Blue and Gold Illustrated

March 2021

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com MARCH 2021 61 2021 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE Notre Dame also dished out re- cent offers to Denison (Texas) High's Jadarian Price, Rockwall (Texas) Heath's Zach Evans and Murfrees- boro (Tenn.) Oakland's Jordan Bry- ant-James. We expect only one running back for Notre Dame in the 2022 class, but if there is roster attrition, the number could grow. WIDE RECEIVER Committed: 0 Projected Take: 3-4 Synopsis: Notre Dame has a cou- ple of premier receiver prospects from its backyard: Chicago St. Ri- ta's Kaleb Brown, who ranks as the No. 67 overall prospect and No. 7 athlete, and La Grange Park (Ill.) Nazareth Academy's Tyler Morris, who Rivals lists as the No. 74 recruit and No. 7 receiver in America. The Irish seem to be in a better position with Morris than with Brown, but we believe Notre Dame will land one of the two in this class. Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei's CJ Williams will be a tough pull, but the Irish are among his few favorite schools. The nation's No. 23 overall prospect and No. 2 receiver is hop- ing to get to South Bend this spring for a visit. Other prime West Coast receiver targets for Notre Dame include Portland (Ore.) Westview's Darrius Clemons, the No. 131 overall pros- pect and No. 14 receiver in the coun- try, and Vancouver (Wash.) Union's Tobias Merriweather, the No. 141 re- cruit and No. 15 receiver nationally. Both were able to visit Notre Dame prior to the pandemic. The Irish would like to flip Wester- ville (Ohio) South's Kaden Saunders, the No. 153 recruit and No. 17 re- ceiver, from Penn State. That will be a tough task, as will be landing Rich- mond (Va.) St. Christopher's Andre Greene Jr., the No. 231 player and No. 24 receiver, who holds over 50 scholarship offers. Saraland (Ala.) High's Jarel Wil- liams and League City (Texas) Clear Springs' Noah Thomas are three-star targets to watch. TIGHT END Committed: 1 Projected Take: 2 Synopsis: Notre Dame has Milton (Ga.) High's Jack Nickel, a three-star prospect and the No. 25 tight end in the country, already committed. It appears the staff is looking to take a second tight end in addition to Nickel, since West Des Moines (Iowa) Valley's Eli Raridon, the nation's No. 18 player at his position, received an offer from the Irish Feb. 9. Raridon's father, Scott. Jr., was an offensive tackle for Notre Dame in the early 2000s, and his grandfather, Scott Sr., was the Irish's strength and condi- tioning coach for the 1988 national championship team. Huber Heights (Ohio) Wayne's Elijah Brown, who ranks as the No. 239 recruit and No. 7 tight end in the country, has connections to Notre Dame's new defensive boss, Free- man — both attended the same high school. However, Alabama is consid- ered the team to beat here. OFFENSIVE LINE Committed: 2 Projected Take: 3-5 Synopsis: Notre Dame is off to another strong start in this area, al- ready securing pledges from Gro- ton (Mass.) Lawrence Academy's Ty Chan, the No. 189 overall prospect and No. 27 tackle in the land, and Zionsville (Ind.) High's Joey Tanona, the No. 179 player and No. 4 offen- sive guard. Fond du Lac (Wis.) St. Mary's Springs' Billy Schrauth has been con- sidered a strong Notre Dame lean since last summer. Ranked as the No. 113 prospect and No. 2 guard in America, he is a priority for position coach Jeff Quinn, and we expect the Irish to secure his commitment. If Schrauth does choose Notre Dame, the plan moving forward would be closing strong with another tackle or potentially two. Lynchburg (Va.) Liberty Christian's Zach Rice, the nation's No. 15 prospect and No. 3 offensive tackle, would be at the top of the wish list. Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Jake Taylor, the No. 34 offensive tackle in the land, and Huber Heights (Ohio) Wayne's Aamil Wagner, the No. 176 overall prospect and No. 26 tackle in the na- tion, are important targets as well. DEFENSIVE LINE Committed: 2 Projected Take: 3-5 Synopsis: Notre Dame has already secured two defensive end pledges: St. Louis John Burroughs' Tyson Ford, the country's No. 64 overall player and No. 5 strong-side end, and Chan- tilly (Va.) High's Aiden Gobaira, a three-star player and the No. 26 weak-side end nationally, became Freeman's first two commitments as Notre Dame's defensive coordinator. Numbers are always subject to change, but we expect the Irish to take one more edge player and one more disrupter on the interior. At the defensive tackle position, Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral's An- thony Lucas is listed as only a three- star prospect, but he's one who Free- man and defensive line coach Mike Elston covet. Queens (N.Y.) St. Francis Prep's Kaleb Artis, the nation's No. 20 defensive tackle, is high on Notre Dame, as is Pittsburgh Central Cath- olic's Donovan Hinish, a three-star prospect who is the younger brother of Irish nose tackle Kurt Hinish. Greenwood (Ind.) Center Grove's Caden Curry, the nation's No. 19 player and No. 1 strong-side end, projects to a couple different posi- tions on the line. The staff would be ecstatic to land him, but Ohio State is the favorite. Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Cyrus Moss, the No. 75 player and No. 2 weak-side defensive end in the class, is the top target left on the edge. Notre Dame has plenty of work to do but has impressed Moss on recent Zoom calls. Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei's Da- Notre Dame has the chance to land a big-time prospect from its backyard in La Grange Park (Ill.) Nazareth Academy's Tyler Morris, who Rivals lists as the No. 7 wide receiver and No. 74 overall recruit in America. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM

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