Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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PREP PROFILES BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 7, 2026 49 Grafton (Wis.) High class of 2029 tight end Hank Doyle has seen Notre Dame play twice this season. The Fighting Irish were technically the home team for their neutral-site game against Wisconsin Sept. 6, and NCAA rules allowed Notre Dame to invite a small group of prospective student-athletes to attend the game. The staff invited Badger State native Doyle to the game, and the four-star prospect also attended his first game inside Notre Dame Stadium Oct. 10, watching the Irish dismantle Stanford. "Being able to see the Irish at both Lambeau and Notre Dame this year has been unbelievable," Doyle told Blue & Gold Illustrated. Doyle couldn't interact with the Notre Dame staff at Lambeau Field due to rules for neutral-site games, but he caught up with them when he was in town for the Stanford game. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound Doyle had a great time on campus. "Everything was amazing," he said. "It was a full day with a lot of great ex- periences and people. "It was very impressive. The coaches and staff were great as well. I was able to spend quality time with Coach [Harris] Bivin, Coach [Trent] Miles, Mike Martin and Kenny Sanders. I also got to shake hands and briefly speak with a number of other coaches, including Coach [Marcus] Freeman and Coach [Mike] Denbrock." Doyle holds offers from Ohio State, Penn State, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, Purdue, Iowa, Vanderbilt and others. Notre Dame hasn't extended an offer yet, but the Irish haven't offered any 2029 tight end recruits. He showed off his skills to the staff during one of their prospect camps back in June, and Doyle is eager to continue building a connection with Notre Dame. "I didn't see many other 2029 re- cruits, so it certainly felt special," Doyle said. "I really enjoyed the game and am looking forward to spending more time in South Bend in the near future." Doyle is the No. 4 tight end and No. 90 overall player in the sophomore class according to On3. He's recently visited Vanderbilt and Northwestern, and will see Indiana, Tennessee, Georgia and Wisconsin this fall as well. — Mike Singer Notre Dame doesn't typically offer many offensive line prospects, but as a recruiting cycle progresses, it's not un- common for position coach Joe Rudolph to go after an ascending prospect. Could that player in the 2028 class be from Notre Dame's fertile recruiting back- yard in Chicagoland? The Irish staff is keeping tabs on Villa Park (Ill.) Willowbrook's Liam Pagan, a three-star recruit and the No. 51 inte- rior offensive line- man nationally per Rivals. The 6-foot-4, 300-pounder visited Notre Dame Oct. 10 to see the Fighting Irish dismantle Stan- ford and had a great time in South Bend. "The visit was great," he told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "The fan base was live, and it's a beautiful campus. The Shields Family Hall is a very nice facil- ity. I like the way that the players get to break bread with other players from other sports. "The offensive line was very detailed and created big holes for long runs. They protected the quarterback very well. They were dominating the line of scrimmage." Pagan was happy to connect with Ru- dolph for the first time in person and speak with other staffers. "I was able to meet Coach [Marcus] Freeman after the game, which was a c o o l ex p e r i e n c e . Coach Rudolph said to keep my grades u p a n d t h a t my goal for every game should be to stay fo c u s e d a n d ge t better every play." Pagan is already a top prospect in his own right. While he's not a blue-chip prospect from a rankings standpoint yet, he certainly is from an offer standpoint. Oklahoma, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Miami, Arizona State and Boston College have offered him so far. "If I received an offer from Notre Dame, it would mean a lot to me," he said. "It would show me that all the work I have been putting in is paying off and that a program like Notre Dame sees something in me to help the team. With their history, especially with offensive linemen, it would be a big opportunity for me and my future." Pagan visited Oklahoma one week after seeing Notre Dame and was at Il- linois in October as well. He plans to check out Missouri, Texas A&M and Ole Miss this fall. — Mike Singer Notre Dame Has The Attention Of A Four-Star Tight End Irish Staff Tracking 2028 Chicagoland Offensive Lineman HANK DOYLE ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Grafton H.S. Grafton, Wis. Status: Interested Class: 2029 Position: Tight end Ht.: 6-6 • Wt.: 215 Rivals Rankings: No. 2 player in Wisconsin, and No. 4 tight end and No. 90 overall player nationally LIAM PAGAN ✪ ✪ ✪ Willowbrook H.S. Villa Park, Ill. Status: Interested Class: 2028 Position: Interior offensive line Ht.: 6-4 • Wt.: 300 Rivals Rankings: No. 20 player in Illinois and No. 51 interior offensive lineman nationally. "Everything was amazing. It was a full day with a lot of great experiences and people." DOYLE ON HIS NOTRE DAME VISIT "With their history, especially with offensive linemen, it would be a big opportunity for me and my future." PAGAN ON NOTRE DAME