It is time to honor a group of Notre Dame students. They are some of the most spirited individuals on campus. They put in long hours perfecting their skills, getting ready to perform on Saturdays. They're at every pep rally and put in appearances at other Notre Dame sporting events during the week.
They are not the football team. They are the cheerleaders.
After all the time they spend cheering for us, it's our turn to cheer for them.
Keeping on with the theme of this being Senior Week, let us especially cheer for those who will be setting foot on the field on Saturday for the last time with pom-poms and voice magnifiers in tow.
Eighteen seniors will step off and parade through campus to the stadium tunnel for the last time on Saturday. Erin Ward, Allie Rzepczynski, Meredith Angell, MyrihaBurce, Anne Robles, Elizabeth Maurath, Maggie Kate O'Brien, Farah Tahmassebi and Olivia Lee will lead the student section in the jig when the band plays "Rakes of Mallow." Ed Stivers, Will Dotterweich, Will Tudor, David Jones, Rafa Rivera, CJ Kelly and Anthony Cossell will aid in stunts for the last time in front of a crowd of 80,000. Bryce Burton and Lou Ganser will lead as leprechauns at home this football season for the last time.
Lee and Cossell agreed their time spent directing the spirit of the student body will be sorely missed. They enjoy leading us just as much as we enjoy being led by them.
"It'll be really weird the next time we go to a game, not being on the field," Cossell said. "I've been able to represent the Notre Dame community all over the country, and being out on the field and being able to feel the energy is probably the best part."
"We're all really close friends," Lee added. "It's been a great program and a great tradition to be a part of."
It has been a special season for the Class of 2013, football players and regular students alike. So much attention goes to the team, though, that it's easy to overlook some of the little things, no matter how important they may be.
So cheers to us, the senior class, and to four falls of our lives we will never forget. Cheers to this football team that has helped make this seventh semester of our collegiate careers better than most thought possible. Finally, cheers to the senior cheerleaders, whose energy goes solely towards making our game day experiences whole. Without them, the fanfare and electricity that transforms this campus on Saturdays would be incomplete. So, thank you.
Contact Laura Coletti at lcoletti@nd.edu
The views expressed in the Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
