"Y’all don’t know how historic this is”: College hoops fans react as Skylar Diggins-Smith pours her heart out to Hannah Hidalgo and Notre Dame stars
Former Fighting Irish guard and current WNBA star Skylar Diggins-Smith visited her alma mater to pour her heart out to the No. 1 ranked Notre Dame.
Notre Dame women's basketball shared Diggins-Smith's message on Instagram on Thursday.
"You got an army of people behind you," Diggins-Smith told the Notre Dame stars. "It's a huge responsibility that not a lot of people get to do that. We get to do that."
The Seattle Storm guard told the team that although playing for Notre Dame is a responsibility, it's also a privilege:
"These are the best times that you get to have in that jersey," Diggins-Smith added. "It's a privilege, so don't take it for granted."
Fighting Irish fans flooded the comments with their reactions to the WNBA star's pep talk. Some pointed to the talent in the room with the alumni and current players.
"There's a LOT of TALENT in this room rn. Y'all don't know how historic this is," a fan wrote.
"Talent galore in that jaaawwn!🔥," another fan said.
"There's a lot of knowledge, experience and talent standing up there!! I love this," one fan commented.
Others took to the comments to share their love for Diggins-Smith:
"Skylar my fav player cuz she leaves it all out there and plays winning basketball," one fan posted.
"Sky The Leader😭🤝🏽🦍," another fan wrote.
Diggins-Smith commented on the post as well:
"Almost made me cry! The sisterhood runs deep🍀," Diggins-Smith wrote.
Notre Dame's road to No. 1
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish entered the 2024-25 season in the No. 6 spot after a Sweet 16 appearance last year. Notre Dame cracked the top five with an appearance at No. 3 in Week 4 but dropped seven spots the following week. The team was back at No. 3 by Week 7, where the Fighting Irish stood until Week 14.
Last week, Week 15, Notre Dame made its first appearance at No. 2. This rise in the rankings came after a week in which the team defeated ACC newcomers Stanford and California.
Throughout Week 15, Notre Dame had just one conference contest, a win over Pittsburgh. However, another essential thing that allowed the Fighting Irish to overtake the top spot happened: the top-ranked UCLA fell to rival USC by nine points. When the Week 16 rankings came out on Monday, the Fighting Irish took No. 1 for the first time since 2019.
Now, the Notre Dame stars will look to focus on Skylar Diggins-Smith's advice and pick up wins in the final three ACC contests to stay in the No. 1 spot through the end of the season.