Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2024 53 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ROUNDUP RECRUITING NOTES • The Irish might be in the market again for a 2025 signal-caller. During the one-week NCAA recruiting quiet period at the end of July, Notre Dame's four- star quarterback commit, Deuce Knight, finally caved and visited SEC schools. After the Lucedale (Miss.) George County senior remained steadfast in his Sept. 18 Notre Dame verbal commitment, visiting campus eight times within the last nine months, Knight went to Auburn and was also reportedly at Ole Miss the last week of July. Blue & Gold Illustrated has not confirmed if Knight made it to Oxford, Miss. However, his parents were there in a football recruiting capacity. Knight's visits to other schools have put the strength of the 6-4½, 208-pound- er's initial Irish pledge in question and increased the possibility that the pro- gram may lose its second-highest-ranked commit in the 2025 cycle. In On3's rankings, Knight is the No. 2 prospect in Mississippi, and the No. 4 quarterback and No. 28 overall player nationally. On3 only ranks five-star offensive tackle commit Will Black from Walling- ford (Conn.) Choate Rosemary Hall higher than Knight. Black is the No. 1 offensive tackle and No. 2 overall player in the class. If Notre Dame does lose Knight's commitment, Blue & Gold Illustrated expects them to target another 2025 quarterback prospect. No names have publicly emerged, but it will quickly become the top recruiting priority for general manager Chad Bowden and company to close out this cycle. • Not far behind is wide receiver. Notre Dame had a disappointing June, striking out on all three of its 2025 class wide receiver targets. Four-star Derek Meadows committed to LSU, four-star Dylan Robinson chose Wash- ington and three-star Tanook Hines declared to Southern Cal. Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Meadows was the highest-ranked of the trio — and the player the Irish recruited the longest, dating back to June 2023. Meadows is On3's top senior in Nevada, and the No. 17 wide receiver and No. 115 overall player in the country in 2025. Meadows was initially supposed to commit to LSU July 13. But the Irish swooped in, made a big push and had him reconsider. He still ended up going with the Tigers a week later. La Verne (Calif.) Bonita's Robinson and Houston Dekaney's Hines were both recruits wide receivers coach Mike Brown offered once he took over his position in December. Hines, On3's No. 57 player in Texas and No. 66 wide receiver in America, was the first one he offered. Robinson added the Irish to his offer sheet in April. Ranked as the No. 6 athlete and No. 163 overall player in the class by On3, the 6-3, 190-pounder favored defense and committed to the Huskies to play cornerback. All three officially visited Notre Dame in June. With three-stars Elijah Burress and Jerome Bettis Jr. — On3's Nos. 111 and 159 wide receivers in 2025 per On3 — as the only commits, Notre Dame will still look to add two more pass catchers. The staff has identified those targets privately and is gaining traction with them behind the scenes. Meanwhile, look for the Irish to continue recruiting Meadows. They will have until December to sway his signature in their favor. • Following Winter Garden (Fla.) West Orange four-star safety Ivan Taylor's flip to Michigan on July 8, the Irish set their sights on Fort Wayne (Ind.) Snider three-star safety Brandon Logan to replace him. Logan, On3's No. 9 player in Indiana and No. 40 safety in the nation, is not as highly ranked as Taylor, who checks in at No. 23 in Florida and No. 14 at safety nationally per On3. However, the Irish love his upside. Logan is a Vanderbilt baseball commit but impressed on the gridiron during Notre Dame's Irish Invasion camp June 2. He ended up unofficially visiting a few weeks later and earned a football scholarship offer. The Irish remain confident they can secure his commitment to play both sports in South Bend. — Kyle Kelly ON3 INDUSTRY 2026 TEAM RECRUITING RANKINGS As of Aug. 6 1. Oregon 3 2. Auburn 6 3. Penn State 6 4. Georgia 3 5. Florida State 5 6. Southern Cal 5 7. Oklahoma 3 8. Florida 3 9. LSU 4 10. Miami 3 — Notre Dame 2 Rk. School Commits Rk. School Commits Caden Harris, HHHH, 6-0, 170, Brownsville, Tenn. (Haywood) Elbert Hill, HHHH, 5-10½, 170, Akron, Ohio (Archbishop Hoban) Ksani Jiles, HHH, 6-0, 170, Bradenton, Fla. (IMG Academy) Samari Matthews, HHHH, 6-0, 180, Huntersville, N.C. (William Amos Hough) Joey O'Brien, HHH, 6-4, 180, Wyndmoor, Pa. (La Salle College) Hakim Satterwhite, HHH, 6-1, 175, Washington, D.C. (St. John's) RJ Sermons, HHHH, 6-0, 180, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. (Rancho Cucamonga) Chaston Smith, HHHH, 6-1, 145, Knoxville, Tenn. (McCallie School) Jordan Thomas, HHH, 6-0, 175, Oradell, N.J. (Bergen Catholic) Safety Blaine Bradford, HHHH, 6-1, 195, Baton Rouge, La. (Catholic) Simeon Caldwell, HHHH, 6-3, 185, Jacksonville, Fla. (The Bolles School) J'Zavien Currence, HHHH, 6-3, 210, Rock Hill, S.C. (South Pointe) Jordan Deck, HHH, 6-3, 180, Frisco, Texas (Lone Star) Zech Fort, HHH, 5-10, 170, Bradenton, Fla. (IMG Academy) Zelus Hicks, HHHH, 6-1½, 180, Carrollton, Ga. (Carrollton) Xavier Lherisse, HHH, 5-11, 185, Melbourne, Fla. (Eau Gallie) Nick Reddish, —, 5-11, 180, Charlotte, N.C. (Independence) Jermaine Santana-Diaz, —, 6-1, 185, Missouri City, Texas (Ridge Point) Jakob Weatherspoon, HHHH, 5-11, 172, Avon, Ohio (Avon) DJ Williams, HHH, 6-1, 160, Tampa, Fla. (Carrollwood Day) Bralan Womack, HHHH, 6-0½, 200, Brandon, Miss. (Hartfield Academy) Athlete Brandon Arrington, HHHH, 6-0, 180, La Mesa, Calif. (Mount Miguel) Zion Legree, HHH, 6-1, 190 Pensacola, Fla. (Pine Forest) Jett Washington, HHHH, 6-4, 185, Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) Star ratings are from On3 as of Aug. 6 Commitments in bold italics Lucedale (Miss.) George County four-star quarterback Deuce Knight, who has been committed to the Irish since September, is reevaluating his deci- sion and considering staying in SEC country. He is On3's No. 4 passer and No. 28 overall player in the 2025 class. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER