Campus Traditions
A Notre Dame Football Weekend
Thursday: You are almost done with the week and can't wait for Saturday to come. Already there are tours of alumni and other visitors all over campus. You can feel the fever in the air and can sense how the campus is different.
Friday: After your last class, you head to your dorm to prepare for the pep rally. You put on your dorm's t-shirt and prepare to walk to the pep rally with all of your classmates. The entire time you are chanting, screaming over the cheers of fellow dorms and trying to prove once and for all that your dorm is the very best. The stadium or JACC is crowded with people from all reaches of the country, even the world. And even though you've been singing the same fight song over and over, an indescribable feeling of pride overwhelms you. THIS is Notre Dame. So many people have passed through these gates, and now it is your turn. It is your turn to be part of an experience greater than yourself. A truly amazing tradition.
Midnight (Late Friday/Saturday morning): You and your friends excitedly walk over to the Golden Dome to hear the drumline of the famous ND marching band. Though it is crowded, your heart is pounding with the beat of the drum as you proudly sing the cheers of your university.
Saturday (Game Day!): You wake up earlier than a typical Saturday morning to the sounds of fans and classmates swarming the campus in an excited frenzy. Everyone is outside playing football, enjoying pre-game festivities and tailgates, or simply walking around campus and taking in the beautiful fall foliage. Everyone watches the football players walk out of the Basilica while listening to the Irish Marching Band . You then follow the Irish Guard to the Stadium, dressed in The Shirt. Nothing can describe the feeling as you walk into the legendary stadium, surrounded by all of your peers and thousands of peopl, all with one goal-to see an Irish victory. Despite the long week you have had, you are more than prepared to stand on the bleachers the entire game and cheer on the blue and gold. With each point, you assist in lifting your friends in the air for push-ups to celebrate. Whether the team wins or loses though, as you're singing the Alma Mater arm to arm with your fellow classmates, you know that Notre Dame is your second home. LOVE THEE NOTRE DAME!
Songs to Know:
The Notre Dame Victory March
Rally sons of Notre Dame,
Sing her glory, and sound her fame
Raise her Gold and Blue,
And cheer with voices true,
Rah! Rah! For Notre Dame.
We will fight in every game
Strong of heart and true to her name.
We will ne'er forget her
And we'll cheer her ever,
Loyal to Notre Dame.
Chorus:
Cheer, cheer for Old Notre Dame
Wake up the echoes cheering her name,
Send the volley cheer on high,
Shake down the thunder from the sky,
What though the odds be great or small
Old Notre Dame will win over all,
While her loyal sons are marching
Onward to Victory.
Notre Dame, Our Mother (Alma Mater)
Notre Dame, our Mother
Tender, strong and true
Proudly in the heavens,
Gleams thy gold and blue.
Glory's mantle cloaks thee
Golden is thy fame,
And our hearts forever,
Praise thee, Notre Dame.
And our hearts forever,
Love thee, Notre Dame!
"May your thoughts be as glad as the shamrocks, may your heart be as light as a song, may each day bring you bright, happy hours that stay with you all the year long." ~Irish Blessing