Not about Jaiden, but I was bored looking at Google maps the other day, and looked at University Lab's website. Im honestly surprised or maybe unaware of how my laboratory schools there were operated by universities. I know Ball State had Burris, but man, what an opportunity for a feeder system. Also BK had a lakefront house of the shittiest lake ive ever seen in University Lake
Ive asked reigning Employee of the Month, ChatGPT to present an idea:
Notre Dame has a once-in-a-generation opportunity sitting right across the street at St Mary’s College. If they invested strategically in that football program, it could become one of the smartest and most ethical feeder systems in the country—tailor-made for the realities of the NIL and transfer-portal era.
Right now, college football is in constant churn. The portal has turned recruiting into a year-round free-agency market, and NIL has shifted the balance of power from programs to players. The schools that will thrive are the ones that build structure and loyalty early, not just throw money at five-star recruits. That is exactly what an aligned St Mary’s program could deliver.
Imagine a St Mary’s football squad built with Notre Dame oversight and shared philosophy: same playbook language, same character standards, same academic expectations. It would compete at an NAIA or Division III level, giving legitimate live-fire experience to players who need time to grow physically, academically, or emotionally before they can handle FBS pressure. Every Saturday they would line up against regional Catholic or small-college opponents, with games streamed on the Notre Dame digital network. One of those could even be a controlled scrimmage against Notre Dame’s scout team at the LaBar complex—a developmental highlight for both sides.
This wouldn’t just be a football arrangement; it would be an NIL laboratory. The St Mary’s athletes could go through brand-building and financial-literacy programs run by Notre Dame’s NIL staff. Local sponsors could support them through small, transparent deals that teach responsibility without the chaos of national collectives. By the time these players are ready to transfer to Notre Dame, they would already understand compliance, media expectations, and the community values that the Irish brand demands.
Notre Dame would gain an in-house evaluation pipeline. Coaches could track performance metrics, film, and sports-science data from St Mary’s players throughout the season. They would know who fits the culture and who doesn’t long before offering a scholarship. It turns recruiting from guesswork into a measured, relationship-driven process.
The benefits go beyond player development. The partnership would strengthen the Catholic college network in the Midwest, provide new opportunities for donors and alumni to contribute, and create additional local game days that energize the South Bend community. A modest facility upgrade at St Mary’s—a 3,000-seat field, shared training access, unified analytics—would cost a fraction of what a single FBS recruiting class does, yet deliver a lasting return on investment in stability, loyalty, and talent cultivation.
Picture this: a Saturday afternoon at St Mary’s, young athletes wearing gold helmets trimmed with blue, playing in front of local families, priests, and alumni. They’re not just chasing scholarships; they’re learning what it means to represent the Notre Dame way. Some of them will transfer up. Some will graduate there. All will leave as ambassadors of the program’s values.
In an era when college football is being reshaped by money, media, and mobility, Notre Dame could respond not by buying players but by
building people—starting next door. A St Mary’s partnership would be more than a developmental program. It would be a blueprint for how tradition, education, and innovation can coexist in the NIL age.
That'll do ChatGPT, That'll do. Have a lie-down mate....