Safety Griffith Gets Second Chance With Notre Dame

With the new transfer exemption, players can enter the portal and move to a new school without having to sit out a year. For graduate transfers such as Houston Griffith, the opportunity for immediate eligibility with a new program was already there.

The senior safety for Notre Dame flirted with the idea of making of change, but he ultimately chose to return to South Bend to finish up his collegiate career. As Mike Berardino with the Chicago Sun Times pointed out in a recent article, the move is paying off for Griffith.

“I felt like two things needed to happen for Houston: opportunity and then making the best of the opportunity,” Irish coach Brian Kelly said, via CST. “What is making the best? What does that equal? I think a lot of that has been just an awareness of the situation that he’s in and using what I think is outstanding athletic ability and applying it to the particular situation.”

Some players are going to move on when things aren't going their way, but Griffith chose to fight through the adversity. His 2020 season didn't go as he had hoped, so the intent was to find a new home where he could play. After less than three weeks in the portal searching for that new home, the need for a move was no longer there.

This isn't going to always be the case, but it should be celebrated when it happens. Good for Griffith, and good for Notre Dame. Hopefully he continues to push towards becoming a leader for the Fighting Irish in new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman's defense.

Follow Clint Lamb on Twitter @ClintRLamb.