Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM MARCH 2024 57 2024 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY TODD D. BURLAGE T he "Big Bear" handle on Twitter couldn't be more fitting for Irish de- fensive lineman Sean Sevillano Jr. An early enrollee freshman at Notre Dame, the Canada native has essentially been a big bear his entire life. Already a 300-pounder as a 14-year- old high school freshman in Winnipeg, Sevillano never stopped growing once he moved to the United States in 2021, to upgrade his football competi- tion as a sophomore at Clearwa- ter (Fla.) Academy International. "I was pretty raw," Sevillano recalled of his early days at the football powerhouse. "I was a big kid but I had never really seen real competition [in Canada]. I went from playing when I was 13 years old pre-COVID to play- ing against 17-, 18-, 19-year-old guys in high school. So, I was getting acclimated to that and really figuring out how things went. The flip of the switch was realizing my potential." And trust us, Sevillano isn't kidding. As a senior at CAI, the beefy nose tackle piled up 101 tackles, 65 tackles for loss, 14 sacks and 3 forced fumbles — production numbers that even the producer marvels at sometimes. "First, it was not a misprint," Sevillano said with a laugh. "I just have a lot of fun playing the game of football and getting after it. The numbers were certainly impressive but it wasn't what I was chasing. I was chasing wins." Sevillano arrived at Notre Dame in January at 6-foot-1, and 339 pounds, with a low gravity center that makes moving him off the line of scrimmage almost impossible. Sevillano does admit that "trimming down" to 320 pounds would get him closer to an ideal game-day weight. "I think that would unlock a certain part of my game that allows me to play faster and allows me to play more confi- dently," he explained, "to not have any- thing left in the tank." Never short on self-assuredness, Se- villano explained that keeping confi- dence high helps him improve as both a person and a player. "As you live and you get better and better, and you realize you are that guy and you can do this, you kind of gain a sense of swag, and since then, I've tried to maintain that swag," said Sevillano, who totaled 208 tackles, 120 for loss, 38 sacks, 10 forced fumbles and three var- sity letters at CAI. "Because ultimately, the biggest thing is, when you're play- ing in the trenches, everybody is 300 pounds, everybody's strong. You have to have some swag." Stateside accolades aside, this story would be incomplete without asking the "Big Bear" Canadian football player about any previous hockey pursuits. "I love hockey, never got to play it," Sevillano said. "I took skating lessons when I was young and I never could stop, so that ultimately put an end to that, and I started my journey on the gridiron." And player and school are both the better for it. ✦ As a senior at Clearwater (Fla.) Academy International, Sevillano piled up 101 tackles, 65 tackles for loss, 14 sacks and 3 forced fumbles — amazing production numbers for a nose tackle. PHOTO BY KYLE KELLY SEAN SEVILLANO JR. DEFENSIVE LINEMAN 6-1 ∙ 339 CLEARWATER ACADEMY INT'L. CLEARWATER, FLA. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ — 54 78 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 48 91 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ — 24 68 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 65 64 STATISTICS • Totaled 208 total stops, 120 tackles for loss, 38 sacks and 10 forced fumbles during his prep career. • Compiled 101 tackles, 65 stops for loss, 14 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 1 blocked field goal during his senior season. • Notched 75 stops, 21 tackles for loss, 19 sacks and 3 forced fumbles in 11 games as a junior. NOTABLE • Named the Pinellas County Player of the Year in 2023. • Tabbed as a team captain and Clearwater Acad- emy International's Most Valuable Player. • Helped lead Clearwater Academy to back-to- back Sunshine State Independent Association state titles in 2021 and 2022. • Qualified for honor roll throughout his high school career, earning the Silver Presidential aca- demic award as a sophomore and the Gold Presi- dential academic award as a junior. • Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, but moved from Canada to the United States in the summer of 2021. RECRUITMENT • Committed to the Fighting Irish on June 2, 2023. • Enrolled at Notre Dame in January. • Picked the Irish over offers from Auburn, Miami and Ohio State. • Recruited by defensive line coach Al Wash- ington. • Visited Notre Dame five times, including his official visit on June 9, 2023. 2024 PROJECTION • Could be a surprise contributor this fall, but he's more likely to redshirt as a true freshman. THEY SAID IT On3 director of scouting and rankings Charles Power: "Sevillano is a compactly built nose tackle prospect. He's very productive at the high school level and plays with high effort. I saw him at the Under Armour camp in Orlando, and he had a strong showing there. He won most of his reps in one-on-ones. "He's physical and plays with pretty good quick- ness off the ball for a prospect of his size. His upside might not be as high as other interior de- fensive lineman due to physical and athletic limi- tations, but he can play fast as a nose tackle in a three-man front." 'Big Bear' Sean Sevillano Jr. Ready To Make A Big Impact