Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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football recruiting Third Time Is A Charm For New Jersey Defensive End By Jason Sapp T ony Mottola made his rounds around the youth league field as he did every year. He wanted to see what type of talent was on its way from Northern Valley Regional High's feeder program. This time, someone caused him to do a double take — Andrew Trumbetti. commitment profile andrew trumbetti The head coach knew that he wanted to keep the talented eighth grader in Demarest, N.J., and away from the four prestigious parochial schools in the area — most notably Don Bosco Prep. "You could tell right then and there that he was going to be a Division I football player," Mottola said of the 6-5, 250-pound Trumbetti. "We could just tell that there was something very special about him." Trumbetti realized the great opportunity he had when Mottola informed him he would provide him with the coaching needed to make the most of his natural ability and become a bigtime player. Trumbetti traveled to South Bend for Notre Dame's football camp the summer after his freshman season and returned the following year. The second trip convinced him that his dream would become a reality. The Trumbetti (left), seen here with fellow Irish defensive line commit Jay Hayes, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 103 overall player in the class of 2014. photo courtesy andrew trumbetti Irish coaching staff sent him home with an offer in hand. The rest, as they say, is history. Trumbetti returned to Notre Dame for a third time during the program's junior day weekend March 23. With the Irish leading the charge in his recruitment upon his arrival, he opted to add him name to the class before leaving town. "It just really felt like it was the right place for me," he said of his decision to commit to Notre Dame with his mother, Ann Marie, and brother, Joey,