Plans are in place for the Notre dame football home opener to start the 2023 season on September 2.
In what is a first in the rich and heralded history of the Irish football program, they will take on an Historically Black College (HBCU) and FCS program.
According to Matt Fortuna of The Athletic, Notre Dame will host Tennessee State and head coach Eddie George for its opener in South Bend that season.
Related: Notre Dame football 2022 schedule
Notre Dame football makes a statement by scheduling Tennessee State
We’ll have to wait and see what the pay out will be for George and his Tigers to take on the Irish in South Bend.
With that said, this is an historical moment for HBCU’s around the college football world.
A former star running back in the NFL, George has joined the likes of Deion Sanders (Jackson State) to recently head HBCU football programs. It has put this entity on the map in a big way.
In his first season with Tennessee State, George posted a 5-6 record.
Most recently, we’ve seen HBCU schools featured on ESPN and its networks outside of the Bayou Classic and the Celebration Bowl. A lot of that has to do with the presence of George and Sanders.
As for Notre Dame football, it enters the 2022 season with a new full-time head coach in Marcus Freeman after Brian Kelly’s shocking departure to the LSU Tigers late last year.
The Irish will open up their 2022 slate on the road against Ohio State on September 3. Their first home game will come against Marshall the following week.
Notre Dame is also scheduled big games against Clemson and USC in Freeman’s first full season as its head coach.