Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM MARCH 2025 57 2025 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY KYLE KELLY O ne scroll through Michael Manasco's cell phone shows how many con- tacts he has in college football … Notre Dame football coaches included. "I maybe have 500 college coaches in my phone from through the years," said Manasco, who has held the post of head coach at Miami Palmetto since the 2014 season. During his tenure, Manasco has had college football programs court two of his players who became On3 Indus- try Ranking five-star prospects and a handful of highly coveted four-stars. Most ended up a stone's throw away in Coral Gables to play for the Hurricanes. The outliers signed with Ole Miss and Nebraska. Now, Palmetto looks to have another anomaly in Davion Dixon. When Dixon transferred from Belen Jesuit to Palmetto in spring 2023, he had already been verbally committed to the Fighting Irish for several weeks. He picked them over Auburn, Nebraska, Penn State and multiple other notable scholarship offers. But still, some of Manasco's contacts made "respectful" pitches in attempt to get Dixon to reopen his recruitment. But Dixon remained steadfast in his Irish pledge, signed with Notre Dame in De- cember and enrolled in January. "It's not just the level and pedigree of football, but also the academic side," Manasco told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "It's about the 40 years, not the four years. Your degree will pay for it. That has been the huge thing." Dixon's allegiance to Notre Dame is also a testament to his relation- ship with its coaches, several of whom Manasco has met over the years dating back to their previous stops. It begins with Marcus Freeman, who Manasco has known since he was Cincinnati's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach from 2017-20. "Marcus really done a great job," he said. "He's been one of the top-class guys to ever come through Palmetto — as far as how he handles himself, speaks and coaches." Although Manasco's first i n te ra c t i o n s w i t h No t re Dame defensive line coach Al Washington began when Dixon transferred to Pal- metto, the Notre Dame as- sistant's character also re- ceived rave reviews from Manasco. "He's been nothing but class," Manasco said. Dixon was the first commitment of Notre Dame's 2025 class, making an im- promptu pledge to the Fighting Irish during the weekend of the 2023 Blue- Gold Game. Other schools — such as Georgia and Ohio State — offered him after he had already given a verbal pledge to Notre Dame. But Dixon never looked back. ✦ Dixon, out of Palmetto High in Miami, committed to Notre Dame over Auburn, Nebraska and Penn State, among others, early in the process and honored his pledge. PHOTO COURTESY ON3 Davion Dixon Stayed True To His Fighting Irish Commitment DAVION DIXON DEFENSIVE LINEMAN 6-2 ∙ 322 MIAMI PALMETTO H.S. HOMESTEAD, FLA. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE Industry ✪ ✪ ✪ — 86 108 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 107 122 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 115 122 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 77 135 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ — 25 58 STATISTICS • Totaled 82 stops (54 solo), 25 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, 8 QB pressures, 1 pass broken up, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery during his 11-game senior season. • Notched 64 tackles (35 solo), 16 stops for loss, 7 sacks, 10 QB hurries, 2 passes broken ups and 2 blocked point-after tries as a junior. • In 11 games in 2022, registered 70 tackles, 33 tackles for loss, 24 quarterback hurries, 10.5 sacks and five passes broken up. Also had a forced fumble and a blocked kick. NOTABLE • 2024 U.S. Army Bowl participant. • Warren Henry Automotive Group South Florida Player of the Year Award nominee. • Member of the U20 U.S. Tackle National Team and competed internationally. • Member of varsity wrestling and track & field teams. • 2021 MaxPreps first-team Freshman All- American. • Four-time All-Dade County selection. • Has completed more than 100 hours of com- munity service. RECRUITMENT • Enrolled at Notre Dame in January. • Became Notre Dame's first commitment on April 21, 2023. • Added offers from Boston College, Georgia, Maryland and Ohio State after committing to the Irish but remained firm in his pledge. • Recruited by defensive line coach Al Wash- ington. • Visited Notre Dame eight times, including his official visit on June 14, 2024. 2025 PROJECTION • Expected to redshirt. THEY SAID IT Prep Football Report recruiting analyst Tom Lemming: "He has dominated the action since his freshman year. You've got to be impressed with his strength, ability to penetrate blockers, his great first step and his movement skills. Dixon plays with a great motor and stamina, and has a long reach and never lets up." Miami Palmetto head coach Mike Manasco "Where Davion separates himself is by how much work he puts in. He's always been a big-bodied football player, but playing against the competi- tion we play against has brought the dog out in him. He is a relentless worker and does a lot of stuff on his own. "He's starting to see that at the level he is going to play, you don't have time for days off. He's going to be elite, and he's training that way."