Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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murphy���s Law dan murphy Notre Dame���s Best New Tradition The men���s hockey program now has a tradition of honoring our nation���s military during the second period at each home game. On March 1, Admiral William Fogarty (above) was saluted for his service to our country. T he lulled crowd erupted, as it always does, midway through the second period of Notre Dame���s second-to-last hockey home game of the regular season. The Irish were leading Bowling Green 3-1, but this was no flashy goal or bone-jarring hit that brought fans to their feet at Compton Family Ice Arena. Attention shifted a dozen rows behind the home team bench. The applause swelled and the players on the ice below joined in, banging their sticks against the boards and looking up as the public address announcer read through the accomplished r��sum�� of Admiral William Fogarty. Fogarty, who has seven commands at sea including a lead role in patrolling the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Storm, was Notre Dame���s military guest that night. photo courtesy notre dame media relations In each of the 39 home games hosted at the two-year-old, $50 million arena, the Irish have honored an active service member or veteran. He or she stands beside the American flag on the ice along with a color guard for the national anthem. Throughout the game, fans approach them to shake hands and express gratitude. Afterward, many of them visit Notre Dame���s locker room. But the highlight for all is the second period. The crowd drowns out strains of country music while the game pauses to thank the guests for their service in what is almost always the loudest pitch of the night. ���It was surreal,��� Fogarty said. ���It just kept getting louder and louder like they had scored a goal or something. That was pretty cool. When I