This board has always had a pretty consistent anti-ND bent.  Usually led by the same small set of people, but it is getting stronger with ND's current number one ranking.  I realize that one message board post won't change any attitudes, but please allow me tell you why I disagree with the vitriol.  I've actually been on the VS since its inception, although I don't post as much as most of you.  But I hope you will consider my thoughts even if you don't recognize my nickname.     

Like many of you, I have multiple allegiances.  The first is and always will be the Gators.  I have two degrees from UF, and anybody who doesn't support their undergrad alma mater is a loser in my book.  But I also have strong allegiances to Notre Dame.  I know the place and the people way better than you do.   I have been a faculty member at Notre Dame since 1990.  Never lived outside of the southeast before moving up here, believe me it was a culture shock moving up north.  But I decided to take the best job I was offered after getting a Ph.D., and ND was a no-brainer.  I never envisioned living my life in the Midwest, but I love my job and the community.  South Bend is actually a great place to live, except for the weather. 

But here is the point of my post: like almost every other school I am familiar with, most of the folks associated Notre Dame are great people.  I have taught several thousand students over the past 22 years and there are very few that weren't good people.  In particular, I have had many ND football players in my classes over the years.  Jerome Bettis took two classes from me, and he is a great guy. In fact, Jerome was in my class the semester of the ND-UF sugar bowl matchup in the early 90s.  I made the  mistake of telling Jerome before the game that the Gators were going to destroy the Irish-I recall that Hawaii had put up 50 on ND the last regular season game, and I told Jerome that if they could do that we would probably hang 100 on them.  Jerome single handedly destroyed us that game, running for a ridiculous amount of yards.  In early January, there was a knock at my door.  It was Jerome.  If I were him, I would have talked smack.  But no, he just smiled and told the Gators gave him a good game, he liked the players, but is wasn't their day.  The thing I want to convey is this:  most of the football players (there are certainly exceptions) are good kids.  They don't live in athletic dorms, there are none here.  They are integrated into the student population.  They work hard to survive academically.  But I have only had two football players that I thought were jerks over the years.  And I have taught many that I really like and respect, some of whom are now good friends.   

But more importantly, I want you to know that the student body is full of great kids.  The kind of kids you want your children to hang out with or marry.  I've gotten to know many of them very well.  A couple of examples: I lived in Australia in 2002 along with 30 ND undergrads (that's where my board name comes from, Freo is short for Fremantle, the Australian town where we lived).  We had them over to our house so many times, went drinking with them, heard their hopes, dreams, and frustrations.   They were such good kids.  They are all turning 30 or this year, and we still keep up with many of them.  Last month, I went to China with 25 students for two weeks.  Again, it was a great chance to get to know them as individuals and not just as students.  Going out every night in a country as challenging as China is a great bonding experience.  I so respect and enjoy the company of those students.  They are genuinely good people, and you would agree with me if you had the chance to do what I did and hang out with them.

So again, I realize that this post won't change the mind of the haters.  You may hate the past success of Notre Dame when they were dominant in college football, and you may resent the fact that ND's reputation has exceeded the on-field performance for the past 20 years.  You may even know an obnoxious ND fan or two, but all schools have those.  Even ours.  But as somebody who knows the place and the people very well, I want to tell you this: most of the people here are awesome, and if you had the chance to get to know them as I have, you would agree with me.  I feel very fortunate to have had the chance to spend my career here.

But if they ever play the Gators again, F them and Go Gators.