Notre Dame football names three new captains for Sun Bowl
Notre Dame football found itself in need of new captains for the Sun Bowl.
Three of its season-long captains chose to skip the bowl game to prepare for an NFL future: quarterback Sam Hartman, left tackle Joe Alt and cornerback Cam Hart. That left linebacker JD Bertrand as the only remaining captain heading into the Dec. 29 matchup with No. 19 Oregon State in El Paso, Texas.
Bertrand will now help in his captain role. Notre Dame named Monday three additional captains for the Sun Bowl: defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste, safety DJ Brown and long snapper Michael Vinson.
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Bertrand’s leadership was nationally recognized as one of 16 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, an award that honors the best football player in the country who exhibits academic success and exemplary leadership in addition to football performance. Bertrand, who will play in the 50th and final game of his Notre Dame career, is in line to be Notre Dame’s leading tackler for a third consecutive season. His 75 tackles in 2023 are nine ahead of nose tackle Howard Cross III.
Brown, who has started at safety in all but one game this season, is the active leader in games played at Notre Dame with 58. He’s totaled 45 tackles, one interception, one tackle for loss and three pass breakups in 11 games this season. He missed the Central Michigan game with a hamstring injury.
Jean-Baptiste, who has played in 59 career games at Ohio State and Notre Dame, has started 11 games and played in all 12 during his lone season with the Irish. He leads the Irish in sacks (four) and tackles for loss (9.5) with 47 tackles this season. He also recorded one fumble recovery, one blocked kick and 10 quarterback hurries.
Vinson, a former walk-on, has been Notre Dame starting long snapper since the start of the 2020 season. He’s played in 52 games during an Irish career that started in 2018.
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The presence of a captain on offense was notably absent. The Irish are in a state of considerable transition on that side of the football. On Monday, offensive coordinator Gerad Parker left the program to become Troy’s head coach. Earlier this month, Wisconsin’s Mike Brown was hired as Notre Dame’s wide receivers coach to replace a fired Chansi Stuckey. Notre Dame announced Monday that quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli would serve as offensive coordinator and play caller for the Sun Bowl. Senior analyst Caleb Carbine will coach the tight ends, which was part of Parker’s responsibilities.
Notre Dame’s offense in the Sun Bowl will be without five of its starters from the regular season finale against Stanford last month: Hartman, Alt, right tackle Blake Fisher (NFL), running back Audric Estimé (NFL) and wide receiver Rico Flores Jr. (transfer portal). The offense will also be without four other regular contributors due to transfer portal exits: wide receiver Chris Tyree (Virginia), wide receiver Tobias Merriweather (TBD), tight end Holden Staes (Tennessee) and center Zeke Correll (NC State).
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