Last year, Notre Dame QB CJ Carr honored his younger brother, Chad, on the 10th anniversary of his passing: “You know what Chad would have loved? You know what that kid would have appreciated more than anyone? He would’ve loved me picking Notre Dame. I never really gave it much thought at the time, but I do think that one big thing Chad taught us all was about doing the unexpected, and not being predictable, and trying new things. He always had the courage to not just go along with the plan. And while I wasn’t thinking about that when I chose Notre Dame — I just loved the school and the program — when you look at the totality of his life, he’s a good representation of not being afraid to go against the grain. So maybe he kind of took some of that light and put it into Tommy and me, to where we can do something different, or don’t have to always do what our parents or our parents’ parents did. Who knows, right? But maybe. Regardless, Chad would crack up about me going to Notre Dame, for sure. Like: Don’t let anyone tell you what to do. Do what you want! I can almost hear him laughing about it in my mind. And that makes me smile. I think about him all the time, and at the end of the day, he is a huge source of inspiration for me. For him to go through that tough time, and all that pain, and still keep a smile on his face and keep that positive attitude? I can’t explain to you how much that drives me to push through any challenges that I might face. I mean, let’s be real, if Chad could go through chemo and, eventually, not being able to move his left arm and leg at all, and still be cracking jokes and keeping everyone’s spirits up … I can absolutely choose to do hard things. After watching him be so tough, my context of what is truly hard is very different. I honestly can’t believe it’s been 10 years since we lost Chad. I wish that he could be with me in the flesh on game days. I know he would be up in the stands, screaming his head off. (Hopefully dressed in Notre Dame gear!) But there’s no doubt in my mind that he actually is there with me in spirit. Watching over me. Cheering me on. Hoping I do something awesome … or at least something funny. The reality is that, even though he’s in a different place, Chad continues to live on through everyone in my family. And, you know what else? He’s given all of us a gift. Maybe the greatest gift I’ve ever received in life.” playerstribu.ne/Carr @13Cjcarr | @NDFootball