore tribute as the new field installs ahead of Pac-12 play. Apple permit filings at the Village at Meridian still pending an opening date. Former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne memorial details still pending.

🔗Worth Reading

Generated on Friday, May 1, 2026

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