When Notre Dame Is Good, So Is College Football

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Not long after many of my peers jumped on the Notre Dame bandwagon in the late 1980s, and Irish haters accused us of being fairweather fans, I jumped off the wagon and chose Ohio State as my favorite squad.

YOUR THOUGHTS: Why Do So Many People Hate Notre Dame?

Until then, I felt like I had a legitimate reason to support the Golden Domers. Ever since I was old enough to talk trash and stretch truths, many of my friends were aware that my dad had played at Notre Dame. Of course I left out the fact that he didn't step on the field for legendary coach Frank Leahy, and ultimately transferred to Marquette after two seasons. Yes, Marquette had varsity tackle football back in the day.

But once I enjoyed a Notre Dame national championship after the 1988 season, and watched the Irish get robbed of another one a year or two later on the phantom clip call during a Rocket Ismail punt return for a late touchdown against Colorado, I noticed all my friends had suddenly become Irish fans.

And then the school and NBC agreed on what was then a revolutionary television contract, a pact that has stayed intact now for nearly 20 years. No single team in any sport at any level enjoys such coverage at the national network level. To me, that just felt far too corporate for 1991. If I was to continue following Notre Dame football, I'd end up needing many showers.

But then the Irish football program fell back toward mediocrity, and suddenly for many it was no longer a guilty pleasure to enjoy Notre Dame football again. Only it was difficult to do so after Lou Holtz left.

Again, having thrown my full support behind Ohio State football, I cheered for the Buckeyes as they swept a home-and-home series against the Irish in the mid-1990s. I felt a little guilty, just a few years after my dad's death, rooting against Notre Dame, but if I recall, he took me to more Ohio State games as a kid than Notre Dame games, so it made sense for this Ohio native to follow the Bucks, right?

Right?

Anyway, these days, I have very little interest in Notre Dame football, but it's hard to discount the history and the tradition here in South Bend. Few schools can match it. And I hope to capture some of it in my remaining days here on this tour.

The recent Brady Quinn teams sure were fun to watch, especially when the 2005 edition lost to Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl.

But I will say that a good team in South Bend is good for the sport. Those old ghosts that used to affect games in such a way that visiting teams suspected lopsided officiating always make for good conversation.

I never know why people hate players or teams or coaches so fiercely, but Notre Dame football always has had plenty of critics, long in the fan arena and perhaps the press box, and of course in more recent times the mostly faceless blogosphere. But once people do away with the vitriol and allow themselves to have an objective conversation, I think they'll agree that a good Notre Dame team only makes a college football season even more exciting and intriguing.

Comments

[Erin]

Oh John, John, John........If ND ceased to exist tomorrow college football would not be any worse off. What is the worst that would happen?

1. NBC would lose some money? Watch out here comes a tear.
2. Most of the ND kids would be recruited and go to the Big10. This would actually make the Big10 stronger. God knows we need it.
3. Catholics around the country would actually have to root for a team in thier backyard and actually go to a game in person. Again sorry NBC.
4. No more touchdown Jesus. Jesus loves all sports not just football.
5. MLS Soccer teams would get an increase in fans. When all those fair weathered ND fans around the country have nothing left to do they will turn to soccer which requires about the same level of devotion from its fans.
6. AP Poll voters will finally be free from their obligation to throw preseason top 25 votes thier way.

In conclusion there are a lot of teams that are good for football and the fact that ND is constantly singled out and put on a lofty perch is exactly why people hate them and will continue to hate them.

I say Hillshire
You say Farm
GO MEAT!

[John P. Wise]

While I think a good ND team can make a college football season better, it's hardly my logic that a bad ND team makes a season worse. Anybody -- Catholic or not -- can be a casual fan and not attend games. I think it's OK for someone who didn't go to college but enjoys the sport, or maybe went to a small school that didn't have a football team, or at least a good one, to select ND as his default favorite. I think there are plenty of reasons to like a team you might not necessarily have an obvious connection to; you see that in all sports, pro and college. You see Yankees caps all over the world.

[PD]

John -- I think a lot of anti-Notre Dame sentiment comes from it being a Catholic university. Not that people are anti-Catholic, per se, but rather there's a sense that Notre Dame views itself as being exclusive; thus, anybody who's excluded from the inner circle is likely to harbor ill will toward Notre Dame. And yes, I know you don't have to be Catholic to attend Notre Dame, but you get my drift, no?

I see the same thing out here with BYU. If you're Mormon, you cheer for them. If you're not Mormon, you hate them, even if you don't hate Mormon per se. Are there any other schools in similar situations that come to mind?