Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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6 NOV. 16, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY MIKE SINGER N otre Dame received a boost to its secondary Nov. 3. Ohio State graduate transfer safety Isaiah Pryor gave his verbal commitment to the coaching staff and spoke afterward with Blue & Gold Illustrated. News originally broke Sept. 23 that Pryor entered the transfer portal be‑ cause the Buckeyes' new defensive system wasn't showcasing his talents and his time on the field was dimin‑ ishing. The Notre Dame staff quickly contacted Pryor and set up an official visit for him to come to South Bend Oct. 11‑13. Pryor visited Notre Dame with his father, Richard, and enjoyed their time on the campus, which included seeing the Fighting Irish notch a 30‑27 win versus USC. "I've been to a lot of games and have played in a lot of games," said Pryor's father, who played defensive line for Iowa in the mid‑1980s. "I've never seen anything like that fan base." The main reason why Pryor didn't commit to Notre Dame following that visit was because his mother, Lillian, hadn't been to campus yet. A couple of days after Pryor returned home from his official visit, he and his family went ahead and booked a trip to return to Notre Dame the next chance they could, which was for the Virginia Tech weekend Nov. 1‑3. The visit went well for Pryor once again, and his mother signed off on the decision. Pryor had many schools contact him once he entered the transfer portal, but the lone school he visited back on the recruiting market was Notre Dame. He credits the Irish coaching staff for helping him through the process. "I felt like throughout this whole pro‑ cess they made it a very easy decision, all of the coaches — Coach [Clark] Lea, Coach {Brian] Polian, Coach [Terry] Joseph, Coach [Brian] Kelly, Coach [Dave] Peloquin — all of them," Pryor said. "They made sure we felt at home and it was my mom's first time there. They really made it feel like family. "On top of that, they made sure we were all set academically, and they laid everything out. Everything will be ready when I come here." Pryor will graduate from Ohio State in December and enroll at Notre Dame the following month. He will participate in spring ball and vie for a starting safety spot. The 6‑2, 200‑pounder played in 31 games for the Buckeyes from 2017‑19, and recorded 47 tackles, two tackles for loss and an interception. He played in only four games this season for Ohio State, which allows him to take a redshirt year. In 2020, Pryor will have two years of eligibility left and can play im‑ mediately. Getting to the NFL is the goal for virtually every college foot‑ ball player, and Pryor believes Notre Dame can help him achieve it. The Irish have a need at safety, and Pryor addressed that. He didn't pick Notre Dame strictly for football, though. "I just feel blessed that I'm in this situation," he said. "I'm going to have a degree from Ohio State and an opportunity to get a master's from Notre Dame. "They're allowing me to compete and play right away for a spot." After this season, Jalen Elliott will have exhausted his eligibility, and the Irish's other starting safety, Alohi Gilman, may opt to enter the NFL Draft. Dane Brugler of The Athletic ranks Gilman as the fifth‑best draft‑ eligible safety. Pryor and Kyle Hamilton could be the starting safeties next season. But even if Pryor doesn't earn a starting position, he has the versatility to play other defensive back positions. Notre Dame has played Gilman, Hamilton and Elliott on the field plenty this season in a three‑safety look. That could be the case next year with Hous‑ ton Griffith, Hamilton and Pryor. "He will be a perfect fit in Gilman's safety spot as a box player in the dime package and an occasional blitzer as well," Blue & Gold Illustrated football analyst Vince DeDario said. Pryor was one of six finalists for the 26th annual Franklin D. Watkins Memorial Award, a prestigious na‑ tional honor for African‑American high school scholar‑athletes. Finalists for the award were selected based on their unweighted grade‑point av‑ erage, personal statement, extracur‑ ricular activities, community service and letters of recommendation. "When he was younger, he was al‑ ways the last player picked playing sports," Richard Pryor said. "His work ethic is bar none. He'll be up there with anybody as far as competing and train‑ ing. He's a work horse. He is a grinder." As a recruit in the 2017 class, Pryor held more than 40 scholarship of‑ fers and ranked as the No. 12 safety and No. 106 overall prospect in the land. He is from the Atlanta area, but finished his senior year at IMG Acad‑ emy in Bradenton, Fla. ✦ UNDER THE DOME TIMELY TRANSFER Former Ohio State safety Isaiah Pryor will immediately help Notre Dame in 2020 Pryor — pictured here with his mother, Lillian —will be ready to compete for a starting job at safety in 2020 and will have two years of eligi- bility with the Irish after graduating from Ohio State in December. PHOTO COURTESY RICHARD PRYOR