This Saturday night, the Fighting Irish will attempt to go 12-0 as they face old rival USC.  I attended 2 ND games this year, courtesy of my Uncle Chris, a professor of business at Notre Dame and a big part of the athletic community in South Bend.  He played basketball for the Irish and the 2018 National Champion Women’s Basketball Team presented him with a ring for his efforts with student athletes.

Every year he invites us for at least one weekend.  This year, Chris scored the family tickets to 2 of the biggest games of the year, Michigan and Stanford.  Tailgating at Notre Dame is one of the finest experiences in the world.  Both being night games, we got a full day of beer and laughs.  You also meet a lot of people in the parking lots.  The lady next to us at the Stanford game asked if we could help eat some of the chicken she brought.  My cousin Casey warned her not to offer if she didn’t mean it, because we’ll go locust.  But she was sincere in her offer, she’d gone over the top in her ordering and didn’t want it to go to waste.  I spotted the platters of fried chicken and grabbed myself a giant breast.  Juicy white meat, crispy skin…I went back in for another giant breast. One good breast deserved another, I figured.  Did she fry this chicken herself?  No.  She bought it at Andy’s Place in Elkhart.  It’s a tradition in her family.  I know why.  When you find a fried chicken like that, you put a ring on it.