Mary, Mary, Where You Goin’ To?
by Pablo on Jun 16, 2011 8:56 AM EDT
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PrintThere's a well-known business book called "Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies." The general thesis is that the truly great organizations that thrive over a century have a well-defined set of core values that guide them and unite them -- from the chief executive on down to the consumers.
But these companies never fear appropriate innovation in an ever-changing world, within the context of their values, lest they be left behind. Obviously, an absolute refusal to adapt will eventually ruin any organization.
At the same time, a staunch aversion to adapt until it is absolutely necessary will lead to competitive gaps that are difficult to overcome. Kodak took wayy too long to get into the digital game and they may never fully recover.
Bottom line: don't lose the forest for the trees.
Notre Dame's tradition is far greater than the individual details that reflect said tradition. So here are my thoughts on some of Notre Dame’s core values and the traditions they’ve spawned.
Notre Dame truly cares about their student-athletes receiving an education and degree that will facilitate success in their personal and professional lives.
*This means admitting athletes who can be successful (with the appropriate guidance) in a seriously challenging academic environment.
It doesn’t mean that SAT scores and GPA’s must be within some specific standard deviation from that of the general student body. It does mean the admissions department needs to take a good look at these athletes as individuals before admitting them.
*Training in the competitive arena (as well as creative endeavors) is a valuable life-skill that supplements (and often supercedes) intelligence and academic preparation. This is why Oxford invites Rhodes Scholars to study there.
(Good) Notre Dame Football is a valuable and inextricable part of the University’s identity and academic mission.
*Without football, Notre Dame would have remained just another small Midwestern Catholic school.
What has been dubbed "The Flutie Effect" should have long before been known as "The Notre Dame Effect." National football prominence enabled people like Father Hesburgh to build up Notre Dame’s academic reputation to the uniquely prestigious status it enjoys as a Catholic university.
*Hesburgh explained, "There is no academic virtue in playing mediocre football." To expand on that, a personal and institutional commitment to excellence in any arena inspires the like in another arena.
*Moreover, football unites the student-body and the alumni in a powerful way – not to mention subway alumni (this part should not be underappreciated for the vast masses of values-oriented people, from average to amazing, that didn’t happen to matriculate from Our Lady’s University).
*Lastly, the revenue generated by the football program supports the entire athletic department, the scholarship fund, and other admirable University endeavors.
Sadly, this is not the case at many big-time football schools. But since it is the case at ND, it’s foolishly selfish to rebel against reasonable forms of football revenue generation.
What constitutes reasonable is, of course, debatable. But we need not fear such dialogue or grasp firmly our pre-conceived notions – especially those based primarily on the weight of previous methods.
The football players are a real part of the general student body.
*This does not mean they should be denied the types of facilities and nutritional advantages that their competition enjoys. They frankly deserve a few benign perks (beyond scholarship) for their commitment and financially invaluable contributions.
As with any other group of close friends, athletes pretty much just eat with each other in the dining halls anyway. Similarly, they socialize predominantly with each other during their limited free time.
I can’t see anything wrong with this interaction occurring on campus, in the Gug, as opposed to off campus with plenty of less wholesome diversions at hand.
*That athletes live in the same dorms as everyone else is a good thing. Some will take advantage of this opportunity to broaden their social experience in college. Many will not and be but apparitions within the halls of their assigned dorm – that’s okay. Even some of these ones may find that their casual associations with non-athletes might develop in unexpected ways post-graduation.
*That the football team joins the student body (and vice-versa) in the alma mater after every game, win or lose, is a special thing that transcends superficial social distinctions – if only briefly. I do believe it fosters a more lasting sense of community, no matter how subtle.
*At least some pep-rallies should be student body only.
Innovation and change IS Notre Dame tradition.
*As a player, Rockne helped to revolutionize the use of the forward pass (so let’s not pretend that our gridiron identity must be mired in the Big-10 dogma that pounding it is the only way to succeed.)
Rockne’s unprecedented coaching success was then facilitated when he adapted the single wing to create the "Notre Dame box." Leahy later shocked fans when he scrapped that long-used strategy for the new T formation – it worked out pretty well for those Irish squads.
Just as football is ever changing, so must great coaches adapt to such changes.
*Notre Dame has always used the media in progressive ways to build its national prominence. Rockne got his "four horsemen" to pose on horseback for a picture that remains an icon of our football tradition to this day.
Much later, Notre Dame ensured the perpetuation of national interest by getting game replays on Sundays. The NBC deal and decision to take control of our own licensing and branding has proven pretty helpful as well.
Media savvy is part of what has made Notre Dame great. Night games and temporary uniform changes are an effective way of grabbing extra media attention.
*All traditions started with an innovation/change (this is true anywhere). We put a marching band on the field for our first football game in 1887.
Surely, such a garish diversion would only distract from the purity of the game and add nothing of significant value to the viewing experience.
