Notre Dame Football Highlights vs. Virginia Tech
Nov 12, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; Army Black Knights quarterback Malik McGue (16) is sacked by Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker James Onwualu (17) in the fourth quarter at the Alamodome. Notre Dame won 44-6. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports(Photo: Matt Cashore, Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports)
Story Highlights- Notre Dame vs. Virginia Tech, 3:30 p.m., Saturday, WTHR
SOUTH BEND Years in the future, James Onwualu will look back and watch memorable games from his career at Notre Dame.
They wont be games you think.
h**l pull film from losses.
There was the one at Florida State in 2015. The No. 2 Seminoles beat the No. 5 Fighting Irish 31-27 in Onwualus sophomore year. Then there was the monsoon game at Clemson the following season. The No. 12 Tigers hurt No. 6 Notre Dames College Football Playoff hopes with a 24-22 win that night during Onwualus junior season.
The senior linebacker will of course remember the victories, too like the time the Irish blew out Michigan in Notre Dame Stadiumtwo years ago. But its failure and adversity most of which has been experienced over the past 10 games that Notre Dame players believe will aidtheir lifes successes.
You put so much into a game and then you end up losing it, so thats the ones that you really feel and are flying home not very happy, and thats what you kind of remember, said Onwualu, who will be playing his final home game on Saturday when Notre Dame faces Virginia Tech on senior night.
Most players on this roster had never truly experienced failing in football before this season. The senior class had lost 12 games total prior to 2016but have already made up half the difference with the current 4-6 record. Various players have been asked throughout the season if they could remember their last losing one, whether in high school or peewee.
Sophomore linebacker Asmar Bilal, a Ben Davis graduate,took a solid 30 seconds to answer. He said he couldnt recall. Brian Kelly has had only one losing season in nearly three decades of coaching: in 2004 with a Central Michigan team that went 4-7.
What might not be as clear now is that some of the most valuable lessons are disguised in failure.
I think that this season has really proved to me that in order to achieve greatness, you have to see what its like to be on the other side of it, quarterback DeShone Kizer said. Last year I was thrown into the fire and came out pretty successful. And that was my whole career up until that point was me being a top athlete in a leading position and being successful.
This year has been the first year where I didnt have the start that I really wanted to have and I really had to experience what I was like to be a losing quarterback. And with that I think Ive learned quite a bit in a sense of, in order to maintain the elite stature and maintain success, you have to be able to feel what its like on the other side, so you can appreciate what goes into being successful.
Before coming to Notre Dame, Kizer won a state championship at Central Catholic High School in Toledo. Then in his first year as a starter in 2015, Kizer led the Irish to a 10-3 record on their wayto the Fiesta Bowl.
Asked if hes seen proof of adversity turning into something positive in aspects of his life away from football, Kizer jokingly referenced his finance grade.
It started off a little weak, he said, refusing to give up what the actual grade was. Now Ive definitely put in a couple more hours in tutoring to pick that back up.
It became apparent after the third loss to Duke when the team was sitting at 1-3 the record got as bad as 2-5 after Stanford that this group would have to find a new goal. There would be no playoff, no national championship. Kelly was asked if hed lost the team.
Thats when players started finding small victories in order to keep up morale.
Its just the energy, the attitudeand the leadership have been the biggest things that this team has accomplished this season, left tackle Mike McGlinchey said. Its easy to just kind of keep going into practice every day, jumping around, having fun when youre 10-1 going into the last game of your season like we were last year. This year, its obviously been a little bit harder to understand what this team is working for now.
McGlinchey has noticed a closeness, that the team actually has a tighter bond, which he says is the biggest victory we could have had.
I think it could have easily gone the wrong way, he said. And thats the biggest thing weve held onto this year.
So, why didnt it go in the wrong direction? A losing season, a defensive coordinator fired, a head coach on the hot seat, a vote of confidence from the athletic director all of those things might appear to equate an outward perception of turmoil.
Players cite the culture, senior leadership and young players wanting a role.
We havent stopped, Onwualu said. Theres not a guy on the team that I would say has quit on what this season is. They still come to work and still are trying to become better players. I think you dont really see that in a lot of other programs.
Follow IndyStarreporter Laken Litman on Twitter:@lakenlitman.
Source: http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/college/notre-dame/2016/11/18/notre-dame-football-finds-lessons-2016-failures/94026718/
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