Notre Dame puts long snapper Michael Vinson on scholarship

Michael Vinson earned a nickname. He earned a name, image and likeness deal.

Now, he has earned a scholarship.

Notre Dame put Vinson, its senior long snapper, on scholarship Thursday, according to a tweet from his high school coach. He will return in 2022 for a fifth season at Notre Dame. Vinson is in his second season as the Irish’s primary long snapper.

The man nicknamed “Milk” won a 2020 training camp battle over scholarship freshman Alex Peitsch and has played in 24 straight games since. He was a 2020 nominee for the Burlsworth Trophy, which goes to the best college football player who began his career as a walk-on.

"He's got so many fans in our locker room because they see how hard that kid has worked,” former special teams coordinator Brian Polian said in August. “He’s got an incredible skill to throw a ball between your legs 15 yards in 0.7 seconds and do it accurately. That's a pretty elite skill. He has improved himself so much athletically so he can get out there and cover a kick.”

Vinson’s moniker precedes all of that. Former Notre Dame punter Tyler Newsome, a senior in 2018 when Vinson was a freshman, referred to the specialists as the “Cheese Unit.” As a first-year, Vinson had to earn his “Cheese status.” Newsome called him “Milk” – a temporary nickname while he waited to age into cheese.

Former head coach Brian Kelly used the nickname in a September 2018 game at Wake Forest, and it stuck. Eventually, it led the American Dairy Association to sponsor him.

Vinson has two seasons of eligibility remaining and is set to graduate in May.

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