On the eve of IU’s first-round College Football Playoff game at Notre Dame, fans are making their way to South Bend. But some fans of the Hoosiers live right there in the land of the Fighting Irish, Touchdown Jesus, and the Golden Dome.
Joe Turnock is a bartender at The Linebacker, a Notre Dame dive bar in South Bend that’s popular on football weekends. He’s an IU grad from the class of 1986. And he’s not the only one in his family.
“I have two sons, one did his master's there, and his other one did his undergrad there,” Turnock said. “My one son is married to an IU grad. My wife's sister and brother-in-law are both IU grads, so there’s a lot of cream and crimson in the family.”
Turnock said The Linebacker has already had some lighthearted competition this week, with fans from both teams playing their fight songs back-to-back on the bar’s jukebox.
And Turnock himself isn’t safe from the barbs.
“Oh, I take some grief, I take some grief,” he laughed. “But, you know, obviously I support the Irish as it relates to the contribution to this bar. I mean, this is a Notre Dame bar. It's been that way for years. And you know, Notre Dame has a big impact on this community.”
Turnock is hoping IU, which hasn’t played Notre Dame in football since 1991, will have more games against the Irish in future seasons.
He and his family have plans to attend the game tomorrow, and they know who they’re rooting for.
“We got tickets to go to the game, our whole family's going,” he said. “Most of our family goes most weekends anyways to the games, but we'll have cream and crimson on this weekend.”
Read more: IU-ND playoff game draws visitors to South Bend with no plans to attend game
