Thousands in town for Sooners vs. Irish boosting local economy
by millions  South Bend, Ind. Thousands of football fanatics are
in South Bend for the big game Saturday – and they’re spending
millions of dollars.  According to the Notre Dame’s recently
released impact report, every home game generates about $18
million for the local economy.  But, some business owners say
that boost is even bigger when teams travel a longer distance to
play.  “When they’re close by like Purdue or Michigan State,
people might just come in on a Saturday, go to the game and then
go home that night,” said Jonathan Lutz, owner of the Mark Dine
and Tap. “When they’re traveling for an Oklahoma game or a USC
game, they usually come in on Thursday. So, we get busy.”  Lutz
said The Mark had about 100 more reservations each night the
weekend of the Oklahoma game than it did during the previous
home game.  In order to ensure they can keep up with the demand,
The Mark offers a smaller menu home game weekends so they can
quickly feed famish