For the sixth time in eight years, Notre Dame will open the season with a game in prime time. And why not? TV networks will do whatever it takes to maximize exposure of college football’s most prominent programs, and Notre Dame definitely is among them. Of course, playing so well in recent years doesn’t hurt.
With this happening so frequently of late and this year’s opener against Ohio State perhaps the most anticipated yet, it only makes sense to look back at when the Irish have played their first game of the season under the lights recently. College football shines a little brighter whenever those lights come on, especially when the teams are starting with a clean slate. Even if everything goes south for the rest of the season, you can’t take away the feeling this atmosphere provides for the players, coaches and fans present.
Here’s the recent history of the Irish’s season openers at night: