Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 MARCH 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2020 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY MIKE SINGER One month before Ramon Hender- son put pen to paper to officially sign with Notre Dame, the Bakersfield (Calif.) Liberty defensive back had a conversation with special teams co- ordinator Brian Polian, who was his main point of contact with the Irish during the recruiting process. Henderson told Polian that he wanted to commit to the Fighting Irish. "He said to sleep on it and make sure this was the right choice," Hen- derson said. "I called him the next morning right before school and told him I'm going with my gut and com- mit to you guys. He said, 'I'm glad, and welcome to the family.'" The projected defensive back's plan all along was to make a silent commitment and then announce his school of choice during the early signing period in December, and that's exactly what he did. But without a public pledge in place nor a signed National Letter of Intent just yet, Notre Dame con- tinued to recruit Henderson until the final hour to make sure he'd of- ficially side with the Irish while other schools made their push as well. It came down to Notre Dame, UCLA and Utah, and there were plenty of reasons for Henderson to pick the Irish. "Why not Notre Dame?" Hen- derson said. "It's a good school, ac- ademic-wise and sports-wise. If it wasn't going to be Notre Dame, the other closest choice was Utah. Notre Dame just felt like a better fit for me. I feel like I can go there and play a key role." Henderson connected well with Polian during the recruiting process, and his home visit the first week of December with him, defensive co- ordinator Clark Lea and head coach Brian Kelly went smoothly, too. The following week, Henderson hosted safeties coach Terry Joseph in his liv- ing room. "I love the coaching staff," Hender- son said. "I love people at the school who are outside of sports. I see me developing there not only as a foot- ball player, but [also] as a man. There are some good people there and can help me out in a significant way." Among his final choices, Notre Dame was easily the school farthest from home. Henderson believes his family supports his decision, but it will certainly be difficult for Hender- son to be away from his mother, Tia Brown. "Being away from my mom was a big attention grabber for me," Henderson explained. "I was really considering UCLA and loved the coaches, and when I went on that trip to Utah, I really liked them, too. "She just wanted the best fit for me, and education should be before football. I got the best of both with Notre Dame." Henderson flew out to South Bend with his mother and a couple of close friends Jan. 10 to begin his time as a Notre Dame student-athlete. "It's a little bit longer of a flight to Notre Dame than the other schools, but I know my mom will get there when I need her to," Henderson noted. "I'm excited about my new chapter." The passing of Henderson's grand- mother was a tough moment for him several years ago, but he rallied be- hind his mom and propelled his foot- ball career. "My favorite lady in the world was my grandmother," Henderson said. "When she passed was when I was thrown into football, and I was just angry all the time. Football was the Notre Dame Was The Right Choice For Ramon Henderson Henderson picked the Irish over UCLA and Utah in November, revealed his decision during the early sign- ing period in December and then enrolled at Notre Dame in January. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM