Drew White: Notre Dame's New Medicine Man At Linebacker
As the starting Mike linebacker at Notre Dame with aspirations to also get into the medical field, junior Drew White could not find a better model to emulate than current Fighting Irish orthopedic surgeon Brian Ratigan.
From 1989-92, Ratigan was a linebacker on the Lou Holtz-led teams that perennially vied for the national title. After a brief stint in the NFL, Ratigan went on to finish medical school before advancing to his current position.
Not always voluntarily, White has come to know Ratigan almost too well, first because of a broken ankle incurred during the 2018 spring of his freshman year that not only dropped him off the two deep but pretty much the three deep as well.
This spring, after trending toward succeeding the graduated Te’von Coney at Mike linebacker following the first three practices, White fractured the AC joint (top of the shoulder) in what he described as a “freak” snow skiing accident during spring break in which he wasn’t even going fast but fell awkwardly.
White was fixed up again by Ratigan, but the window of opportunity to earn a major role in the lineup appeared to be closed.
“I’ve talked to Dr. Ratigan a lot,” said White, who also missed part of his high school junior year with a foot injury. “…He’s one of my favorite guys here on the staff. I love talking to him about everything.”
The initial disappointment of the second major surgery was soon replaced by more hunger.
“I used it like every other injury I had before this,” he said. “It was just more adversity that I was going to have to overcome. It was going to make me a stronger, tougher person and open up another chapter in my book that I’m writing.”
The current chapter includes White not only in the starting Mike role but also enrolled in the College of Science where his 15-credit fall semester includes a physics lab for his pre-med requirement, and a dual major (Science/Business) for students who want to be in both pre-med and business. (White is taking management courses on the business end.)
What the Notre Dame coaching staff has learned about White is to never count him out — and they were glad to have a second opinion, always popular in the medical field.
Although he was a consensus three-star recruit (two stars by Rivals and zero stars by ESPN when he first committed the Irish in March 2016) at superpower St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., White did receive offers from the likes of LSU, Michigan and Ohio State.
From a football family — brother Sean White was the starting quarterback at Auburn in 2016 before running into off-the-field issues — White played on three straight Class 7A state champions at St. Thomas Aquinas while excelling against premier competition. This included 14 stops (11 solo) against Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, the nation’s No. 1-ranked program, his senior year.
“When people reference me as being a ‘surprise,’ it always comes from the ratings,” White said. “It was something that I never really looked at, never really paid too much attention at. Being a guy on that [St. Thomas] team, I never really saw myself as being a surprise. I saw myself as a good defensive player.”
He held off the challenges of more touted sophomores such as Shayne Simon, Bo Bauer and Jack Lamb, as well as more seasoned veterans such as Asmar Bilal (starting at Buck, although he has worked at Mike), Jordan Genmark Heath and Jonathan Jones, to be the starting Mike.
“He has incredible self-awareness,” noted Notre Dame defensive coordinator Clark Lea. “He knows exactly what his strengths are, what his weaknesses are. He doesn’t shy away from that. And so he tailors his approach to maximize. Guys that play within their strengths and know where their weak points are, that kind of limits their exposure in that way.”
In his starting debut at Louisville, White finished with five tackles, two for lost yardage, and ended one series with a sack and pass broken up on consecutive plays. As the Mike linebacker, his prime role is to help align the defense correctly and play downhill, which is his forte.
“Finding that position at Mike linebacker has really allowed him to elevate himself with the right role,” said head coach Brian Kelly after the 35-17 victory against the Cardinals. “He has accepted that role and has physically developed himself to play that position.
“He played with a confidence and a fluidity at that position that he’s going to be able to build upon and play at a really high level for us.”
“That guy’s a winner,” Lea said. “He’s fought through adversity and hasn’t wavered, hasn’t backed down, has been counted out probably 100 times — and there’s something to be said about someone that resilient.
“He’s got a long way to go … he has to earn it every day. We’re proud of him and the ground he’s covered, especially in the midst of the adversity he’s had.”
Finding the right remedy and cure at linebacker is in process, but White has become used to healing ailments, now and maybe even the future.
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