Zbikowski sees legacy of someone to be counted on

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- There has been popularity and pain, touchdowns and tribulation, two head coaches, three defensive coordinators and a Rodman-like array of hairdos (mop-top, Mohawk, buzz).

Tom Zbikowski isn't quite ready to sit back and take stock in it all, not with USC coming to town and four more games to follow. But in the twilight of a truly unique career at Notre Dame, Zbikowski reflects on how he wants to be remembered.

"Somebody who can always be counted on," he said, "whether we're winning or losing."

The latter certainly has tested Zbikowski this fall.

He envisioned a vastly different outcome to his fifth and final season. On media day, he sat in a sweltering Loftus Center, spoke about bringing the nasty back, and seethed over the bleak forecast for the Irish, notably the 1-7 prediction made by ESPN analyst Mark May.

Ten weeks later, Notre Dame is a loss away from meeting May's mark. Barring an upset Saturday against the 13th-ranked Trojans (2:30 p.m., Channel 5), Notre Dame will miss the postseason.

"It's been tough," Zbikowski said. "I was miserable early on."

He reached out to his parents, Ed and Sue, who helped him refocus.

"We don't like negativity," Ed Zbikowski said. "We always try to think positive. Nobody likes losing, but Tommy's not the type of guy to run away from a fight in the alley."

Tom has experienced losing before. He watched the bowl-less 2003 season from the sidelines and started all 12 games in 2004, when Notre Dame went 6-6 and Tyrone Willingham was fired.

But nothing prepared him for this.

"We weren't coming off a BCS season," he said of past letdowns. "This year has been harder, but it's almost been more rewarding, just to get a chance to see what you're made of as a leader."

With the team's top goals out of reach, Zbikowski has redirected his energy, namely toward helping Notre Dame's young defenders. The Irish have played three true freshmen on defense and list 11 freshmen and sophomores on the defensive two-deep.

Ball hawking and boxing made Zbikowski an icon early in his career, but his role as a leader has proven more important this fall.

"He's their fallback guy," said linebacker Maurice Crum, a defensive co-captain with Zbikowski. "If they need help, they know they can go to him."

Despite the team's struggles, Zbikowski is starting to recapture what made him one of college football's most exciting players in 2005. That year he scored 4 touchdowns (2 interception returns, 2 punt returns), picked off 5 passes and ranked 13th nationally in punt returns, one spot behind some guy named Devin Hester.

After boxing at Madison Square Garden in June 2006, Zbikowski entered his junior season with skyscraping expectations. An NFL scout attending the Notre Dame-Michigan game called Zbikowski a can't-miss early draft pick who certainly would skip his final season at Notre Dame.

But a shoulder injury against Purdue in Week 5 changed the script. Zbikowski, who also battled a lower-abdomen injury last season, missed a game against Stanford. He recorded no interceptions and only 1 forced fumble, and opted to return for a fifth year.

"I was about 60 percent," Zbikowski said. "My lower-abdomen injury, no one really knew anything about, so that didn't help. The shoulder was the worst by far. I couldn't lift it straight up in the air for about a week-and-a-half.

"It was definitely a struggle."

Healthier and slimmer this season, Zbikowski's playmaking skills have returned.

He forced 2 fumbles Sept. 8 at Penn State and snapped a 21-game interception drought Sept. 29 against Purdue. Zbikowski followed with a forced fumble in Notre Dame's win at UCLA.

First-year defensive coordinator Corwin Brown has used Zbikowski at several spots, which could pay off in April.

Zbikowski's projected draft stock varies. Several Web sites list him among the top five senior safeties. ESPN's Mel Kiper doesn't include Zbikowski in his top five after ranking the Arlington Heights native second in September 2006.

NFLdraftscout.com lists Zbikowski as the top strong safety and the 55th rated senior overall.

"This season Zbikowski has more often been allowed to blitz and has shown both instincts and good closing speed with this opportunity," NFLdraftscout.com senior analyst Rob Rang wrote in an e-mail. "His stock has improved as he's shown more versatility."

NFLdraftscout.com analyst Chad Reuter projects Zbikowski as a third-round pick.

"Where he gets selected will be determined by a team's need for his particular skill set," Reuter wrote in an e-mail. "A team that plays zone and uses that eighth man around the line quite often will value him higher than a team looking for someone with cover skills and great range."

Rang and Reuter didn't think Notre Dame's struggles would significantly impact Zbikowski in the draft. His body of work in college likely won't be overlooked.

Zbikowski already owns team records for tackles by a defensive back (260) and fumble-return yards (100). Saturday, he will make his team-leading 44th career start.

"There's no regret," he said. "I'm glad I'm here helping the younger guys out, being with Coach (Charlie) Weis, getting a chance to work with Coach Brown.

"It's definitely all positive."