Within a span of 24 hours, Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o's grandmother and girlfriend passed away this week. Saturday night, Te'o took out his frustration on the Michigan St. offense.

His performance earned him the Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the week honor, but his strength in time of adversity earned him even more respect.

He recorded 12 tackles (7 solo), broke up two passes and recovered a fumble as the 20th-ranked Fighting Irish defeated 10th-ranked Michigan State, 20-3. The victory improved Notre Dame’s record to 3-0, its best start to a season since 2002.