Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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84 MARCH 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2025 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE cal target for Notre Dame, and the Irish would love to land him along with Chi- cago Mount Carmel's Braeden Jones, the nation's No. 25 defensive lineman and No. 280 overall player. Jones has been committed to USC since last fall, but Notre Dame isn't giving up on its pursuit of him. San Juan Capistrano (Calif.) JSerra Catholic's Simote Katoanga is the No. 8 edge and No. 52 overall player in Amer- ica, but Notre Dame could see him beef- ing up and playing on the interior, while he could stay on the edge as well. The Irish look to be in a major battle with USC for him. Richardson (Texas) High's Jaimeon Winfield, Durham (N.C.) C.E. Jordan's Noah Clark and Sarasota (Fla.) Cardi- nal Mooney's Elijah Golden, who rank as the Nos. 12, 51 and 57, respectively, defensive lineman in America, are all notable targets as well. Moving to the Irish's defensive end positions, a key name to know for Notre Dame is South Garner's (N.C.) Ebene- zer Ewetade, who currently ranks as a three-star prospect but is seeing his re- cruitment explode with new offers. The Irish are battling Georgia, Ohio State, Penn State and others for Ewetade. He received his Notre Dame scholarship offer during a visit at the end of January. Charlotte (N.C.) Myers Park's Rodney Dunham is one of the Irish's top tar- gets regardless of position in the 2026 class. Dunham, the nation's No. 3 edge and No. 19 overall player, hasn't vis- ited South Bend in quite some time but the expectation is that the talented pass rusher returns to campus at least once this spring. Rolesville (N.C.) High's Zavion Grif- fin-Haynes, Norcross (Ga.) Greater At- lanta Christian's Dre Quinn and Car- son (Calif.) Leuzinger's Samu Moala are other names to know. Moala and Quinn rank as three-star recruits, while Griffin-Haynes is the No. 15 edge and No. 135 overall prospect in America. LINEBACKER Committed: 1 Projected take: 2-3 Synopsis: Last November, the Irish added a top of the board target in Mat- thews (N.C.) Weddington's Thomas Davis Jr., a three-star prospect who held a handful of other power confer- ence offers. BGI understands that there are four other linebackers to know, including Cincinnati St. Xavier's Kobe Clapper and Port Arthur (Texas) Memorial's Tank King. They are the Nos. 17 and 13 linebackers in America, respectively. Clapper and King have Notre Dame high on their lists and very well may have the Irish in the pole position. Jacksonville (Fla.) The Bolles School's Simeon Caldwell and Orange (Calif.) Lutheran's Talanoa Ili are at the top of the wish list for position coach Max Bullough as well. Ili, the No. 16 line- backer in America, hasn't visited Notre Dame yet but has strong interest in the Irish. Caldwell ranks as the No. 3 safety nationally but projects as a linebacker for Notre Dame. DEFENSIVE BACK Committed: 1 Projected take: 4-5 Synopsis: The Irish landed a top of the board cornerback target in Chatta- nooga (Tenn.) McCallie School's Chas- ton Smith on Dec. 1, 2024. He is the No. 17 cornerback and No. 242 overall player in the country. Towson (Md.) Loyola Blakefield's Khary Adams and Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic's Jordan Thomas are two top of the board cornerback recruits. Ad- ams is the nation's No. 18 cornerback, while Thomas is the No. 73 athlete in the land. The competition is stiff for both prospects. Charlotte (N.C.) Independence's Nick Reddish and Glenside (Pa.) LaSalle Col- lege's Joey O'Brien could play corner- back or safety for Notre Dame. The staff likes them both at the two positions. Reddish is the No. 40 safety in America; O'Brien is the No. 6 athlete and No. 103 overall player nationally. BGI expects both prospects to officially visit this summer. Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Jett Washington, Frisco (Texas) Lone Star's Jordan Deck and Winter Park (Fla.) High's Ayden Pouncey are other safety targets for position coach Mike Mick- ens. They rank as the Nos. 10, 19 and 11 safeties in the country, respectively. SPECIALIST Committed: 0 Projected take: 0-1 Synopsis: Notre Dame typically goes to the transfer portal to land specialists, but it's always possible they could go to the high school ranks. But as of now, BGI doesn't expect that to happen for the 2026 class. ✦ Matthews (N.C.) Weddington's Thomas Davis Jr., who is currently ranked as a three-star recruit, commit- ted to Notre Dame last fall over Clemson, Miami and Ohio State. PHOTO BY KYLE KELLY