I can’t wait to hop in my car and head up to South Bend Indiana on Saturday and watch my Louisville Cardinals take on the Fighting Irish. It is one of those sports trips that every avid sports fan has on their bucket list. The tradition, pageantry, mystique and history that defines the University of Notre Dame football program is unmatched in college sports. The lore of Notre Dame Stadium rivals that of some of the most legendary venues in all of sports. And it’s one of College Football’s most sacred grounds.
There have been many magical moments in Notre Dame stadium since it opened in 1930. If those walls could talk they’d tell stories of one of the greatest motivators in the history of sports Knute Rockne, great players like the Four Horsemen, George Gipp, “Jumpin’ Joe” Savoldi, Joe Montana, and Raghib “The Rocket” Ismail.
The Stadium has been described as having the power to inspire. And it has inspired some great athletes over the years, but it also was the backdrop to one of the biggest underdog stories in sports. There’s not a sports fan alive that hasn’t seen the movie “Rudy”. A film based on the real life events of the small town steel worker Rudy Ruettiger.
On Saturday I hope to be witness to one of these special moments in Notre Dame stadium. But this time I hope it is a Cardinal that leaves his story of triumph and glory among those walls and with those thousands of ghosts of seasons past. On Saturday I hope I hear the chants of Reggie, Reggie, Reggie echoing across that hallowed field.
I have had the privilege of speaking with Louisville’s true freshman quarterback a couple times this season. Reggie Bonnafon is polite and articulate and speaks softly, his voice barely carrying over the hustle and bustle of the post game locker room. But rumbling beneath the quiet demeanor is a football player with a gritty edge. That grit is what has got him through this tumultuous first season at Louisville.
Reggie who won the second string duties during spring ball has been thrown into action early and often during the Cardinals first run through the ACC. He has started three games tallying 662 passing yards with four touchdowns and one pick. Things haven’t come slow or easy for him and tragedy followed as his father Wallace died of a heart attack on Sept. 15, two days after Bonnafon’s third college game.
They say the death of a father is like the falling of a great tree, suddenly leaving a son’s trembling branches exposed to the world. Reggie only missed the following week’s game at FIU to attend his father’s funeral, and has been on the football field ever since giving it his all. Inspired by a motivational wrist band given to him by his father before his passing Reggie vowed to finish the season in his honor. The wristband said: “Know the rules. Play the game. Own your destiny.”
On Saturday Reggie Bonnafon will lead our Louisville Cardinals on to that legendary field at Notre Dame stadium. A field that has seen many a destiny fulfilled will now play host to a young man looking to claim his own. Reggie said “I just think God’s put me in a situation that he knew I was able to handle,” “A lot of things have gone on this season. I don’t think anybody but him could get me through that.”
There is a lot of holiness around Notre Dame stadium. The large mural of Jesus from the school’s library is visible inside the stadium. It is known as “Touchdown Jesus” because Jesus’ arms are raised like the touchdown symbol. I’d like to think that another father will be watching over that stadium Saturday. Watching the son he loved so dearly living out his dreams and having his special moment. Reggie… Reggie… Reggie.