Notre Dame football might be getting surprise defensive star's return for USC

The Notre Dame football team knows that it’s all hands on deck for its regular season finale against USC. A win and the Irish are in the playoffs for sure. A loss and while they might not be “out” it would certainly be a nerve-wracking couple of days.

In order to win, the Irish are going to need to show up on defense in a big way. And now it looks like one of the biggest defensive stars might be playing in the game.

While most Notre Dame football backers thought that the Irish would need to take on their bitter rival without Howard Cross III, it looks like the defensive lineman could be ready to go after all. Though at this point, it’s still a bit of a mystery.

Notre Dame football could get defensive star back

Cross was spotted going through warmups before the game against the Trojans and that had some wondering if he might be able to play. Then the Irish got a little crafty with how they addressed their injury situation.

The school announced that “all student-athletes listed on the Notre Dame two-deep this week are available.” The twist is that Cross wasn’t listed on the two-deep because he was considered “out” most of the week. 

The phrasing of that update wasn’t odd, it wasn’t the school being cagey. That’s how the release is usually worded, but in this case, it might have been hiding something.

Not long after the update, the media in attendance noticed that Cross was indeed fully dressed. Notre Dame football fans will find out soon enough, but it seems likely the dig defensive tackle could play on Saturday afternoon.