Sept. 17, 2001
The Notre Dame football team took the practice field on Monday evening to prepare for this weekend’s game against Michigan State.
The Irish, like the majority of schools, did not participate in any football games on Saturday. Irish head coach Bob Davie reported that the team is focused at the task at hand, Michigan State.
“One of our goals today was to go out there and set a tempo,” Davie said. “The player did that. We had a lot of good physical work.”
Tempo is of concern for Notre Dame. Davie believes it is one of the keys to building a successful season.
“You have to send a message,” Davie said. “From the time you walk on the field to the time it ends, everything is important. With the teams we are playing and with that level of competition, you can not waste a snap.”
TALKING ABOUT THE TRAGEDY
While the world is still focused on last Tuesday’s events, the football team is no different. Davie talked with his team about the event. He then told the team that it should to focus on what it can do.
“They need to control what they can control,” Davie said. “And they need to leave the rest to the people in charge and to the people that are experts in those fields. . .I hope that when the players show up here at 2:15 that they look forward to being here. And that we look forward to just the simple things and things that we can control like football.”