Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1407743
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com SEPT. 11, 2021 43 PREP PROFILES Justice Haynes didn't run up and down the field with ease Aug. 20 like he would have hoped to, but he still had an impressive outing. In leading Roswell (Ga.) Blessed Trin- ity to a 34-6 triumph over Stockbridge (Ga.) Woodland, Haynes ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries while also dealing with a nagging ankle injury he suffered early in the contest. "We're going to look at the film and look to get better next week," Haynes told Blue & Gold Illus- trated after the game. "My ankle did bother me a little, but I'll get some treatment, and I'll be good." It was a warrior- like performance by Haynes, who picked up where he left off after a strong off- season. He had strong showings at the Atlanta Rivals Camp and the Rivals Five- Star Challenge, and earned the No. 1 run- ning back spot in the 2023 class per Rivals. "Definitely I do, but at the same time, it's lonely at the top and you have to keep working," Haynes answered confidently when asked if he feels he's the top back in his class. "Everyone is going to try to get to that spot, so I have to keep producing." Haynes visited a handful of schools over the summer, and while his focus has shifted from recruiting to his junior season, he still wants to take advantage of being able to take game day visits to programs such as Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Notre Dame and Ohio State. Notre Dame is on his unofficial short list of favorite schools because of his strong visit to South Bend, Ind., in June and his c o n n e c t i o n w i t h running backs coach Lance Taylor. "I talk to them once per week, if not more," Haynes explained. "We're build- ing a strong relationship. I love them. "The academics and athletics are a great combination. Also, it's just like Blessed Trinity; it's a Catholic environ- ment that's about God, faith, family, football and academics. That's what they preach there, and I love that. "Coach Taylor coached [NFL star] Christian McCaffrey, and he says that I can play a similar role as him — play receiver, running back and block. I can be used like that." In his first two seasons of high school, Haynes rushed for 3,504 yards and 43 touchdowns on 381 carries. — Mike Singer Lake Stevens (Wash.) High class of 2023 running back Jayden Limar re- ceived a couple of scholarship offers last fall as a sophomore, but his recruitment didn't take off until this past spring. The in-state Washington Huskies of- fered April 7. After adding a few more this summer, he is around a dozen offers. Notre Dame is one of Limar's most recent offers, with the Fighting Irish ex- tending a scholarship Aug. 5 to the na- tion's No. 10 running back and No. 221 overall player per Rivals. "That was somewhat of a surprise," Limar said. "I had been talking to coach Dre Brown for a week before they of- fered. Then I talked to coach Lance Taylor; he was the one who offered me. They had seen my film and were looking at my grades for a while. I didn't know that they had done all of their home- work on me. "It's a pretty big offer. That's my first offer from an independent college." Limar already has a good impression of Taylor from their early conversations. "You can tell he's a straightforward dude who cares a lot about his players' development in football and life," Limar added. "He's a really good coach." Limar doesn't know a lot about Notre Dame yet, but he's planning to visit South Bend when the Irish host USC in October. "Hopefully, I can get a good grasp of everything while I'm there," he said. Limar is a member of Ford Sports Performance, a training group based in Washington. Irish class of 2022 wide re- ceiver commit Tobias Merriweather has also trained there, and another Notre Dame receiver pledge, CJ Williams, has played seven-on-seven with those two. "Those are my guys," Limar said. "I'd see Tobias all of the time and chop it up with him. I've talked to CJ a good bit, too. Those are my guys right there." Thus far, Limar also has offers from Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, Oregon, Oregon State, Texas A&M, USC, Utah, and Washington State. "I start on defense and offense. I'm a kick returner. At running back, I can get downhill and also run routes split out," he said. "I can do everything on offense. Defensively, the position I play is a line- backer/defensive back. I guard people but I'm also in the box sometimes. They use me however it fits the game plan." — Mike Singer The Nation's No. 1 Running Back 'Loves' Notre Dame Four-Star West Coast Ball Carrier Locks In Irish Visit JUSTICE HAYNES ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Blessed Trinity H.S. Roswell, Ga. Status: Offered Class: 2023 Position: Running Back Ht.: 5-10 • Wt.: 195 Rivals Rankings: No. 2 player in Georgia, and No. 1 running back and No. 17 overall player nationally JAYDEN LIMAR ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Lake Stevens H.S. Lake Stevens, Wash. Status: Offered Class: 2023 Position: Running Back Ht.: 5-10 • Wt.: 181 Rivals Rankings: No. 5 player in Washington, and No. 10 run- ning back and No. 221 overall player nationally "The academics and athletics are a great combination. Also, it's just like Blessed Trinity; it's a Catholic environment that's about God, faith, family, football and academics. That's what they preach there, and I love that." Haynes on Notre Dame "It's a pretty big offer for me. That's my first offer from an inde- pendent college. I like getting offers from all sorts of different schools. I find that pretty cool." Limar on his Notre Dame offer