Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1509252
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 14, 2023 51 IRISH IN THE PROS BY TODD D. BURLAGE F ormer Irish defensive star Harrison Smith has been making big plays with the Minnesota Vikings for 12 years. It wasn't until his amazing performance Oct. 1, however, that the Vikings' star safety added NFL history to his already impressive career résumé. In a 21-13 win over the Carolina Pan- thers — the first victory of the season for the Vikings — Smith piled up 14 tackles, 3 sacks and 1 forced fumble. According to multiple reports, it made Smith the first player in NFL history to reach those three statistical totals in a single game. Additionally, Smith's third sack sealed the win for the Vikings when he came screaming around the right edge on a safety blitz and took down Panthers quarterback Bryce Young on a fourth- and-goal with less than one minute left in the game. "Just an unbelievable performance today. Does not surprise me one bit," second-year Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said of Smith's historic per- formance after the game. "He's some- body who I lean on constantly. One of my all-time favorites. And when we had to have it, he was at his best today." Smith, 34, admitted that during the Vikings 0-3 start, he wasn't holding up his end in the secondary. In fact, Smith had just 14 total tackles in the first three games of this season before doubling that total in his fourth. "I feel like I wasn't really a difference maker, and I've always thought of my- self that way," said Smith, who played at Notre Dame from 2007-11. "This game, I got the stats. But it doesn't matter who got the stats. Who- ever gets a chance to make a play, make it. And that's really all it needs to be." Before the season, Smith contem- plated retirement but returned after taking a pay cut to stay with the organi- zation that drafted him in the first round (29th overall) in 2012. Smith, a Knoxville, Tenn., native, has since made six trips to the Pro Bowl and was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2017. In 163 games playing with the Vi- kings (through Oct. 1), Smith had 34 ca- reer interceptions — which ranked second among active NFL players — and added 974 tackles and 19.5 sacks, all of which are earning "The Hitman" some serious NFL Hall of Fame consideration. ✦ Vikings' Safety Harrison Smith Posts Historic Performance Smith racked up 14 tackles, 3 sacks and 1 forced fumble — a stat line never before seen in NFL history — to help Minnesota notch a 21-13 win at Carolina Oct. 1. PHOTO COURTESY MINNESOTA VIKINGS FIGHTING IRISH HEADLINERS Cole Kmet (Played at Notre Dame from 2017-19), TE, Chicago Bears (NFL) Kmet finally enjoyed the game that Bears fans had been waiting for since he was given a four-year, $50 million contract extension in July. In a 31-28 loss to the Broncos Oct. 1, the Lake Barrington, Ill., native and 2020 second-round draft pick caught 7 passes for 85 yards with 2 touchdowns. Through four games, Kmet had 18 catches for 189 yards and the 2 scores. Julian Love (2015-18), DB, Seattle Seahawks, (NFL) In a 24-3 rout of the New York Giants Oct. 2, Love made a season-high 10 tackles against the team that let him go this offseason after he played four years in the Big Apple. The Westchester, Ill., native made 27 stops through four games this season. A fourth-round draft pick of the Giants in 2019, Love signed a two-year, $12 million contract with the Seahawks in April. Kyren Williams (2019-21), RB, Los Angeles Rams, (NFL) The former Irish standout enjoyed his best game of the season in a 29-23 overtime win over the Colts Oct. 1, w hen he carried a season-high 25 times for 103 yards and 2 touchdowns. For the season, the St. Louis native and fifth-round draft pick of the Rams in 2022 had 64 carries for 245 yards. His 6 touchdowns were tied for the second most in the NFL through Week 4.