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'I slept on the cold, hard ground.' Notre Dame football fans go extra mile for 'GameDay'

austin hough, south bend tribune
·4 min read

SOUTH BEND — Nothing was going to stop Devin Antus from being at “College GameDay” Saturday morning.

A self-described “super fan” of ESPN’s morning college football pregame show, the 21-year-old Granger resident was first in line at 6 p.m. Friday to make sure he had a front-row seat — well, standing position — for “GameDay” on Notre Dame’s campus.

“I slept on the cold, hard ground. No blanket, no nothing,” Antus said. “To be honest, it’s such a great experience. It’s my first ‘GameDay’ ever. Hopefully the Irish win today, but the atmosphere is incredible, the people are incredible, ‘GameDay’ is incredible baby, let’s go!”

More than 1,000 fans packed the Library Lawn for the popular “GameDay,” program which was on campus ahead of the No. 9 Notre Dame football's battle with No. 6 Ohio State. It was one of six ranked-vs.-ranked matchups on the college football schedule Saturday.

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"I think there's no choice but to be here on a great weekend of college football," said “GameDay” host Rece Davis on Friday, about 24 hours before the show began. "Six games matching ranked opponents. I think there are eight matching undefeated teams, and this one stands above all of them because of the tradition and the lore of the two programs."

Antus was wearing “The Mandalorian” costume, inspired by the hit Disney+ show of the same name. He had a baby Yoda doll accompanying him as well.

“My name is the ‘NDlorian,’” Antus explained. “Michigan has a storm trooper, so we’ve got a Mandalorian warrior. Baby Yoda goes with me everywhere.”

While 95% of the crowd was wearing green and gold, a few Buckeye fans made their presence felt.

Alex Nicol, a Columbus resident, was in the front row to the right of the stage, holding a “Rudy was offsides” sign.

“I mean, he was offsides on the one play he got in for, does it really count?" Nicol asked. "I don’t think so, personally.”

Devin Antus, 21, of Granger, holds Baby Yoda and dresses as a Mandolarian as one of the crowd during the ESPN College GameDay show on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, on the Hesburgh Library lawn on the University of Notre Dame campus in South Bend. The show was to highlight the Notre Dame-Ohio State game.
Devin Antus, 21, of Granger, holds Baby Yoda and dresses as a Mandolarian as one of the crowd during the ESPN College GameDay show on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, on the Hesburgh Library lawn on the University of Notre Dame campus in South Bend. The show was to highlight the Notre Dame-Ohio State game.

Nicol mentioned he camped out starting at 10:30 p.m. Friday. It was his second “GameDay” experience after going to one last year ahead of Ohio State’s home game with Michigan.

“It’s very different. It’s very hostile,” said Nicol when asked to compare his two “GameDay” experiences. “But it’s been really fun. It’s really cool.”

One of the weekly parts of “GameDay” is featuring a local restaurant. They bring food onto the set for the hosts to enjoy going into a commercial break.

ESPN’s Harry Douglas rouses the fans before the ESPN College GameDay show on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, on the Hesburgh Library lawn on the University of Notre Dame campus in South Bend. The show was to highlight the Notre Dame-Ohio State game.
ESPN’s Harry Douglas rouses the fans before the ESPN College GameDay show on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, on the Hesburgh Library lawn on the University of Notre Dame campus in South Bend. The show was to highlight the Notre Dame-Ohio State game.

Fiddler’s Hearth in downtown South Bend was selected to be the showcase restaurant this week. They were chosen in 2018 as well when “GameDay” came ahead of the season opener against Michigan.

“They approached three or four other restaurants, and we made our pitch,” Fiddler’s Hearth owner Terry Meehan said. “We’re so happy to get called for this.”

Meehan cooked the food at the restaurant, bringing it over to campus at 7:30 a.m. A grill near the stage is setup to help keep the food warm.

For Meehan, the news of him being selected brought him to tears.

“I was with a couple pickleball buddies in front of the restaurant (Wednesday), and I got an email from my wife with the news, and I started tearing up,” Meehan said. “We threw the kitchen sink into get this. We had WNDU come in the week before and do all sorts of filming, so I was able to take that and send it to ESPN.”

Terry Meehan, owner of Fiddler's Hearth, watches as food is prepared for the cast of ESPN's "College GameDay" on the campus of Notre Dame on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023. This is the second time the downtown South Bend restaurant has provided meals for the program, the other being in 2018
Terry Meehan, owner of Fiddler's Hearth, watches as food is prepared for the cast of ESPN's "College GameDay" on the campus of Notre Dame on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023. This is the second time the downtown South Bend restaurant has provided meals for the program, the other being in 2018

“GameDay” ran from 9 a.m. until noon ET Saturday. Kickoff between the Irish and Buckeyes is schedule for 7:30 p.m. on NBC.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Fans come out in full force as Notre Dame football hosts 'College GameDay'