MIAMI – Declan Sullivan would have loved this weekend. For all the doubts his family has confronted in the 27 months since the death of their first-born son, his father is certain about that.

“Like a lot of the kids in our neighborhood, Declan grew up a Notre Dame fan,” Barry Sullivan said. “He heard the stories in our house, we took him to games, it was always a part of his experience and in a way, I guess, his identity. That’s what made him so determined to go there.

“But as he got a little older, he began to appreciate what made it special, beyond just the football. ... Then he got into business school there and he’d call home, talking about the value of Notre Dame degree.