Once in a while, there is an event that lends the question, will this become a new Notre Dame stadium tradition? On Friday night, a first happened in the newly renovated Notre Dame football stadium. The event was titled “Flick On The Field,” in which the featured movie, “Rudy,” was presented on the new video board in the southern end zone of the stadium. This event was part of the concluding activities of the “Kicks and Flicks week.” You could not have asked for a better evening. The sky was perfectly clear and the air temperature felt as though that “Fall” was right around the corner.
Lets Get This Thing Started
Students from Holy Cross, St. Mary’s and Notre Dame were allowed access to the stadium field to view the movie. Prior to the movie starting, the Student Government announced the various “Halls” in attendance. The students in attendance cheered as there Hall name was called. The lower bowl seats of the stadium seats were filled. Prior to the movie starting, the newly improved concession stands were once again loaded and delayed. Some folks were in line for approximately half an hour waiting for hot dogs, soda and popcorn to be served. It was a point of conversation prior to the movie starting. The energy associated with the fans in attendance was a sense of excitement as they were about to witness something that has never been done before at Notre Dame stadium. There was a video montage that played prior to the start of the movie, that seemed to be a “get pumped video” featuring Head Coach Brian Kelly giving a pre-game pep talk to the team.
Notre Dame presents “Rudy”
In an instant the stadium went silent. Everyone’s attention turned to the enormous video board. Cheers erupted as the opening scene started. In my personal thoughts, I started thinking how weird it was going to be seeing the stadium in the movie while I was IN said stadium. What a surreal moment it was. The first surreal moment was seeing the stadium in black and white during the scene in the Ruettiger family living room. During other points of the movie I was pointing out to my daughter, who had never seen “Rudy” before, where that scene was actually filmed in the Stadium and on campus. Those in attendance would occasionally erupt in clapping and occasional fan screams. When the Irish band started playing in the movie, those in attendance started to clap as they would on any given Saturday during a home game. The loudest and most engaged moments of those in attendance was when Rudy finally gets his acceptance letter into Notre Dame, and when Rudy was being chanted in the movie versus Georgia Tech. The stadium banners on the Home and Away side showed the final score of the ND vs GT and a game clock of 0:00.
Hoping For a New Pre-Season Tradition
I think I speak for all of the fans in attendance when I say, that “Flick On The Field” needs to become a new tradition. What better way to get your fans together, and build some excitement for the upcoming season. Possibly bring out the cheerleaders and the football team as a pre-season pep rally to the event? I know the event would be well attended and what way to rally the fan base prior to the kick-off to the new season.
Go Irish!
#Team129ChangesEverything #BeatTemple
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