While Notre Dame continues to get closer to the College Football Playoff, its new addition has stood out — senior wide receiver Malachi Fields. A transfer from Virginia, Fields has kept pace with his previous seasons at Virginia in his year under the Dome. So far this season as a starter for the Irish, Fields has a total of 596 receiving yards, five touchdowns and an average of 18.6 yards per game.
His most impressive game of the season came last weekend against Pittsburgh. The senior led with season-highs of 99 yards on seven receptions, tied his personal career-high of two touchdowns and, most notably, nabbed an immaculate 35-yard one-handed reception.
“It was crazy,” Fields said. “We got a free play because they jumped offside. I was figuring the ball would come to me, so I saw the ball in the air, tried to go make a play, and it happened.” When asked about his reaction to the play in the moment, Fields said, “Watching it back, I was like, ‘Alright, that’s kind of freaky.’”
As a senior leader on the team, Fields spoke about his feelings about the recognition for Senior Day before kickoff.
“Taking it in before, being a part of the brotherhood and just enjoying the moment,” were what Fields described as the highlights of the big day. But while recognizing this, Fields also acknowledges the importance of refocusing. “When you run back in the locker room, you flip that switch and you go to work like any other day.”
But being the new kid in town is not always easy, especially as an out-of-state senior coming to the high expectations of the Notre Dame football program. That said, the team has helped him adjust to a new environment, become a part of a new family and grow as a person.
“Super beneficial, just getting out of that Charlottesville bubble, really being on my own,” Fields said. “Being able to grow with a different set of boys in the locker room and different plays as a whole. It’s just been awesome.”
Fields also cited the impact of head coach Marcus Freeman, both on him and on the team in fostering a sense of community. When asked about what stands out about Freeman, he had this to say.
“How he cares about us as players, but also as a man in the world,” Fields described. “All of his lessons that he talks about that correlate from football to life. He really homes in on that life part on, just being the best man, husband, father, brother [and] son we can be ... that’s just been huge with his teachings.”
But it is safe to say that Fields’ success has not been a one-man effort. The senior transfer has quickly become a regular target for freshman quarterback CJ Carr, who himself has thrown for 2,487 passing yards since taking over for Riley Leonard. He had a couple of words to describe his chemistry with Carr.
“Trust and consistent are the two that I would go with,” Fields said. “He’s trusting in me to make plays, and it’s just continued to show up throughout the season. When he’s throwing the ball my way, I’m usually making a play on it and I just plan to keep doing that. I’m just thankful he has that trust in me that we’ve built throughout summer days and camp and practice each week.”
Notre Dame prepares to face off against Syracuse this Saturday with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m.
