Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 115 the recovery was sometimes lonely and un- bearably long — taxing enough to test the patience of this young patient. One particular night, Newsome admits to just wanting to be better again, immediately, and get back to kicking a football, or playing soccer or just doing anything outside of his hospital cage. Thoughts of "why is this happening to me right now?" were tough to shake. "That's one of the main things that hap- pened to me in my lifetime that has made me realize that nothing is guaranteed," New- some recalled. That's when everything changed. Always one to put others ahead of himself, Newsome believes fate and perhaps a higher power helped him refocus on the message and values he was raised with in small-town Georgia, a perspective that became clouded after the wreck. Newsome's moment of clarity came while meeting some other patients on his floor. One was a shooting victim who suffered a bad leg injury on his eighth birthday. Another was a gifted soccer player near Newsome's age that was battling cancer. A third was a much younger girl whose smile lit up the room and left an indelible and life-changing effect on Newsome that he has carried ever since. "During my time in the hospital, I saw a lot of things that are still with me to this day," Newsome said. "This was God's way of telling me, 'Hey Tyler, this is much bigger than you.'" Newsome explained. "Ever since that day, I've never again asked why. "I've never felt sorry for myself again." Brought up in a giving family and a caring community, Newsome embraced doing unto others as they do unto you. But even Tyler's father, Shane, said his son gained a lasting maturity and context during his time there in Room 352. "That whole experience, the wreck and his time in the hospital, just him realizing that all of what you have in front of you could be gone in an instant," the elder Newsome recalled. "I think it changed his outlook on life." Paying It Forward After several weeks on crutches and many months of relentless rehab, Newsome even- tually made good on that promise to fully recover and play football again, and he also fulfilled a personal vow to never forget and always give back. Faith, fate and fortune brought Newsome to Notre Dame as a scholarship punter, but the strong impact he has made since his arrival on campus in the summer of 2014 stretches well beyond his booming punts on game days. Newsome spent much of his senior season at Notre Dame last year being recognized as one of the best punters in the country and a legitimate professional prospect. But his commitment to community and his work away from football even outshines his per- formance on the field. Be it through university functions, or as part of the football program, or just on his own, Newsome never misses a chance to reach out and give back. He has logged as many if not more service hours than any student-athlete at Notre Dame — maybe in the entire country — and his efforts have not gone unheralded. In 2016, Newsome captured the Irish Around the Bend Award, an honor given to the Notre Dame football player who best serves the local community. The Atlantic Coast Conference also rec- ognized Newsome's community contribu- tions that same year, honoring him with the ACC's Top Six for Service Award that celebrates dedication to community and out- reach programs. During the 2016-17 school year, New- some became one of five Notre Dame stu- dent-athletes to earn the Community Cham- pion Award, a prestigious university honor for student-athletes who best exemplify "the spirit of leadership, commitment and self- lessness" that the school stands for. In doing so, Newsome became the first Irish football player to be recognized with this award since Mike Golic Jr. in 2012-13. And most recently, the standout Irish punter was named as a nominee for the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and put GIVING BACK A car accident in high school almost ended punter Tyler Newsome's football career — it also changed his life