American Stories: Gunner Kiel

Gunner Kiel, American Stories NEWPORT, R.I. -- Gunner Kiel has finally found a place to call home.

When Kiel was a senior at East High School in Columbia, Indiana, he was ranked as the No. 1 quarterback in the Class of 2011 after throwing for 4,831 yards and 61 touchdowns in two years as a high school starter.

Kiel originally gave a verbal commitment to Indiana, then to LSU. He enrolled in Notre Dame in Dec. 2011, hoping to follow in the footsteps of his late uncle Blair, who played for the Irish from 1980-83. Kiel never got a chance to wake up the echoes. He spent a year hidden in the background as a redshirt while Everett Golson led the Irish to the BCS National Championship Game, then…