Life as a Fan of Notre Dame Football

 


(Picture is owned by wallpaper.dog, we do not own the rights)

You either feel one or two ways about Notre Dame football... you either hate it or love it and that's just how it is. For me, I love it and have always been a huge fan of the school's history and team. Much like the rest of Mr. Peanuts sports allegiances, I did not have a choice in the matter. I was indoctrinated to a preexisting Downing belief system that had been in place for generations. The thing about it is.... If your heritage is of Irish descent and you are a practicing catholic, odds are high that you're going to root for Notre Dame. So that's how it happened for me. It certainly wasn't because I saw the football team experience success after success growing up. Literally the opposite of that, they are another team that I root for that seems like they can never put it all together or be consistent.

And this year it's more of the same. After escaping Navy with a 35-32 win, ND's record stands at 7-3 and the #20 ranking in the nation. Not terrible but make no mistake this is one of the stranger teams in my lifetime for the sheer fact that they seem to play up to the great competition and waaaaay down to the teams that they should roll. They beat #4 Clemson, #16 BYU, and played #2 Ohio St tough in week one but on the other side lost to Marshall and Stanford at home, both of which are unranked teams.

To the untrained eye you'd think wow what an inconsistent team but really the inconsistency is what has been consistent with ND in my 29 years of fanhood. Sure we've had some great teams and even made it to the National Championship after an undefeated season in 2013 (and got absolutely smoked by Alabama). But they've never taken that next level step to legitimize the football tradition that is Notre Dame. Specifically getting smoked in the College Football Playoffs and not looking like they belong on the same field with the top SEC teams. While having the same caliber of recruiting class.

It's a puzzling predicament but I have to say that I love being a fan of the Irish. Number one, we roll DEEEEEEP. We roll real deep son. I went to the ND/BYU game this year in Vegas and it was an Irish convention. We are loud, we like to drink, and we like to win football games. So that was an absolute blast. And much like the rest of the teams I root for, the winning and losing is one thing but the community is the best. We're all in it together and really that's all you want out of a fan base. Let's all go through hell and back as a unit. With Notre Dame's success versus ranked opponents this year I am fired up for the USC game this year. You know what they say, you could go 1-10 but if that 1 win is beating USC then it was a HELL of a year.

Shake Down the Thunder,

Peanut

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bears Empty the Brinks Truck for New HC Ben Johnson

Image
  (photo is owned by Bleacher Report, we do not own the rights) This analysis based on the ESPN article (https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/43627047/nfl-bears-ben-johnson-coach-contract-caleb-williams) Are things finally changing in Halas Hall? On January 21, 2025, former OC of the Detroit Lions and offensive guru Ben Johnson became the new head coach for the Chicago Bears. If you had taken a poll when the head coaching carousel began, odds are the general belief was that the Bears were #1 not going to pay top market money to get the most sought after coach and #2 mess it up. But after the dust has settled it is clear that GM Ryan Poles, President Kevin Warren, & Chairman George McCaskey, were all in alignment to doing whatever it took to get Johnson to Chicago. This act serves as an anomaly when compared to all of the head coaches hired since Lovie Smith was fired in 2012. It has been a cycle of dysfunction and none more obvious than the most recent HC Matt Eberflus. He was n...
Read more

Back to the Basics: Build the Line

Image
  (Image is owned by the Chicago Tribune, we do not own the rights) The main focus that GM Ryan Poles needs to have going into the 2025 NFL Draft and free agency is addressing the offensive line. If last season taught us anything, it’s that shiny objects i.e. Caleb Williams, DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Keenan Allen, & D’Andre Swift, are not enough to build sustainable success around. The big men in the trenches may not get the shine or glory, but they are what makes the wheel turn. In Caleb Williams rookie season, he was sacked 68 times which ties David Carr for the 3rd most ever in an NFL season. This is not a new concept to the Bears shortcomings as previous QB Justin Fields was sacked 55 times just 2 years ago in only 15 games played. In order for any offense to function efficiently, the quarterback needs time to operate. It's just that simple. With 3 selections in the top 41 of the upcoming NFL Draft, there should be no doubt which position group the Bears will be addressing. S...
Read more

The Padres Mess

Image
(photo is owned by 97.3 The Fan, we do not own the rights) If you would've told me on opening day that on 8/2 the Padres would be 53-55, 8.5 games out of 1st, and 5 games out of the last wild card spot, it would not have computed in my optimistic Padres fan brain. But here we are witnessing exactly that. To say this season has been frustrating to watch is an understatement on a colossal level. Whatever can go wrong, has gone wrong basically. Here's a breakdown of what has gone on for far too long:      Danny Vietti ⁦‪@DannyVietti‬⁩ San Diego Padres this season Extra-innings: 0-10 record -WORST IN MLB 1-run games: 6-18 record -WORST IN MLB (-6.62) FanGraphs Clutch Rating -WORST IN MLB .226 BA with RISP -WORST IN NL .217 BA in 7th inning or later -WORST IN MLB (10-16 record vs. current last place teams) pic.twitter.com/W97pV8nYlN   8/1/23, 2:27 AM     Whatever can go wrong, has gone wrong. To put it lightly it's been a TOUGH watch. A couple things that stand ...
Read more