Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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58 OCT. 22, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TODD D. BURLAGE I rish junior Bryan Dowd still laughs when he revisits the story about standing at midfield inside Notre Dame Stadium last April, during the Blue- Gold Game, waiting to attempt his first live punt since high school. "I couldn't believe where I was in that moment," Dowd said. "That first punt was such a blur, I have no idea how I even hit the ball. I was just in too much awe." Like riding a bike, Dowd cleared the cobwebs and impressively averaged 42.0 yards on 6 punts with a long of 58 yards during the Irish spring game. "That first punt was funny," added Dowd, who was invited to join the Irish football team this season as an insur- ance backup at his position. "I really don't even remember it, but I think it was decent." When Dowd isn't moonlighting as a punter — he dresses for the Notre Dame home games — his primary job is as the starting goalkeeper for the Irish men's soccer team. A 5-5-1 start to this season isn't ex- actly what the reigning ACC champions and 2021 College Cup qualifiers were ex- pecting. But Dowd explained that play- ing in the mighty ACC — the league fea- tured five top-25 teams in mid-October — and against a difficult non-conference schedule will serve his team well when the ACC Championship opens Nov. 2. "The difficult schedule pays off when we get to the postseason, because we're tested," Dowd said. "It's tough at times, but it helps in the long run." Dowd's assessment certainly held true last season. Notre Dame began its magi- cal 2021 postseason run with a 9-4-3 record before winning all four of its ACC Championship matches on the way to a league title. A week later, Dowd and his Irish won their first three NCAA Tour- nament matches to qualify for only its second College Cup in program history. Along the way, Dowd rightfully grabbed many of the headlines during Notre Dame's memorable postseason. He recorded shutouts in all four ACC Tournament wins. The Chicagoland na- tive then pitched two more shutouts in the NCAA Tournament. In eight post- season games last season, Dowd allowed only 2 goals. And similarly to his first punt in the Blue-Gold Game, Dowd said last sea- son's postseason went by so fast, he never had a chance to savor or enjoy one of the most successful postseason runs ever for Notre Dame. "In the moment," Dowd said, "it's re- ally tough to appreciate how special the team was at the time and how far we had come." Dowd, who owned a 1.24 goals-against average through 11 matches this fall, hopes that the 2022 soccer season will run well into December with a repeat run to the College Cup. But if it falls short, Dowd plans to join the Irish football team full-time. Until then, Dowd will devote his time to Irish soccer, and steal some practice time with Notre Dame football when his schedule allows. "It's an unreal experience," Dowd said of juggling his two sports. "It's some- thing that I never even imagined I could possibly do." ✦ Bryan Dowd Happily Juggling Irish Soccer, Football Duties Dowd, who has served as a backup punter during Notre Dame's home football games, had a 1.24 goal-against average through 11 matches on the soccer pitch. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS ND SPORTS Irish Roundup Through Oct. 13 MEN'S GOLF The Fighting Irish tied for fifth at the Stephens Cup Oct. 10-12 in Juno Beach, Fla. … Notre Dame will compete in the Quail Valley Collegiate Invitational Oct. 16-17 in Vero Beach, Fla. WOMEN'S GOLF Notre Dame finished fourth at the Ivy Intercollegiate Oct. 10-11 in Springfield, N.J. … The Irish will take part in the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational Oct. 17-18 in Lawrence, Kan. HOCKEY (0-1-1 OVERALL, 0-0-0 BIG TEN) The Fighting Irish opened the season with a 5-2 loss at Denver Oct. 7 and a 5-5 tie at Air Force Oct. 8 in the 2022 Ice Breaker … Notre Dame hosts Northern Michigan for a pair of games Oct. 14 and Oct. 16. MEN'S SOCCER (5-5-1 OVERALL, 2-3-0 ACC) Notre Dame fell 2-0 to Louisville at home Oct. 8 … The Irish play at Duke Oct. 14, and then steps out of conference for a match at UIC Oct. 18 before returning home to face Virginia Tech Oct. 21. WOMEN'S SOCCER (11-2-0 OVERALL, 4-2-0 ACC) The No. 6 Irish handed defending national champion and then-No. 3 Florida State its first loss of the season 4-0 Oct. 9 … Next up for Notre Dame is a road swing to Louisville Oct. 15 and Virginia Tech Oct. 20. VOLLEYBALL (7-9 OVERALL, 2-4 ACC) Notre Dame posted its first to ACC wins of the season, 3-0 at Syracuse Oct. 7 and 3-1 at Boston College Oct. 9 … The Irish look to keep the positive momentum going with home matches vs. Wake Forest Oct. 14 and Virginia Tech Oct. 16. — Steve Downey