Brian Kelly arrived at Notre Dame practice on a horse (Photo)

Notre Dame is holding the first week of its preseason camp at Culver Military Academy in Culver, Ind., about 40 miles south of South Bend. Culver is home to the Black Horse Troop, so with the Irish participating in full pads for the first time in camp, head coach Brian Kelly decided to come out onto the field in style.

The Irish will practice at Culver through August 9, and then will return to South Bend for the remainder of camp. Lou Holtz-led Notre Dame teams practiced at Culver, a college prep boarding school for grades 9-12, in the mid-90’s and the two institutions have a long-standing relationship that dates back to the 1920’s with the legendary Knute Rockne.

“Culver holds a special place in my heart as my family has participated in camps on the grounds for years. Culver will significantly help improve the experience for our team this fall,” Kelly said.

Coming off a 9-4 season, the Fighting irish will open up the 2014 campaign against Rice at home on August 30.

For more Notre Dame news, visit IrishIllustrated.com.

- - - - - - -

Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!

Follow @SamDCooper