Last night I settled in to kick off the weekend by watching the USC vs. Oregon State game. In the first five minutes of the game, Oregon State had already put up a touchdown. But I was much more impressed with the Beavers in the stands than the Beavers on the field.
As ESPN's camera panned through the crowd I could see nothing but orange. The overhead shots were just as impressive; it looked like it could've been a game in Tennessee.
Every Saturday boring, grey cement stadiums that lie dormant six days a week are painted by loyal fans who shuffle in all wearing their team's colors. The Horseshoe turns bright red, Colorado blacks out the Rockies, practically the entire state of Pennsylvania shows up in their White T's to cheer for their Nittany Lions.
Not to say that Notre Dame Stadium isn't one of the best places on Earth, but let's be honest the crowd could use a little bit of work. Our bland navy blue shirts - those that wear them - don't do much to stand out against the rest of the collage of colors strewn about the stadium.
Every week at the pep rallies we listen to Charlie Weis tell the students that we aren't intimidating, we're too friendly, and we're nowhere near loud enough.
Ever since The Shirt committee opted to get rid of the traditional green in favor of a mustard yellow four years ago, the student section has been underwhelming at Notre Dame Stadium.
It's time to make a change. It's time to show some Irish pride.
This isn't going to be easy and it may take a few weeks to really see the results, but keep the faith and you won't be disappointed.
Here's my proposal:
If you are in section 33 or 34 show up Saturday afternoon wearing an orange shirt, or the closest thing to orange you can find in your wardrobe. Knott, we're going to need your help here. Hopefully that freshman enthusiasm will be enough to make it happen.
Sections 31 and 32, you are responsible for showing up in white. This shouldn't be too tough, most of the student body can probably just show up shirtless now that South Bend has taken care of whatever tan you picked up over the summer. If not, grab a white t-shirt and throw it on.
Finally, everyone in 30 and lower it's time to pull out those old school greens from the Ty Willingham era. If you've been at this school for three years and still don't have a green shirt, you are doing something wrong.
Now just imagine sitting down Saturday night completely exhausted and flipping on SportsCenter to catch up on the scores from around the country. Imagine watching Michael Floyd running into the endzone with the backdrop of a 10,000 person, student made Irish flag painting the corner of Notre Dame Stadium. It's time to show our Irish pride.
Make sure to spread the word.
