For at least the past few years, Notre Dame has held its Friday football pep rallies in the Joyce Center, fans usually filing in for the 60 to 90 minute show featuring speeches from players, coaches and invited guests. It's become one of those college weekend traditions. Except this season, the where is the big question.

With Notre Dame renovating the Joyce Center and it likely taking up much of the early fall with five of its first seven games at home, the athletic department is currently figuring out what the plan of pep might end up being.

"Trying to figure that out right now," Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said. "What the alternatives are. I think we'll probably do a number of different things. "It may mean we have fewer, frankly, because of the logistics of figuring all of that out. We're trying to deal with that right now."

Swarbrick didn't commit to any particular pep rally spots, but the school used to hold pep rallies in the Stepan Center prior to moving to the Joyce Center. It also moved the 2005 pre-USC pep rally to Notre Dame Stadium.

So there are options -- and Swarbrick may think of other things before August. But one thing is certain, it'll be in a different spot this year.

ONE OTHER NOTE ON THE STADIUM... Swarbrick said the renovations to the lower bowl of the Stadium are also going as planned and that fans won't see a difference when they enter the Stadium in 2009.

"It's a function of age and there's nothing that will appear different to you when you're in it," Swarbrick said. "You'll have the comfort of knowing the concrete you're sitting on is likely to stay in place while you're sitting on it. It won't go anywhere.

"It's the seal coating so the water doesn't eat away at the rebar and the concrete. Just making it better."