Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1527190
18 OCT. 12, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TYLER HORKA J unior Tuihalamaka's first career collegiate interception was about more than a milestone. It was about a highly recruited player, the No. 19 linebacker in the country in the class of 2022 per the On3 Industry Ranking, proving he's finally turned a corner. Notre Dame had been waiting for the junior to do so. Tuihalamaka is a defensive end now. The Irish transitioned him to that spot in the wake of the program's all-time sacks leader, Isaiah Foskey, moving on to the NFL, thus freeing up depth chart space at vyper. It never clicked for Tui- halamaka as a sophomore, though. Forty-seven Notre Dame players re- ceived a defensive Pro Football Focus grade for the 2023 season. Tuihalamaka ranked 39th. Among the 23 Irish defensive players who logged at least 75 snaps, Tui- halamaka ranked dead last among them with a season-long PFF grade of 60.1. In Week 4 of this year, seven days after Notre Dame lost starting vyper Jordan Botelho for the season with a knee in- jury, Tuihalamaka received the highest defensive game grade of any Irish player in the 28-3 win over Miami (Ohio). He recorded an 87.5. Cornerback Christian Gray came in a distant second at 78.6. The aforementioned interception had much to do with both of those scores. Gray jumped a slant, broke it up and sent the ball flying into the air. Tuihala- maka came over from the other side of the field to dive under it. "I knew it was going to be a quick pass, the ball was going to get out, so I just had to understand that I could be the guy to help anywhere," Tuihalamaka said. "I saw Christian bat the ball. I saw an opportunity and took it." He wasn't seeing such opportunities in his first two years at Notre Dame. The awareness he displayed and the quick wits he utilized in that moment were attributes not showing up as a freshman and sophomore. Sometimes it takes a few years for talented players to tap into their potential. Not everyone plays right away. Head coach Marcus Freeman has al- ways stood by that philosophy. He calls it the "long, bumpy road." Some roads are longer and bumpier than others. Tuihalamaka's wasn't the smoothest of paths, for instance. But he still navigated to get where he is today, a playmaker for a Notre Dame defense that figures to be one of the na- tion's best once again at the end of the year. Botelho's injury played a huge part in Tuihalamaka's increased exposure, but the junior has earned what's coming his way, too. "It's just a reflection of the prepara- tion he's put in, the depth, the oppor- tunity that was presented — he capital- ized off of it," Freeman said. "It's a great example for everybody in our program; you're always one play away. "He was playing a little bit for us, but obviously in an increased role, he had a lot of production [against Miami (Ohio)]. That doesn't happen with luck. It happens because of preparation, and he's put a lot of work in. I'm excited for him and happy that he was able to get that production." Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden, who's been Tuihalamaka's DC for all three years in South Bend, couldn't be any more excited or happier for Tuihalamaka as well. "I said it to him during the week; 'You're practicing your a-- off. You're having a really good week.' And he went out there and played really, really well," READY FOR IT Thrown into the Notre Dame lineup because of a starter's injury, Junior Tuihalamaka is capitalizing on his opportunity "It's just a reflection of the preparation he's put in, the depth, the opportunity that was presented — he capitalized off of it. It's a great example for everybody in our program; you're always one play away." HEAD COACH MARCUS FREEMAN ON TUIHALAMAKA