Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1484072
16 NOV. 19, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY PATRICK ENGEL B enjamin Morrison stood on t h e s i d e l i n e s a t C h a pa r ra l High School in Scottsdale last December, a wide-eyed high school senior at Phoenix's Brophy Prep watching Notre Dame practice before the Fiesta Bowl. Morrison had signed his letter of intent to play cornerback for the Irish, but his June enrollment still felt distant. Nowhere in his mind, he insists, was he watching practice and thinking how he could help a secondary that showed days later it needed a boost. "I was just excited to be on the college practice field," Morrison said. He arrived in the summer still happy to be there. The feeling persisted even when he stepped on the field at Ohio Stadium in the first game after shoehorning his way into a veteran rotation during fall camp. There was Morrison, 18 years old and still all arms and legs, in front of 100,000 fans hoping he'd slip up. "That was surreal," Morrison said. "At the end of the game, although we lost, you had to take it in and realize where you're at right now." If Morrison felt like a freshman then, the two months since have made clear he's one in designation only now. Three games into his career, he stepped into the starting lineup, dislodging junior and 21- game starter Clarence Lewis. He hasn't left since and stays on the field for nearly every snap. There have been growing pains, to be sure, but Notre Dame is willing to live with them for a player who looks like an emergent star less than a year after he signed as MEETING THE MOMENT Freshman cornerback Benjamin Morrison's Year 1 impact is a product of his advanced outlook Morrison, who became a starter one month into his Irish career, had his breakout game against Clemson, making 7 tackles, breaking up 1 pass and notching his first 2 intercep- tions, including a 96-yard TD return. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER