Tionne Gray is having fun.
The 6-foot-5, 320-pound defensive lineman enjoys playing the game of football and Gray is having the time of his life playing for the blue and gold.
“Honestly, it's just my escape from reality,” stated Gray. “When we're out there, I just love the physicality of being able to hit somebody without getting in trouble. Football brings a sort of peace to me."
Last weekend, Gray made his third start for the Irish against then-No. 1 Miami.
Gray knew he had to raise his level of play with the Hurricanes in town, especially with Francis Brewu and Jason Onye listed as out for the game.
The increased responsibility led to a season-high 43 snaps on Saturday, but Gray didn't even notice the added workload during the game.
“In the moment, I didn't really feel it,” Gray said. “I was ready to go to continue going and do whatever we have to do to win. But after the moment, I looked up like, dang. It's my first time playing that many snaps.
“It was like the high school days again. But now all I know is I got the feeling of how that feels. I know from here on out how to attack my recovery after games like this.”
Gray admitted he felt the increased snap count on Sunday, but he wouldn't trade that soreness for anything.
“I'm a very competitive person,” said Gray. “Anybody, any team that runs up in front of me, I'm going to dominate you and win every rep I get. I don't care who’s in front of me. No matter who it is. It could be an HBCU to a Georgia. I’ll win the play.”
When Gray wasn’t getting held across the field, the St. Louis native was causing chaos in the middle of the field.
Gray came up big before halftime, batting down a Darian Mensah third-down pass to force a punt. Notre Dame's offense capitalized with a touchdown to extend its lead to 17-3.
“Honestly, that feels just like getting a sack almost,” smiled Gray. “You saw my celebration. I did the seat belt. In the moment, that's something we go over every day at practice, batting the ball down and finding any way to affect the game for us.”
Notre Dame Stadium also came alive Saturday night, something Gray noticed throughout the win and he believes the fans made a difference.
“It's like an unexplainable feeling,” explained Gray. “You just feel like you're on top of the world. You got the momentum, you got the energy, everybody around you has the energy. Everybody keeps on telling you, ‘Let's go. Let's do it again for the next play and the next play and the next play.’ It’s just like a good feeling to keep going and to keep attacking.”
Gray and Notre Dame now turn their attention to Boston College, with the challenge of avoiding a letdown following the emotional win over Miami.
The celebration was fun, but Gray believes the Irish are already locked in on what they need to accomplish this weekend, especially with their season hanging in the balance.
“We celebrate it that night,” Gray stated. “As soon as it hits 12 a.m., and now it's Monday, on to the next. We have to forget about it and move on and continue to attack. Now it’s Boston College. Miami's in the past. We can't live off the hype anymore. It's a good feeling, but now we have to put it to bed and get ready for the next challenge.
Gray has been through this before.
He experienced the rankings, playoff hype and outside noise a year ago while at Oregon. The added pressure of the final three games won't be new to him and Gray knows what it takes to get to where Notre Dame wants to go.
“As we get into November, this is when we got to really double down on our recovery because you don't want to get into the playoffs, and then that's when we’re all banged up and at our worst,” said Gray. “Just going that deep into the playoffs last year, it just gives me the experience that I have and I could share with them and just tell them, ‘Hey, we ain't there yet.’
“We didn't get to the final stage yet, nor did we pass the final stage yet. We have to keep attacking like we haven't done anything yet.”
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