For Notre Dame, it was like a Saturday from a bygone era. As Lou Holtz scowled from the sideline, the Fighting Irish’s big offensive line created gaping holes for a power running game.
But this time, the opposition wasn’t Navy, Michigan or USC. The goal of this team, which was composed of former Notre Dame players and coaches, was to win a friendly exhibition against a team composed of the best football players from Japan.
Though it’s not widely known, and though it hasn’t gained nearly as much traction here as other imports like baseball, soccer and golf, American football has been played in Japan for 75 years. The country has the semipro X-League, and about 5,000 students play at the high-school level. Overall, the audience is large enough to support an American football magazine called “Touchdown.” Japan has hosted more than a dozen preseason NFL games since 1989.
Saturday’s exhibition game at the Tokyo Dome was the stiffest test yet of Japan’s progress as a football nation. Tony Rice, the quarterback from Notre Dame’s 1988 undefeated national championship team, was expected to start the game—until his 41-year-old calves buckled under the weight of two-a-day practices. Ambrose Wooden, a former safety who is now a second-year analyst at Goldman Sachs, started instead.
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The final score: Notre Dame 19, Japan 3.
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