Notre Dame had an incredible turnaround this year, led by many new faces on the staff, including two new coordinators. But one of the biggest on-field improvements for the Irish on the field came from their offensive line unit.
Because of that improvement, Notre Dame's offensive line was awarded with the Joe Moore Award, which goes to the most outstanding offensive line unit in college football.
For those who aren't familiar with the award, the honor comes with a trophy that has to be "guarded" and wheeled in, weighing in at over 500 pounds, and standing almost 7 feet tall by 5 feet wide. As Joe Moore Award founder Aaron Taylor explained, the award is for FIVE offensive lineman, so they deserve a trophy that's big.
Here's a look at the trophy and the thought that went into its creation.
Getting back to Notre Dame, to surprise the unit and offensive line coach Harry Hiestand with the award, Brian Kelly started of by telling the team the importance of "finishing" the season the right way, and then asked Hiestand, who was taking notes in the back of the room, to come down to the front to demonstrate what finishing looks like.
You can see the confusion on Hiestand's face as Kelly calls him down in front of the team.
Then Kelly tells Aaron Taylor, a former Irish offensive lineman who has gone on to success as a CBS analyst, that he can take things from here.
That's when they troll the behemoth of a trophy out and Hiestand and the offensive lineman get a standing ovation from the rest of the team. It's a really cool moment.