Notre Dame Stadium has not been a fortress. The Irish have dropped 16 games there over the past five years. Some would attribute this to terrible coach hiring, perpetual rebuilding as a consequence and subpar quarterback play. Notre Dame thinks this has to do with the stadium being too quiet on game day. They would like fans to “Take a StaND.”

If you’re paying attention this weekend and in the weeks to come, you are likely to come across the phrase “Take A StaND.” It’s a subtle, yet pointed, way of encouraging fans at all Irish events to become more participatory.

Notre Dame students have participated in a long tradition of standing throughout the entire football game at Notre Dame Stadium—and that group generally makes its share of noise. However, students make up only about 10,000 fans out of Notre Dame Stadium’s 80,795 capacity. So there’s plenty of room for assistance in the decibel category.

Perhaps the ladies can rattle their jewelry in a menacing fashion? The Irish have already crossed the piping in music Rubicon. I think we can all see where this is heading.

Pitt vs. Cincinnati: This was expected preseason to be a matchup between Big East title rivals. After the first week? Not so much. Pitt players and coaches have had just four days to recover from getting beat down by FCS Youngstown State in Paul Chryst’s first game. We’ll see whether that was a positive or a negative. The Bearcats, coming off four 10-plus win seasons in five years, remain strong contenders. Cincinnati should be able to exploit the same deficiencies Youngstown State did.

[Photo via Presswire]