By Lindsay Sena
Unigo Campus Rep at Notre Dame
Do you much about sports at Notre Dame? Take a look at these 10 points that revolves around sports at Notre Dame that might give you an idea if you ever decide to go in Notre Dame.
10. Contrary to popular belief, in sports at Notre Dame, there are Notre Dame athletic teams besides football. For example, ND’s Women’s Soccer team is No. 1 in the country. Students have no excuse to not attend at least one home game per season.
9. All ND home games besides basketball and football (tennis, volleyball, hockey, soccer, etc.) are free for students to attend, and often, free shirts, mugs, and posters are given away at these events.
8. Varsity athletes don’t actually own anything but issue clothing, which is the “official” apparel they receive for being varsity athletes. They can be easily spotted on campus because they will be wearing grey (sometimes navy, if they feel like spicing it up) sweatpants and sweatshirts, displaying their chosen sport.
7. ND’s student newspaper “The Observer” devotes as many pages to sports as it does to campus news, world news and business, and entertainment, combined. This can be positive or negative, depending on your outlook.
6. Recreational sports and Interhall sports are extremely popular at ND. A large majority of ND students were varsity athletes in high school, which makes for an incredibly competitive RecSports program. We are also one of the only universities that allow full-contact club/intramural football, which can be very intense and even lead to campus “trash talking.”
5. Because football is a top priority for all ND students, game-day Saturdays, while magical, will absorb your entire weekend. Make some effort to get your work done before Saturday, or you will really feel the pressure come Sunday afternoon (or evening, depending on your game-day night).
4. Aside form sports at Notre Dame, the most important thing incoming freshmen should learn is all of the words to ND’s fight song. It is one of, if not the most, famous university-fight song, yet sadly many students do not learn the first verse, but quietly mumble through until the second verse begins. Freshmen also must learn the words to ND’s Alma Mater, as after football games—win or lose—students, fans, and the football team join arms while singing, in one of the most memorable experiences you will have as a ND student.
3. Once the fight song has been mastered, freshmen must then conquer several other cheers, including learning the steps to the “Irish jig,” the “kill” cheer, the 3rd-down “key” play (you jingle your keys), and the “I wanna hear it” cheer. These cheers may have formal names, but no student is aware of them.
2. The most obvious thing all freshmen must know, (and do know after two or three days on campus), is that football is second only to God. ND is lucky in that all students can purchase season tickets, and therefore all students do. But if you don’t really like football, don’t fret, because even if you have trouble following the plays on the field, you will always have a great time at the games.
1. Notre Dame students love sports. They love watching sports, playing sports, and sometimes even talking about sports. If you do not enjoy these activities, you will still love ND as long as you are patient and understanding of those who do. There are also some other college sports for casual athletes that you might want to check out!