We abruptly changed our on-field mascot from an Irish Terrier to a Leprechaun in the 1950’s – well after 7 national championships had established a solid national reputation that needn’t require any cosmetic changes whatsoever. Indeed, Clashmore Mike might have become an icon had he not been replaced – but aren’t we glad we have the Leprechaun instead?
Roughly 25 years ago, some lady painted and posted the "Play Like a Champion Today" sign. You’d be hard-pressed to find an outsider or even casual fan that wouldn’t swear that it’s always been a part of our cherished tradition.
I could go on and on. Notre Dame, especially because it’s Notre Dame, gets to add traditions and augment its legend as it goes along . . . and I personally think that’s badass and worth embracing.
Notre Dame stands for values.
*This does not mean we expect our athletes to be saints anymore than we would expect that of other students. As representatives of the University on scholarship, they should aspire to a higher standard, but that’s not always going to happen with 18-22 year olds.
*When transgressions inevitably occur, they should be handled with an emphasis on teaching and personal growth, with reasonable consequences that do not deny them the incredibly positive force in their life that is athletics.
Notre Dame stands for class.
*This means a tasteful stadium experience, not a stadium experience that can never change in any way.
*This means good sportsmanship and respect for opponents on and off the field (this goes for the fans as much as the players). It doesn’t mean expecting our athletes to act as emotionless automatons when exuberance and attitude are a fundamental part of any sport.
And I can’t stress this enough: THERE IS NOTHING CLASSY ABOUT BITCHING WHEN OPPONENTS DON’T CONDUCT THEMSELVES WITH CLASS.
So that’s what I have to say on the subject for the time being. Additional thoughts? Disagreements? Speak on it, brother (or sister).
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Really great stuff Pablo.
I honestly can’t say I have any disagreements with anything you said.
However, I do have a comment on one issue:
Singing the Alma Mater after the games.
I agree with your statement that it fosters a sense of community between the players and students, as well as all the former students and players. In that sense, it has all the markings of a great tradition.
Yet, I’m not so sure I hold in that high of regard for a variety of reasons, and I’d be interested to see how others ultimately view it.
1.) You could argue it is even more important to perform the Alma Mater after a loss, as it gives the spectators a greater sense of the character of Notre Dame. Yet, it sucks singing it after a loss. It just does.
2.) It’s such a downer, more so after a victory. I know they play the fight song right after its conclusion (if my memory serves me correct), but I wish they sang the fight song more so than the Alma Mater, but that’s just me.
3.) Everyone either mumbles the entire song or doesn’t really sing at all…kinda like church on Sunday! That just adds to the feeling that it’s not taken that seriously to me. A small nit perhaps, but there have been plenty of people over the years who have been confused by what was going on because they didn’t know the team was singing the Alma Mater with the students and fans.
4.) I don’t think we invented the idea of signing the Alma Mater in front of the students, did we? Not that it particularly matters or that this is a major reason to stop the tradition, but still.
5.) Doesn’t it seem like EVERYONE does the same thing nowadays? I know there are plenty of schools who don’t do it at all, or do something much different, but I’m picturing so many teams doing the exact same thing. I guess in that way, it just doesn’t feel that special to me.
As a Subway Alum, many “real” Domers may want to burn me as a heretic for that, but that’s the way I feel damn it. (Cue Dicaprio’s character from Blood Diamond, “You American just love to talk about your feelings.”)
I just know that after last year’s loss to Tulsa, the last thing I felt like doing was swaying with my fellow fans in Kumbaya-fashion and singing the Alma Mater. After the tragedy of losing Declan Sullivan perhaps we needed to sing it more than ever, but that is not the way I felt at the moment.
When the Tulsa band struck up and starting celebrating with their players and fans right in front of us, completely drowning out the garbled Alma Mater at the other end of the stadium as the boo’s rained down, I found some satisfaction in the fact that the Golden Hurricane were celebrating wildly AFTER WINNING A TENSE, THRILLING, AND DOWN-TO-THE-WIRE FOOTBALL GAME.
I felt like booing our fans for booing Tulsa. They won the game, whether they knew about our tradition of the Alma Mater, I wanted them to dig the knife deeper at that point, wallow in my misery, and make sure I remembered the pain of losing that game.
Not that I’d advocate getting rid of the tradition of singing the Alma Mater, but I felt zero sense of embarrassment because they celebrated over it. In a way, I think I was also angry that many fans seemed more upset that Tulsa interrupted the Alma Mater, than actually losing the game. We had all these boo’s rain down at that point and it was pretty loud….and I was like, “Where was this noise during the game, ya’ll?”
by Eric Murtaugh on Jun 16, 2011 12:32 PM EDT reply actions
I hear you on the Alma Mater, to an extent. I will address the points as numbered:
1) Yes, it does suck singing the Alma Mater after a loss (unless it’s a close loss to a superior opponent and the team played their guts out). I can only imagine how much it must suck for the players who just wanna get to the locker room.
