He attends meetings and workouts and team functions. He brings energy to the games, slapping teammates enthusiastically as they return to the sidelines. He toggles between wishing no ill on anyone and hoping for battlefield promotion.
Then it happens. The backup becomes the starter. He trades his ball cap for a helmet. He tries his best to project cool, winning his teammates’ confidence, and then tries to alchemize all that preparation into results.
So it went for Drew Pyne. In the second game of Notre Dame’s 2022 campaign, starting quarterback Tyler Buchner sprained a joint in his nonthrowing shoulder, necessitating surgery. In stepped Pyne, a redshirt sophomore. Suddenly he was the Notre Dame quarterback—the belt holding up the pants, the spindle on which the offense is wound.
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How’s he done? Notre Dame lost its first two games of the season. Then, under Pyne, the Irish have gone 9–2. By late November, his passer rating was, down to the decimal point, identical to that of Alabama’s reigning Heisman winner, Bryce Young. (Pyne’s current rating: 155.3)
Pyne was under center when Notre Dame beat No. 7 Clemson, 35–14, the program’s biggest win in recent memory, a triumph that prompted this. At one point, Pyne threw 15 straight completions, the most ever for the Irish against a ranked opponent. To date, he has thrown 22 touchdowns against six interceptions.
And yet it’s probably a good thing that Pyne “doesn’t do social media.” As much as athletes like to talk about the mythical “doubters,” in this case, it’s a real cohort. The most cursory Google search will reveal skepticism about Pyne’s height (5'11"), his provenance (he hails from the monied New York City suburb of New Canaan, Conn.) and his decision-making. The latter concern was accentuated when Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees was caught on video during the Cal game, berating Pyne: “Do your f---ing job.” The clip, predictably, made news and went viral.
Through it all, Pyne has been a picture of poise, both in the pocket and in the crucible that comes with playing the most important position at a quintessential football school. In advance of the USC game—an Irish loss but one in which Pyne completed 23 of 26 passes—he spoke with Sports Illustrated.
Jon Wertheim: What’s the biggest difference between being the starting quarterback and the backup quarterback?
Drew Pyne: Shoot, that's a great question. I've always tried to really pride myself on being able to act like the starting quarterback when I was a backup. My mentality when I came to practice was the same. I was locked in, every single play. I wasn’t taking as many reps, but at the same time, I was always locked in, always vocal no matter what my role was. Even when I was a freshman—I looked back and I must have been a little annoying to the seniors, I could imagine—I was always so vocal. Um, so I think honestly, being able to do that stuff my freshman year and last year was something that really helped me be able to transition pretty smoothly into being the starter. It takes a lot of responsibility to be able to lead every single one of these guys.
JW: How do you envision the fan base?
DP: To be honest with you, I don’t have social media. Throughout every win or loss, I don’t read one negative or one positive [post]. You know, my dad always told me, “If you don’t read the bad stuff, then why would you read the good stuff?”
I think the greatest thing all season was [beating] Clemson. Ever since I’ve been here, for three years, that Clemson game was something never seen before. I mean, our fans came so hard to scream and cheer. They were great. [But] I can’t picture an exact fan because Notre Dame has such a crazy fan base of all different ages, all different races, areas of the country, of the world.
JW: I think you misspoke. You said I don’t have social media—
DP: Oh, yeah. No. Well, I mean, I have accounts and stuff, but I certainly don’t go on them. I haven’t looked at Twitter, or I at least don’t write ’em. I think I downloaded and I think I posted on Instagram after Clemson, but I won’t read anything.
JW: That’s so healthy; that’s so sane; that’s so rare.
DP: There’s no sense in listening to negative stuff. And at the same time, when you play it well, there’s no sense in listening to positive stuff. You could win a game and then next week you go lose, and then all of a sudden they’re up high on you and then they’re down low again.
JW: What’s something about playing for Notre Dame that surprised you?
DP: Just how invested all the guys are on the team. We’re in South Bend and Indiana. I’m not saying anything bad about the city. But the snow, cold weather, and especially right now. I’m actually sitting here in the indoor [practice facility] right now looking at the O-line. They are so close, and they move, they won’t move five yards apart from each other, no matter where they are on the fields or in the facility. So I think just an investment of this whole entire team and university and program. I think the O-line is a great example of that.
JW: I have a son your age. If he was doing something, for no salary, and the boss told him to do his effing job, we’d have problems. How did you process that one?
DP: If something happens, you gotta learn from it. … Sometimes you just ignore the attitude and take the message because he’s a very smart guy.
JW: So, did you grow up thinking Notre Dame, or did something sway you late in the game?
DP: There’s a video of me when I was, like, probably like 2 years old or 3 years old, and I was watching Rudy, screaming, uh, pointing my finger up and screaming, “Go, Rudy, Go!” And so I watched Rudy all the time growing up as a little kid. And then eventually—I don’t know how or why—but I ended up watching Brady Quinn all the time, and he became my idol growing up as a quarterback. When I played Madden, when he went to the NFL, he was my quarterback no matter what. And that’s why I started wearing No. 10 when I was little. I knew immediately when I got here as a recruit that it was special. And, you know, I’m Irish Catholic. All my ancestors came from Ireland. I love it. I think it’s a perfect fit for me.
