Notre Dame football team welcomed home by fans after national championship game

On January 22, 2025By Littum

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) – The Fighting Irish returned home Tuesday one win short of a national championship, but still number one in the hearts of fans.

Rarely has there been a better excuse for not showing up. The cold weather was brutal.

Then again, there was a pretty strong reason to make the trip – to mark a truly remarkable season.

Their heartfelt cheers likely never reached the ears of their intended recipients thanks to a motorcade complete with lights and sirens.

Then again, maybe the message got through the same.

“Came out of work for half an hour to come out and say hi to the team. They gave us such a great season and we wanted to thank them,” said one couple. “We were Notre Dame students, we were freshmen at Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s in 1988, the last time they won the national championship, so it was exciting to see how far they went this year.”

Perhaps never before has such a warm welcome come in such cold surroundings.

“Just to give them support,” said one fan. “I watched some interviews last night with the players. They seemed pretty down, so I tried to lift them up a bit.”

Quite a few spectators drove back and forth to their vehicles to keep warm.

“I’ve met them the last three times they came back, this will be the third,” said another fan. “I came back from Georgia and then came back after beating Penn State. So thought I better come today. It’s the coldest day though.”