Let me preface this by saying that I have the utmost respect for the importance of tradition on this campus. I refuse to walk up the stairs of the Main Building, I stay off the grass on God Quad, and I have managed to avoid taking a young lady for a walk around the lakes. However, I believe our greatest tradition is an immense gratitude to the alumni, the gracious benefactors of the University and friends to all current students. That said, I'd ask for your understanding.
Please stop nagging me. For two and a half seasons, I'd like to think that I was a passionate Notre Dame fan. I followed the recruiting, strength of schedule, made it to some away games, and watched enough ESPN to make Mark May blush. At this point, what do I have to show for it? A Hawaii Bowl win, no wins against Top 25 teams, and home losses to Navy, Syracuse and Connecticut. So when I read this continuous flow of letters from alumni basically chastising myself and my friends as a student body, for not showing up to pep rallies in droves, for not being at the game an hour early, I just shake my head. Unable to avoid cliché, maybe you guys are a bit out of touch with our priorities. Few things would make me happier than to see the team do well. It's the standard we expect in everything in which students participate. The reality is that, at this point, the sensible among us have low expectations for success because, let's be honest, high expectations haven't helped us. I'm not a fair-weather fan or a front-runner, but I'm definitely not a martyr either. I'd also say the focus on student-support for football is misguided, as these editorialists seem uninterested in our efforts for, daresay, more deserving sports, like lacrosse, hockey, and soccer.
So on Saturdays, I'll be more excited to tailgate and more interested in hanging out with friends in Section 31 than the final score. Come by if you want to have a good time.
Tom Reilly
junior
Knott Hall
Sept. 30
