Notre Dame tight end Kevin Bauman has announced he will retire from the game of football.
The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder returned to South Bend for his sixth year and one final run with the Fighting Irish, but that was cut short following another knee injury during practice.
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Bauman’s career has been defined by adversity and injuries as this isn’t the New Jersey native’s first injury.
As a redshirt freshman in 2021, Bauman fractured his fibula in week one and appeared in just five games for the Irish. In 2022, Bauman played in three games before suffering an ACL injury and his 2023 campaign never got started as he partially tore his ACL in the first week of fall camp.
Yet, Bauman never stopped pushing through the adversity he was dealt. He focused on his faith and leaning on those closest to him and he’ll do the same once again.
“My biggest thing is staying present,” stated Bauman. “You got a ton of stuff going on in life, in football. This is some of the stuff I've been through. It's easy to look back and think what if? It's easy to think what am I doing? It's easy to think about the future. I've put a lot of work into trying to stay present, stay in this moment. A lot of that I do through prayer.
“Prayer is a huge part of my life. That's a huge shout out to my family, to my girlfriend, people who I pray with every day, people who've taught me how to pray. It just really sinks into my head. Honestly, how I do that, I tell God that I'm surrendering myself to him. I ask him to please take care of everything. That's something that to me is huge. It takes away that anxiety. It takes away that worry.
“In life and in football, my biggest lesson has been what can I do right now in this moment to get better in whatever aspect of my life. That's important to me.”
In 2024, Bauman did make his return to the field and played in 14 games, including all four College Football Playoff games, while recording one reception and a touchdown.
Bauman believes in this 2025 roster and expects Notre Dame to build on its deep playoff run.
“I think we're as close of a team as any of the six I've been a part of,” explained Bauman. “Even with kind of the landscape of college football, where you've got guys coming in, guys leaving, just different guys coming in and out constantly, this group does a great job of welcoming everybody. You could ask the transfers and some of the freshmen. They feel part of this thing from the second they walk in here.
“I think just with Coach (Loren) Landow, the program he puts us through in the off-season, we're in great shape. I think it's a combination of just the work we've put in with Coach Landow in the off-season, through spring ball, and then also just the culture that we've built here.”
Bauman will finish his Notre Dame career having played in 26 games.
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