Jeff Burris: Notre Dame's Ironman

Note: Earlier this week Notre Dame hired one of its own, 1990-93 defensive back/running back/special teams ace Jeff Burris, as a defensive analyst on the staff. The role is not that of an on-field coach, but to provide input and aid to the staff with current personnel and in recruiting (where he is able to assist on campus but not off).

The first-round pick played 10 years in the NFL before getting into coaching at the high school level in 2007. He worked from 2013-15 with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, where last October he was promoted to assistant defensive backs coach.

On the 25th anniversary of Blue & Gold Illustrated in 2006, we listed Notre Dame’s 25 greatest players from 1981-2006, with Burris at No. 14.

In football, the triple threat is generally defined as a runner, receiver and return man, a la Tim Brown (1984-87) or Raghib “Rocket” Ismail (1988-90). In 1993, Notre Dame had a different type of triple threat in Jeff Burris, who took the label one step farther: special teams, defense and offense.

Burris was the Ironman of Notre Dame football in the 1990s, and peerless in that area since then to this day. The first-team AP and UPI All-American free safety in 1993 set a standard for future Notre Dame players with his versatility, durability, production and sheer love of the game.

A member of Notre Dame’s No. 1-ranked 1990 recruiting class in which he was one of five future first-round picks — along with Jerome Bettis, Tom Carter, Aaron Taylor and Bryant Young — Burris was a USA Today second-team All-American pick as a tailback. However, the two-time South Carolina player of the year enrolled at Notre Dame in a year where the backfield was the deepest and most talented in its history.

Let’s see, there was senior Ricky Watters, who is now No. 23 on the all-time NFL rushing list (10, 643 yards).

Then you had the Brooks brothers, Tony and Reggie. Tony would finish his Irish career sixth on the school’s all-time rushing chart, and Reggie – after a stint at cornerback because of the depth on offense – rushed for 1,343 yards and 8.0 yards per carry as a senior, and then surpassed 1,000 yards as an NFL rookie with the Washington Redskins.

In 1990, Notre Dame also had another future Pro Bowl player at tailback in sophomore Dorsey Levens, who would transfer to Georgia Tech.

Rodney Culver would lead the 1990 team in rushing with 710 yards…and, lest we forget, Ismail, the Heisman runner up that same year, was inserted as a “closer” at tailback and rushed for 537 yards and eight yards per attempt.

Oh yeah, that guy named Bettis, prior to receiving “The Bus” moniker, arrived the same year as Burris and last year was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, where he is the sixth all-time leading rusher (13,662 yards).

Amazingly, Burris still managed to carry six times for 30 yards as a freshman, including a touchdown against Air Force. A couple of weeks later he made the transition to cornerback, where he played against Tennessee and Penn State.

“My dream was to play tailback, but I’ve enjoyed being the defensive backfield,” said Burris prior to his final game at Notre Dame. “I wouldn’t change anything about it.”

He did get a chance to run the ball later in his career in short-yardage, goal-line situations, highlighted by six- and 11-yard touchdown jaunts in the victory against No. 1 Florida State in 1993. But it was the overall accomplishments of Burris from 1991-93 that were a testament to his skills and toughness.

· Including bowl games, Burris started a team-high 37 consecutive games and played more minutes than anyone else.

· For three straight seasons, he made the most special teams appearances, totaling 640, and appearing on everything from punt coverage to kickoff returns. Greg Lane was a distant second during that time with 409 appearances.

· As a sophomore punt returner in 1991, Burris finished 12th nationally with a 12.6 average on 18 returns. That average actually was higher than Brown’s during his 1987 Heisman Trophy winning year (11.8) and Ismail during his 1990 Heisman Trophy runner-up season (11.6). Burris’ lone punt return in 1993 resulted in a 60-yard touchdown against Pitt.

· He scored more touchdowns (12) in 1992-93 at Notre Dame than anyone other than Reggie Brooks (13).

· He had more tackles (189) for the Irish in 1991-93 than anyone except linebacker Demetrius DuBose (214), who played from 1989-92.

· He played every position in the defensive backfield during his career, breaking up 14 passes and intercepting 10.

Yet perhaps Burris’ most notable achievement is that despite his extensive activity on the field, he missed less than a handful of practices — spring and fall — during his four-year career. Whenever it was time to punch the time clock, Burris was there, with more overtime hours than anyone else.

“I take pride in showing up every day, but it’s the love of the game and the great people I’m around that makes it that much easier to do,” Burris said.

One of his more memorable comments came several weeks after the Irish lost to Boston College, 41-39, to knock them from the No. 1 perch in the 1993 regular season finale.

“We went 10-1, and it seems like we went 4-7,” said Burris, who had a 10-year NFL career from 1994-2003. “But people have been very supportive. If I sat back and thought about all the bad things that happened in my life, I never would have made it to Notre Dame in the first place.

“One of the things I’ve learned being away from home is that the power of choice is one of the biggest things you have. If I had 100 positive choices to start things over again coming out of high school, I’d make the same one I did coming to Notre Dame.”

From 1987-89, South Carolina native Tony Rice donned jersey No. 9 for Notre Dame. From 1990-93, another South Carolina native in Burris carried on Rice’s No. 9 tradition.

Seldom has one number from the same state had such positive impact for consecutive terms at any school.