When Notre Dame DT Howard Cross III became Michael Jordan

On the flight from South Bend to Durham, N.C., Howard Cross III felt like he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t hear out of either ear, either. He couldn’t sleep that night, still feeling awful at the team hotel. 

Cross had a sinus infection, with a pivotal top-25 matchup against Duke the next day. Missing the game, though, was not an option. 

“You don’t not play unless you’re dying,” Cross said. 

Night fell in Durham, and the veteran defensive tackle was still sick. “You know what?” He told himself. “If you’re in the game, just start running. It’ll get out.” It didn’t, but he forced himself to go anyway. And he made his presence felt early, even if he wasn’t entirely aware of it. 

“I didn’t even register what was happening,” Cross said. 

When the Blue Devils — led by quarterback Riley Leonard — took the field for the first time, Cross pressured him alongside graduate student defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste. He helped make 2 stops for no gain later in the drive, forcing a field goal attempt. It was no good. 

“OK, cool,” Cross thought. “Let’s keep it going.” 

He continued to feel pain. At one point, someone ran into him on the sideline and he couldn’t stand up straight afterward. He looked toward his dad in the stands for guidance. Howard Cross Jr. did what he always did: He pumped his arms, making the universal signal for “Run.”

“You run, you make things happen, so run,” Cross Jr. said. “So he looks up and he’s pointing to his head. I’m like, ‘Eh, doesn’t matter. Run!’ And he started running through guys.” 

With 17 seconds to go in the first half, Cross saved a touchdown. On third-and-5 from the Notre Dame 7-yard line, Leonard dropped back and saw the middle of the field part like the red sea. No one stood between him and the goal line. No one except Cross, who blasted his blocker back 5 yards. 

Cross stuck his right hand out and forced the football loose when Leonard tried to escape. Duke fell on it, but the ensuing field goal attempt missed as well. The Irish entered halftime up 10-0.

Before leaving the field, Cross III turned around and looked at Cross Jr.

“All right,” Cross Jr. told his son with a look. “Let’s see the next one.” 

“I’ll be out huffing and puffing, because obviously I can’t breathe out of anywhere,” Cross III said. “I can’t hear, because of the pressure in my ear. I look at my dad and my dad’s like, ‘Just keep running! You’ll feel better!’ I’m like, ‘OK.’” 

Cross totaled 5 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, in the fourth quarter alone. But he put everything he had left into his 13th stop of the night. He dusted his blocker, hurled himself at Leonard and got the ball out again, clinching Notre Dame’s 21-14 win. 

“In the locker room, [someone said], ‘Oh yeah, you had 13 tackles,’” Cross said. “I’m like, ‘I had what?!’” 

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