Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 23, 2024 29 J ack Kiser might not ever play another game at Notre Dame Stadium. Granted, he'd love to. That would mean the Fighting Irish are hosting a first-round College Foot- ball Playoff game. But if the matchup versus Virginia was it for Kiser in South Bend, what a way to go out. Notre Dame beat Virginia, 35-14. Kiser set the all-time p rog ra m re co rd fo r ga m e s played with 63. In 137 years of Fighting Irish football, nobody has donned the iconic golden helmet in a game more than Kiser. He had one of the most impressive sacks of his career in Game No. 63, just to make sure he didn't go quietly into the chilly Northern Indiana night. His night. The kid from Royal Center, Ind., forever etched into the Notre Dame record book. "Growing up an hour away, Notre Dame's a super special place," Kiser said. "To allow people to join in and experience this with me from back home, it's been a big honor of mine." Kiser shouted out trainers and fam- ily, teammates and strength coaches. Coaches in general. His " brothers," some who suited up with him to go against Virginia and some who have departed from South Bend like he will soon no matter if the Irish kick off one more time at The House That Rockne Built or not. Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive line- man Robert Hainsey, for instance, was in attendance. He was a team captain in 2020 when Kiser was a sophomore. Some of Kiser's current teammates didn't even know who it was when he was put on the video board alongside 2023 Notre Dame starting quarterback Sam Hartman. "Guys were like, 'Who's that?'" Kiser said. "I was on the scout team against him." Someday, there will be Notre Dame players who wonder who Kiser is when he makes return trips to his alma mater. But there are also current Irish fresh- men and sophomores who Kiser goes against in practices now who will be able to tell them, "That's the guy who's played more games in our jersey than anyone else ever has." Kiser is the only player on Notre Dame's roster who was in head coach Marcus Freeman's position group when he was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in 2021. Three years and four seasons later, Kiser is one of Freeman's five team captains in his third year as head coach. You can't tell Freeman's Notre Dame story to this point without No. 24. "To see his growth as a football player and a leader over these four years we've been together has been tremendous," Freeman said. "He is truly a Notre Dame man." Senior Day was special for all 29 Notre Dame players who participated in the pregame ceremony. For Kiser, it obviously meant a lit- tle more. But it doesn't mean it's the end. The Irish still have two more regular season games to go, plus the playoff if they win them both. Who better than Kiser to get the team geared up for a stretch run unlike any other in the half a dozen years Kiser has been a fixture in the middle of the Notre Dame defense? He had his moment in set- ting the record on Senior Day. Now he's got a chance to have a few more just as special in the form of qualifying for the CFP, winning some games in it and contending for a na- tional championship. As sweet as a games played record that will be built upon every time he takes the field for the rest of this season is, it's not why Kiser has spent a fourth of his life living, eating and sleeping Notre Dame football. Kiser wants to win it all. To do that, the Irish must win six more games in a row after already rattling off eight con- secutive victories following their loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2. The time for Kiser to really become a legend is now. "The next two games are the biggest stretch of our lives," Kiser said. You gotta go all in no matter what. The fu- ture's uncertain. Whatever happens, happens. Knowing that you didn't leave anything behind, and you did ev- erything you could, that has to be the mindset. "We've been saying it on defense, 'All chips in.' That's just the mindset we have every day when we come to work. On a Tuesday, on a Wednesday — it doesn't matter what day it is. You gotta be ready to give it your all, because you don't know what the future holds." ✦ In the win over Virginia, Kiser set the all-time program record for games played at Notre Dame with 63. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Jack Kiser Immortalized Himself In Notre Dame Lore Tyler Horka has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2021. He can be reached at thorka@blueandgold.com GOLDEN GAMUT TYLER HORKA