Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 5, 2022 15 BY TYLER HORKA I saiah Foskey had some help in be- coming the first Notre Dame foot- ball player in the program's storied existence to record two punt blocks in the same game Oct. 22 vs. UNLV. Obviously, special teams coordinator Brian Mason had much to do with it. He's instilled an incessant fervor to get to the football in special teams situa- tions. But there's a Fighting Irish player who already had that drive before Ma- son arrived on campus last winter. Graduate student linebacker Bo Bauer. "He was coaching everybody up, es- pecially me, to get a punt block," Foskey said. "He gets a couple of punt blocks every year. We're going back and forth trying to get punt blocks, but I think I'm ahead right now." He'll remain ahead. B a u e r b l o c ke d a punt against Marshall in Week 2, his first and only block of the 2022 season. Then he tore his ACL the week lead- ing up to the Stanford game. He'll never block another punt in a Notre Dame uniform. It's over for him in South Bend. His Fighting Irish career is finished. Well, sort of. Not really. The sideline coaching Foskey spoke of? It's as undying as Mason's teachings of relentless pursuit. Bauer is a fixture in ev- erything Notre Dame does from Sunday to Saturday, even though he can't suit up. Head coach Marcus Freeman said that's how it should be. "If you're going to be on this travel squad or you're going to be at a game, you have to have value," Freeman said. "A guy like Bo Bauer or [graduate stu- dent wide receiver] Avery Davis, this is their last year and they're captains. They have to understand, and they do. "I don't need to tell them where there is value or what they can give back to this football team or how they can help this football team." Davis tore his ACL for a second time in nine months during preseason camp. He was on the field with the wide re- ceivers, crutches and all, within a week of suffering the injury. Even before he had surgery, he was present at practice on the sidelines, walking gingerly but observing and supporting. Younger players see that. It resonates with them. It pushes them to do all they can between the white lines because their elder team captain can't anymore. "You're not going to find a guy that's more respected than Avery Da- vis," Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees said. "From his peers, to the coaches, the way he has handled himself, you want to talk about heart- break for the program — everybody has felt that for Avery." Davis isn't in it for the adoration or con- d o l e n c e s , t h o u g h . He t r u ly wa n ts to keep aiding in Notre D a m e 's e f fo r t s a s much as he can for as long as he can. Free- man demands the same devotion from every player who's out long-term, from sophomore quarterback Tyler Buch- ner (shoulder) to junior tight end Kevin Bauman (ACL). And everyone in between. "I don't care if you redshirt, I don't care if you're not going to play, if you're injured, what value do you bring to our football program?" Freeman said. "If you don't have value, why are you here? If you're waiting for your turn, then watch the game at home." Freshman tight end Eli Raridon didn't watch the UNLV game from home. He, too, suffered a second ACL tear within a calendar year in the days leading up to the tilt with the Rebels. He was on the sideline pregame and actively engaged all day. Freeman does not want him to fall into the shadows now that he can't play. He wants him to push even more boundaries. "Shoot, I would love to see Eli coach up [junior All-America tight end] Mi- chael Mayer and give Michael Mayer some pointers," Free- m a n sa i d . " I d o n 't k n o w h o w M a y e r would take that, but I would like to see that. "That's going to help Eli grow because Eli is going to be a guy that is going to do big things for us in the future." B a u e r a n d Dav i s can't directly contribute to Notre Dame football beyond this season, meanwhile. But what they continue to provide for Freeman, his assistants and the current Irish players will stick with the program well beyond this season. Dedication to the degree with which they've displayed it does not die overnight. It lingers for a long time. Just ask Mason. He had Bauer playing on the Irish's punt return, punt, kickoff return and kickoff teams. Bauer logged a team- high 102 special teams snaps at the time of his injury. No other Notre Dame player had more than 82. Bauer told Mason he wanted to play ev- ery special teams snap for the entire duration of the season. Mason likely would have let him had Bauer not gone down. "That's somebody who was really a warrior for us," Mason said. "I'll forever love him for that. It's an example I can forever use." ✦ Graduate student linebacker Bo Bauer is making the most of his college career-ending knee injury by continuing to lead as a captain and supporting, even coaching up, his teammates from the sideline. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER STILL CONTRIBUTING Injured players must provide value for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame "If you don't have value, why are you here? If you're waiting for your turn, then watch the game at home." FREEMAN