The announcement this week of current senior punter Tyler Newsome as one of the three 2018 captains for the Notre Dame football team evoked bemusement and befuddlement to the average follower of the program.
Within the Fighting Irish football operation, though, it would have been staggering had Newsome not been bestowed the honor. Next to engineering majors and two-year starters in linebacker Drue Tranquill and center Sam Mustipher, Newsome received the third highest volume (51 percent) of votes among the 88 ballots cast by his teammates.
A relatively clean record as a citizen, strong academic standing, and deep respect among his peers for his work ethic and demeanor can be valued even more than raw football data.
“People outside have this stigma that production equals captainship — and that’s not really how it works,” said Tranquill, now the 23rd two-time captain in Notre Dame football annals. “It doesn’t always matter about production. It’s the guy who’s going to bring out the best in his teammates and going to represent the university the best and really be the face of the program.
“Tyler is all those three things for us. His work ethic is second to none, he’s going to bring the attitude that we want each and every day, traits he embodies without falter. He brings guys along with him. He’s everything you want in a captain, and we’re so thankful to have him.”
One of the captains last year was seldom used walk-on Austin Webster — another first — to reflect head coach Brian Kelly’s “traits over talent” identity he wants within the program. That’s not to say enormous talent with the right traits don’t get rewarded as well — see Quenton Nelson and Mike McGlinchey, also 2017 captains — but it’s not singular.
From a football perspective, Newsome possesses NFL size and leg strength, although not always the consistency, at his position. Last year he also did 23 bench press reps of 225 pounds, and his leadership made his SWAT unit back then the best on the team when it came to totaling points in strength and conditioning progress, academic results and community service/citizenship. His goals, from the next day to years down the road, are outlined everywhere he goes.
“Maybe one of our best in terms of holding players accountable,” Kelly said of Newsome.
“I’m a football player first and specialist second,” Newsome said. “My mindset is I am one of the guys. It’s nice to know that my teammates also respect me in that same way.”
Off the field, Newsome needs to complete only one class this semester to receive his marketing degree before attending graduate school. He was a 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team nominee and also named to thewatch list for the Wuerrfel Award, which is annually bestowed to a college football player “who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.”
In 2016, Newsome received the ACC’s Top Six for Service Award and the Notre Dame football team’s Irish Around the Bend Award for service in the community.
Representing Notre Dame is a form of ministry for the Carrollton, Ga., native.
“I knew coming into Notre Dame I was going to have very limited time here,” he said. “… I know that each morning I wake up there are millions of people that would love to be in my shoes for one morning, so I’d be a fool to let one morning go by and pass it up.
“I try to be a very consistent guy. I bring the same amount of energy every single day to everything because tomorrow is not guaranteed. I just like to make the most of every day. … Notre Dame always will be Notre Dame with or without me, so I want to make the most of it while I have it.”
Seldom does one hear someone in his early 20s speak about “no guarantees of tomorrow,” but a life-altering experience when he was 16 provided him a blueprint on day-to-day living.
A severe car accident in which he suffered a fractured hip, tailbone, elbow, ribs and back, cut his spleen open and resulted in a serious concussion hospitalized him for 17 days, and it was touch-and-go for awhile.
“Part of my brain had a concussion,” Newsome said. “It cut off my filter, so I was pretty much saying what I wanted. The doctor’s like, ‘You might not play football again.’ And I was like, ‘Get the f- out of my room! I don’t want to talk to you.’
“Throughout the thick and thin, I’ve really been blessed. God’s looked out for me. That’s one of the main things that happened to me in my lifetime that’s made me realize nothing is guaranteed.”
During his hospital stay, he still vividly recalls an 8-year-old boy who had underwent amputation, yet was “smiling ear to ear.” Another youngster was battling cancer on and off that prevented him from playing high school soccer.
“I told myself if I ever have the opportunity to have a platform to come back and really make an impact on a child or someone in the community, that’s one of the main goals of mine,” Newsome said. “That’s something that drives me. I really find that interacting with people in South Bend not only makes the community better, but it makes me a better person.
“Sometimes I feel like I get more of a benefit going than what the other person may. … If I have any chance to help out, I think it’s definitely the right thing to do. It’s really cool when you have an opportunity like that to make a positive impact not only for that individual, but for this university.”
Numerous tattoos adorn Newsome’s body, from verses on faith and family to a geographical outline of his native Georgia.
On his once broken back, it reads: Dream as if you’ll live forever, and live as if you’ll die today.
“It’s something I live by and often think about,” Newsome said.
His teammates and coaches have taken note, as have all those who have come into his presence.
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