Standing at 5'10" and 190 pounds, Notre Dame's Joe Pommier doesn't fit the typical build of a defensive tackle. What he lacks in size, he makes up for with heart.
"I know what I can do. I know what I'm capable of. If anybody wants to sleep on me they can, but watch out."
His coach said, "His intensity, his will on the football field. He's full speed. He's got great quickness and he's a powerful young man."
As a junior, Pommier finished with 40 tackles, eight sacks, and 15 tackles for loss. He also helped the Pioneers hold their opponents to 11 points per game.
Pommier added, "Coming into the season we had a lot of chemisttry amongst the team. We work out together, practice together real hard. I think that's what made us really, really good."
The ultimate high point for Pommier and the Pios was getting their chance for revenge against Catholic in the Superdome. Notre Dame took that title game rematch 42-21.
"We always wanted to play them more than anybody else. I guess we formed a rivalry against them. I was really excited to go in there and prove to everybody that we were the ones to win it.
In the Pios program, championship aspirations are not the exception, but the rule. Pommier said his inspiration for his off season grind is the potential for a two-peat, not individual success.
"stats and all that stuff doesn't really matter. The win is all that really matters. Being with my teammates. Being able to celebrate a win is really what is important to me."
