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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
The Observer

The Shirt 2017 features football players, 'Here Come the Irish'

For the first football season with the new Jumbotron, students will see themselves wearing navy, the color of this year’s The Shirt.

The design for the front of The Shirt features football players holding hands, and the back carries an excerpt from the lyrics of the song “Here Come the Irish,” which was written by former football player and special guest of the unveiling ceremony John Scully. According to a University press release, this is the first time The Shirt has been navy since 2012.

Members of the Notre Dame cheerleading team don the 2017 edition of the shirt as they cheer at the unveiling ceremony at the Hammes Bookstore on Friday.
Members of the Notre Dame cheerleading team don the 2017 edition of the shirt as they cheer at the unveiling ceremony at the Hammes Bookstore on Friday.
Members of the Notre Dame cheerleading team don the 2017 edition of the shirt as they cheer at the unveiling ceremony at the Hammes Bookstore on Friday.


Justin McCurdy, president of The Shirt committee, said this year's design encompasses various aspects of Notre Dame football games.

“It’s crisp, it’s clean, it’s Notre Dame, the navy, and it captures all aspects of the start of a football game: the players walking out, the fans getting the chills when the song comes on, the cheerleaders running out of the tunnel,” McCurdy said. “It just incorporates that beginning that we all know to the Notre Dame football games.”

Kristin Andrejko, vice president of The Shirt committee, said the Notre Dame football experience is a unique one, and this year’s Shirt seeks to replicate that.

“I think it’s special because I’ve never seen a Shirt that captures a moment in the stadium, and I think this Shirt really does just that,” Andrejko said. “It’s the players walking out at the beginning of the game, holding hands, a sign of unity … and it’s the chills you get when you hear ‘There’s a magic in the sound of their name.’”

To create excitement about The Shirt unveiling, the committee hosted several events last week, allowing students to design a Shirt on a cookie in the dining halls and to participate in an Amazing Race scavenger hunt, which had a prize of two on-field tickets for the Notre Dame-Miami (Ohio) game next year.

“The Amazing Race, all headed by Alex Richard, was over in 11 minutes,” McCurdy said. “People were running into the final location sweating, out of breath. It was great.”

Andrejko, who will serve as the president of The Shirt Committee next year, said the group looks forward to doing the event again.

The unveiling ceremony itself featured free food from Barnaby’s Pizza, Let’s Spoon and ND Catering as well as performances by musical groups on campus and an appearance by Scully.

The proceeds from The Shirt will be split between the Student Union and Student Enrichment Endowment, which seeks to allow all students to enjoy the Notre Dame experience regardless of their financial situation.