Lots of spring visitors and positive buzz has produced little commits lately after quick start to 2018 class. Curious if that changes spring game weekend
I think the staff got a little out of control with offers there in Dec/Jan- the team is sitting at 86/85 scholarships right now. We know its going to be a small class They probably are slow playing guys from committing since they don't have a good grasp yet on size of the class. I think both Michigan and ND taking small classes this year is gonna help out the Mich States, Northwesterns, Iowa, and Wisconsin's of the world. I'd imagine you start seeing the wow this blank team is coming out of nowhere with a surprise class articles soon.
I know this is stupid and not how the staff should recruit but passing on Vann really killed momentum.
the one thing thats baffling me is the OL kids we did take. After years of great OL recruiting this currently is setting up to be a very meh kinda class. ND over the years hasnt had much like in developing those flyer/high upside kind of kids on other positions so its kind of worrying to me that those are the types being taken right now.
This is True but with the classes in front you can take a developmental group. Plus HH had Dirksen in for camp and liked him Early, I trust his evals. Mabry was a Long recruit, he really liked him early at Memphis
or you can distribute the spots to other positions and nab a bigger class at OLine next cycle. Both ways you are betting on the last few classes to fill the positions for a long while and you reduce the deadweight on your roster. I think the last few years have shown the lack of value of flyers and given that ND doesnt run guys off like some other schools do a scholly needs to be handled even more prudently
They are never going to skip the OL and they may have wanted to just get a couple guys that had developmental upside and focus time and energy elsewhere. I think if they go Petit - Frere, Tommy Brown, Ryan Hayes or bust and only go with 3 or 4 in this class that is fine. BTW, what happened with Hayes? I see he's all CB'ed to Michigan now. Were they not recruiting him when he was high on us and that changed?
i actually believe that Hiestand recruits for upside and depth players. not every kid needs to be an eichenberg or kraemer - you need the trevor reuland's and conor hanratty's as well to provide depth and an occasional spot start. Kraemer and Eichenberg are for sure starters this year going forward and then Lugg/Banks/Hainsey look like legit starters as well. Guys who are good don't always want to wait their turn so you get kids who can develop and are willing to wait and if they don't develop, you've got a good team and depth guy - that's what Dirksen and Mabry are. Those guys have games and body types that can develop but they really want to be at ND. Next year, you hit a homerun again at OL when the pickings are good/great.
Hayes visited Mich and now Mich is the leader for him...all they hype for him to ND died down a bit after Mich offered Tommy Brown is dying for an offer and would probably have committed immediately but Hiestand just doesn't like him. Based on what others are saying about how stiff he looks at camps, HH probably made the right decision there It looks like HH is all in on Petit and Warren Ericcson as he still hasn't offered any other OL guys in 2018 class
Didn't you hear about our new S&C program? The flyers will be stars in no time. It was all Longo's fault.
Coach D's Oline Big Board...the top 3 guys all seem like very real possibilities (third one is already committed) again, no Luggs/Kraemers/Eichenbergs in the group but still pretty talented Spoiler Notre Dame has recruited the offensive line at a very high level in recent seasons, and the 2017 Irish line will have nine players that were graded out as Top 100 recruits by at least one service. Fourteen offensive linemen on the 2017 roster were graded out as a four-star recruit by at least one service. The Irish are coming off a year in which they landed four talented line recruits. Offensive tackle Joshua Lugg, offensive tackle Robert Hainsey and guard/tackle Aaron Banks were consensus Top 300 recruits, and three of the four services ranked all three as a Top 240 recruits and two of the four services rated all three as Top 200 players. That list does not include powerful guard Dillon Gibbons, who also has starter talent. Helping Notre Dame's overall numbers is the fact that all but one player from the 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 classes redshirted as true freshman. All four of the incoming players are expected to do the same. Nationally and regionally, the offensive line talent is down a bit in the 2018 class. With that in mind, it makes sense why Notre Dame's offer list to linemen in this class is very small, more than usual. Below is how I rank the linemen on Notre Dame’s board: Nick Petit-Frere, 6-5, 240, Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep Warren Ericson, 6-4, 290, Suwanee (Ga.) North Gwinnett John Dirksen, 6-5, 290, Maria Stein (Ohio) Marion Local - NOTRE DAME COMMIT Penei Sewell, 6-5, 340, St. George (Utah) Desert Hills Ryan Hayes, 6-7, 250, Traverse City (Mich.) West Cole Mabry, 6-6, 255, Brentwood (Tenn.) High School - NOTRE DAME COMMIT Tommy Brown, 6-7, 315, Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei PLAYER BIOS NICK PETIT-FRERE, 6-5, 240, TAMPA (FLA.) BERKELEY PREP Nick Petit-Frere Strongside defensive end 4 STARS Berkeley Prep Tampa, FL RR: 5.8 Ht: 6'5" Wt: 240 lbs Class: 2018 7 POSITION 168 NATIONAL 38 STATE Commitment status: UNDECIDED BGI GRADE: 4.0 UPSIDE GRADE: 5.0 Top Offers: Notre Dame, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Oregon, Texas, USC, Nebraska Petit-Frere is an incredibly talented young offensive lineman that also excels on the defensive side of the ball. A lack of elite size is all that keeps him from being a possible five-star recruit. Petit-Frere has a frame that reminds me of former Florida standout D.J. Humphries, who went on to be a first round pick of the Arizona Cardinals. Petit-Frere does not have ideal height or length, but he is long enough to play on the edge. What makes Petit-Frere a special recruit is his elite athletic skills at the position. He’s not as big or as strong at this point, but Petit-Frere is similar athletically – and perhaps a touch better – than 2017 offensive tackle Trey Smith, who ranked as my No. 1 offensive linemen in the entire class. Petit-Frere has outstanding foot quickness, balance and speed, which makes him dominant on movement blocks, in the screen game and gives him the potential to be an elite pass blocker. Petit-Frere comes off the ball extremely well. He explodes off the ball, plays with good pad level, plays with a good base and shows impressive leg drive. The 6-5 tackle has fast and powerful hands, but he will need to add a lot of strength and weight. JUNIOR HIGHLIGHTS WARREN ERICSON, 6-4, 290, SUWANEE (GA.) NORTH GWINNETT Warren Ericson Offensive guard 3 STARS North Gwinnett Suwanee, GA RR: 5.6 Ht: 6'4" Wt: 290 lbs Class: 2018 19 POSITION - NATIONAL 37 STATE Commitment status: UNDECIDED BGI GRADE: 4.0 UPSIDE GRADE: 4.5 Top Offers: Notre Dame, Alabama, Florida, USC, Georgia, Michigan, LSU, Auburn, Louisville, Miami (Fla.), Ole Miss, Tennessee, Mississippi State, Virginia Tech Ericson is a dominant tackle at the prep level, but in college he projects more as an interior player, where his game is perfectly suited. Ericson is one of the most fundamentally sound and well-schooled players that I’ve seen on film in the last two classes. He plays with a good base and shows very good foot agility. Ericson is a bit of a waste bender and he is a bit tight in the hips, but his technique and agility allows him to change direction quite well. Ericson isn’t long or athletic enough to play on the edge in college, but his technique, instincts and fast hands should allow him to become an elite pass blocker as a guard. Ericson needs a lot of work to reshape his body, but he’s a powerful young blocker who shows a top-notch burst off the line. He explodes off the ball and drives his hips through contact. Ericson works his feet well and displays fast and extremely powerful hands. He’s an excellent finisher and with more weight room work his power projects to an elite level. Ericson’s technique advancement, power and toughness makes him one of the most ready to play linemen on the board for Notre Dame. JUNIOR HIGHLIGHTS JOHN DIRKSEN, 6-5, 290, MARIA STEIN (OHIO) MARION LOCAL John Dirksen Offensive tackle 3 STARS Marion Maria Stein, OH RR: 5.6 Ht: 6'5" Wt: 290 lbs Class: 2018 - POSITION - NATIONAL 35 STATE Commitment status: VERBAL COMMIT Notre Dame BGI GRADE: 4.0 UPSIDE GRADE: 4.5 Top Offers: Notre Dame, Michigan State, Northwestern, Boston College, Iowa State, Kentucky Dirksen is a physically imposing young offensive lineman. Using the term "country strong" is more fitting for Dirksen than any other recruit, considering he lives on and grew up on a dairy farm. Like current Notre Dame linemen Mike McGlinchey and Liam Eichenberg, Dirksen is not pudgy and doesn't possess a lot of bad body weight. He's just large all around, and he showed very good strength even as a sophomore. Dirksen comes hard off the line and shows an impressive leg drive, although he must learn to use his hands instead of forearm blocking most of the time. He's a quality athlete that projects as both a tackle or guard at the next level. Right now Dirksen makes his living as a run blocker, but he shows good instincts in protection and he's athletic and instinctive enough to handle himself in space. SOPHOMORE HIGHLIGHTS PENEI SEWELL, 6-5, 340, ST. GEORGE (UTAH) DESERT HILLS Penei Sewell Offensive tackle 4 STARS Desert Hills St. George, UT RR: 5.9 Ht: 6'5" Wt: 340 lbs Class: 2018 8 POSITION 79 NATIONAL 1 STATE Commitment status: UNDECIDED BGI GRADE: 4.0 UPSIDE GRADE: 4.0 Top Offers: Notre Dame, USC, Alabama, Washington, UCLA, Florida, LSU, Michigan, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Oregon, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Arkansas, Arizona, Arizona State, Washington State, Utah Sewell is a truly massive prospect that is a solid athlete for someone his size. Power and strength is the name of his game. The 6-5, 340-pound blocker makes his living in the run game, where he uses his raw power to drive defenders off the ball. He’s a bit stiff athletically, so he doesn’t get quite the burst off the line as other players on this board, but his size and strength helps him make up for it. If Sewell gets his hands on a defender he’s going to win that battle. From an athletic standpoint, Sewell is better suited to play inside. He can play tackle in a run-oriented offense that won’t ask him to play on an island for 30-35 snaps a game, but in most modern offenses he has outstanding skills for the guard position, but he’s a bit limited as a tackle. Sewell is a bit heavy footed, but he does show good quickness vertically. His change of direction and lateral quickness needs work, which is why him on an island isn’t ideal. Get him into tight spaces and he could be dominant at the next level. JUNIOR HIGHLIGHTS RYAN HAYES, 6-7, 250, TRAVERSE CITY (MICH.) WEST Ryan Hayes Offensive tackle 3 STARS West Traverse City, MI RR: 5.6 Ht: 6'7" Wt: 250 lbs Class: 2018 49 POSITION - NATIONAL 17 STATE Commitment status: UNDECIDED BGI GRADE: 3.5 UPSIDE GRADE: 4.5 Top Offers: Notre Dame, Michigan, Michigan State, TCU, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Northwestern Hayes is more of a tight end at the prep level, but he’s a pure offensive tackle prospect at the college level. At this point Hayes is more about projection, but he has a lot of tools, and if he can fill out his long and thin frame (he’s 6-7, 250 right now) Hayes could be an impactful edge player. Despite his lack of size, Hayes is a physical blocker that gets after it in the run game. He tends to be a waste bender at this point and he has some hip tightness, but Hayes comes off the line hard and plays with solid pad level for a 6-7 player. On top of needing to add a lot of strength and size, Hayes also needs a lot of work from a technique standpoint in order to be a pure offensive lineman. He tends to narrow his base too frequently and he has to start to bend at the knees, and Hayes plays a bit out of control at times. What he does well is fire off the ball and show off good athleticism for his length. Hayes has good speed and quickness. He gets out of his stance well and quickly gets into position. His change of direction isn’t great, but it’s not something that should keep him from sticking on the edge. JUNIOR HIGHLIGHTS COLE MABRY, 6-6, 255, BRENTWOOD (TENN.) HIGH SCHOOL Cole Mabry Offensive tackle 3 STARS Brentwood Brentwood, TN RR: 5.7 Ht: 6'6" Wt: 255 lbs Class: 2018 37 POSITION - NATIONAL 14 STATE Commitment status: VERBAL COMMIT Notre Dame BGI GRADE: 3.5 UPSIDE GRADE: 4.0 Top Offers: Notre Dame, Indiana, Cincinnati, Memphis Mabry is a unique prospect, and not the typical Notre Dame prospect. He’s not a highly ranked player, being ranked as a consensus three-star player. Mabry is a bit thin right now and he needs to add a lot of strength and mass to his 255-pound frame. What makes him a key pickup is not what he is, but what he can become in time. Mabry is thin right now, but he has a massive 6-foot-6 frame that should allow him to easily get to 300 pounds. He’s a tough kid, and once he fills out he should develop into a powerful blocker. Mabry is a high quality athlete that possesses strong agility and good open field ability. If he can maintain his athletic skills while adding strength and mass, he will be a quality tackle prospect in the Notre Dame offense. JUNIOR HIGHLIGHTS TOMMY BROWN, 6-7, 315, SANTA ANA (CALIF.) MATER DEI Tommy Brown Offensive tackle 4 STARS Mater Dei Santa Ana, CA RR: 5.9 Ht: 6'7" Wt: 315 lbs Class: 2018 10 POSITION 109 NATIONAL 13 STATE Commitment status: UNDECIDED BGI GRADE: 3.0 UPSIDE GRADE: 3.5 Top Offers: Auburn, Florida, Michigan, Louisville, Oregon, Colorado, UCLA, Utah, Washington State, Virginia, Vanderbilt, Missouri The first thing one notices about Brown is that he has outstanding size. At 6-7 and 315 pounds, Brown already looks very much like a college offensive lineman, and he’s a well-coached and well-schooled blocker. He plays with good technique for the most part, and he’s a young man that gives good effort. Brown shows good instincts in pass protect, he has long arms and he’s a wide body to have to run around. In the run game, Brown plays with good angles, but his pad level is below-average because he has trouble bending. Brown is ranked high, but his film does not show that kind of player in my view. He’s effective at the prep level thanks to his size and good technique, but projecting him forward there are some flaws in his game. Brown is heavy footed and he is going to have a hard time lowering his pads. He is stiff and struggles to play with a good base, which is why he gets knocked back more in protection than a blocker that is 6-7 and 315 pounds should. Brown struggles with speed on the edge and his change of direction is below average. In all reality, Brown is better suited to be a guard, but at 6-7 he might be too long to play inside.
man it's been slow on news - team and recruiting wise Sampson is very optimistic on Shayne Simon who is visiting today. He would be a huge pick up and i kind of want him over Gant to fill the need at Rover (not saying he's better than Gant, just from a need perspective since we already have a Mike in Bauer and a Buck in Ovie) Spoiler Caught up with Jayson Ademilola on Thursday afternoon on a couple items for the Insider Report, but wanted to ask about Shayne Simon and his fit for Notre Dame considering the twins (Jayson and Justin) know Simon very, very well. Jayson spoke a lot about how Simon was a high academic student at St. Peter's Prep (alma mater of Brandon Wimbush) and he thought that would play a major part in his decision. "I think he's gonna love Notre Dame," Jayson said. "He's one of the smartest kids in our school. Academics is going to play a huge part in his choice and I think it's going to be more like Stanford or Notre Dame or Ohio State because of that. I think we have a really good shot. He's a great teammate." Notre Dame is recruiting Simon at the Rover position, which is similar to what h plays at St. Peter's. "We call in the Sam position, but it's the same thing. He'd transition easily to Notre Dame that way," Jayson said. "He's used to that spot."
Jamoine Franklin is announcing 7/1...as long as he doesn't get a Clemson offer, I think he'll be Irish and will be really good NG pickup he also plans to visit for Irish Invasion
To me, they are not the same position - Franklin is a pure nose and Mustipher the 3T...I think Ademoila could play either...but a rotation between them along with Ewell and MST is the best combination of depth and talent, the best back to back interior DL classes in a decade or two at ND.
Whats the story with Zaire? I see the highlights vs Tex in 15 and he looks amazing. He just got unlucky by getting hurt and Kizer stepped in and played well or what?
Texas was awful. He's got a good arm, good leader, and good runner. Gets locked onto his first read too often and if that's not open, he looks to run pretty quickly.
Yeah, pretty much. He played well in the 2014 bowl game, amazing in the 2015 opener against Texas, and crappy in the 2015 game against UVA before he got hurt. Kizer stepped in and basically took the job away from him, although Kelly basically faked a QB competition last season to keep Zaire from transferring (very high on my list of all time Kelly fuckups, btw). He played like shit in the one or two games he appeared in in 2016 and his time at ND was pretty much done. I still don't know if he is good or not but the general trend is the longer Kelly coaches a QB the worse he gets so I wouldn't get my hopes up for whatever school ends up taking him.
Yeah I'm afraid he ends up like Golston at FSU if he comes to UF. All the QB's we have right now couldn't outrun dan marino so his ability to make things happen with his legs excite me but thats about it
That's revisionist history. All of the talking heads were split on who should start before the season. Some went as far as to say that Kelly would be a idiot to start Kizer over Zaire. Zaire basically checked out the instant he didn't win the job and imo his self-image is in another stratosphere compared to what he's actually capable of doing on the football field. Those two things made the decision seem much easier after the fact.
I should have been more clear: the fuckup was the dual QB thing. I don't really remember too many people arguing very strongly for Zaire, and the Irish Illustrated guys (minus perhaps known idiot Steve Hare) definitely acted as if it wasn't much of a question that Kizer would start. I personally do think it was obvious after the end of 2015 that Kizer was the real deal and should have been the starter, but I was fine with holding a competition into the early part of fall. Coming out of that with the dual QB strategy was a horrible decision (and horribly applied) and I think most knew it was a dicey move at the time, but there were plenty of talking heads who definitely tried to rationalize it (including the Irish Illustrated guys and known idiot Steve Hare). I'm personally of the belief that Kelly did that against his better judgement because he knew Zaire would transfer if he was officially the backup. I do know with a pretty high degree of confidence that Zaire approached Kelly during the offseason and said tell me now if Kizer is going to start because I want to be somewhere where I am going to play, and after it all shook out he was obviously pretty pissed at Kelly. The beat writers knew this too, which is why all of them acknowledged since September that there was zero chance Zaire was returning this season, regardless of whether Kizer went pro or not.
Would you be happy with Kelly if he said to Zaire that kizer was going to get the job but hold on, if he gets hurt you are next? Kelly putting Nd football before everything else is exactly what this program needs
He's not the mental midget that Golson was. He's super competitive, the first day he stepped on campus he legit acted/thought he should be the starter. He has the tools to be a good qb it's just putting it together. His best game came against LSU. (I am going to call that the better performance than lighting up a trash Texas team). If you built an offense around that game plan, power run version of read option, he could do well.
Yeah me personally I'm all in on bringing him in as worst case scenario an experienced backup. I just hope bringing him in doesn't fuck up Franks.
Spoiler Notre Dame's offer to Tyler Johnson earlier this week caught some by surprise, but not because of any questions about his talent. The 2019 Texas offensive lineman already had offers from schools like Texas, Oklahoma, TCU, Baylor, LSU, Arkansas and Nebraska, so he's definitely the kind of premier talent worth the Irish chasing. It's the "2019 offensive lineman" part that grabbed the attention of some after multiple indications recently that Irish offensive line coach Harry Hiestand wasn't quite ready to throw out offers to current sophomores just yet. Evidently, that process got accelerated a bit for Johnson, which is a good thing, according to one source close to Johnson. "The biggest deal is one thing he has is something you can't coach and that's 6-5, 293 pounds and moving around like a gazelle," the source said. "When you have a for-sure thing, you better go out there and take care of it, not play around with it and get it done and that's something they've done. "They know he's a sure thing. If he's blessed to stay healthy, they know what he's going to be. This kid is one of those that doesn't come through too often." Johnson does have an early interest in the Irish, which he demonstrated by taking an unofficial visit to South Bend last fall. He's also a high academic kid who may be looking at each school's engineering department as closely as their football programs. It's also worth noting Johnson is teammates at Oak Ridge High School with 2018 Notre Dame defensive end target Joseph Ossai, who was offered by the Irish back in February. "He's another very high academic guy," the same source told us of Ossai. "He's looking to be in robotics engineering. He's looking at a lot of his schools academically before athletically. He's doing a lot of homework as far as the engineering is concerned. "Joseph has a checklist that he goes down with every school and it has nothing to do with football. He goes down every one of those and really does his homework as far as those schools are concerned." Ossai hasn't released a top 10 yet, which he's expected to do sometime this summer, but it's been clear for months Texas A&M is the school to beat. That doesn't mean the Irish are without a chance though. "He's spoken of Notre Dame within the last couple weeks, I know that," the source said. "Joseph is open to every school out there and he understands that and his family understands that." And while the duo may not be a package deal, Notre Dame recruiting both is a smart move, according to our source. "In my humble opinion, I think it does (help). They've made a couple of trips together. You're always more comfortable when you have someone around you who you know. This isn't one of those tic-for-tacks. Both of those kids are legitimate ballplayers for the BCS level. It's not like someone is sacrificing something by offering both. It goes a long way to be able to have someone you know at a place." ND STILL #1 FOR FRANKLIN: Earlier this week, Ja'mion Franklin announced he'd be making his college declaration on July 1st. The 2018 Maryland defensive tackle hasn't made a decision yet, but when he visited South Bend last month, he left calling Notre Dame his leader. On Wednesday, Franklin told Irish Sports Daily nothing had changed in that regard. "Yeah, ND is still there," he said. The Ridgely, Md., native was impressed with everything about Notre Dame as a school and a program from the players, coaches and people he met while in South Bend. He called the atmosphere and Irish defensive line coach Mike Elston "great." Franklin still plans on taking some other visits before his announcement, but is also looking at making a return trip to Notre Dame, giving the Irish a chance to put this one away. CROCKER CALLS IRISH INTEREST REAL: Ever since being offered by Notre Dame back in February, Isaah Crocker has expressed a growing interest in Notre Dame. In fact, the 2018 California wide receiver confirmed with ISD this week that Notre Dame is "the team to beat." The 6-foot-1, 175-pounder from Sacramento likes the Notre Dame Football program and, "On top of that, academically, it's a good school you can graduate from and everything like that," he said. He's been in pretty steady contact with Irish assistant coach Brian Polian, who Crocker expects to drop in on him at some point in the weeks to come. Crocker says Notre Dame is one official "that's already locked in," although in terms of it being one trip he knows he'll take as opposed to having an exact date. He's hoping to get to South Bend during his Inderkum High School squad's bye week, but he doesn't have his schedule yet. He hasn't ruled out trying to take an unofficial this summer either. Notre Dame will have plenty of competition though from the West Coast powers. USC, UCLA, Oregon and Oregon State have all extended offers and he expects to make stops at each soon. But the school to watch as much as Notre Dame is probably Cal. Crocker grew up a Cal fan and is definitely attracted to the education in Berkeley. Crocker doesn't have a timeline for a decision with some hoping he makes one before the start of his senior season while he's thought about waiting all of the way until January. OFFER PUTS IRISH IN GREAT POSITION WITH KARLAFTIS: George Karlaftis hadn't been shy about stating his preference to follow his father's footsteps to Miami. But the Hurricanes haven't offered the 2019 Indiana defensive end yet, leaving an opening the Irish took advantage of by extending an offer earlier this month and securing a spot among Karlaftis' top tier of schools. "I think they'd be a serious contender in where I chose to go to school," the West Lafayette High School standout told ISD. "No matter who else offers me, they'd be a serious contender for me." Even if Miami offered? "Yes. Definitely." Karlaftis is supposed to be headed to Ohio State for a visit sometime this spring and may visit Indiana, but he knows for sure of one other visit this month and it's Notre Dame. "I'm going to be there for the spring game." OTHER SPRING GAME VISIT ADDITIONS: Notre Dame's visit list for the April 22nd Blue-Gold Game continues to grow. In addition to Karlaftis and a host of 2017 signees, which we reported earlier this month, 2018 Arizona cornerback Dominique Hampton tells us he'll be in South Bend for the spring game. "I just heard that the coaches like my film and that they would like for me to go out there and watch their spring game, so I'm going out there," the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder told ISD. "I'm interested in Notre Dame because of their rich tradition and they're one of the winningest college football programs in the country." Hampton, who has early offers from Arizona and Colorado, is looking forward to seeing what Notre Dame and the surrounding area are like and whether it's somewhere he could feel comfortable. 2018 Georgia defensive back Justin Birdsong will also be in town that weekend. "I go to Notre Dame on the 22nd and I'm visiting Ball State on the 23rd," the 5-foot-11, 165-pounder said. Birdsong said he has a top three of Central Michigan, Ball State and Notre Dame, he has offers from the first two. "With Central Michigan, Coach (Archie) Collins told me I'm definitely going to come in and play as long as I work hard and that my versatility opens up a lot of positions for me," Birdsong said. "Ball State, we had three players that left our school this past class to go to Ball State and he said he wants to keep the tradition going and get me up there with them." Birdsong says a Notre Dame offer "would mean a lot." "The top three is not in any specific order," he added, "I think Notre Dame would probably shoot to the top depending on how I feel up there and how much interest their coaches show me. I'm hoping they offer once I visit." 2019 DE ENJOYS ND VISIT: 2019 Kentucky defensive end JJ Weaver has been on Notre Dame's radar for quite some time and the 6-foot-6, 240-pounder made his way to South Bend for an unofficial visit last week. "I liked the school and the academics," Weaver told Irish Sports Daily. "The coaching staff is wonderful. I liked the defensive line coach too. The campus is just wonderful. It kind of has an old school feel and I like it." The three-star prospect was joined by both of his parents and the visit impressed them as well. "My mom loved it too," laughed Weaver. "They loved the academics." Weaver didn't leave South Bend with an offer, but there is plenty of time for that. Defensive line coach Mike Elston told Weaver he wanted him to continue to get better and play smarter. Elston also let Weaver know where the staff saw him fitting in. "They want me to play a defensive end/outside linebacker," stated Weaver. "I feel I can play the position at the next level." The Louisville native will continue to take visits this spring to a few Midwest schools and an SEC program. "I am trying to get out to Cincinnati, Florida, and Michigan," said Weaver. TOP 2019 PROSPECTS HOPING TO HEAR MORE FROM ND: 2019 Florida running back Chez Mellusiadmits he was shocked to receive offers from major programs like Miami and Michigan at such an early stage in the process. The Naples native also has offers from North Carolina, Virginia, Rutgers, Boston College and Arizona and is hoping the preliminary interest from the Irish will grow. "I've been interested in Notre Dame for a while," the 6-foot-1, 200-pounder said. The Irish invited Mellusi to a game this past fall, but he couldn't make it, although he has seen Notre Dame on TV and been impressed. "First, it's the academics at the school," he said. "That's all they're about up there basically. I remembered when I first a football game, I watched the quarterback for Notre Dame, (DeShone) Kizer, and I liked that. That was a big thing, but academics is a big reason I like the school." He said he would "absolutely" like to get to South Bend at some point. "If Notre Dame was to offer me soon, I would definitely want to come visit." 2019 Virginia defensive end/linebacker Brandon Smith is another prospect who has heard a bit from the Irish and is hoping to hear more soon. The 6-foot-5, 215-pounder already has offers from Virginia, Virginia Tech and Duke, but Notre Dame is a school he's had his eye on for years. "When he was young and I'm talking about elementary/middle school, his vision was to play football, Smith's father told ISD. "As parents, we've taken the steps to try to prepare him for where he's at now. Notre Dame was one of the schools he was always interested in seeing, maybe visiting or even one day maybe having an opportunity to play football there. "We never know what the future may hold, but we're definitely appreciative of them reaching out to him." It may be a while before it's determined whether Smith is a defensive end or an outside linebacker. "The schools we've talked to, like Clemson, Penn State, Duke, Virginia Tech, they have told Brandon, because he's only 15 years old, he could outgrow the linebacker position and be a defensive end," his father said. "At this point, they really don't know where he would fit. He's so young. He's so athletic for his size, he could play linebacker, but he could outgrow that position. That's why they say linebacker/defensive end or defensive end/linebacker. "His dream is to play major Division-I football. He understands that they may recruit you at one position, but may need you at a different position. He's the type of kid who wants to be on the field to help his team win games. If it requires him to play linebacker then that's what he's willing to do. If it's defensive end, then he's willing to play that position too. His IQ is one of the things they've been really excited about. At 15 years old, playing varsity football and being able to see things happen before they happen. You can kind of tell by the film how he's jumping plays, pointing and seeing where things are going before they actually happen. That comes from film study. He puts in on average between six and eight hours per week just breaking down film." BAUER READY FOR ND: 2018 Notre Dame linebacker commit Bo Bauer is set on with his decision and is beyond the red-carpet events of the recruiting process. The 6-foot-3, 217-pounder plans to return to South Bend for the Blue-Gold Game next weekend and if he could strap on the pads, the three-star prospect would do just that. "We're past seeing things now," laughed Bauer. "It's time to play." At last weekend's Opening Regional in Cleveland, Bauer was all over fellow 2018 linebacker Dallas Gant. The Cathedral Prep star was making sure the four-star prospect felt the love from Notre Dame as Gant plans to announce his decision on May 16th. "We were talking before the event," explained Bauer. "He's coming to the spring game, so I will have time to work on him then. We definitely want him." Another fun aspect for Bauer in last weekend's camp was the chance to go against his fellow Notre Dame commit, quarterback Phil Jurkovec. Both players will be the talk of Pennsylvania high school football next fall and Bauer has no love for his future teammate on the field. "I want to beat Phil," stated Bauer. "He's still a rival until the day we are both on campus. It's fun to compete against each other. I love him off the field, but on the field, no one is your friend." When it comes to his own recruitment, Bauer is focused on building a strong relationship with his future position coach, Clark Lea. "He gets super nerdy," Bauer laughed. "That's the word he uses when he starts talking about football. On my visit, we were just talking, but then when we start talking about football and he started asking me questions with my mom and dad in the room too. "I know he is going to be super intense and push everyone. I'm looking forward to playing for him. " MORE SCRIMMAGE NOTES: Earlier this week, we had a few notes on last Sunday's 60-play scrimmage. We have heard a little bit more coming out of the session. On Brandon Wimbush: "He looked good," stated a source. "Chip Long was hollering at him some, but he looked really good." RBs: "All the backs looked good," said the source. "That's a hell of a backfield. It might be one of the best in the country as far as all three of them. It's hard to get three backs carries, but they need to make the best of each one of their carries." Defense: "The defense looked the best I have seen the defense look," the source stated. "They were pretty fired up. They were showing some emotion and they had some spark. They were flying around and making some noise. If they aren't confident, then they are at least acting like it now." TONY, TONY, TONY: Last week in this space, we talked about the apparent breakout of second-year Notre Dame running back Tony Jones Jr. Based on his continued performance and head coach Brian Kelly's statements, it's time to remove the word "apparent." When asked what Jones needed to do to secure a spot in the rotation, Kelly responded, "Nothing." "Honestly, he is in it," the coach continued. "He is well-ensconced in that rotation. He is a guy who, if at any time, we wanted to call him a number one, we could call him a number one. He has done all the things to build that trust with us in terms of protections, catching the ball out of the backfield, he has earned that through his work this spring." Kelly confirmed what we were told by a source last week that the Irish's decision to hold Jones out last year had nothing to do with him not being ready to play. "You will see a lot of him this fall," Kelly said. We continue to hear about the importance of Jones' ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, which is something he is always working on. "Like a person works out in the weight room, he goes and runs routes and catches balls," one source said. We're told Clemson running backs coach Tony Elliott took note of Jones' ability out of the backfield a couple years ago when Elliott was at IMG Academy watching future Tiger linebacker Shaq Smith. "He was like, 'God, he's killing the number one linebacker in the country, which was Shaq, at the time,'" the source said. "That's a tribute to the fact that he works on running routes. He doesn't just run them, he doesn't curve them off. He runs precise routes and he can catch." IRISH HOOPS HAVE UCONN TRANSFER'S ATTENTION: Last week, we told you the 6-foot-10 UConn transfer Juwan Durham was one to watch. This week, he's one for Notre Dame to see as Irish assistants Rod Balanis and Ryan Humphrey are headed up to Connecticut to visit with Durham today. We caught up with Durham's former high school coach at Tampa Prep, Joe Fenlon, who said Durham had indeed expressed an interest on his part in Notre Dame. "I think it's a combination of great academics and good basketball," Fenlon said. "He's a good student. I think the opportunity to continue to play at a high level and prepare him for his future." It's still early in the transfer process with Durham having just announced his intentions last week and dozens of schools have reached out to him since. Now he has to find a way to get his list of options down to a manageable number, but heading into today's meeting, it's clear Notre Dame has his attention. Louisville also has his attention though and the Cardinals could have an advantage as Durham's former AAU coach, Jordan Fair, is on staff. "That and they were one of his final schools the first time," Fenlon said of the Cardinals before adding that Fair's presence is unlikely to be a deciding factor. "It's nice to have familiarity, but at the end of the day, he has to find a place he feels comfortable. A coach isn't going to be around you 24 hours a day, so you have to be comfortable with the guys you're going to surround yourself with. Familiarity might open the door, but it isn't necessarily going to get you walking through the door." Durham was considered an elite high school prospect before and even after suffering a pair of torn ACLs and missing his final season at Tampa Prep. Fenlon called him a potential "matchup nightmare" based on being a skilled shooter who and can put the ball on the floor from the perimeter while also possessing the ability to play on the block. "He just has a skillset that kids his size don't normally have," said Fenlon. "That's what makes him intriguing." In the coming days, look for Durham to begin putting together a list of schools to visit. It may not end up being a long list, so it'll be important Balanis and Humphrey find a way to get on it. Check out these highlights from Durham's junior season at Tampa Prep. LUTHER READY TO SEE ND: 2018 New Jersey shooting guard Luther Muhammad expects to be in South Bend in a couple of weeks. The Hudson Catholic scorer is a high four-star prospect easily within the Top 100 players nationally and would represent a major steal for the Irish if they could land him. Notre Dame will have to beat out schools like St. John's, Syracuse and Seton Hall to do so, but the Irish have had his attention for a long time now and it doesn't seem to be fading. "I like their academic base and their alumni too," said Muhammad, who told ISD he will be at Notre Dame at the end of the month. "They have a great alumni base. "I just basically want to see what it's like being on campus." The Jersey City native has stayed in touch with Irish assistant coach Ryan Ayers. "He's just basically been telling me what he likes about me, a little bit about the campus and a bunch of other stuff," Muhammad said of Ayers. The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder doesn't have a timetable for a decision or any other visits scheduled just yet, so this visit could be Notre Dame's best shot at making a surge up his list.
You had to use Katy Perry. You put her in front of me and I'd have to stumble away sticky shorts and all, and I've had sex with like several women.
Rod Carew got Reuland's heart after Reuland died...crazy stuff: http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...art-former-baltimore-ravens-te-konrad-reuland
Recruits will also now be able to officially visit schools beginning April 1 of their junior year That is huge for ND