BE alum sets golden standard at Notre Dame

Like so many players who have played under the golden dome before him, University of Notre Dame football player Leo Albano gives his school a rousing thumbs-up for its football and academics. But the former Bishop England standout student-athlete, who is a senior academically in South Bend, takes it one step further.

 

“Notre Dame totally exceeded any expectations I had in terms of faith, football, academics, the family aspect,” Albano said. “Everything was what you would expect and only dream about and then some.”

 

Albano recently concluded his career as a member of the Fighting Irish football team. His academic and athletic success germinated at Bishop England, where he was all-state in three sports, including football, baseball and basketball.

 

As a football player at BE, Albano rewrote the school’s record book. He set school records for a single season in rushing with 1,639 yards in 2017. He also set the school record for touchdowns in a single season with 28.

 

Albano also owns two career records. He scored 67 career touchdowns and owns a school-best 4,017 career rushing yards. He had nearly 7,600 total yards.

 

When it came time for Notre Dame to cast its recruiting nets, Albano’s senior year (2017-18) at BE, coach Brian Kelly saw that Albano’s skills, passion, dedication and work ethic would make him a perfect fit for the fighting Irish. Albano joined the Fighting Irish as a preferred walk-on and most of his time was as a member of the scout team. But Albano continued to work hard, and he made the traveling squad his senior year, quite a Rudy-esque accomplishment for a walk-on.

 

He played in four games this season for the Fighting Irish, who began the season with Kelly at the helm of the program, and concluded it with Marcus Freeman as head coach after Kelly departed to coach at LSU.

 

Albano played in four games, and carried the ball for the first time in his career in his last home game in South Bend. He gained a yard. He also saw special teams’ action in road victories.

 

“Playing in those games was really a crazy experience,” Albano said. “I got to play in two of the most hostile environments in college football (Florida State and Virginia Tech), and just to see all of the hard work start to pay off was really rewarding. I am just thankful for the opportunity.”

 

Albano has a 3.33 GPA, working toward a bachelor of science degree in chemical and biomolecular engineering. After college, he’s planning to use his chemical engineering degree in the oil and gas industry or the chemical industry. He has no set plans yet though. 

 

Albano has played on Notre Dame teams that have qualified for the College Football Playoffs and major bowl games.

 

The final game of the season was a loss to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl, spoiling Freeman’s head-coaching debut. Still, Albano says Notre Dame made the right hire.

 

“I think the team responded remarkably to coach Freeman,” Albano said. “You can really tell he cares about his players and wants to prepare us to the highest degree. He does a fantastic job of motivating and just getting people where they need to be and making sure everyone knows their role and competes as hard as they can in everything they do.”

 

Leo is not the only Albano on campus. His sister, Emma, is a member of the Bishops’ track and field team after a most impressive prep career.

 

“I see my sister about one to two times a week on campus whether that is in passing or at Sunday Mass,” Albano said. “Hopefully with more time this semester I will be able to spend even more time with her.”