FanPost
I am often asked about my Notre Dame fandom since I never went there. My grandfather, my Dad’s father, was a devout Catholic, and in the 1950s and 1960s, Notre Dame aired a few games a year nationally, the only team to do so. That and his catholicism (albeit Italian catholic) cemented his Notre Dame fandom. I never knew my grandfather, but I’m grateful he passed his fandom down to my Dad, who passed it down to me and my brother.
On October 16, 2004, I went to a Notre Dame vs. Navy game at Giants Stadium with my Dad, brother, and a few cousins. A sophomore Brady Quinn led the Irish to a 27–9 victory, bringing the team to 5–2 and #24 in the AP poll. They would go 1–4 the rest of the season, but that didn’t matter. That afternoon at Giants Stadium was magical for 10-year-old me, and I was hooked on the Fighting Irish as my college football team.
In 2005, Charlie Weis was hired as head coach, and Brady Quinn was a preseason Heisman favorite. They went 9–2 that year. I remember watching the infamous Bush Push game from my grandmother’s living room—the same place my grandfather had watched the national championship teams led by the likes of Theismann and Montana, whose records would eventually be broken by Brady Quinn. The season ended in the Fiesta Bowl, with a 34–20 loss to Ohio State, extending Notre Dame’s bowl drought to 12 years. 11-year-old me was heartbroken.
In 2006, Notre Dame, once again led by Heisman finalist Brady Quinn, went 10–2, though they lost to USC. They went on to lose to LSU in the Sugar Bowl, propelling JaMarcus Russell to the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft and continuing the Fighting Irish’s struggles in major bowl games. Despite these back-to-back disappointments, 12-year-old me became a fan for life. I was sure Notre Dame would win one soon…
The next few seasons were rough, with six or more losses in Charlie Weis’s final three seasons. (Though they did win their first bowl game in 14 years behind Jimmy Clausen). It wasn’t until the 2012 season that Notre Dame made it back to a major bowl game. That Christmas, my mother gifted me and my brother two tickets to South Bend. Little did we know we’d be watching the 8–0, #4 Fighting Irish play.
In Brian Kelly’s third season, the Fighting Irish got off to an unexpected start behind the play of Heisman finalist Manti Te’o. That year, I was a freshman at SUNY Cortland. Notre Dame was neither academically nor financially doable, so state school it was. Most weekends that fall, I watched the games at my brother’s house—except for the Pittsburgh game, which we attended in person. Notre Dame entered as big favorites, but J.P. Holtz had the Panthers up 20–6 at the start of the 4th quarter. My first game in South Bend was going to end any national championship hopes. Then Everett Golson and the Irish showed up, winning in triple overtime. The crowd’s roar after Pitt’s missed field goal in the second OT remains the loudest I’ve ever experienced. 18-year-old me was ready for Alabama.
That excitement was short-lived. Alabama continued the trend of teams dismantling the Fighting Irish in major bowl games. The next day, news broke about Manti Te’o’s fake girlfriend. 19-year-old me was ashamed to be an Irish fan.
The next few years featured several 10-plus-win seasons and several embarrassing losses in major bowls. Brian Kelly, having brought the Fighting Irish back to relevance with College Football Playoff appearances and top-5 finishes, began to grow stale. Still, I argued, “Who could replace Brian Kelly?” As if no one else could replicate his success, I essentially admitted that a national championship might not be achievable for Notre Dame. That question was put to the test at the end of the 2021 regular season. After securing a Fiesta Bowl berth, Brian Kelly announced he was leaving Notre Dame for LSU to “shop down a different aisle” and win a championship. I immediately called my Dad. 27-year-old, COVID-19-ridden me was devastated.
Who could Notre Dame hire to replace him? “It’s going to take years to rebuild the program,” I thought. Then Marcus Freeman was promoted. He had a strong defense, could recruit, and had the players’ respect, so it couldn’t be all bad. Despite losing to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl, it was the first time I’d seen a Fighting Irish team come within one score of winning a major bowl game. 28-year-old me was hopeful.
Marcus Freeman’s first two years had some successes—two top-10 victories, a three-point loss to #6 Ohio State, and two bowl wins against South Carolina and Oregon State. But there were failures too: a home loss to Marshall (are you kidding me?) and only ten players on the field during the final play of that Ohio State game. 2024 felt like a make-or-break year for Freeman. 30-year-old me remained as optimistic as I was during the Brady Quinn years.
In 2024, Notre Dame opened the season with a road win over a ranked SEC team. The optimism didn’t last long, though, as they suffered a now-infamous loss to Northern Illinois. Enduring the taunts of NIU alums at work, I doubled down on my faith in Freeman and defended him to fellow fans who were ready to jump ship. A few months later, Notre Dame prepared to take on Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. I braced for another loss but, for the first time in years, genuinely believed they could win.
Behind the amazing coaching of Marcus Freeman Notre Dame has won 3 playoff games. Dominating Indiana, defeating the SEC Champion, and toughing one out against Penn State. This team has something special. Struggling in the first half of the semi-final, texting with my Dad and brother, they were saying the game was over, and while I never said it, I thought it. Here we go again, Notre Dame not showing up in a big game. Typical. Coach Freeman, Riley Leonard, and the rest proved us wrong.
After three playoff wins against top-10 teams and two major bowl victories, Notre Dame is exorcising its demons. But one more remains: Ohio State. Those four heartbreaking losses loom large, along with the 2013 embarrassment to Alabama in the national championship game. And there’s the rhetoric that Notre Dame—due to its academic standards, location in Northern Indiana, and independence—would never win a national title. All those demons could vanish in one game. 31-year-old me can’t wait.
Moments like this make living far from home hard. While I’ll be furiously texting my Dad and brother—and maybe even braving a phone call—it won’t be the same.
My friends ask me all the time which team I most want to see win a championship: the Yankees, Giants, Rangers, or Fighting Irish. Like a parent, I respond that I love them all equally. But maybe, just maybe, Notre Dame is the one I want the most. Not just because of the ups and downs in my 20 years of fandom, or because winning a college championship is harder than a professional one given the number of teams, or all of the hate and doubt Notre Dame gets for “not being relevant” “can’t win the big game.” It’s also because my Notre Dame fandom connects me with my family—past and present.
Go Irish!