4. GameDay in South Bend- Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Notre Dame Stadium)
Notre Dame is one of those places you just have to go to as a college football fan. So many greats have played here and there is so much tradition at Notre Dame. I am well aware the Fighting Irish have not been as good recently, but they are improving. I mean Michigan will probably take them down again for a fourth year in a row, but whose counting? Coach Brian Kelly has them headed in the right direction.
If you go to South Bend, you should be required to take a tour of the campus before the game. It is unlike any other campus in the country. We arrived to campus pretty early before game time. We parked farther away and took a bus to the campus. The first thing we checked out was Touchdown Jesus and the rectangular pool that reflects Touchdown Jesus. You obviously have to get a picture of yourself in front of Touchdown Jesus and Touchdown Jesus reflecting in the pool. We then made our way to the Golden Dome. The coolest thing about the Golden Dome is looking at it on game day as the sun reflects off of the dome. The inside, from what I remember, is very cool as well.
We eventually made our way to the Grotto. My dad was telling me to get as close as I could to it, so I could get a picture of everyone putting their candles into it. I remember saying, "Dad, I can't get any closer to take a picture, can't you see they are on their knees praying?" It was a classic moment. All I could think about while looking at the Grotto was the part in the movie where Rudy is there. Very cool experience I would have to say. Right after that, we took a stroll by St. Mary's Lake.
After we checked out the most famous landmarks on campus, we went over to the church and saw the players and coaches walking in to do their pre game prayer. This team happened to include Coach Charlie Weiss, Quarterback Brady Quinn, and Wide Receiver Jeff Samardzija. Obviously, this didn't help them very much that day, because my Wolverines absolutely demolished them.
Right before we entered the stadium, there were a lot of food venders outside of the stadium and the Notre Dame Marching Band was performing. Also, as we were walking around someone was playing Rudy music out of their apartment or dorm. That totally made my day as a college football fan. How fitting is it that someone would play that as we were wandering the University of Notre Dame campus.
Pre-game at Notre Dame Stadium is filled with tradition. The Notre Dame Marching band marches onto the field and performs The "Notre Dame Victory March", then the Irish take the field. 80,795 cheer as their Fighting Irish take the field. The most interesting thing about Notre Dame Stadium is that they still do not have a video scoreboard. Notre Dame Stadium screams old tradition. The student section is choreographed for games and the coolest chant they do is the "Celtic Chant."
Notre Dame Stadium is an absolute must for every college football fan. The fans are great and absolutely love their team, whether they are good or bad. Another thing I would like to mention is to check out the College Football Hall-Of-Fame. I believe in the next year it will be moved to Atlanta, GA. We happened to only be on the outside of it, because the game ended so late in the evening. Overall, I had a great experience in South Bend. The people were nice, the atmosphere was great, and the campus was amazing. By far one of the best weekends I have ever had.
Game Attended in South Bend:
9/16/2006 CFB Michigan 47, Notre Dame 21
-Check out GameDay Experience number three next week as the countdown continues.
We eventually made our way to the Grotto. My dad was telling me to get as close as I could to it, so I could get a picture of everyone putting their candles into it. I remember saying, "Dad, I can't get any closer to take a picture, can't you see they are on their knees praying?" It was a classic moment. All I could think about while looking at the Grotto was the part in the movie where Rudy is there. Very cool experience I would have to say. Right after that, we took a stroll by St. Mary's Lake.
After we checked out the most famous landmarks on campus, we went over to the church and saw the players and coaches walking in to do their pre game prayer. This team happened to include Coach Charlie Weiss, Quarterback Brady Quinn, and Wide Receiver Jeff Samardzija. Obviously, this didn't help them very much that day, because my Wolverines absolutely demolished them.
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| Touchdown Jesus www.gregorycjones.com |
Pre-game at Notre Dame Stadium is filled with tradition. The Notre Dame Marching band marches onto the field and performs The "Notre Dame Victory March", then the Irish take the field. 80,795 cheer as their Fighting Irish take the field. The most interesting thing about Notre Dame Stadium is that they still do not have a video scoreboard. Notre Dame Stadium screams old tradition. The student section is choreographed for games and the coolest chant they do is the "Celtic Chant."
Notre Dame Stadium is an absolute must for every college football fan. The fans are great and absolutely love their team, whether they are good or bad. Another thing I would like to mention is to check out the College Football Hall-Of-Fame. I believe in the next year it will be moved to Atlanta, GA. We happened to only be on the outside of it, because the game ended so late in the evening. Overall, I had a great experience in South Bend. The people were nice, the atmosphere was great, and the campus was amazing. By far one of the best weekends I have ever had.
Game Attended in South Bend:
9/16/2006 CFB Michigan 47, Notre Dame 21
-Check out GameDay Experience number three next week as the countdown continues.
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