My position on that is that not every student stays for it and that’s okay. None of the other fans should feel compelled to stay either. If some players bypass it ‘cause they’re too bummed out, that’s their prerogative too.
The players don’t owe the students anything beyond their best efforts on the field. But it’s a pretty special gesture of appreciation for hours of unrelenting support nonetheless. And while it sucks at first, by the culmination, an overwhelming sense of pride tends to take a lot of the sting out of the loss (at least in the student section).
However, in the event of a blatantly sub-par team effort, a total shellacking or another loss in a miserable (god forbid) 3-9 type season, I can understand skipping it altogether. That being said, the Alma Mater after the first win of the ’07 season at the Rose Bowl was flat-out amazing for the fans and the players … almost euphoric.
2) As a Domer, I definitely don’t think of it as a downer after a win. Sure, it slows things down for a bit, but does it hurt to have a 2 minute breakdown after hours of excited cheering? It slowly builds to the exuberant finale. Then the Band picks up the tempo and the celebration resumes.
3) I can’t speak for the players, but believe me, (regardless of mumbling or not singing at all) swaying arm and arm to the Alma Mater is a very big deal to to the overwhelming majority of students and alumni.
At a recent Domer wedding, the recently graduated guests demanded an encore after the band had to stop playing at the end of the night. The encore didn’t come, so a swaying Alma Mater broke out instead. Corny? Yes. Awesome? Yes. (Even the band was impressed.)
4 & 5) Whether another school started it or how many other schools do it is immaterial. At Notre Dame, it supports the special emphasis on the value of a united student body that includes the football team.
6) I do believe that after the Declan Sullivan tragedy, it was even more significant to sing the Alma Mater. But I didn’t know about the booing of Tulsa for celebrating a big win — that’s ridiculous and classless. When a team wins, they should celebrate.
Our fans have the option of then (a) just singing anyway, (b) trying to drown them out with our singing [nothing wrong with that], or © just letting them have their moment.
by pablo on Jun 16, 2011 2:38 PM EDT reply actions
Oh yeah, you touched on this — but I have definitely heard comments over the years from commentators, opposing fans, and prospective recruits about how impressed they were to see the Alma Mater thing after a loss.
by pablo on Jun 16, 2011 2:42 PM EDT reply actions
Great post, Pablo. I agree totally on singing the Alma Mater. Two of my favorite traditions at a football game are the Step Out by the band to begin the game with the Victory March and singing the Alma Mater at the end no matter what the result. I usually have family members and some nearby fans that I don’t know and we all link up, ending in the crescendo “Love thee Notre Dame!!!” The players salute their dormmates with helmets and singing together, while band members play. There’s something unifying in it, knowing that players, students and band members have done this for decades – win or lose. There’s just nothing like it, except maybe the academies, in college football.
You may see better watching at home, get the commentary and see replays. But there is nothing at home that can compare to singing the Alma Mater with everyone around you.
by Michael Collins on Jun 17, 2011 12:08 AM EDT reply actions
I humbly submit to your expertise fellas.
Good stuff all around.
by Eric Murtaugh on Jun 17, 2011 11:50 AM EDT reply actions
Great post Pablo I really enjoyed that. You really captured that quite nicely.
The Core Values piece is something simple yet often overlooked or misinterpreted. I have a true personal bias but I think that the Marine Corps is an organization that has damn near expertly managed itself for 235 years by sticking to its Core Values of “Honor, Courage and Commitment.”
As an organization it has obviously changed and adapted over the years but at its most basic level the message and focus remains the same. It is hard to argue with the results. I often wonder why other non-military organizations don’t make more of an effort to try and copy it.
by whiskey on Jun 17, 2011 4:49 PM EDT reply actions
Pablo, that was a terrific article, especially the last points. One of the most annoying things about ND football fans is how they forget the players and fans are participating in a football game – not a game of cribbage – and that emotions and adrenaline get involved and it’s GOOD to lose your cool a little bit. I feel like that little bit of insanity/animal instinct that is so central to football is frowned upon by so many, as if we have to remain reserved, golf clap at nice things, and give a jolly “tally-ho” to applaud the other team’s performance… just because “we are ND.” That’s why ND Stadium is no longer a hostile environment. I sure hope that changes this year, when we’re 6-0 heading into the USC NIGHT GAME… I can only pray that there’s a little bit of fierceness in the Irish hearts, as there so rarely is on sunny Saturday afternoons.
On a side note, the alma mater was playing after the Tulsa game well before the Tulsa band began their celebrating. That was the source of our indignance… from all appearances, THEY were trying to drown US out and rub their win in our faces a little bit, and we were booing that intention. It’s not as if they began playing after the exciting conclusion of the game and we expected them to stop celebrating for a while as we swayed and sang… they stuck our noses in it.
by Andrew on Jun 22, 2011 2:14 PM EDT reply actions
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