Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com APRIL 2018 7 UNDER THE DOME ing Notre Dame to 10 victories in 2017 and the Joe Moore Award as the nation's top offensive line, Mustipher has risen to the summit as a model student-athlete. "It speaks to the resilience you build at Notre Dame," Mustipher reflected on his ascent. "This place is hard. It's hard academically and athletically. It's not for the faint of heart. It's not left to the weak, timid or non-committed. "I was down, and it hurt. I just kept my nose to the grindstone and kept chipping away at the goals I had set for myself." He is so far ahead in his academics that his lone class this semester is In- tro To Droid Building, which involves constructing a robot. He also is one of eight team leaders of Notre Dame SWAT teams — the acronym for Sum- mer Winter Accountability Teams — that were begun in the winter of 2017 to forge the turnaround last season. The leaders have a "draft" in which approximately a dozen players in the winter and a few more in the sum- mer (with the arrival of freshmen) are given daily and weekly "points" for their work in strength and condi- tioning, in the classroom, in commu- nity service, etc. With his team in the lead at the start of spring drills, Mustipher jokingly refers to himself as "GM of the Year." He will take on even more of a managerial role in the months to come. KICK-START The announcement Newsome as one of the three captains evoked be- musement and befuddlement to the average follower of Notre Dame. A punter as a captain? Within the Fighting Irish football operation, though, it would have been staggering had Newsome not been named. "It's the guy who's going to bring out the best in his teammates and who is going to represent the university the best and really be the face of the program," summarized Tranquill on why Newsome received more than 50 percent of the vote. "Tyler is all those three things for us. His work ethic is second to none … traits he embodies each and every day without falter. "He brings guys along with him." From a football perspective, New- some could become an NFL prospect at his position. Last year, he did 23 bench press reps of 225 pounds, his 43.8-yard punting average is second all time at Notre Dame to Craig Hen- trich (1989-92), who played 16 years in the NFL, and his leadership made his 2017 SWAT unit then the best on the team when it came to totaling points in strength and conditioning, academics and community service. "Maybe one of our best in terms of holding players accountable," Kelly said of Newsome. Off the field, Newsome needs to complete only one class this semes- ter to receive his marketing degree before attending graduate school. He was a 2017 Allstate American Foot- ball Coaches Association Good Works Team nominee and also was named to the Wuerrfel Trophy Watch List, an award annually bestowed to a college football player "who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement." In 2016, Newsome also received the ACC's Top Six for Service Award and the Notre Dame football team's Irish Around the Bend Award for service in the community. Representing Notre Dame is a form of ministry to him. "I know that each morning I wake up there are millions of people that would love to be in my shoes, so I'd be a fool to let one morning go by and pass it up," Newsome said. "I bring the same amount of energy ev- ery single day to everything because tomorrow is not guaranteed." His blueprint on day-to-day living came at age 16 when a severe car ac- cident resulted in a 17-day hospital day that was touch and go for a while and the projected end to football. In addition to a fractured hip, tailbone, elbow, ribs and back, Newsome suf- fered a cut to his spleen, and his men- tal faculties temporarily were awry. "Part of my brain had a concus- sion," Newsome explained. "It cut off my filter, so I was pretty much saying what I wanted [including dropping F-bombs on doctors]. "Throughout the thick and thin, I've really been blessed. God's looked out for me." During his hospital say, New- some recalled an 8-year-old boy who had undergone an amputation, yet was "smiling ear to ear." Another youngster was battling cancer that prevented him from playing soccer. "I told myself if I ever have the op- portunity to have a platform to come back and really make an impact on a child or someone in the community, I will," Newsome said. "That's some- thing that drives me." On his once broken back, a tattoo reads: Dream as if you'll live forever, and live as if you'll die today. "It's something I live by and often think about," Newsome said. His teammates and coaches have taken note. ✦ Mustipher has started at center in Notre Dame's last 25 games and was part of a unit that won the Joe Moore Award as the nation's best offen- sive line in 2017. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL Newsome, Notre Dame's punter the last three seasons, became the first kicking specialist to be named a captain in Irish history. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA