Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1194048
40 JANUARY 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED FOOTBALL RECRUITING BY MIKE SINGER N otre Dame's commitments in the class of 2020 and 2021 have been honored for their outstanding accomplish- ments on the field. All of the Irish recruits have finished their respective high school seasons, but a handful of them will be playing in post- season all-star games as well. • Five Notre Dame commits will suit up in the All-Amer- ican Bowl, formerly known as the U.S. Army All-Ameri- can Bowl, in San Antonio on Jan. 4, 2020. The game can be seen on NBC at 1 p.m. ET. The Irish pledges participat- ing in the prestigious game will be St. Louis De Smet's Jordan Johnson, a five-star wide receiver and the No. 25 overall prospect in America per Rivals; Park Hills (Ky.) Covington Catholic's Michael Mayer, the No. 3 tight end and No. 37 overall recruit in the country; Phoenix Pinnacle's Tosh Baker, the No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 48 overall recruit nationally; Ho- nolulu St. Louis' Jordan Botelho, the No. 12 outside linebacker and No. 198 overall player in the land; and Mars (Pa.) High's Michael Carmody, the nation's No. 35 offensive tackle. • A few more prospects on the Irish's 2020 recruit list will be playing in the Under Armour All- American Game in Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 2, 2020. The game can be seen on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. ET. Chester (Va.) Thomas Dale speed- ster Chris Tyree, the nation's No. 2 all-purpose back and No. 43 overall prospect per Rivals, will look to show off his skills, as well as New Canaan (Conn.) High gunslinger Drew Pyne, the No. 7 pro-style quarterback and No. 118 overall recruit. Washington (D.C.) St. John's College High long snapper and Irish commit Alex Peitsch will also participate in the game. • Notre Dame's recruits will be well represented in the Polynesian Bowl in Honolulu on Jan. 18, 2020. The contest will be televised by CBS Sports Network at 6 p.m. ET. Red Bank (N.J.) Catholic's Kevin Bauman, who is ranked as the No. 5 tight end and No. 130 overall pros- pect in the country by Rivals, and Denver Mullen's Aidan Keanaaina, a four-star talent and the No. 30 de- fensive tackle nationally, will look to impress in the game. The aforementioned Baker, Car- mody and Tyree will double-dip in all-star games and play in the Poly- nesian Bowl as well, making it five recruits in the contest. Due to the date of the game being in mid-Jan- uary, only summer enrollees — not prospects graduating early — can participate in the game. • Southaven (Miss.) cornerback and Notre Dame commit Caleb Of- ford played in the Mississippi/Ala- bama All-Star Football Game Dec. 14 in Hattiesburg, Miss. Offord was also named to The Commercial Appeal's in- augural 2019 Dandy Dozen. Notre Dame's recruits not playing in all-star games have received plenty of accolades and honors as well: • Lake Forest (Ill.) High's Ry- lie Mills, who is rated as the No. 9 strongside defensive end and No. 161 overall prospect nationally by Rivals, finished up his decorated career with 2019 Pioneer Press All-Area Football Defensive Player of the Year honors. He was also his high school team's defensive MVP and was named to the 2019 News-Gazette All-State first team. • Middletown (N.J.) Mater Dei Prep athlete Clarence Lewis, a three- star talent who is listed as the No. 82 cornerback nationally, caught 39 passes for 638 yards and five touchdowns. He will play defensive back for Notre Dame, but most of his recog- nition has been for his big- play ability as a wide receiver. Lewis was named to the 2019 Shore Conference Coaches' Colonial Division first team on offense. Additionally, he was nominated for the 2019 "Heart of a Giant" award, presented by the New York Giants. • Omaha (Neb.) Burke two- way standout Xavier Watts finished his incredible high school career and broke re- cords along the way. Watts, who is ranked as the No. 2 prospect in Nebraska and the No. 89 wide receiver nationally, is Burke's career leader in receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and holds the school record for most touchdown receptions in a single game with four. • Shrewsbury (Mass.) Saint John's wide receiver Jay Brunelle set the Central Massachusetts career receiv- ing yards record with 2,666. The 6-2, 200-pounder is rated as Rivals' No. 7 recruit in Massachusetts and picked the Irish over Boston College, Michi- gan, UCLA, West Virginia and others. • Danville (Ky.) Boyle County's Landen Bartleson, the No. 39 corner- back in the land per Rivals, was a big part of his team's deep playoff run. On the season, he rushed 47 times for Phoenix Pinnacle's Tosh Baker, the nation's No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 48 overall prospect per Rivals, is one of three Notre Dame commits who will play in multiple postseason all-star games. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Rylie Mills of Lake Forest (Ill.) High received first-team All-State accolades and was tabbed as the All-Area Football Defensive Player of the Year by The Pioneer Press. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Notre Dame Recruits Racking Up Postseason Accolades