THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING NOTRE DAME, SAINT MARY’S AND HOLY CROSS ESTABLISHED 1966
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2025 | VOL. LX, NO. 35
NDSMCOBSERVER.COM
Irish finish season 10-2 with win over Stanford By Chris Dailey Sports Writer
Despite traveling 2,239 miles and operating on a three-hour time zone difference, Notre Dame fired on all cylinders in its 49-20 triumph over Stanford. The win virtually cements the Irish’s place in the College Football Playoff, marking their 10th consecutive victory following two early season defeats to Miami and Texas A&M. Donning their crisp away whites and shiny gold helmets, Notre Dame took the field at Stanford Stadium to a roaring applause from the large contingent of Irish faithful in attendance. Even on senior day, the Cardinal home crowd was drowned out by a thunderous “Let’s go Irish” chant before kickoff. The deafening noise made from seemingly all of Notre Dame’s California-based chapters grew significantly louder as junior running back Jeremiyah Love did Jeremiyah Love things on the Irish’s first drive. The Heisman hopeful
KEIRA JONES | The Observer
Sophomore running back Aneyas Williams runs the ball to the end zone on Nov. 29. The Fighting Irish finished out their regular season with a 49-20 win over Stanford, completing the season with a 10-2 record.
knifed his way through the antsy Stanford defense for a calm and cool 54 rushing yards, including back-to-back 18-yard gains. Once the hard work was complete, Love
lowered his center of gravity from three yards out and punched in the first score. Just like that, it was Notre Dame 7, Stanford 0. It took less than 90 seconds
Thanksgiving storm creates travel odysseys for students
of game-action for freshman quarterback CJ Carr and company to take the field again thanks to a quick threeand-out from the Cardinal. Unfortunately for the rowdy
Notre Dame fans, their jubilant mood was offset because of an injury to Love. After quintessentially spin-moving his way around a Cardinal defender, Love was met with a knee to the ribs. He stayed down for over a minute before slowly making his way toward the sideline. Love stayed out of the game for several series before eventually returning. Freeman explained the process of his return in his post-game press conference, sharing, “I told him ‘you know how you feel. I know you’re hurting. But you have to make a decision about what would be best for the team. You feel like you can go?’ That’s what’s best for the team. I know he wanted to go out there and put on a Heisman worthy performance, and we owed it to him to say ‘if you feel like you can go, go.’” In the short-term the answer to that question was no, and Love’s right-hand man junior running back Jadarian Price see “Football” on page 8
‘Catholic mission’ back in ND values
By Gray Nocjar
Observer Staff Report
Junior Maria Emilia Quiroga was nearing the end of a snow y, hour-long drive from northwest Indiana to campus. She had just passed The Inn at Saint Mary’s when she was rearended. The driver had lost control in the icy weather, turning a quick trip into an odyssey. Quiroga’s accident was one of several unfortunate stories among returning students that arose out of the potent winter storm that swept the Midwest over the Thanksgiving weekend. The National Weather Service officially announced a Winter Storm and Lake Effect Event on Saturday. “Blowing and drifting snow were reported, with road
conditions becoming treacherous,” the statement read. The storm blanketed most of the northwest United States in at least an inch of snow or sleet. Nine inches of snow
accumulated throughout the day in South Bend. It was the eighth-highest daily total for the city in the month of November since records
Less than a month after the University revealed a list of four new “ND Values” for staff which omitted a previous value calling for staff to accept and support the University’s Catholic mission, Notre Dame President Fr. Robert Dowd announced Friday that the University would be adding an explicit reference to the Catholic mission of the University back to the list of values. The new values were announced to Notre Dame staff during town halls on Oct. 29 and 30 and initially included four values: community, collaboration, excellence and innovation. The prior list of values, instituted by then President Fr. John Jenkins years ago
NEWS | PAGE 2
OPINION | PAGE 5
SCENE | PAGE 7
SPORTS | PAGE 11
SPORTS | PAGE 12
The Inspired Leadership Initiative welcomes skilled individuals to Notre Dame.
Columnist Naasei Lynn discusses the trend of opinions veiled as news.
Unlike previous years, the performance will be student-led and held off campus.
The Irish defeated the Cardinal 49-20 in the last football game of the regular season.
Notre Dame falls to No. 10 as the Playoff Commitee decides on postseason contention.
Managing Editor
Inspired Leaders
LIAM KELLY | The Observer
South Bend saw 12 inches of snow over the weekend, which, coupled with Thanksgiving crowds, interrupted students’ travel arrangments.
Objectively subjective
see “Travel” on page 3
‘Messiah’ is on!
Stock up, stock down
included: accountability, teamwork, integrity, leadership in excellence and leadership in mission. Under the leadership in mission value, the University expected that each staff member “understands, accepts and supports the Catholic mission of the university and fosters values consistent with that mission.” This change in the ND values was first reported by The Observer on Nov. 14 before being covered by national outlets such as Fox News and Catholic News Agency. In a letter to Notre Dame staff posted to the ND Works website on Friday, Nov. 21, Dowd stated a fifth value — “Catholic Mission” — would now be added to see “Mission” on page 3
CFP rankings