Tag: WNDU-TV

Watch: Larry King Attends Notre Dame Game With Regis Philbin

The broadcasting world was shaken Saturday with the news that Larry King died at the age of 87.

The broadcasting world was shaken Saturday with the news that Larry King died at the age of 87. Anybody who was somebody appeared on his CNN talk show. One of those somebodies was Notre Dame alumnus Regis Philbin, who passed away in July. When the Irish battled Stanford at Notre Dame Stadium in 2002, Philbin invited King to the game, and the two appeared on WNDU-TV’s pregame show:

The Cardinal were a bad team in 2002, so it should be no surprise that the Irish crushed them that afternoon, 31-7, in the first of a rivalry-long seven consecutive wins in the battle for the Legends Trophy. Notre Dame’s two-headed rushing monster of Ryan Grant and Rashon Powers-Neal combined for 211 yards and two touchdowns on 31 carries. On defense, Courtney Watson and Shane Walton returned interceptions for touchdowns from 34 and 18 yards out, respectively. To say the least, King was in South Bend on a good day.

Shrek fans know that King and Philbin worked together on those films. They were the respective voices of Doris and Mabel, the ugly stepsisters. But whatever they did together, they were broadcasting legends who happened to be legends. Let’s be happy that they didn’t have to be separated from each other for very long.

South Bend Bracing for Economic Impact Without Notre Dame Football

We’re looking at a situation without Notre Dame football until the spring or maybe even next year.

We’re looking at a situation without Notre Dame football until the spring or maybe even next year. For most of us, we’d only lose a small part of our autumn lives. However, South Bend’s economy stands to lose a lot more if there’s no football at all.

A story by WNDU-TV sheds light on the situation. This community already lost a healthy dose of revenue when Notre Dame’s 2020 commencement went virtual. If Rob Decleene, Executive Director for Visit South Bend/Mishawaka, is correct, a lost football season would be devastating. One football weekend bring in $17 million from visitors to St. Joseph County and $22 million to the South Bend/Elkhart region.

All told, $102 million in economic impact is at risk. The bars, restaurants, stores and hotels that rely heavily on fans who spend all or part of their weekends in South Bend in the fall will need to start thinking of ways to keep going without that annual revenue. That might not be easy in a world where COVID-19 reigns supreme and keeps people away during times of year that football isn’t played. As we all know by now, this virus doesn’t discriminate.