The Victory Project: A Premium Notre Dame Undertaking
The Notre Dame Victory Project is Homefield's celebration of Fighting Irish football, its values, and its victories. Image Credit: Getty/Focus on Sport.
In late 2024, Homefield sought to develop a product based on our craftsmanship and the faith of our customers in equal measure. For the first time in company history, we offered prospective patrons an opportunity to preorder a cherished IU keepsake sweater as we designed and perfected it. The trust our fellow fans had in us anchored its design and production.
After unveiling The Sweater Project, as it's known across Homefield HQ, we immediately heard from fans nationwide about what we must develop next. You sent photos, hit our replies, and even chatted with us in person – all about your sports heroes and their famous 'fits, and how you trust us to tell their stories.
We narrowed down our sketches in the early rounds of the Playoff, debating which story we were best equipped to tell next. What we landed on was divine intervention from Our Lady of Victory herself.
We went to the archives and woke up the echoes. Getty Images via The Sporting News.
Enter The Victory Project. It's our tribute to the values (and victories) of Notre Dame football, past and present. As one of the founding teams in football seeks its 12th national championship, we wanted to bridge past and present with a nod to the coach who led them to their 11th.
Fighting Irish faithful can stake a founding claim in The Victory Project from now until Monday, Jan. 20 at Noon eastern; you'll reserve your sweater and get regular updates on the design, prototype iteration, and production phases. With all that in mind, let us take you through how we landed on such a momentus sequel to The Sweater Project, and where we're at in the process right now.
The History
Notre Dame football is a perennial name in college football, and integral to the foundations of the sport itself. It's hard to hone in on just one Fighting Irish era; the team is as relevant in 2025 as it was in 1887.
Still, there's one coach whose love for Notre Dame shaped the culture around the program today. Lou Holtz was the epitome of a ball coach, a man grounded in his convictions on and off the field. In three seasons, Holtz transformed Notre Dame from a team struggling to reach .500 in 1986 into undefeated National Champions in 1988, all through his tough, but inspired vision.
The 1988 team, of course, is one of legend. Notre Dame opened with a statement win against rival Michigan, 19-17. From there, the Irish steamrolled opponents, all leading to their date with Jimmy Johnson's larger-than-life Miami program on Oct. 15. (The "Catholics vs. Convicts" game still inspires debate today, especially after the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary of the same name.) After their narrow 31-30 victory, Holtz and his squad cruised through the rest of the season, culminating in a Fiesta Bowl win and national title.
Equally known as a media personality post-retirement, Holtz still carries great love for the university. To this day, he's got one-liners that rile up Fighting Irish faithful, because, after all, "we're Notre Dame, and they ain't!"
Holtz in a variation on his famous sideline 'fit, after Notre Dame's Orange Bowl win. USA TODAY Sports © Copyright USA TODAY Sports, via UHND.com.
The Project
Through Holtz's decade at Notre Dame, he reflected the same values he instilled in the Irish with his crisp, no-frills sideline style. He actually wore several variations on the look we're replicating -- sometimes with a satin finish, sometimes as a classic crewneck, among other iterations. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, and while Holtz certainly restored Notre Dame to its former glory during his tenure, he found a sideline look that needed little tweaking.
For us at Homefield, The Victory Project presents a different challenge than our previous Sweater Project. Which photo references serve us best, if Holtz himself appeared to wear several versions? How should we place the sleeve monogram? How do we distill several versions of this sweater into one, keystone keepsake?
Unlike The Sweater Project, which we'd been developing behind the scenes, we're still very early on in answering these questions. We do know we're so pleased with the heavier crewneck blend from our Indiana sweater that we're using it again, to capture the nostalgia of late-'80s apparel (if you're a fan of the satin finish, may we also suggest our Notre Dame Campus Classic Pullover). We're also narrowing down other design elements so the sweater showcases the best of each version he wore. As we progress, Victory Project patrons will be the first to know.
We'd love to know just how many of this sweater Coach Holtz had in his closet. Notre Dame Athletics.
Reserve Yours
From now until Monday, Jan. 20 at Noon ET, become a founding patron of The Notre Dame Victory Project. We anticipate your sweaters arriving sometime in spring, with more clarity as we move through project phases.
The Victory Project isn't (just) about making a cool sweatshirt; it's about wearing Fighting Irish football values on your sleeve, literally. Based on where we are now, and where we expect the project to go, you'll know the pride we embued in this incredible piece the second it arrives at your door.
