Notre Dame linebacker JD Bertrand named Academic All-American
Notre Dame linebacker JD Bertrand picked up one more collegiate honor before he enters the NFL in 2024. He was named a College Sports Communicators first-team Academic All-American, the Irish announced Tuesday.
Bertrand is the 37th Notre Dame player to make the CSC Academic All-American First Team and the first since fellow linebacker Drue Tranquill, who now plays for the Kansas City Chiefs, in 2016 and 2017.
According to a Notre Dame press release, Bertrand has a 3.62/3.74 grade point average and is a member of the Alpha Mu Alpha Marketing Honor Society. He won the 2022 Paul D. Gilbert Award for Leadership, which the Notre Dame gives to a “marketing student who has excelled in various extracurricular activities.”
Along with Bertrand, Notre Dame tight end Davis Sherwood and linebacker Jack Kiser were selected to the CSC Academic All-District Team. Kiser graduated summa cum laude with a 3.968 GPA and a degree in cumulative business analytics, while Sherwood has a 3.892 GPA as a science-business major.
On the field in 2023, Bertrand made 75 tackles (40 solo), compiled 2.5 sacks and defended 4 passes. He also forced a fumble in Notre Dame’s win over Wake Forest, strip-sacking the Demon Deacons’ quarterback and setting up an Irish touchdown on the next play.
Bertrand, a two-time captain, totaled 266 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 7 passes defended in his Notre Dame career. He was also a finalist for the Wuerffel Trophy — college football’s premier community service award — and the William V. Campbell Trophy, also known as the Academic Heisman.
The Roswell (Ga.) Blessed Trinity Catholic graduate started 34 games with the Irish at the middle (“Mike”) linebacker position. Despite missing a game and a half with a concussion, he finished second on the team with 613 snaps played on defense in 2023. Only Xavier Watts, the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner as college football’s national defensive player of the year, played more. Because his communication, leadership and presence were so essential to its defense, Notre Dame couldn’t take Bertrand off the field.
On the community service side, Bertrand has been the president for Uplifting Athletes for two years. He helped the Notre Dame chapter raise over $80,000 to help children with rare diseases and their families.
While Bertrand never made an official announcement, he will enter the 2024 NFL Draft. He accepted an invite to the Senior Bowl, which will be played at 1 p.m. ET on Feb. 3, with the hopes of being selected in late April.
