Credit: ndfbrecruiting on Snapchat
Notre Dame football has continued its nautical theme from last year. But instead of “burn the boats,” the motto for offseason workouts appears to be “leaders eat last.”
Players met last week with Navy SEAL team members, according to Coach Brian Kelly, and then performed a series of team building exercises on water that included giant rafts and oars. Senior safety Max Redfield, redshirt junior DeShone Kizer and fifth-year defensive tackle Jarron Jones were three of the eight boat captains.
This morning, Notre Dame football is documenting its organized team activities on its Snapchat account, ndfbrecruiting. In the most recent picture, the new motto can be seen: “Leaders Eat Last” with a pair of crossed oars.
Coincidentally or not, this new motto sounds much like one of Jesus’ sermons in the New Testament, as documented in the gospel of Matthew.
“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
“And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
“When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
“But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
“Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
“And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
“And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
“But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.”
Joe Plumeri, the former head of Citigroup, spoke to the team last year during fall camp about the Vikings, who would burn their boats after landing at a site they wanted to conquer. Plumeri said the Vikings showed a commitment to win, so Notre Dame players adopted the phrase “burn the boats” to emphasize their desire to be perfect on the field.
A portion of Plumeri’s speech was documented by the Showtime series, “A Season With Notre Dame Football,” which you can watch here:
Notre Dame graduate, class of '02 (the Davie years!). A former newspaper and TV reporter, andrewwinn is now professionally involved in something far less fun to discuss than college football. A dad, a husband and a wannabe data nerd.
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