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Notre Dame Football: Blue and Gold Game Boosts or Ends Hype

By Noah Strackbein

Sep 12, 2015; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish tight end Durham Smythe (80) celebrates with offensive center Nick Martin (72) after a touchdown on a fake field goal in the first quarter against the Virginia Cavaliers at Scott Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 12, 2015; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish tight end Durham Smythe (80) celebrates with offensive center Nick Martin (72) after a touchdown on a fake field goal in the first quarter against the Virginia Cavaliers at Scott Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame football will host their annual Blue and Gold game on April 22, and it’ll either create energy or havoc before the season.

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Chances are that a spring game isn’t going to put too much stress on a team. Players are having more fun playing the game then they’re focusing on competing. For the most part, this is just a way to get fans and players energized before the start of the season.

There isn’t going to be one team dominating the other, just teammates showing off their skills to the fans. Yes, this isn’t the NFL Pro Bowl where there is zero competition, but it isn’t a full-blown football game.

This game does bring pressure, though. Notre Dame is coming off the most embarrassing season of the Brian Kelly era. Bouncing back from a 4-8 season puts enough attention on you. What Notre Dame has done this offseason, though, people are expecting them to be a College Football Playoff contender. So, instead of just dealing with a rebound, they have to go from 4-8 to champions.

The Fighting Irish have more eyes on them than any other team in the NCAA. It’s very rare to have this much going for you after one of the worst years in program history. But, Notre Dame has done everything needed, and for the first time they’ll show it off to the world.

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What fans have seen during spring practice has been phenomenal. Players are bigger, the team is faster, and everyone is fired up. A great combination for success in 2017. How well it’ll all transfer to live action is still unknown. With the Blue and Gold game being their first shot at real game feel, everyone will have their eyes locked to see how well this team is actually put together.

You bring in a new starting quarterback, a defense that is supposed to go from nothing to something and the most talented offense in the country. It’s no surprise people are a little skeptical of all the hype. On the other hand, you can’t blame anyone for feeling like Notre Dame is now unstoppable.

This game goes one of two ways. Either everyone is clicking, Brandon Wimbush throws three touchdowns and the starting defense is unstoppable. Or, Wimbush comes out slow, the secondary is picked apart, and there are only a few players who have great games.

Depending on how it goes, this game either sends Notre Dame into the summer with a fan base filled with hope or worry. No matter how much the Irish have done so far, fans still have 4-8 in the back of their minds. It isn’t going to take much to scare these people.

The spring game isn’t going to decide Notre Dame’s regular season future. Whether it’s positive or negative, it won’t affect much come September.

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What it will do is determine the mindset of the team and the fans moving forward. This game either continues the hype or ends it. Hopefully, everything we’ve seen so far lets Notre Dame come out and show fans 2017 is their year.

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