Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547512
BY ERIC HANSEN A nthonie Knapp still remembers the largely one-way conversa- tions about not wanting to play football when he was in fifth grade. Not only was that stance a nonstarter with Knapp's father — Bob, a former college safety at Youngstown State — but the way Anthonie was to play, once he took the field, left no wiggle room for debate. "He said, 'I don't care what you do,'" the Notre Dame junior offensive guard recalled. "'I don't care. Whatever hap- pens, just go out there and try to hit someone as hard as you can.' "And that's all he said." T h e y o u n g e r K n a p p e v e n t u - ally learned to love football, with the sport mostly loving him back, and his approach reflected what his father preached. But every once in a while, Knapp has to revisit that old conversa- tion and remind himself of the enduring weight of those words. And why he never fell out of love with football from that point on. It's the struggles. It's the journey. It's pushing past your perceived limits, even in the darkest of moments. And the buildup to consensus No. 1 Miami's Nov. 7 visit to Notre Dame Sta- dium for a showdown with the Associ- ated Press No. 4/CFP No. 11 Irish was an in-your-face reminder of all of that. A season ago, in Notre Dame junior quarterback CJ Carr's first career start, the Hurricanes' dominance of the Irish offensive line was a major factor in a 27-24 victory that ultimately put Miami into the College Football Playoff in the final at-large spot. And kept the Irish home. FORGED BY FAILURE How a painful night in Miami helped transform Notre Dame offensive lineman Anthonie Knapp — and strengthen the foundation of the Irish offense