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Thursday, August 21, 2014

Jessica's Football Favorites: College Edition

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com

It's almost here!!!!  College football starts next week!

Katie and I are huge football fans.  Like we-only-have-cable-so-we-have-ESPN-during-football-season kind of fans.  We grew up in a family of football fans, and the love of the sport stuck with us.  (Our husbands greatly appreciate our upbringing. ;)

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
I'm sure our daughters' future husbands will be grateful too ;)

So when we saw Erin was having a link up about football, we just had to join in and share our five favorite (or least favorite!) things about college football.  Here are Katie's favorites...and here are mine:


Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Notre Dame's Golden Dome, beautiful both inside and out


1.  My Favorite Team and Players
Notre Dame (in case you haven't guessed that already ;).  I have always loved and watched Notre Dame football, but never really focused on specifics til I was married (and had a husband who did ;)  So my favorite players are more current ones:  Brady Quinn, Jeff Samardzija, Manti Te'o, and Jaylon Smith.  My favorite analysts are Cris Carter, Cris Collinsworth, and Mike Golic.  And I'm throwing a coach in there too: Lou Holtz!!! 

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Irish Guard raising the flag, Notre Dame Stadium, the Leprechaun waving our colors, and Notre Dame putting the smack down on Stanford



2. Teams and Players I Despise
I can't stand Ohio State and everything to do with them (except Cris Carter and sadly, a couple of my Ohio born friends ;).  My boss is a big fan, and between the 2 of us, we've had 3 National Title losses since I started there.  It's made for some fun, good natured ... harassment.  Like putting Ms on his children's pictures in his office.  Or playing the Michigan fight song over the radio system.  (It's the little things that make life enjoyable ;)

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Michigan "M" maize and blue tortilla chips, Ohio State "O" and Buckeye taco dip (emphasis on dip ;), and Michigan/Ohio State cake.  Am I an awesome employee or what?

After them, I can't stand USC, Stanford, Purdue, and just about every SEC team.  And instead of really despising players, I despise coaches and commentators.  The two I dislike the most are Pete Carroll (former USC coach, current NFL Seahawks coach) and David Pollack (ESPN analyst).

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
We love Notre Dame - rain or shine...or snow ;)

3. My Favorite Game Day Traditions (On Campus)
Jim and I started going to Notre Dame on game days back when we were dating, and now we get to share this tradition with our kids.  We always get there early and spend the day enjoying all of our traditions: visiting the Basilica, the Grotto, and the Golden Dome, rubbing Knute's nose for luck, walking around the lakes, watching the Players' March and the Marching Band parade to the Stadium, going to the 11th floor of the Library (aka Touchdown Jesus) to enjoy a great view overlooking campus, watching the game on big screens at the athletic center with the other fans, and singing the Alma mater at the end of the game - win or lose.

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Corby Hall, the view of the Basilica and Golden Dome from the Library, and the side doors to the Basilica: God, Country, Notre Dame
Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Game Days 2011-2013 and Spring Game 2014

But my favorite tradition is a new one.  Every year we've been on campus for game day, I've seen parents and kids playing football together in the grassy areas of the quads.  Since we struggled with starting our family, I longed for the day when that would be us.  Now, our daughter J is old enough to play catch (somewhat!) and our son B can a little too.  It was such a special moment for us as a family the first time we got to do this.  And now playing football on the quad will be a tradition that we do every time we're on campus!

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Our new tradition - playing football as a family on game day

4.  My Favorite Game Day Traditions (At Home)
Every game day, we start off the day by blaring "Here Come the Irish" by Cathy Richardson 10+ times in a row to pump ourselves up.  (I may or may not have listened to this on repeat while writing this post.)  I guess you know it's a tradition when your 3 year old asks for it and can sing along!  And during the game, Katie and I always text each other...usually ridiculous texts about the game, refs, players, opposing team...especially if the game isn't going well.  Hey, sometimes laughing is the only way to get through a bad game.

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Notre Dame sisters and best friends

5.  My Favorite Game Day Attire
I'm a Notre Dame fitted T-shirt and jeans kind of girl.  But my favorite is actually my Notre Dame fleece jacket.  I love when it really gets to be "football weather", and it's time to roll out that out.  Then, I literally wear it over my regular clothes every single day.  To prove my point, I had to get a new one last year, because I had worn through the elbows of my old one...

For the kids...  Boys: jerseys and the old school leprechaun.  Girls: cheerleader outfits and pigtails.

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
Our Notre Dame babies


This is just a glimpse into our family's fanatical love for Notre Dame.

So what teams do you love?  Or hate?  What are your favorite football traditions?

Good luck to your favorite team this season, that is except for when they're playing Notre Dame...or if they're Ohio State. ;)  Goooooooooo Irish!


Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com

P.S.  Writing this post, I realized that I have almost as many pictures of Notre Dame as I do of my own children...it's either true love or pure insanity.  Please don't judge me. ;)

Notre Dame Game Day Traditions - www.sweetlittleonesblog.com
The Grotto, the Library aka "Touchdown Jesus", and Fr. Corby (past Notre Dame president and Battle of Gettysburg chaplain) - just in case you wanted to see more pictures of the beautiful campus of Notre Dame ;)
 
...And our hearts forever, Love thee, Notre Dame!


Linking up with Football Friday with Erin, and also
sharing my Thoughts for Thursday with Natalie and Annie,
5 on Friday/Friday Faves along with JennieLauren ElizabethKarliAmyAndreaErika, and Narci,
Mommy Moments with Faith, and Week's End with Elizabeth



23 comments:

  1. Sometimes I think that maybe if I had gone to the University of Minnesota instead of the college that I went to I'd be a bigger college football fan...and sometimes I wish I had/was. Instead I went to a school that was big into hockey, which don't get me wrong I love!, but had I gone to the U maybe I could've fallen in love with both. Living in Texas & not being associated with any college football team can be rough but trying to find one that I have no ties to at 26 seems a bit lame.

