Michigan LB Fulfills Dream of Playing for Notre Dame with Transfer
Notre Dame’s linebacking corps for 2021 picked up some more depth on Thursday night when former Michigan linebacker Adam Shibley announced he was using a graduate -transfer to walk-on at Notre Dame. In his announcement on Instagram, Shibley stated that playing for Notre Dame fulfills a life-long dream.
Shibley enrolled at Michigan as a walk-on before earning a scholarship and playing a reserve role the last two seasons. He played in five games for Michigan in 2020 seeing his most action when NFL-bound Cam McGrone, a one-time Notre Dame recruiting target, was injured. He recorded 20 tackles on the season with 2 TFL. Shibley was expected to be in the mix for a larger role with the Wolverines in 2021 with McGrone leaving early for the NFL.
Where Shibley fits into the rotation at Notre Dame is not totally clear. The Irish linebacking corps will look much different in 2021 with Jeremiah-Owusu Koramoah also headed to the NFL, but there are no shortage of internal candidates to fill out the lineup.
Jack Lamb, a former 4-star recruit, transferred from Notre Dame to Colorado after an injury-plagued career at Notre Dame, but the Irish return three different players who played at BUCK (now referred to as WILL in Marcus Freeman’s defense) in Marist Liufau, Jack Kiser, and Shayne Simon. One of the three could be a candidate to move to ROVER. Notre Dame also adds the high school Butkus Award winner, Prince Kollie, in the summer.
Shibely played on special teams at Michigan before he got his two career starts in place of McGrone, so a role on the Irish special teams unit is more likely than a regular role in Marcus Freeman’s defense. If nothing else, a former Michigan scholarship player announcing on social media that walking on at Notre Dame is fulfilling a life-long dream is sure to stick in the craw of many a Wolverine fan. For that, Shibley is already one of my favorite players on the roster.
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
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