Notre Dame Football: The Shirt misses the mark yet again

It’s time once again for fans of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to tap their inner fashionista as Notre Dame unveils this year’s version of The Shirt.

Let’s get this out of the way... it’s not terrible. No — not even close to being terrible. It’s, in many ways, quite good, and there is the problem.

The design is solid and the font is absolutely on brand for Notre Dame — especially after the stadium renovation. So, we’re all good there and I think you know where I’m heading at this point.

IT IS GRAY. AT THE VERY LEAST... IT’S NOT GREEN.

The Shirt has a long history of switching up the color, so it comes as no surprise, but it is definitely disappointing. Did we not just see the “Irish Wear Green” campaign last season? The green out vs the Michigan Wolverines and wearing green jerseys against the Florida State Seminoles were two of the biggest parts of the Notre Dame fan experience in 2018 — a year in which the went 12-0 in the regular season and went to the college football playoff.

In making The Shirt a shade of gray that belongs in your guest bathroom, they have essentially rocked the mojo boat, and once again failed to play a better part in unifying the fanbase.

For shame.

Actually... it’s for charity, and this is the most common reason given on why the shirt color changes. It’s as if they think people are incapable of buying a shirt of the same color within the span of twelve months, yet Apple will drop a new phone once a year that people gobble up with only about $1000 difference between the cost of a phone vs the cost of a shirt.

It’s silly.

The Shirt has single-handily made Notre Dame Stadium look like the inside of a skittles package over the years. Fans that gobble up anything and everything Notre Dame throws them are equally to blame for the strange color pattern inside Notre Dame Stadium.

How much does this matter in the grand scheme of things? Well... not much really — but it does add to the weird atmosphere inside the stadium where “down in front” is totally legit, and red invasions happen.

The shirt could have been better. It’s not terrible, but it misses the mark for yet another non-green season.