SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison allowed himself one offseason distraction while preparing for Saturday’s season opener at No. 20 Texas A&M.
Morrison wanted to see how the EA Sports College Football 25 video game portrayed him.
The game served its purpose as a fleeting fascination from his main focus — recovering from offseason shoulder surgery and proving he’s healthy enough to maintain his status as one of the nation’s top defensive playmakers.
“I made an impulsive decision,” Morrison said. “I don’t play video games, but being in the game, I decided to go buy PS5. I plugged it in one time, played the game one time, and I haven’t plugged it in since. I’m mad I spent that money, but I had to get it. As a kid, you dream of things like that to see your hard work pay off a little bit.”
Morrison hopes to see even bigger dividends from his work ethic starting this weekend.
The quest begins for the seventh-ranked Fighting Irish begins in one of college football’s toughest pressure cookers, a Kyle Field crowd topping 102,000 fans who pride themselves on making sure Texas A&M retains its status as home of the 12th Man — especially in coach Mike Elko’s debut.
The good news for Notre Dame is defensive backs coach Mike Mickens already sees Morrison getting back to his old ways.
“He’s approached the game as a pro,” Mickens said. “He worked hard in his rehab and he hasn’t missed a beat since he got out (of rheab).”
Morrison had arthroscopic surgery in March and missed most of Notre Dame’s spring practices along with the spring game. Expectations remain high as Morrison lines up against promising Aggies quarterback Conner Weigman and a receiving corps that could be one of the SEC’s most dangerous.
He begins this season as a second team preseason All-American with aspirations of following his father, Darryl, and his uncle, Gill Byrd, into the NFL.
“Having that injury was a little setback for me but understanding I can get back to full go before game one was big for me,” Morrison said. “Once I learned that information, I just attacked every single day and put my head down and worked.”
In 2022, he had six interceptions in his last five games including two against Clemson, the second an electrifying 96-yard pick he took for a touchdown, and three against Boston College.
Morrison was so good he earned freshman All-American honors from multiple media outlets, Pro Football Focus and the Football Writers Association of America. And he was so good, quarterbacks became wary of testing the 6-foot, 190-pound Phoenix prep star last season.
Still, he picked off three passes and led the FBS’ top pass-efficiency defense with 10 breakups. He limited Biletnikoff Award winning receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. of Ohio State to 32 yards.
“I love it when I get to go against the best cornerback in the country,” Notre Dame receiver Jayden Thomas said, referring to practice. “It’s competitive. We talk in the locker room, like, what coverage was that, what could I have done better, what our weaknesses are, what our strengths are. It’s nice to get to go against a guy like ‘B-Mo’ just to get better.”
While throwing away from Morrison may seem like the wiser move, opponents face other dangers if they do.
Safety Xavier Watts and defensive tackle Howard Cross III both returned in hopes of leading Notre Dame to the 12-team playoff and winning the program’s first national championship since 1988.
Watts and Cross are both first-team preseason All-Americans. Watts is the reigning the Bronko Nagurski Award winner, which goes to the nation’s top defensive player, after picking off an FBS-leading seven passes in 2023.
As for Morrison, the goal is simple: In a college football world where offenses seem to mirror video games, it’s his job to make sure this one looks different.
“I really don’t care about that stuff too much,” he said, discounting his player rating and the offseason awards. “I care about Game 1.”
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