BY TYLER HORKA
A
ndy Stefanelli won't ever for-
get it.
Sitting in his office at Bal-
timore Good Counsel High
School with then-Notre Dame de-
fensive coordinator Clark Lea
and wide receivers coach Del
Alexander, Stefanelli, Good
Counsel's head coach, and the
two Irish coaches chatted about
wide receiver Cam Hart's recent
commitment to Notre Dame.
"Now, Coach," Stefanelli said
to Lea, "Cam can play a little de-
fense, too."
A hushed silence enveloped the
room before Lea shattered it.
"Oh, don't you worry," Lea said.
"I'm going to try to steal him."
Lea and Alexander were both instru-
mental in luring Hart, a three-star re-
cruit, to Notre Dame. The former was
also an important influencer in chang-
ing his position from wideout to de-
fensive back. Two years after showing
up in South Bend looking to make a
difference for the Irish offense, Hart is
expected to start at cornerback.
Theft successful.
"I was excited when Coach
Lea came to me and said
they're excited about mov-
ing me over to DB," Hart
said in April.
The position change
wasn't a complete shock
to Hart. Lea, now the
head coach at Vanderbilt,
and Hart had conversa-
tions during his recruit-
ment about potentially
FLIPPING THE
SWITCH
Cam Hart's move from
high school receiver to
college corner is paying off
Hart (left) has played in 11 games and made
just three tackles in his career, but appears
poised to become a key player at cornerback
for the Fighting Irish.
PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS