A look at what makes Notre Dame’s Shamrock Series  unique

The Shamrock Series is one of the many traditions that are unique to Notre Dame.  An annual “home” game that Notre Dame hosts at an off-site location, the Shamrock Series, encompasses much more than the actual football game.  The events surrounding the Shamrock Series consist of an entire weekend that promotes the university’s athletics and academics, and provides Irish fans in different cities the opportunity to come and embrace the Notre Dame experience.

Beginning in 2009 in San Antonio, the Shamrock Series has travelled all around the country.  The Irish have found themselves in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Dallas, and this year in Indianapolis.  In every city, strong crowds of fans and alumni showed their support for the university and its many programs, even in venues far removed from South Bend.  The Shamrock Series has created a unique connection uniting the university with the Irish fanbase and the Catholic community around the nation, celebrating the Notre Dame brand in a way no other institution of higher education does or can do.

The Shamrock Series has expanded significantly since the inaugural San Antonio game, which had a limited schedule of events that notably featured the traditional Friday Night Pep Rally which was held in front of the Alamo.  Each year the weekend gets bigger and better, and has now developed into a full-fledged festival that has quickly taken on its own unique identity.  No longer is it just a football game in a flashy stadium; the Shamrock Series celebrates the tradition and history of both Notre Dame and the venue city.

This year’s festivities kick off in Indianapolis the day before the game with a Football Friday that features academic and spiritual lectures, a luncheon with distinguished university and local guests, and a service project at a local high school sponsored by the Notre Dame Alumni Association in partnership with the Notre Dame Club of Indianapolis.  Several of the university’s most prominent professors will be making the trip to Indianapolis to give lectures, which target all audiences, from interactive experiments dealing with the physical sciences to presentations on democracy and digitizing healthcare records.

The Notre Dame Pep Rally will be held at the Pan Am Plaza, featuring the Notre Dame Marching Band, which accompanies the team to the Shamrock Series games to build excitement and spirit.  New this year is the Shamrock Series 5K, which runs through downtown Indianapolis starting Saturday at 8 a.m. and benefits Graduate Student Fellowships at the university.

On Saturday morning, the Game Day Mass will be held at Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church at 10 a.m. and will be presided over by the Most Reverend Joseph Tobin, C.Ss.R., the Archbishop of Indianapolis.  The Pan Am Plaza will also be the location for the Fan Fest prior to the game.  This event will incorporate food, refreshments, activities, celebrity appearances, and live performances including the Notre Dame Marching Band and a Drummers’ Circle by the Notre Dame Drumline.

This year’s Shamrock Series also provides an opportunity for the program to showcase its new partnership with Under Armour through the characteristic Shamrock Series uniforms.  The uniforms were relatively well-received compared to the last few years, no doubt because Under Armour placed great emphasis on incorporating the tradition and identity of Notre Dame into the uniform design.  Under Armour chose to model the uniforms after the familiar mosaic on the floor of the Main Building and even incorporated a phrase well known to Domers everywhere: “God, Country, Notre Dame.”

The Shamrock Series seeks to embrace the vision of Father Jenkins’ inaugural address: to build a bigger and better Notre Dame that embraces its community and goes out in search of making the world a better place.  Through this yearly event, Notre Dame brings nearly every facet of its healing and enlightening force to bear in one city for one weekend, albeit a football weekend.

The Fighting Irish will take the Shamrock Series to Boston and Fenway Park next season in a matchup against longtime rival the Boston College Eagles in the 23rd rendition of the Battle for the Ireland Trophy.  Notre Dame leads the series 13-9.

 

Alicia Czarnecki is a sophomore studying Environmental Engineering.  Though she hails from Michigan she was overjoyed by last week’s game.  To exchange Michigander anecdotes or to offer comments you can reach her at aczarnec@nd.edu.