Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com PRESEASON 2020 55 About a year ago, Rocco Spindler and his family knew that his grand- father, George, only had a few days left before passing away. George grew up a major Notre Dame fan, and Rocco was already a major Fighting Irish offensive guard target in the 2021 class. Before he passed, Rocco told him that he would be going to Notre Dame, even though the four-star recruit wouldn't make that decision final until a year later. "He was a huge Notre Dame fan," Spindler told reporters minutes after making his Notre Dame commitment public Aug. 8. "He wanted my fa- ther [Marc Spindler] to go to Notre Dame. When I was a young boy, my grandfather always told me the pros of going to Notre Dame and why it's so special. "As soon as the recruiting process started, I saw why Notre Dame was so special. I made him a promise, and now I'm fulfilling that. "It was a really tough decision. The opportunity all of the schools offered — it was splitting hairs. I was thank- ful for every opportunity they gave me. You have to sort out the pros and cons of each team." To the delight of Fighting Irish fans, not only is Notre Dame landing an elite talent — the nation's No. 3 offensive guard and No. 56 overall prospect per Rivals — but they also delivered a major blow to one of its biggest recruiting rivals in the mean- time. The Clarkston (Mich.) High stand- out had a final five of LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Penn State, but everyone knew it would be the Irish or Wolverines. He admits it was a hard decision to turn down Michigan and didn't inform the U-M staff of his choice until about 30 min- utes before he announced his com- mitment. "It was very tough; it was heart- breaking. … It was a very close deci- sion," Spindler said. "It was not easy; that's why it took so long to this point. " M i c h i g a n a n d t h e r e s t of the schools gave it their best shot. I believe Michigan is one of the best re- cruiting schools out there, start- ing with Matt Dudek, Coach [Jim] Harbaugh, Coach [Ed] Warin- ner. They couldn't have done any- thing better; it's just what I wanted for myself and with my family." What Notre Dame offered him was just too good to turn down. "You're going to win a national championship on the field and you're going to win one in the classroom," Spindler stated. "The business school is one of the best, they can develop guys and get them to the league, and I believe they're Offensive Line U. They're the NFL factory of offensive linemen." Spindler told Kelly and the Irish staff that he would be picking the Irish a couple weeks before his announcement in front of fam- ily, friends and media at his high school, and he recalled that Kelly was jumping up and down with excitement. "I told him, 'Coach, I need you to be my coach. I don't need you to get a heart attack,'" Spindler said with a smile. "[Offensive line] Coach [Jeff] Quinn was excited as well. It was a very heart-warming experience." The 6-5, 315-pounder is now ready to go help lead the Irish to its first national championship in more than 30 years. "I believe Notre Dame is going to win in the next few years — either coming up now or by the time I get there," Spindler said. "I believe they have the right coach- i n g s t a ff . C o a c h Kelly knows what he has to do, and I believe he's getting the best guys in the country now." During his fresh- man season, Spin- dler was a part of a Clarkston High team that won the Division I Michi- gan state championship and reached the state title game the following year before dropping a 31-30 heartbreaker. In Spindler 's junior campaign, Clarkston took a step back with a 3-6 record, but he was looking forward to leading his team back to the play- offs in his final campaign. However, the state of Michigan moved its high school football season to the spring, and Spindler won't be participat- ing because he is enrolling at Notre Dame in January. — Mike Singer COMMITMENT PROFILE ROCCO SPINDLER Elite Michigan Lineman Fulfills Promise With Fighting Irish Pledge Rivals rates Spindler — a 6-5, 315-pounder from Clarkston (Mich.) High — as a four-star talent, the No. 3 prospect in Michigan, and the No. 3 offen- sive guard and No. 56 overall player nationally. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Film Analysis "He has above-average feet for a kid with his size and frame. He is a big boy and is put together really well. That weight is in the right spots. "Right now, he's better at blocking at the second level than he is directly face-blocking people. He doesn't move guys and root them out like you'd prefer to see, but he's still just a kid — that will come with time. "He's great in pass protection. You can tell he understands the game. He's physically dominant on a base block, and he does know how to work those angles. He's a good get." — Blue & Gold Illustrated football analyst Mike Goolsby "When I was a young boy, my grandfather always told me the pros of going to Notre Dame and why it's so special. As soon as the recruiting process started, I saw why Notre Dame was so special. I made him a promise, and now I'm fulfilling that." SPINDLER