Notre Dame green jersey history: What to know as Fighting Irish wear alternate unis vs. OSU
Notre Dame has a special look in store for Ohio State as the Buckeyes visit Notre Dame Stadium to play the Irish for the eighth time in the storied programs' histories.
In addition to coach Marcus Freeman campaigning for fans to bring a sea of green in the stands, the team will also wear its green uniforms. The popular alts are a fitting tip of the cap to the Fighting Irish's moniker, and they've enjoyed recent success in them as well.
Notre Dame boasts a five-game winning streak in the green jerseys, with the last loss against Michigan: The Fighting Irish sported the once-popular — but since-side-eyed — white jerseys with green numbers (with respect for the truly wild block M instead of numbers Michigan wore for that same game).
REQUIRED READING: Notre Dame football's depth chart for Ohio State
Notre Dame's green jerseys are always a highlight of the season, with the Shamrock Series giving Irish fans a consistent time to see them. Perhaps it is recent success mixed with superstition that has Notre Dame breaking the Kelly Green out once again against the Buckeyes.
Why does Notre Dame wear green?
Look no further than the mascot: What's more Irish than the color green? Though the golden domers will always be associated with the famous navy and gold, green will always be a part of the team's landscape.
When the Irish first wore green is murky at best. Some say Notre Dame first wore them over 100 years ago, when it was defeated by Iowa in 1921 (the school's official history of the green jersey also notes this as a potential genesis). That account is disputed. It is confirmed, however, that they wore them in 1926 against Penn State, earning a dominant win against the Nittany Lions.
They alternate jerseys weren't a Notre Dame staple until 1942, when Frank Leahy took over the program. Nowadays, the jerseys are generally associated with the Shamrock Series and are a once-a-year affair.
There is a hilarious undertone to the green jerseys, however: Notre Dame used them to freak teams out.
In Notre Dame's first-ever game vs. Navy, Knute Rockne trotted Notre Dame out in blue jerseys in 1927 with the second stringers against the Midshipmen. After giving up a touchdown almost immediately, Rockne had the starters take off their blues and don green instead. Notre Dame went on to beat the defending national champions 19-6.
From there, the greens were often used as a stunt, including a halftime change against USC in 1985. In the high point of that miserable year for the Irish, Notre Dame was able to defeat USC 37-3.
MORE: Winning 'the game within the game' means halftime restraint for Notre Dame football defense
What is Notre Dame's record in green jerseys?
Throughout the 1990s, Notre Dame only used the green jerseys in bowl games. In the 2000s, however, they started to become more of a fixture as alternate jerseys gained more acceptance throughout the college football landscape.
As noted by Notre Dame, the Fighting Irish went 35-11-1 in the green jerseys between their 1977 national championship season and 2000. Here's their green jersey record, by coach, in that time span:
Dan Devine (1988-80): 32-9-1
Gerry Faust (1981-85): 2-0
Under Lou Holtz (1986-96): 1-1
Bob Davie (1997-2001): 0-1
The Irish were 2-4 since 2000 before beginning a five-game green jersey win streak, helped along by a 5-1 record during Brian Kelly's tenure. They're now 7-4 since 2000.
Year | Opponent | Location | Result |
2002 | South Bend, Ind. | L, 14-7 | |
2005 | USC | South Bend, Ind. | L, 34-31 |
2006 | Army | South Bend, Ind. | W, 41-9 |
2007 | USC | South Bend, Ind. | L, 38-0 |
2010 | Army | New York City | W, 27-3 |
2011 | Michigan | Ann Arbor, Mich. | L, 35-31 |
2011 | Washington D.C. | W, 45-21 | |
2015 | Boston College | Boston, Mass. | W, 19-16 |
2016 | Army | San Antonio, Texas | W, 44-6 |
2018 | Florida State | South Bend, Ind. | W, 42-13 |
2022 | South Bend, Ind. | W, 24-17 |
The Shamrock Series was the heyday of the jerseys in recent history, although it wasn't constantly green: Notre Dame wore variations of its traditional blues several times. This year, the Shamrock Series, since redubbed at the Aer Lingus College Football Classic, was played in Dublin against Navy. Wearing the greens against Ohio State is more of a callback to when Notre Dame wore them in high-stakes matchups.
This matchup in particularly is hugely significant for Notre Dame: If it manages to beat Ohio State, the Irish establish themselves as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender with a game against No. 5 USC looming large on Oct. 14.
If it loses, however, it will harken back to the game against the Wolverines in 2011, when an Irish team with similarly high hopes saw its season get derailed by a brutal loss in Ann Arbor.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Notre Dame green jerseys: What to know about Fighting Irish uniforms
