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Irish Captain Leader In The Community

Sept. 25, 2001

By Ken Kleppel

Senior captain Grant Irons will leave an indelible mark on the Notre Dame community.

A vibrant personality, deeply embedded within his Christian faith and humble character, inspires an incomparable drive of service. His colossal smile, that amazingly invigorates the entire campus, sparks the spirit of the University.

“I see myself as just another piece in the puzzle of the whole Notre Dame family,” says Irons.

“Whether it is a professor, a student, a student-athlete, or anyone associated with the university, we all represent each other. We all have important roles. Once we all decide to make that decision to come here, we all were inducted into this family.”

It is one of the fathers of this family, Reverend Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C., whom Irons labels as a mentor.

“He’s helped me tremendously. I really admire not only his accomplishments, but also him as a person. He is so genuine and always out for the greater good, to improve society, and help other people,” Irons says. Hesburgh returns the compliment.

“I find him to be a very fine gentleman. At Notre Dame, a student-athlete ought to be a student first. Grant is that student. He graduated on time and will get a master’s degree one day.”

In May, Irons graduated with a dual degree in management and management information systems. He notched a 3.73 grade-point average in his final semester as an undergraduate at Notre Dame and was a member of the Dean’s Honors List. Irons is currently completing coursework towards a master’s of business administration degree from the Mendoza College of Business.

“Graduation was such an honor,” says Irons.

“It was a dream to just be admitted to the University, let alone graduate. One of the personal goals that I set out was to graduate with a double major. Once that was complete, it was a great sense of accomplishment.”

But what has historically distinguished Irons is his uncanny ability to personify Hesburgh’s call to service.

Reading a list of Irons’ charity work is like choosing a meal at an all-you-can-eat buffet – one item after another, after another. Sooner or later, your selection at the dining hall would reach its limit. With Irons, however, that list just keeps growing.

Irons regularly addresses youths in the greater South Bend area, serving as a primary speaker for Notre Dame Athletes Against Drunk Driving and the Pillar Program, a drug and alcohol awareness series aimed specifically for middle-school students. When he returns to Texas during semester breaks, Irons visits local schools in The Woodlands school district.

“I talk to kids about the importance of making wise decisions and about the importance of believing in themselves,” says Irons, who was named to the1999 American Football Coaches Good Works team in recognition of his ability to better his surrounding community.

Irons communicates well with admiring middle-school students. Yet, his greatest impact may be received by Notre Dame freshmen. During orientation activities each fall, Irons travels from dorm to dorm and welcomes first-year students to campus. In so doing, he represents the Office of Alcohol and Drug Education in relaying an important message to impressionable students.

“We encourage the idea that if students do choose to engage in drinking, to do it wisely. From personal preference I don’t drink alcohol, but some people do. We try to help them do so moderately.”

A five-year resident of Keenan Hall, Irons serves a valuable role in the residence hall community.

“You can become friends with him easily because he is so outgoing.” says Notre Dame senior John Heintz, a former president of Keenan Hall who has worked with Irons on various dorm activities.

“If someone said, ‘Who’s the nice guy on the floor,’ chances are you’d say ‘Grant Irons.’ He always has a smile on his face and sets a good example.”

But his efforts are not limited to pure time, talk, and smiles. Irons established a scholarship fund in 1997 designed to assist students in need of financial aid.

As a senior in high school, Irons was selected as the recipient of the 1997 Dial Scholar Athlete Award, recognizing the top scholar-athlete in the nation, and awarded a $5,000 scholarship. Irons donated the sum to The Woodlands High School for a scholarship named in his honor. The Houston Gulf Association has since matched Irons’ contribution and to date over $15,000 in financial aid has been distributed.

“My family and I have been very blessed and this is one way to give it back in return,” says Irons, who initially announced his intention to attend Notre Dame just following the award’s presentation by Tiger Woods in 1997.

Eric Guerra, program coordinator for student development at Notre Dame, works closely with Irons in establishing opportunities for service.

“Grant is one of the first people I met on campus and he interviewed me when I first came in the summer of 1999,” says Guerra.

“Of all the things that Notre Dame had, I enjoyed talking to Grant more than anything. From that point forward, Grant has been awesome.”

A three-year member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council, Irons served as president in the 2000-2001 academic year and currently serves as a special advisor. Over the course of his career, Irons has spearheaded such projects as the Read Like A Champion Challenge and has participated in several SAAC Pediatric Christmas Parties, once being decorated as a Christmas tree by the children of Memorial Hospital.

“I have to remind Grant that he only has to do so much, he doesn’t have to do everything,” says Guerra.

“He has one of the most genuine hearts I have ever ssen. I can’t say enough about what he does and the influence that he has on other people. He makes people feel great. He brings people into his success.”

Co-captain and defensive end Anthony Weaver confirms the notion.

“I think Grant is a people person,” says Weaver.

“I definitely think what he does rubs off on this team. People see what he is trying to do for the good of others and know that they can do the same.”

A modest Irons quickly turns this credit towards the example set by two-time All-American and 1991 graduate Chris Zorich, whom Irons labels as a role model.

Yet it is Zorich, a third-year student in the Notre Dame Law School, who lauds Irons for his efforts and ability to influence.

“He’s very extraordinary,” says Zorich, who as a member of the Chicago Bears worked closely with the United Way and other organizations in the Chicago community.

“I didn’t start getting involved until I was a professional athlete. Here he is doing this as an undergraduate. It’s just incredible.

“When you’re a leader as he is, people tend to follow. Grant leads by example. After watching him and reading about him, I was fortunate to have a chance to meet and play with Mike Singletary. Singletary didn’t realize it then, but he was a person that everybody was looking up to. It is the same way with Grant,” Zorich says.

“When I cross the line to go on that field, I flick that switch, and leave everything out there with my teammates in going to battle and going to war,” says Irons, who is only the 13th two-time captain since 1900.

“Once the game is over I flick it back, leave everything on the field, and be Grant Irons the person.”

It is Grant Irons the person that endears him to fans.

“It’s flattering to have people come up to you throughout the year. I love talking with everybody. I was in their shoes 15 years ago when my father played in the NFL,” Irons says. Perhaps his mother puts it best

“For me as his mother, the first thing people notice about Grant is his size. Then after talking to him they notice his heart,” Myrna Irons says.

“I love Notre Dame and everything it has to offer,” says Irons.

“I just try to enjoy it as much as I can every day. There is something special in the air, a certain aura.”

With this heart of gold, Irons serves as Notre Dame’s finest ambassador. And today he is its most celebrated son.

Ken Kleppel is a first-year law student at Notre Dame, after working four years as a student assistant in the Notre Dame Sports Information Office.