We all know Notre Dame football hasn’t had the best record in recent years—but this season, our student section is cheering for touchdown after touchdown. As of right now, the Knights have a record of four wins and just one loss. While it is still very early in the season, the Knights’ three wins have showcased our talent, even beating our longtime rival, Crespi.
In their very first game of the season, Notre Dame crushed Peninsula with a score of 42-0. Just one week later the Knights won again, this time against Birmingham High School with a similarly remarkable score of 41-0.
Sadly, in Notre Dame’s game against Birmingham a serious injury occurred to a player from the opposing team. The game was stopped for thirty minutes before was taken away in an ambulance.
Both teams gathered around and created a circle in solidarity to pray for their teammate or opponent. Notre Dame demonstrated our sportsmanship and respect for each other, showing that win or lose, we support one another.
Following the game against Birmingham, Notre Dame had to face our longtime rival, Crespi. After two victorious blowouts, the team’s confidence was at an all time high. Hoping to continue their winning streak, the Knights prepared to face Crespi at 7PM at Notre Dame High School, expecting a much closer match.
Temidayo Olafisoye ‘26, a defensive end said, “Going into the game we expected a win, we didn’t treat this game differently from any others.” That mentality clearly worked, as the team secured their third win, 42-0.
While they had it relatively easy the first three games, the Knights schedule got tougher when they faced JSerra Catholic High School. The Knights unfortunately suffered their first loss, 34-14.
Even after the loss, the team was able to regroup and earn another win against Westlake, beating them 27-6. Much of the team’s success can be attributed to the holistic training approach that the new head coach, Evan Yabu, has adopted.
Coach Evan Yabu said, “The key to our team’s success has been the buy-in of the players. This team has bought into individual growth and development, team cohesiveness, and consistent focus. The success that we have felt is a byproduct of the work that they have put in, but our moments of failure are also a byproduct of our mistakes. We are on a never ending quest for growth, and we are excited for the second half of our regular season!”
So Knights, pack the castle at our next home game against Chaminade for what is sure to be a great game!
