Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/102697
Comeback Player Of The Year: Danny Spond On Aug. 8, junior dog linebacker Danny Spond was taken off the practice field on a stretcher when a headache rapidly devolved into the loss of movement on the left side of his body. Doctors ruled out a concussion, but the headaches intensified and he waited out the next several days in a darkened hospital room, still without use of his left arm and leg, a terrifying state. It wasn't until a few days later that he was diagnosed with severe migraines. When he was feeling somewhat back to normal, he walked out of the hospital and told head coach Brian Kelly that he was ready to get back to work. "We were like, 'This is life we're talking about, not just football. Just chill,'" recalled senior linebacker Manti Te'o. "But he goes, 'I'm going to get ready.'" With the green light from doctors, Spond gradually worked his way up to full contact, cracking the lineup for Notre Dame's third game of the year, at Michigan State Sept. 15, and starting the final 10 games at the versatile position that requires the former quarterback to hold the edge against 300-pound offensive tackles or cover fleet slot backs on passing plays. He finished with 38 tackles and three passes defended, but especially respected second to none for his deep faith, courage and dedication. In film study even before getting on the field, he answered some of defensive coordinator Bob Diaco's toughest questions, according to Te'o, when nobody else knew the correct response. Spond overcame a debilitating migraine suffered during the preseason to play an important role for Notre Dame's defense, recording 38 tackles and three passes defended in 10 starts at dog linebacker. Photo by Bill Panzica "Dan Spond is to me one of the players of the year," Diaco said. "… I wasn't sure that he was ever going to have the functional life he was going to be able to have before that moment … he is a stalwart."