Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE 80 PRESEASON 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED A lmost everywhere you look in the Notre Dame football locker room these days, you'll see products of famous football bloodlines. It starts at quarterback with sopho- more CJ Carr, grandson of Hall of Fame Michigan coach Lloyd Carr. Among the freshmen wide receivers is Jerome Bet- tis Jr., son of the all-time Irish great and former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jerome Sr., and Elijah Burress, whose dad Plaxico starred at Michigan State and then spent more than a decade in the NFL. An- other first-year player, tight end James Flanigan, is the son of former Notre Dame and NFL defensive lineman Jim Flanigan. Next year they'll be joined by wide receivers Kaydon Finley, whose dad Jermichael starred at Texas and was a Super Bowl champion with the Green Bay Packers; and Devin Fitzgerald, son of College Football Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald of Pittsburgh who excelled for 17 seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. On the defensive line, rising sopho- more Bryce Young is expected to figure prominently in the Irish rotation this season. He's starting to remind fans of a certain age of his dad — 1993 Notre Dame All-American Bryant Young. The elder Bryant, a defensive lineman from Bloom High in Chicago Heights, Ill., arrived at Notre Dame in 1990, lettered the next four seasons and was a three- year starter for head coach Lou Holtz. Going into his sophomore season in 1991, Holtz opined, "I think Bryant Young has the chance to be a great foot- ball player." In an early season game at Purdue, Young recovered fumbles on consecutive Boilermaker drives, setting up two touchdowns (one by Bettis) to start a 45-20 rout. Young was on his way toward a stellar season when a broken ankle knocked him out of action. As a junior in 1992, Young was a standout at defensive tackle and teamed with nose guard Flanigan to help cre- ate a formidable line for the Irish. They were at their best in some of the biggest games — holding No. 9 Boston College to seven points, fending off Penn State in the famous "Snow Bowl" game, and limiting No. 4 Texas A&M to just a field goal in a 28-3 Cotton Bowl triumph. Young served as an Irish co-captain as a senior in 1993, along with Jeff Bur- ris, Tim Ruddy and Aaron Taylor. By this time, the South Bend Tribune reported, Young had "sculpted himself into a mountain of muscle, an immovable ob- ject." Holtz lamented that in practice the Irish offensive line, led by fellow All- American Taylor, couldn't handle Young. He was phenomenal from start to finish, earning first-team All-America honors for a 10-1-1 Fighting Irish team that finished No. 4 nationally. Noted the Tribune: "Quietly and competently, Young has provided stability on the de- fensive line and in the locker room. He commands respect." In the epic takedown of No. 1 Florida State, 31-24, on Nov. 13, 1993, Young led the defensive charge with a pair of key sacks of Seminole quarterback Charlie Ward, the eventual Heisman Trophy win- ner. The Irish again closed with a Cotton Bowl victory over Texas A&M, 24-21. The San Francisco 49ers selected Young with the seventh overall pick of the 1994 NFL Draft. His impact was im- mediate: 6 sacks in 16 starts and a spot on the NFL All-Rookie Team for the Super Bowl champion 49ers. It was the start of a stellar NFL career, all with the 49ers, that would eventually earn him a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022. From the start, Young was expected to anchor the 49ers defensive line. He met that challenge and anchored the locker room with a presence that was reflected in the numerous team-issued awards he piled up over his 14 NFL seasons. Eight times, he received the team's Len Eshmont Award, given annually since 1957 for "inspirational and coura- geous play." Considered the 49ers' most prestigious honor, Young won the award in 1996, 1998-2000 and 2004-07. No other member of the 49ers has won it more than twice. By 1996, he had blossomed into a dominant force at defensive tackle, turning in his best season statistically: 84 tackles and 11.5 sacks, a figure that led the team and shared the NFL lead for all defensive tackles. As a result, he earned first-team All-Pro honors and the first of his four Pro Bowl nods. Bryant Young Made His Mark As A Hall Of Famer And A Champion In Life In 1993, his senior year at Notre Dame, Young was named a first-team All-American and helped lead the Fighting Irish to a 10-1-1 record and No. 4 national ranking. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS