Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com DEC. 19, 2020 43 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ROUNDUP Quarterback Tyler Buchner, 6-2, 210, La Mesa, Calif. (Helix Charter) Running Back Byron Cardwell, 6-0, 200, San Diego (Samuel F.B. Morse) Logan Diggs, 6-0, 191, Metairie, La. (Rummel) Donovan Edwards, 5-11, 193, West Bloomfield, Mich. (West Bloomfield) Wide Receiver Deion Colzie, 6-4, 180, Athens, Ga. (Athens Academy) Lorenzo Styles Jr., 6-1, 170, Pickerington, Ohio (Pickerington Central) Jayden Thomas, 6-2, 188, Atlanta (Pace Academy) Tight End Cane Berrong, 6-4, 225, Hartwell, Ga. (Hart County) Mitchell Evans, 6-7, 240, Wadsworth, Ohio (Wadsworth Senior) Offensive Line Joe Alt, 6-7, 260, Fridley, Minn. (Totino-Grace) Pat Coogan, 6-5, 300, Chicago (Marist) Blake Fisher, 6-6, 330, Avon, Ind. (Avon) Caleb Johnson, 6-7, 290, Ocala, Fla. (Trinity Catholic) Rocco Spindler, 6-5, 290, Clarkston, Mich. (Clarkston) Defensive End Devin Aupiu, 6-5, 225, Oxnard, Calif. (Pacifica) Jason Onye, 6-4, 250, Warwick, R.I. (Bishop Hendricken School) Will Schweitzer, 6-4, 215, Los Gatos, Calif. (Los Gatos) Defensive Tackle Gabriel Rubio, 6-5, 280, St. Peters, Mo. (Lutheran of St. Charles) Linebacker Prince Kollie, 6-2, 205, Jonesborough, Tenn. (David Crockett) Kahanu Kia, 6-2, 205, Honolulu (Punahou) Cornerback Ryan Barnes, 6-2, 180, Gaithersburg, Md. (Quince Orchard) JoJo Johnson, 5-11, 170, Merrillville, Ind. (Merrillville) Chance Tucker, 6-1, 170, Encino, Calif. (Crespi Carmelite) Philip Riley, 6-0, 190, Valrico, Fla. (Bloomingdale) Ceyair Wright, 6-0, 173, Los Angeles (Loyola) Safety Justin Walters, 6-1, 170, Bolingbrook, Ill. (Bolingbrook) Athlete None Kicker Joshua Bryan, 6-1, 185, Chatsworth, Calif. (Sierra Canyon) Commitments in bold italics RIVALS 2021 TEAM RECRUITING RANKINGS As of Dec. 7 1. Alabama 22 2. Ohio State 20 3. Oregon 21 4. LSU 20 5. Florida 26 6. Georgia 19 7. Clemson 17 8. Michigan 21 9. USC 19 10. Notre Dame 23 Rk. School Commits Rk. School Commits Class Of 2021 Scholarship Offer Master List 2021 Master List Changes Prospects Removed: DT Kelvin Gilliam of Highland Springs, Va. (no longer considering Notre Dame); and ATH Titus Mokiao-Atimalala of Ewa Beach, Hawai'i (no longer considering Notre Dame). • Armed with 23 commitments in the 2021 class, the Fighting Irish have at best three more spots left. Several months ago, this class was projected to max out at around 20, but Notre Dame has had departures from the roster and is cashing in on its on-the-field success. • Notre Dame was hoping to flip Highland Springs (Va.) High's Kelvin Gilliam Jr. — who is ranked as the No. 7 defensive tackle and No. 91 overall recruit by Rivals — from his Oklahoma commitment, but he turned down the Irish's pursuit of him. Notre Dame then offered Oxnard (Calif.) Pacifica's Devin Aupiu, No. 58 player in California and the No. 40 weak-side defensive end nationally according to Rivals. Entering the second week in December, the 6-5, 225-pounder is still committed to UCLA, a pledge he gave back in April, but the Irish have a good shot at flipping him. • Notre Dame has five defensive backs already committed and would be more than happy to call it a day with that group, but Los Angeles Loyola's Ceyair Wright, who is rated as Rivals' No. 5 cornerback and No. 102 overall prospect in the country, is too good to pass up. He visited Notre Dame's campus for the weekend of the Syracuse game, despite the NCAA's dead period in which prospective student-athletes are not allowed to have face-to-face contact with college coaches. Notre Dame is battling with USC (which is consid- ered the team to beat), Michigan, Oregon and others for Wright. • The Irish may sign all of its committed recruits in the Dec. 16-18 early signing period. However, Notre Dame wants to add a second running back in the class, and that prospect may end up signing in February. West Bloomfield (Mich.) High's Donovan Edwards, the No. 3 running back and No. 74 overall player in the land per Rivals, will decide between Georgia, Michigan, Notre Dame and Penn State in December. In a perfect world for Notre Dame running backs coach Lance Taylor, Edwards spurns Michigan, the favorite to land him, and chooses the Irish. If that does not happen, look for the Irish to offer and likely flip Montvale (N.J.) St. Joseph's running back Au- dric Estime, who Rivals lists as the No. 7 running back and No. 132 overall player nationally. Estime has been committed to Michigan State since September, but has a strong affinity for Notre Dame. He has expressed in- terest in skipping the December signing period and deciding his school in January. Notre Dame hasn't offered Estime yet, but the staff does have an offer out on the table to San Diego Morse's Byron Cardwell, who is ranked as Rivals' No. 13 running back and No. 245 overall recruit in the land, but he seems unlikely to choose the Irish. — Mike Singer West Bloomfield (Mich.) High's Donovan Edwards, the No. 3 running back and No. 74 overall player in the land per Rivals, is Notre Dame's biggest target left in the 2021 class. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM RECRUITING NOTES Follow @BGI_MikeSinger on Twitter for daily recruiting updates available on BlueandGold.com!