Hundreds of students made the trip from South Bend to East Lansing, Mich., to support the Irish in Saturday's football game against the Michigan State University Spartans. Although fans enjoyed the game day, many were disappointed with the Irish loss.
"The game day itself was fun, but it was a really disappointing game," senior Tracey Janesheski said.
Some students felt that the game reminded them of the team's performance last year.
"I did not enjoy driving three hours to watch our team lose. I guess I shouldn't be surprised after last year," senior Luke Derheimer said.
Junior Andrea Teske made the trip to East Lansing as part of the band. She said that the team still played better than it did last year and that it played with heart.
"Sometimes, things don't go in our favor," Teske said.
For Teske, the team's performance this year is still giving her hope.
"It was disappointing that we didn't win... I don't really have any less faith that we're going to win more games than we're going to lose this year," Teske said.
She said the team seems to be growing together and that it gives her a lot of hope for next season.
Derheimer disagreed and felt that the team's performance against the Spartans left him with less to anticipate from the rest of the season.
"I guess it takes the anxiety out of [the rest of the season]. I don't have to hang on every play... I can relax now and enjoy the games," Derheimer said.
Senior Kate Erdle said she felt that the atmosphere was upbeat before the game started and got a lot quieter as the game progressed.
"The mood just went downhill and everybody just got real quiet the rest of the game. There was also kind of an aspect where I felt like the crowd was still trying to get the team back in it," she said. Erdle said that the crowd's confidence was high after the first touchdown.
Erdle said that the game was "lackluster in general."
"People left the game feeling like they didn't see too much," she said.
Erdle said that she knew that the game would be close so that the results were not "all that surprising."
"Overall it was a lot of fun, I just wish the game could have been a little better," she said.
Teske said that she enjoyed the day at MSU and that the experience of being at an away game is different from watching the team from the Notre Dame stadium.
"I really like going to away games... You kind of feel like an outsider, so you have to cheer really loud," Teske said.
Senior Tracey Janesheski said she felt like the team lost momentum in the second half of the game.
"It looked like a different team [than last week]," Janesheski said. "It looked like we were outplaying Michigan State for the first half. Then it was like something was missing in the second half."
Early on it looked like the team might have had a chance, but gradually things got more depressing, she said.
"It was pretty promising when it was 13-7. Then it got a lot quieter in our section," Janesheski said.
Janesheski attended the Alumni Association's tailgate before the game and said she enjoyed the camaraderie between the Notre Dame fans, she said.
"There were a lot more Notre Dame fans than I thought there would be," Janesheski said. "You would start talking to other Notre Dame fans even if you had no idea who they were. You could still bond on the fact that you were wearing The Shirt or a Darius Walker jersey," she said.
Janesheski said she did not encounter any significant problems with MSU fans while at the game.
"It wasn't as hostile as people made it sound to be before the game, it was just afterward when [MSU fans] knew they could gloat to us that they started getting unfriendly," Janesheski said.
