Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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PREP PROFILES BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 14, 2024 45 What a wild past couple of months on the recruiting trail it's been for Green- ville (Ga.) High class of 2025 athlete An- tavious Richardson. The 6-foot-2, 170-pounder commit- ted to Georgia State in April, but his re- cruiting process took a turn when the likes of Memphis, USF, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State took notice and of- fered him scholarships. He flipped his pledge from the in-state school to the USF Bulls in late June. But then he saw a second wave of schools pursuing him in August. North Carolina, Duke, Notre Dame, UCF and Louisville all offered him. And on Sept. 1, Alabama joined the mix. Richardson notes that every school that's been in touch with him recently has offered him. "It's been crazy the past few weeks," Richardson told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "There's a lot more options for me to explore." Richardson announced Aug. 23 that he had added an offer from the Fight- ing Irish. He was in contact with Notre Dame general manager Chad Bowden, head coach Marcus Freeman and wide receivers coach Mike Brown for a week before landing the offer. "It was surprising," Richardson said about the news of an ND offer. "I was like, 'Notre Dame? For real?' Then they offered, and I was like, 'Whoa.' With that school, you have to actually be a top student-athlete to be able to go there. That offer was surprising in my eyes." Richardson remains committed to USF on paper, and the Bulls' staff con- tinues to reach out to him, but it seems like a foregone conclusion that he won't be signing with the AAC program. The Irish are one of the main contenders to flip him. "I love all of them," Richardson said of the Notre Dame coaching staff. "They try to make me feel comfortable and want me to fit in. They tell me what about Notre Dame will make me fit in — the bond is there." Richardson will get his first look at Notre Dame the weekend of Sept. 21 (his high school team's bye week) for an of- ficial visit. He is committed to USF as a safety, and that's the position Alabama is tar- geting him for as well. Notre Dame likes him for receiver. Richardson notes that he's being recruited pretty equally be- tween the two positions. "I'm cool with either; it doesn't mat- ter," he said regarding a preference. When asked about his final decision timeline, Richardson says that he's go- ing to take it the distance. Look for a decision in early December. — Mike Singer Safety Bralan Womack's answers came across with much more reservation com- pared to the last time he spoke to Blue & Gold Illustrated about his Notre Dame football recruitment. That is not a knock on the Fighting Irish as much as a credit to the competition building in the po- tential five-star prospect's recruitment. "They're definitely up there," Wom- ack said on June 2 when answering whether the Irish had solidified them- selves as a leader in his recruitment. "I'm just extremely blessed; I can't even put it into words. It's an offer I worked very hard for." Since then Womack has reeled in offers from Ohio State, Nebraska and Texas. Those schools, along with Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Alabama, Tennessee, Louisville and LSU, all made his top-10 schools list released on Aug. 18. Pundits consider him a Buckeyes lean, but the 6-foot, 200-pound Womack still likes where the Irish stand in his recruitment at the start of his junior year. "Everything is still genuine from Coach Marcus [Freeman] and the de- fensive staff," Womack said. "Even the receiver coach [Mike Brown], we had a nice relationship built when I was there. It's just all love from them." Five days before the Irish versus Texas A&M game, Womack said he hopped on a call with Freeman and defensive backs coach Mike Mickens after they found out he would be in College Station, Texas, on Aug. 31 for the Irish's season- opening game versus Texas A&M. "They said it was a great game to pick," he said. Womack said he "plans" to return to South Bend this season. But by the sounds of it, he might choose to stay more regional during football season after taking a countrywide approach to his recruitment during the summer. "I don't want to kill my parents too much after a football game on Friday," said Womack, who traveled six hours by car to College Station after his game Friday night. "Trying to kill them to get to a place. "I said I will try to get as many top-10 games as I could this year. But at the end of the day, official visits are coming up in the offseason. So, if I don't make it up in the fall, I'll definitely make it up in the spring." — Kyle Kelly Alabama And Notre Dame Battling For USF Commit Where Notre Dame Stands With Elite 2026 Safety ANTAVIOUS RICHARDSON ✪ ✪ ✪ Greenville H.S. Greenville, Ga. Status: Offered Class: 2025 Position: Wide receiver Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 170 On3 Rankings: No. 121 player in Georgia and No. 51 athlete nationally BRALAN WOMACK ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Hartfield Academy Brandon, Miss. Status: Offered Class: 2026 Position: Safety Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 200 On3 Rankings: No. 2 player in Mississippi, and No. 6 safety and No. 52 overall player nationally "Everything is still genuine from Coach Marcus [Freeman] and the defensive staff." WOMACK