At some point early in his career at Notre Dame, Jeff Jackson heard the band play “Damsha Bua” and was not happy about it.
The Irish had just scored a goal, and the Notre Dame hockey band was continuing its tradition of playing the song — also known as the “Victory Clog” — after every Irish goal, just as it does after every football touchdown.
But Jackson wasn’t going to hear it. It didn’t matter if he was in the middle of coaching a game. It didn’t matter if he had line changes to attend to, coaching adjustments to make or any of the normal business of a college hockey head coach. Mid-game, he sent word to the band: play the Victory March instead.
“I said somebody's got to tell them that the fight song is an identity of this university … it’s the greatest fight song in the world, so why not play it? Why not show it off?” Jackson said.
And so, off the ice, the band played the Victory March. And on the ice, under Jackson’s watchful eye, the Irish went marching onward to victory — 417 of them, to be precise.
It is that level of detail, that sort precision of vision, that kind of care and attention to the identity and potential of the University of Notre Dame that enabled Jeff Jackson to lead a once-wandering Irish hockey program to new heights: four Frozen Fours, two Big Ten Tournament championships and so much more.
Now, as Notre Dame’s winningest all-time hockey coach takes the bench for his last home series this weekend against No. 3 Michigan State, the manner and volume of success Jackson brought to Notre Dame will receive rightful praise. But like any good hockey tale, the successes on the ice makes up just a fraction of the story. This weekend, the venue these games are played in, the faces in the stands and the teams on both benches will tell more about a full career in hockey than any win-loss record ever could … even if that record is an impressive 599-339-99.
What Jackson has done for hockey at the University of Notre Dame is best embodied by the building housing his final two games behind the bench — Compton Family Ice Arena. The arena is a far cry from where students first played hockey on campus in the 1920s, on a frozen bog just next to Badin Hall. The program that calls it home now has been through trials — forgotten for nearly 40 years, revived by former head coach Lefty Smith in the 1960s, removed from varsity status in the 1980s and revived again by Smith only to struggle to find success and legitimacy in the hockey world while playing at the Joyce Center.
The impetus brought by Jackson helped change things. While he will credit former athletic director Jack Swarbrick and the Compton family themselves (and much credit is due to each), no one can ignore the role Jackson played in the building of Compton Family Ice Arena. After leading the Irish to two Frozen Four appearances and five winning seasons in seven years, Jackson ushered in a new era of Notre Dame hockey with the opening of the building in 2011.
The moments that have played out within its walls — including its dedication game against Boston College in 2011 and Big Ten Tournament title games against Ohio State in 2018 and Penn State in 2019 — serve as confirmation of Jackson’s vision for Notre Dame hockey and a foundation for what it can be going forward.
“When we won that game [against Penn State in 2019], just the crowd and the band, is what I anticipated when I started here, is what I thought Notre Dame could become in hockey. And we were there. I mean, we were there for a long period of time. Probably 17 of my 20 years, we were there,” Jackson said.
While the physical setting of this weekend’s games against Michigan State helps to tell the story of those 20 years Jackson has spent at Notre Dame, the faces that will be among the crowd illuminate the arc of his career in hockey. That arc began over 40 years ago and includes two national championships as head coach at Lake Superior State and gigs with the U.S. National Team Development Program, the OHL’s Guelph Storm, the NHL’s New York Islanders and Notre Dame.
“Almost every stop I've had, there's great memories,” Jackson said. “But, you know, the great thing about coaching at this level, or frankly any level, is the relationships you develop and, not just with players, but with staff.”
Many of those players and staff will be on hand this weekend. Saturday night, Notre Dame hockey will host “Alumni Night” to celebrate Jackson’s last home game. Demonstrating the enduring nature of Jackson’s relationships, it won’t only be Notre Dame alumni in attendance. A handful of Jackson’s players from his time at Lake Superior State are coming to South Bend to see their former coach in action.
“[I’m] especially close with a lot of my goalies because I coached the goalies separately all the time, and [I’m] probably a little closer to a number of my captains because of more regular or consistent communication with them,” he said.
One of those captains is the man who will take over Jackson’s position as head coach next year. Brock Sheahan was an alternate captain his senior year, Jackson’s third at Notre Dame. Jackson kept up with Sheahan’s rise through the coaching ranks after his playing days ended, eventually adding him to his staff as associate head coach Then, in a joint press-release last summer, the University announced that Jackson would step down and Sheahan would take over head coaching duties at the end of this season.
“For me, it's about moments and it's about people,” Jackson said. “Those are the things that I'll look at as my legacy, and Brock is one of them.”
The teams on the ice this weekend represent one last look at that legacy. It seems like serendipity that Jackson’s final home series matches Notre Dame up against his alma mater, Michigan State.
“Yeah, I’ve gone full circle with that,” Jackson chuckled.
The full circle may feel slightly twisted, though. With Jackson sitting at 599 career wins, the Spartans (22-6-4, 13-5-4 Big Ten) are the only force that stands between Jackson and reaching a milestone 600th win at home. One of the country’s best teams, Michigan State needs wins this weekend badly. The Spartans have stumbled slightly of late, and last weekend’s pair of regulation and shootout losses to No. 15 Penn State dropped Michigan State out of first place in the Big Ten. The Spartans have not swept a Big Ten series since the first weekend in January.
It’s up to a Notre Dame team (10-21-1, 4-17-1 Big Ten) that has endured Jackson’s worst season as head coach to prevent the Spartans from doing just that. Firmly in last place in the Big Ten, the Irish snapped a five-game losing streak last Saturday by besting Wisconsin 6-1. If Notre Dame can build on its best performance of the season in Madison with a win, it will deliver a 600th win for Jackson that summarizes the legacy this weekend is all about.
“For me, the legacy is about leaving the program in a better place than I found it. And even though we've had a little bit of a tougher year, selfishly, I wanted to be around these kids one more year and be around our staff,” he said.
Regardless of this year’s final record, there’s no doubt Jackson has indeed left the program better than he found it, marching onward to victory.
