Will Pauling has history with new Notre Dame football teammate Devonta Smith

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Notre Dame football players Devonta Smith and Will Pauling previously faced each other in a game between Alabama and Wisconsin.Pauling had a successful game against Smith, catching nine passes for 83 yards and a touchdown.Pauling transferred to Notre Dame and was reunited with wide receivers coach Mike Brown, with whom he had worked at two previous schools.

SOUTH BEND — Devonta Smith and Will Pauling, two of Notre Dame football’s key transfer additions, have some history.

Last September, as Smith and Alabama rolled to a 42-10 road win over Pauling and Wisconsin, the defensive back and the equally loquacious wide receiver got to chatting at Camp Randall Stadium.

“You have to ask him what he said to me on the field,” Pauling said after a recent spring practice session. “I asked him, ‘Bro, do you remember what you said to me on the field?’ “

Smith, who was in coverage against Pauling for part of that afternoon, pleaded ignorance.

“He’ll define himself as a little bit of a ‘crash-out,’ “ Pauling said. “That’s a term. He said he doesn’t even remember what he said, but he said something pretty crazy.”

Smith, the favorite to succeed Jordan Clark as the starting Irish nickelback, won’t meet the local media until this weekend. But Smith and Pauling already have their running joke, even as they match up from time to time on the field this spring.

“Mostly it gets him going,” said Pauling, an inch shorter than Smith and listed at the same 192 pounds. “He’s a competitive guy, going at it. He’s a great player. I can’t wait to get all the way back in so we can get after…

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Publish date : 2025-03-24 13:32:00

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