Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1507821
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 23, 2023 45 FOOTBALL RECRUITING He's really liking the Fighting Irish and, interestingly enough, the Buckeyes are considered the biggest threat to Notre Dame in Burgess' recruitment. DOMINIK HULAK Linebacker • 6-3, 225 Class Of 2025 Chicago Immaculate Conception On3 Rankings: Three-star recruit, No. 12 player in Illinois and No. 43 line- backer and nationally. The Skinny: Illinois is loaded in the 2025 cycle, and Hulak is a key target for Notre Dame who is likely leaning toward the Irish. The three-star recruit visited Notre Dame in March and twice over the summer. Could he be nearing a pledge after his visit for the Ohio State matchup? Time will tell, but the likes of Iowa, Wiscon- sin, Purdue, Illinois and Missouri are battling for him. OWEN STREBIG Offensive Tackle • 6-7, 295 Class Of 2025 Waukesha (Wis.) Catholic Memorial On3 Rankings: Four-star recruit, No. 1 player in Wisconsin, and No. 5 of- fensive tackle and No. 40 overall player nationally. The Skinny: He very well may be Notre Dame's top offensive tackle target on the 2025 board, and the Irish look to be the team to beat for the elite pros- pect. He's already visited campus three times this year, and Strebig may not be too far off from a decision either. One would think this would be a bat- tle between Notre Dame and Wisconsin, but the Irish's biggest competition here is actually USC from what we hear. TALYN TAYLOR Wide Receiver • 6-1, 165 Class Of 2025 Geneva (Ill.) Community On3 Rankings: Four-star recruit, No. 1 player in Illinois, and No. 12 wide receiver and No. 63 overall player na- tionally. The Skinny: One of the nation's best receivers in the 2025 class comes from the state of Illinois, which again is loaded in the high school junior class. And Taylor is a monstrous target for the Irish. He's visited South Bend twice this calendar year, and putting on a good showing in front of him against the Buckeyes is important. Georgia is a ma- jor contender in Taylor's recruitment, and he's closely looking at UCLA as well, among other programs. MARK ZACKERY Cornerback • 6-0 155 Class Of 2025 Indianapolis Ben Davis On3 Rankings: Four-star recruit, No. 1 player in Indiana, and No. 17 cor- nerback and No. 202 overall player na- tionally. The Skinny: The Buckeyes are a top contender for Zackery, making Notre Dame's performance against Ohio State even more important. The in-state four-star player also has offers from the likes of Georgia, Louisville, Penn State, USC, Texas A&M, Tennessee and others. Zackery saw Notre Dame knock off Clemson last fall, so this won't be his first introduction to an electric atmo- sphere in South Bend, and he visited campus twice over the summer. This is a prospect whom Notre Dame should pull from the Indy area, but Ohio State and Georgia won't make it easy. ✦ The recruitment of Waukesha (Wis.) Catholic Memorial 2025 four-star Owen Strebig — the No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 40 overall player in the nation — is expected to come down to Notre Dame and USC. PHOTO BY KYLE KELLY Sign up now at BlueandGold.com! NOTE: BlueandGold.com is the companion site to Blue & Gold Illustrated magazine. It is a separate subscription and is NOT included with the magazine. FEATURING: ✦ NEXT-GENERATION PLAYER DATABASE ✦ RECRUITING SCOOP ✦ DAILY TEAM COVERAGE ✦ STRONG COMMUNITY ✦ NEW MOBILE APP! ✦ MONTHLY OPTION AVAILABLE 25% JOIN TODAY JOIN TODAY BLUEANDGOLD.COM BLUEANDGOLD.COM The premier Notre Dame site, now on the On3 network, has a special offer for ALL Notre Dame fans: 25% OFF with promo code Irish25 Regularly $109.99 a year • Offer valid for new subscribers only