It’s a new world for Jasper Scaife.
The West Perth (Australia) native has seen life change quickly over the past three months.
Scaife’s Australian football career came to an end late last year, but a connection with punting coach Mackenzie Morgan soon opened the door to a new opportunity.
A few months later, the 21-year-old is in South Bend as part of the Notre Dame program, learning the nuances of an entirely new sport.
“It's been amazing,” stated Scaife. “It's something I didn't think I'd be doing halfway through last year, but once the opportunity arose and I had some good conversations with my people, it was an easy decision to pursue this. The last three months have been a wild ride so far and I'm just really excited to be here.”
The 6-foot-6, 215-pounder hasn’t been punting for long, but that was actually part of the appeal of Notre Dame.
Scaife watched the success the Irish had with fellow Australian James Rendell and believed head coach Marcus Freeman and special teams coordinator Marty Biagi could help guide a similar transition.
“Still pretty fresh,” Scaife said when asked about learning football. “Coach Freeman and Coach Biagi have been both amazing supporters and mentors for me in my journey here at Notre Dame so far. I owe a lot to them. I'm just very grateful for their guidance.”
Learning the sport itself has been an adventure.
For Scaife, it actually began with video games.
“Halfway through last year, I had a little gut feeling that this might happen,” explained Scaife. “I downloaded Madden. I was getting smoked by these 11-year-olds from Melbourne, which wasn't fun at all. I gave that up pretty quickly.
“Since getting here, it's been a lot of film, a lot of walkthroughs, just good open conversations. The respect and trust I have between the coaching staff here has allowed me to ask questions with no fear. They've all been really guiding and mature with it.”
Rendell and Scaife have met and are good friends, which has helped with the transition to America.
“I've known James for a while now,” Scaife said. “He's a good bloke. He comes from an Australian football background as well. He's like a brother to me. He's been a great mentor. I've got pretty big shoes to fill. If I can be half as good as him, I'll be happy.”
The transition to South Bend starts with the weather. Scaife arrived during the worst part of winter, but has quickly adapted, admitting it’s shorts weather if it’s over 10 degrees.
“I'd probably say the food first and foremost,” Scaife said of the biggest adjustments. “The weather, which if I had a dollar every time someone asked me about the weather, I'd be very, very rich. The food and the weather are probably the two main things.”
Scaife will have four years of eligibility, so despite being a 21-year-old, he’s adjusting with over 20 early enrollees and Notre Dame’s top transfer class.
His age and life experience, however, have already helped him find a role within the locker room.
“I think being around a lot of 17 and 18-year-olds in the freshman class has taken me back to high school, which has been both interesting and humbling,” Scaife explained. “To think that I was once similar to them. I'd like to think that as a 21-year-old with a lot of life experience now in comparison, I'm able to help mentor them through some tribulations they may have over the next couple of years, whether that be relationships, schooling, living away from home. I'm really grateful I'm able to help them and hopefully steer them in the right direction.”
On the field, Scaife is still adjusting to life as a specialist. Coming from a sport where he was constantly running and tackling, spending portions of practice on the sideline has required a change in mindset.
“I think the hardest thing for me has just been not running and tackling and doing all that stuff during practice,” Scaife said. “Just practicing holds and place-kicks, which are equally important on the sideline.
“Coming from a sport where I was running a lot every week and I thoroughly enjoyed that, I feel like a bit of a caged animal at times. It could be a terrible analogy, but we'll run with it.”
In addition to punting, Scaife is learning how to hold for field goals.
“You've got to embrace it,” stated Scaife. “Obviously, it's completely foreign, but I feel like I've picked it up really well. That's only come from the guidance of the coaches and the other specialists.”
As for Notre Dame, Scaife and his fiancée, it didn’t take long to recognize what makes Notre Dame unique.
“Notre Dame is a special place, truly special, because of the balance between athletics and academics,” said Scaife. “A lot of other colleges, I would say, lack that. Whereas Notre Dame is probably the front-runner in having that great balance between sport and then your outside sport life.
“Studying for me wasn't always a goal of mine or a dream of mine. But by God's grace, I've ended up at the greatest university in the world, essentially, and I'm extremely grateful to be here.
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