The Visor

Pat Kramer successfully walks on to Notre Dame football team

November 16, 2009

Evan Shaub

If in his freshman year at Hoban someone had said that Patrick Kramer was going to be playing football at Notre Dame, they might have received some confused looks.

Kramer started at Hoban as a punter and 2nd string wide receiver on the freshman team, but sophomore year he moved almost exclusively to punting– starting for the first time in the fifth game of the season that year.

Now, in an ironic twist of deja vu, Kramer is again competing for the job of punter at a Holy Cross school, this time as a member of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Unlike most other members of the team, Kramer isn’t at ND on a football scholarship. This chemistry major is there based purely on his abilities in the classroom, and he made the football team as a walk-on when he arrived there. But just because he is a walk-on doesn’t mean he does less work then the other members of the team. Actually, he feels it’s the opposite.

“Almost every player on the team is at the school to play football. They are the best of the best. So if I want to keep up, I have to work that much harder to do so,” Kramer said.

Playing at Notre Dame has also led Kramer to have some opportunities he wouldn’t have otherwise.

“The most famous person I’ve met so far since I’ve been here was Vince Vaughn, he came up for the Michigan State game. I shook his hand and we talked for like 30 seconds,” Kramer said.

Along with Vince Vaughn, other celebrities who have shown up at practices and games include Regis Philbin and Taylor Swift.

“When word got out that Taylor was on campus, the whole student body basically left their classes and started looking for her,” Kramer said. “She’s really tall.”

But according to Kramer the most special experience he’s had didn’t come when he met Vince Vaughn or when he’s talked to Jimmy Clausen in the locker room, it came during the pep rally before the USC game

“The pep rally before the USC game was really special, “Rocket” Ishmael (a former ND wide receiver and the 75th ranked greatest college football player of all time) came and talked to us, and (he) got the crowd pumped up, we all understood what a big responsibility playing well in the game was,” Kramer said.

Kramer never saw the field in the USC game. In fact, he may never see any playing time, but he doesn’t think of it that way.

“If you don’t believe in yourself,” Kramer said, “no one will.”

With the Hoban family behind him, Kramer has found all the believers he needs.

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