Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/680997
UNDER THE DOME TYLER LUATUA DECIDES TO STAY AT NOTRE DAME Tyler Luatua will be at Notre Dame this fall after all. The 6-2½, 255-pound junior tight end an- nounced his transfer from the university in January and appeared to be headed to BYU, but a source in the program confirmed to Blue & Gold Illustrated on May 12 that the plans have changed. Luatua's return, which has been given a blessing from head coach Brian Kelly, will aid the Irish blocking efforts at tight end. After Luatua transferred, the program moved de- fensive lineman Jacob Matuska to tight end, where he excelled in high school. None of the other returning players in the position group — senior Durham Smythe, ju- nior Nic Weishar and sophomore Alizé Jones — are considered top blockers, so the Irish hoped Matuska would provide that. Luatua earned a monogram in both 2014 and 2015, but did not catch a pass either year while used exclusively as a blocker. In 2014, he missed three midseason games with a concussion but had a strong game in the 31-28 Music City Bowl victory versus LSU, even lining up in the backfield as a lead blocker. Last year, he finished behind Jones (203) and Weishar (286) in the final snap count, with a total of 196 — but only 18 came in the final three games. With Luatua's return, Notre Dame is cur- rently projected to enter the fall with 85 schol- arship players. On the day that Luatua's return was re- vealed, junior defensive end Andrew Trum- betti tweeted a photo of him and Luatua with the caption, "Thank god my boy @tualua13 is coming back so I can continue to Daddy him everyday #TheRealClaw #DE-U." — Andrew Owens Luatua announced his intention to transfer in January and appeared to be headed to BYU, but he had a change of heart and will return for his junior season at Notre Dame. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND