Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com AUGUST 2019 47 MEN'S BASKETBALL While most schools recruited Ryan as a combo guard, part of his attrac- tion toward Stanford was working at the point position. Notre Dame re- cruited him to help at both spots. Also crucial was the combination of Ryan's transfer and Carmody's red- shirt season giving Notre Dame a bet- ter "two and two" recruiting balance at guard. In 2020-21, Hubb and Goodwin — health permitting — will still have two years of eligibility remaining while Ryan and Carmody will pos- sess three apiece. Also, instead of looking at the re- cruiting cycle as "signing five in 2018 and none in 2019," the staff now views it as four in 2018 with point guard Hubb, wing Goodwin, forward Laszewski and center Chris Doherty, and now two in 2019 with Carmody and Ryan. The plan last year was to redshirt Doherty as well, but a litany of inju- ries on the team resulted in him play- ing only 42 minutes the entire season while burning a year of eligibility. Un- like in football, where a player can ap- pear in any four games but no more to be redshirted, basketball has no such rule. ✦ Recruiting News And Notes In addition to Stanford transfer guard Cormac Ryan, head coach Mike Brey and his staff are seeking to sign at least two more prospects to the frontcourt for a total of three in the 2020 recruiting cycle. However, Brey said that with transfers at an all-time high in college basketball — approximately 900 had made shifts by early June, including Ryan — the sport has become as much a free agency system in the offseason as recruiting freshmen for the next year. The NCAA permits 13 scholarships in men's basketball, but that is not pertinent to Brey. "Thirteen is really hard to manage," he said. "I think 11 is a sweet number, and then you get a couple of walk-ons to be able to practice. Maybe one guy is redshirted. If one guy is redshirted and one guy transfers, then only nine are worried about playing time. "It is really hard — as you have seen by the transfer portal and the numbers there — to keep guys seeing the big picture if [playing time] doesn't happen quick. It's just the way it is. With transfers and grad transfers, you can balance it off. These are crazy times." As of July 16, here is where Notre Dame stood with some prime recruiting targets (the number in front of the player's name is his national rating by Rivals). No. 28 Hunter Dickinson — The 7-1 center from renowned DeMatha (Md.) Catholic might take an official visit to Notre Dame again this fall. Purdue, which has an excellent recent history with seven-foot players, is among the contenders. No. 35 D.J. Steward — The dynamic 6-2 Chicago guard transferred from Fenwick to Whitney Young, and the Irish track record with big-city kids in non-Catholic schools is not good. Duke is the favorite. No. 41 Jabri Abdur-Rahim — Committed to reigning national champ Virginia July 9. No. 45 Donovan "Puff" Johnson — Pennsylvania native visited Notre Dame in June. The 6-7 forward's older brother Cameron, who starred at North Carolina, was selected No. 11 overall in this year's NBA Draft. Johnson planned to select a top five after the Peach Jam July 10-14 at North Augusta, S.C. No. 91 Terrance Williams — The 6-6, 210-pound forward has already visited Notre Dame, and the Washington, D.C., native from Gonzaga Prep — the same school as current Irish sophomore point guard Prentiss Hubb — will likely decide between nearby Georgetown and the Irish. No. 126 JaKobe Coles — A wide body with his 6-7, 225-pound frame, the Texas native was at Notre Dame in June, as well as Butler. Texas A&M also is high on his list. Not ranked in the top 150 is 6-8, 215-pound Philadelphia center Elijah Taylor, who was the most recent offer by the Irish. Pitt, Rutgers and Seton Hall also are on his radar. Indiana guard Trent Galloway from Culver Academy is not ranked in Rivals' 150 (although he is rated No. 34 at his position), but is regularly on campus. However, guard might be less of a priority with the addition of Ryan. — Lou Somogyi 2019-20 ROSTER BREAKDOWN Notre Dame will now have 11 scholarship players on the roster this season (the NCAA permits 13). Here is the breakdown by class: Fifth-Year Senior: G Rex Pflueger Pflueger is recovering from his December ACL surgery, but is aiming to be ready by the start of the season. Seniors: G Nik Djogo, F Juwan Durham, G T.J. Gibbs and F John Mooney Both the 6-11 Durham and Djogo, who had labrum surgery this spring and might not be available until October, have a fifth season of eligibility in 2020-21. Juniors: None Forward D.J. Harvey transferred to Vander- bilt during the spring, leaving the Irish with no third-year players on their roster. Sophomores: G Robby Carmody, F Chris Doherty, G Dane Goodwin, G Prentiss Hubb, F Nate Laszewski and G Cormac Ryan Carmody has a fifth year of eligibility after a shoulder injury forced him to redshirt last year, and Ryan will have to sit out this season per NCAA transfer rules. Freshmen: None The Irish did not sign a recruit during the 2019 cycle, the first time that has happened since 2008. Just how fragile the depth can be was crys- tallized in a 40-minute practice session that was open to the media July 9. With no walk- ons yet, Notre Dame had only seven play- ers available — Ryan had yet to enroll, while Pflueger, Djogo and Doherty (knee) sat out due to injuries — thus limiting it to mainly three-on-three full-court and half-court work. — Lou Somogyi Rivals rates JaKobe Coles — a 6-7, 225-pound power forward from Denton (Texas) Guyer — as the nation's No. 126 overall prospect. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM