ARLINGTON, Texas – Drue Tranquill had a problem.
Notre Dame’s safety-turned-rover-turned-linebacker was wrapping up a 2017 season during which he’d notched 85 tackles, 10.5 for loss and three fumble recoveries.
He’d proposed to his high school sweetheart in Iceland before season’s start.
He was on schedule to graduate in May 2018 with his degree in mechanical engineering.
A year ago, it all created a problem.
“He almost wasn’t believable, in a sense,” Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said Monday morning before practice at AT&T Stadium. “Guys couldn’t identify with [him] because he was this guy they just couldn’t live up to.