From "Out of Bounds"

This month's edition of Out of Bounds will feature anecdotes about the nickname "Fighting Irish."

No one knows exactly how Notre Dame's Fighting Irish got their name. Admittedly, four Irish brothers did aid Founding Father Sorin in establishing the University. The French-born Sorin, however, was never very fond of Celts. "Not inclined to obedience," was his comment on the Irish.

When a 1904 Milwaukee Sentinel noted the school's line-up of "Fighting Irishmen," nobody noticed. Early newspapers commonly referred to the football team as the Notre Dames or Notre Damers, the Gold and Blue, Warriors, Domers, Benders and South Benders, Hoosiers, and Catholics. Playing without a home stadium for over forty years, Notre Dame was nicknamed the Nomads and Ramblers. (One sportswriter called them the Road Scholars.) Rockne's teams, especially fast and flashy for their era, were tabbed the Rockets and Blue Comets.

*   *   *   *   *   *

During the 1909 Michigan game, hard-headed Pete Vaughan is reputed to have blasted his teammates: "What's the matter with you guys? You're all Irish and you're not fighting!" Well, you can't insult an Irishman any worse than that, except by refusing to drink with him. Incensed, Notre Dame thumped the Wolverines 11-3. It may have seemed like a mandate, but the Fighting Irish nickname faded quickly in the glow of victory.

Notre Dame Alumnus Francis Wallace probably deserves most of the credit (or blame, however you want to look at it) for the Fighting Irish label. Wallace started using the term in the 1920's in his New York Daily News football columns. The name fit; and after a while the name stuck. America had seen enough Celtic immigrants to know that Fighting and Irish go together like tick and tock.

Most Notre Dame administrators disliked the Fighting Irish tag. For years they tried to play it down, forget about it, pretend it did not exist. Of course, they did the same thing with women. The University is stuck with them now, too.

Back to Irish Reveries