It is yellow. It is chipped. It looks like something a high school shop class might have churned out in 1980. Yet, if you walk through the tunnel at Notre Dame Stadium, you’ll see some of the best athletes in the world treat this piece of painted wood like a holy relic. The Notre Dame football locker room sign—the iconic "Play Like A Champion Today" board—isn't just a decoration. It’s a psychological trigger.
Most people think Lou Holtz invented it. He didn't. He certainly made it famous, but the origin story is actually a bit more like a detective novel than a marketing strategy. Holtz found a photo of it in a book. He felt the program had lost its edge in the mid-80s and needed a focal point. He wanted something that every player had to touch, a physical bridge between the preparation of the locker room and the violence of the field.
It worked.
The Mystery of Where the Sign Actually Came From
You’ve probably heard the legend that the sign has been there since the days of Knute Rockne. That’s a total myth. Honestly, the real history is more interesting because it was almost lost to time. When Lou Holtz took over in 1986, he was looking for a way to spark some "old school" fire in a team that had gone 5-6 the year before.
He came across an old picture of a sign that reportedly hung in the Notre Dame locker room years prior. Nobody is 100% sure who put the original up or when it vanished. Some credit original athletic department staff from the 40s. Regardless, Holtz asked the equipment manager to recreate it.
The task fell to a sign painter named Laurie Wenger. She used a simple piece of wood, painted it a specific shade of gold-yellow, and hand-lettered those five words in blue. There was no focus group. No branding agency. Just a lady with a brush and a coach who wanted his players to stop overthinking and start playing.
The original one Wenger painted? It’s still there. Well, sort of. It’s been refurbished and touched up because, as you can imagine, thousands of sweaty palms hitting a board every Saturday tends to wear down the finish.
Why Players Actually Hit the Board
It’s easy to dismiss this as "just sports stuff." But if you talk to guys like Manti Te’o or Quenton Nelson, they don’t talk about the sign as a gimmick. They talk about it as a transition.
When a player hits that sign, they are officially leaving behind their personal lives, their girlfriends, their exams, and their injuries. It is a sensory "reset" button. The sound of the slap echoing in the tunnel is the last thing they hear before the roar of 80,000 people hits them.
The Battle of the Brands: Oklahoma vs. Notre Dame
Here is the part that gets awkward for Irish fans. Oklahoma has the exact same sign.
Literally.
If you go to Norman, Oklahoma, you will see Sooners players hitting a "Play Like A Champion Today" sign as they head to the field. This has led to decades of "who did it first" bickering.
The truth? Oklahoma probably did.
Bud Wilkinson, the legendary Sooners coach, reportedly put their version up in the late 1940s. Notre Dame’s modern version didn't appear until Holtz arrived in '86. However, Notre Dame fans will tell you that the phrase existed in South Bend lore long before Wilkinson was coaching. It’s a stalemate.
Does it matter? Not really. In the world of college football, tradition isn't about copyright; it’s about execution. To a kid growing up in Indiana, that sign belongs to the Irish. To a kid in Oklahoma, it’s a Sooner staple. Both are right in their own way, though the Notre Dame version has arguably become the more globally recognized "image" of the two, thanks to NBC’s constant close-ups during home games.
The Design and the Counterfeits
If you want to buy a replica of the Notre Dame football locker room sign, you have to be careful. The "real" look isn't perfect.
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The font isn't a standard Helvetica or Times New Roman. It’s hand-lettered, which means the kerning (the space between letters) is slightly irregular. The "C" in Champion is a bit wider than you’d expect. The "P" has a specific curve.
Most of the cheap knockoffs you see on Amazon or at Fanatics get the font wrong. They use a generic block font that looks too clean. The real sign looks like it was made by a person, not a computer.
- Color: It's not "yellow." It’s "Leahy Gold."
- Material: It’s painted wood, not plastic or metal.
- Varnish: The original had a slight sheen that has since turned matte from decades of hand oils.
There is actually a smaller version of the sign located in the visiting locker room. It’s a bit of a psychological play. Visiting teams have to see it, too. It reminds them exactly where they are and who they’re playing. It’s subtle, but in a game of inches, every bit of intimidation counts.
What "Play Like A Champion Today" Actually Means
Holtz used to tell his players that the sign wasn't about the scoreboard. That sounds like "coach speak," but there's a nuance to it.
"Champion" in this context isn't a title you win in January. It’s a verb. It’s how you practice on a Tuesday in November when it’s 32 degrees and raining. It’s about a standard of performance that is independent of the opponent.
If Notre Dame is playing a winless team, the sign still says the same thing. If they’re playing Alabama for a title, it still says the same thing. The sign is a reminder that the standard is the standard. You don't play down to your competition; you play up to the sign.
The Ritual in the Modern Era
College football has changed. We have NIL deals, the transfer portal, and massive conference realignments. Everything feels temporary.
But the sign is static.
In 2024 and 2025, as Notre Dame navigated the new landscape of the 12-team playoff, the ritual of the sign remained the one constant. Marcus Freeman has leaned heavily into this. He understands that for a program like Notre Dame, the history isn't an anchor—it’s the fuel.
New players—transfers who grew up cheering for Ohio State or LSU—often talk about the first time they get to touch the sign. It’s the moment they feel like they finally "belong" to the lineage. It’s an induction ceremony that happens every single game day.
How to Apply the "Sign" Mentality to Real Life
You don't need a golden helmet to use this logic. The Notre Dame football locker room sign is essentially a physical anchor for a high-performance state of mind.
Psychologically, humans perform better when they have a "start" ritual. It tells the brain, "The messing around is over. Focus now."
If you’re looking to bring some of that Irish energy into your own space, don't just hang a sign because it looks cool. Use it as a trigger.
- Identify your "Field": What is the one area of your life where you need to be at your absolute best? Your home office? The gym? The kitchen?
- Define your "Champion" standard: What does a perfect day look like for you? It isn't about being perfect; it's about the effort being perfect.
- Create a physical touchpoint: It doesn't have to be a sign. It could be a specific coin on your desk, a certain song, or even a literal slap on the doorframe as you walk into your workspace.
The magic of the Notre Dame sign isn't in the paint. It’s in the agreement the players make with themselves when they touch it. They are agreeing to give everything they have for the next sixty minutes of game time.
Actionable Steps for the True Fan
If you’re heading to South Bend or just want to honor the tradition properly, here is what you need to do.
First, if you ever get a stadium tour, don't just take a selfie with the sign. Look at it. Look at the wear and tear. Imagine the legends—Joe Montana, Jerome Bettis, Rocket Ismail—who put their hands in that exact same spot.
Second, if you’re buying one for your "man cave" or office, look for the "Official Licensed" versions that specifically replicate Laurie Wenger's original lettering. Avoid the ones that look like they were typed in Microsoft Word.
Finally, remember the lesson Lou Holtz intended. The sign is a question, not a statement. When you see it, it's asking you: Are you going to play like a champion today?
The answer shouldn't be a "yes" you say out loud. It should be a "yes" shown through what you do next. That is the only way to truly honor the tradition of the wood and the gold.
Next Steps for Your Notre Dame Collection
To truly appreciate the history, you should look into the specific history of the 1988 National Championship team. That was the year the sign went from a "nice idea" to a national icon. You can find archival footage of the "Catholics vs. Convicts" game against Miami where the sign is featured prominently in the pre-game tunnel run—it’s the rawest look at the tradition you’ll ever see.