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    1. It's never too late to start! I highly recommend the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. No worries living in Texas. They have fans everywhere. ;) (I hear you on hockey - it's all right, but football is way better!) Have a great weekend! -Jess

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  2. I love college football!! I'm super excited for football season to start. We are Hurricanes fans here in Miami!!! We're ready!!!

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    1. We are so pumped here too! We (obviously) love Notre Dame, but we watch football games all weekend at our house. I just love it! Have a great weekend! -Jess

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  3. I love all your pictures!! You might hate Ohio State, but I am at least neutral toward ND! Hehe, I get way more into the NFL than college anyway since I work in the NFL world :) I do think it would be cool to see ND's campus/stadium one day... we just watched Rudy the other night hehe!

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    1. You should definitely visit the campus someday if you can. It is truly beautiful. And I can cheer for the Bengals...you have Notre Dame's Tyler Eifert! ;) Thanks for hosting the link up! -Jess

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  4. Fun post!!! Love what you did with the Michigan/Ohio State food, that's awesome. I do love me some football food and LOVE the movie RUDY!!!

    Stopping by from the linkup!

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    1. Yes! Rudy is playing all day at the Knights of Columbus building on campus every home game! haha Did you know that Vince Vaughn is a huge ND fan ever since he was in the movie? He is at a lot of the home games. Katie as a pic of him with the players in her post. Seems like Rudy is a big hit with everyone...and creates a lot of fans too! Thanks for stopping by! -Jess

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  5. What a fun post! Despite the fact that you hate my beloved Buckeyes ;) Here's to a fabulous football season!

    Katie @ Cup of Tea

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    1. Thanks! And I only hate them because my dad is a big Michigan fan so it's been instilled in me since birth lol Hope our teams have decent seasons after these injuries and suspensions! -Jess

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  6. MIZZOU just joined the SEC last year and they didn't do so hot so I'm hoping that now they've been in it a year they can step up their game this year. Either way it will be fun to watch!

    Stopping by from the link up!

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    1. I hope so too. I know I said I hate the SEC, but basically I mean Alabama. haha I hope you have a great season! Thanks for stopping by! -Jess

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  7. Stopping by from the link-up! I am not a Notre Dame fan, but I am traveling to South Bend for work in September... hoping to get a chance to see the stadium and some of the campus! I always love seeing other schools' stadiums and such - makes seeing it on TV so much more fun later :) Have a great weekend!

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    1. I hope you have some time to walk around campus! September will be such a beautiful time to be there too. Make sure you go inside the Basilica (you can walk around behind the altar too...make sure to see everything back there too!), the Grotto, the Golden Dome (inside and out), the Library (11th floor view out the windows over campus) and the Stadium. There's so much to see but those are the best places if you only have a short amount of time. Hope you have a great trip! Thanks for stopping by! -Jess

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  8. I love everything about this post!! Seeing all of your pictures around campus got me really excited for the upcoming season. My husband and I are from Indiana, but are currently living in Mississippi, so it's been a few years since we've been on campus for a game. Oh how I miss it!! I loved reading both you and Katie's accounts of your love for ND football. I didn't grow up watching football so my husband taught me the game when we were dating. I'm a huge fan now and can't image what in the world I used to do in the fall. So glad I found your blog and I'm excited to follow along with your cute ND loving selves!! Go Irish :) Whitney @ http://polka-dottyplace.blogspot.com/

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    1. Thank you so much! It's great to meet another Notre Dame fan out there! I hope you get a chance to come back and visit campus someday! I sure would miss visiting campus too - it's such a fun, electric, beautiful, and family-friendly atmosphere. I know you don't live nearby, but does your family have an football traditions? Here's praying for a good season! Goooooooooo Irish! -Jess

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  9. Yay for college football!!! The most wonderful time of the year :) We are big Michigan fans but I'm glad we can share in our hatred for Ohio State, ha! Loved hearing about your game day traditions with the kids.. so sweet!

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    1. My dad was a big Michigan fan so he taught us "Ohio State, we hate" since we were little. Haha So I actually cheer for Michigan unless they're playing Notre Dame. (My mom was a big Notre Dame fan - she won all 6 of us kids' true fan devotion lol). I didn't know they were major rivals til I met my husband. He was sure surprised I like Michigan too! haha So Gooooo Irish and Gooooo Big Blue (except on September 6 ;)! -Jess

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  10. so fun! I am not into college football but I love the Broncos and the NFL!

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    1. We're big Colts fan, so now we're Broncos fans too because we LOVE Peyton!!!!! I'm looking forward to the NFL starting too! -Jess

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  11. Just discovered your blog, and am really enjoying reading about your family. And seeing that you like the Broncos too, because of Peyton, makes me like you both even more! Side note: I'll be skipping the Super Bowl this year. Could it be two worse teams?

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  12. Jess did you go to Notre Dame? My brother did and 2 of my former roommates/friends went as well. My family loves ND too! Don't even talk to my brother if they lose! Haha! It is such a beautiful campus!

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  13. I wish I had gone there! And like your brother, my husband does the same thing...after the first loss, he already starts talking about how good we'll be next season! Haha. Oh, I love campus! We try to go at least a couple times a year...even if it's just to walk around. Do you get to visit often? -Jess

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I love reading your comments - it makes my day! :) Thanks for dropping by!

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