A Notre Dame Football Blog
There was a time when the skyline between Notre Dame and Chicago was lined with glowing furnaces and fantastically-sized factories. Within those factories, men poured, formed, and cut steel. Today, those factories are mostly closed. Today, those men are mostly dead. On Saturday night, before the heaving, bouncing bodies in the stands, young men from Notre Dame, very much alive and fired by echoes cheering her name, quieted piped-in heavy metal with a punishing dose of heavy mettle. In ...
Ball State. It’s an unfortunate name. Then again, our University is technically named for ‘Our Lady of the Lake’, even though there are, in fact, two lakes. Don’t get me started. Who put the Ball in Ball State? The very generous Ball brothers, who became very wealthy by building a better, smarter fruit jar. It’s not a sexy way to make money; but all things considered, glass pickling jars are a lot more popular today than what our first benefactor sold – fur. Since we’re playing host to ...
With a class of new students moving onto campus, I’m seeing a lot of different ‘Welcome’ signs all over the place. Each hall seems to have its own personalized, color-coordinated placards staking a claim to its new inmates residents. But the sign I see most is “Welcome Home!” I had a whole series of suggestions for appropriate (and more realistic) welcoming signs. But, as usual, my wisdom was neither sought nor appreciated by the current administration. When they retire you, they take away ...
"It's been a busy week on Lakes St. Joseph and St. Mary." I tried to snap myself out from under my writer's block by channeling Garrison Keillor. It didn't work. So I tried some Earnest Hemmingway: "Brian Kelly's fingers ached. Great drops of rain plonked against the window. He hated Twitter." But neither worked. I did, however learn, that I might be able to write as well as Brian Kelly and I might know as much about Notre Dame sports as does the creator of A Prairie Home Companion. As the ...
What an unexpected year! No one should have been surprised that 2016 followed 2015; but the manner in which it followed was surprising: Not so much as night follows day, but more as a troop of rabid baboons follows the tourist who went to relieve himself behind the bushes and missed the bus back to the safari lodge, all while having his pockets stuffed full of beef jerky and hard candies. The Fighting Irish 4-8: We began the 2016 season ranked tenth and widely expected to vie for a place in ...
For the 175th anniversary, they’re “retracing” my route from Vincennes to Notre Dame. I’m flattered…I guess. They’re doing it in late August – Indiana in late August. You know, dangerous heat, violent monsoons, and tornado season. I wouldn’t have undertaken the journey in August! Are they going to cart in mosquitoes carrying Yellow Fever to complete the effect? And by the way, the hellacious trek from New York to Vincennes was much more harrowing that the last 270 miles through pancake-flat ...
The Agricultural College of the State of Michigan is coming to town for a football game. Well, that was their first name; but they soon changed it to State Agricultural College. Realizing that this was dangerously vague – how would the students know which state’s agricultural college they were attending – the name was tightened up to Michigan Agricultural College. But there’s so much more to Michigan than growing cherries and Christmas trees; so the name was elaborated to Michigan State College ...
I haven’t had to perform too many theological gymnastics in order to accept that we start this year’s Football March to Victory on a Sunday. Yes, it is The Lord’s Day. But you can go to Mass on Saturday evening and it still counts. The Lord is just happy to see you, and He appreciates that you stopped in for a visit. Besides, we don’t take the Bible literally. If we did, there would be a lot of eyes plucked out for looking at filthy images (like USC and Alabama playing with each other), and a ...
If this were basketball, and it were the early-Nineties, Notre Dame's recent performance against Syracuse would be somewhat understandable, for the Irish are 2-2 against 'Cuse as we approach the fifth meeting of the teams since 2003 and the second-straight at MetLife Stadium. NEW COACH Take everything you now about Syracuse and throw it away. Except for the horrible colors and the ridiculous mascot. For whatever reason, those things are staying. But under first year head coach Dino Babers, ...
An errant flyer was slipped under my door recently. It was a series of lists from the Office of Housing, instructing incoming freshmen in “What to Bring to Campus.” I found this amusing, because the Office of Housing used to be Brother Paul the Hermit; and “What to Bring to Campus” was “Whatever You Can Fit into Four Saddle Bags or One Steamer Trunk.” So I found these lists…quaint: Personal Supplies - Shower Caddy: This better not mean a fellow who carries your soap into the scrub room ...