Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM MARCH 2023 63 2023 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY TYLER HORKA Sam Pendleton is different than his peers in Pfafftown. The small town in North Caro- lina doesn't produce Power Five play- ers with regularity. And when Reagan High School does put alumni at top- tier institutions within the Power Five, those players usually stay local. They go to North Carolina State, Wake For- est, North Carolina or, if they're a tick more talented than the rest, they go a bit farther south to Clemson or South Carolina. The 6-4, 295-pound Pendleton shook up the game. He signed with Notre Dame. "Down here, it doesn't happen a lot," Reagan head coach Josh McGee told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "A lot of guys here don't have the opportunity to go up north. "But I knew all along he would go to a place that's very traditional. A place that's not about flash. A place that doesn't care about having 25 uniform combinations." That place is Notre Dame. Pendleton told Blue & Gold Illustrated when he committed to the Fighting Irish last April that the most alluring aspects of Notre Dame were those McGee spoke of. He likes offensive line coach Harry Hies- tand's old-school approach. He's drawn to head coach Marcus Freeman when he says over and over that Notre Dame is go- ing to be a program driven by effective play on both sides of the line of scrim- mage. That's right up the alley of a player who has always predicated his game on being bigger, stronger and tougher than the op- position. Pendleton said he didn't commit to Notre Dame because of Hiestand. He was already sold on Freeman, game day Mass and no names on the back of jerseys. For him, Hiestand's presence was "icing on the cake." Not just any icing, either. The kind perfectly manicured and crafted by a professional. "Coach Hiestand is an amazing per- son," Pendleton said. "He's legendary, just from what he's done. I want to play for someone who believes in something and believes in doing it the right way." Pendleton has done things the right way for as long as he's been playing. That's what makes his landing at Notre Dame a perfect marriage. "It's not a mistake," McGee said. "He works his butt off. Never missed a day in the weight room. He understands the value of nutrition and diet. It's a guy that's just all about the program and all about winning and being successful. He's all about work." At Notre Dame, that fits right in. ✦ Small-Town Product Sam Pendleton Is Built Differently Pendleton, one of five offensive linemen Notre Dame signed in the class of 2023, was drawn in by head coach Marcus Freeman's desire to be a program driven by effective play in the trenches. PHOTO BY MATT CARTER SAM PENDLETON INTERIOR OFFENSIVE LINEMAN 6-4 · 305 REAGAN H.S. LAWSONVILLE, N.C. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ — 36 15 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 44 17 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ — 20 11 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 34 18 NOTABLE • 2022 Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas All-Star game participant. • 2022 NC Sportswriters' All-State first-team offense. • 2022 and 2021 HighSchoolOT North Carolina All-State first-team offense. • 2022 and 2021 All-Central Piedmont Confer- ence selection. • His father, Jason, was an offensive lineman for William & Mary in the mid-1990s. • His twin sister, Emma, will play basketball at Lenoir-Rhyne University in 2023. RECRUITMENT • Committed to Notre Dame on April 25, 2022. • Enrolled at Notre Dame in January. • Also held offers from Penn State, Michigan, Clemson and others. • Recruited by O-line coach Harry Hiestand. • Visited Notre Dame three times, including his official visit on June 10, 2022. 2023 PROJECTION • Pendleton will likely redshirt as a true freshman. THEY SAID IT On3 director of scouting and rankings Charles Power: "Pendleton is a road grader who is at his best as a drive blocker in the run game. He has ready-made size at a shade under 6-foot-4 and 305 pounds with wide shoulders. There's not much to project physically. He registers as a solid athlete in the combine setting. "From a skill set perspective, Pendleton looks to be best fit along the interior, likely at guard where he can use his brute strength as a run blocker. He'll need to continue honing his technique and getting his pads lower, but the tools are there to be a plus run blocker at the college level — the pop in his hands and grip strength stand out in that regard." National recruiting analyst Tom Lemming: "He's built like Quenton Nelson when Quenton was a junior in high school. I'm not saying he's as good as Quenton because nobody is, but he's got great feet, enormous strength and really good technique. "What I really like about him is that he's super aggressive; he's a tough son of a gun. He's perfect for what Harry Hiestand is looking for. He likes those real tough guys who can take instruction, and that's Pendleton. He plays tackle now, but he's more of a guard prospect. He's obviously versatile enough to play tackle. He's a powerhouse."