Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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36 AUGUST 2021 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY MIKE SINGER Notre Dame fans will be familiar with the last name of the Fighting Irish's first defensive tackle pledge of the 2022 class. On June 4, Pittsburgh Central Cath- olic's Donovan Hinish announced his commitment to Notre Dame, the same school that his older brother Kurt Hin- ish has played for since 2017. Kurt has already played four seasons for the Irish, but will take advantage of the NCAA's extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kurt's fifth and final year with the program will be the 2021 campaign, but Notre Dame will have another Hinish on the team in 2022 when Donovan arrives. "The tradition is a big thing; I love it there," Hinish said of Notre Dame. "The culture and atmosphere are in- credible. The biggest thing of all is their academics. It's one of the best schools in the entire world." The younger Hinish committed to Notre Dame over offers from Akron, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Coastal Caro- lina, Kent State, Pittsburgh, Toledo, UCF, Virginia Tech and Western Mich- igan. Notre Dame was offer No. 1 for Hinish on Nov. 19, 2020, and instantly became the favorite to land his pledge. Hinish has a relationship with defen- sive line coach Mike Elston that goes back years. Keith Gilmore recruited Kurt as the position coach while Elston had a stint as linebackers coach. But Elston moved over to coaching the de- fensive line for Kurt's freshman season and has held that post ever since. Hinish has visited Notre Dame count- less times over the past few years and has gotten to know Elston very well. "Coach Elston and I are close, and I talk to the coaching staff frequently," Hinish said. "I think he's a great guy and a great coach as well. We've got- ten very close during the recruiting process. Overall, I enjoy talking to him and he's an awesome coach." Donovan has had many conversa- tions with Kurt about what it would be like to be a student-athlete at Notre Dame, and he welcomes all of it with open arms. "It's definitely hard," Donovan explained. "Their big thing is four years for 40 years. Kurt is grinding it out now so that he can set himself up for the rest of his life. "As you'd expect, he was par- tial for the school he wanted me to choose. He always says how much he loves it up there." Actions speak louder than words. Kurt decided to play a fifth season at Notre Dame, showing just how much he does love being a student-athlete in South Bend. "He was super excited," Dono- van said about his brother playing for Notre Dame in 2021. "He's been busting his butt these past four years, and to get one more year with all of his brothers means the world to him. Seeing him that happy is awesome." Rivals lists Hinish with a 5.7 recruit ranking, the highest designation for a three-star prospect. He is ranked as the No. 16 recruit in Pennsylvania and the nation's No. 39 defensive tackle. Hinish was named to the 2020 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette WPIAL all- conference class 6A first-team de- fense and the 2020 Pennsylvania coaches' class 6A second-team de- fensive tackle. MaxPreps also lists Hinish on its 2020 all-state second- team defense. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review lists Hinish as Western Pennsylvania's No. 4 overall recruit in the 2022 class. Hinish comes from quite the ath- letic family. His father, Kurt Sr., played football and his older sister, Kadin, ran track for Division II Slip- pery Rock in Pennsylvania. His old- est brother, Cory Nolton, was a tight end for Robert Morris of the Football Championship Subdivision. His uncle, Christian Hinish, played a couple seasons at Georgia Tech, and a cousin, Jacob Hinish, played for Yale. Hinish will study science pre-pro- fessional studies with an emphasis on physical therapy. ✦ FILM ANALYSIS "Donovan [Hinish] is a physical football player. Last season, he took major strides with his handwork and overall knowledge of football and how he fits into his gap defensively. He played offense for us, too; it helped him understand blocking schemes better. "His energy can now be applied where it needs to be. As a sophomore [in 2019], he was just getting off the ball and getting penetration, but last year, he understood how to stop plays. To watch his growth has been exciting." — Pittsburgh Central Catholic defensive coordinator Dave Fleming COMMITMENT PROFILE DONOVAN HINISH Pennsylvania Defensive Tackle Will Follow His Brother To Notre Dame Rivals rates Hinish as a three-star prospect, the No. 16 player in Pennsylvania and the No. 39 defensive tackle in the country. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM "The tradition is a big thing; I love it there. The culture and atmosphere are incredible. The biggest thing of all is their academics. It's one of the best schools in the entire world." HINISH ON NOTRE DAME