Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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PREP PROFILES Notre Dame continues to evaluate prospects at safety and wide receiver in hopes of landing an additional re- cruit at each position in the 2015 class. Stafford (Va.) Colonial Forge three- star athlete Gary J e n n i n g s p l a y s both positions in high school. The 6-2, 190-pounder could potentially fill those roles at Notre Dame now that he has an offer from the Irish. " I g o t o n t h e phone with [Notre Dame tight ends c o a c h ] S c o t t Booker, and he let me know I had the offer," the class of 2015 target said Sept. 30. "I was just really excited about the offer. I've watched Notre Dame from a much wider scale, but I know they have a great tradition and have had that for a very long time. Hopefully, we can continue talking down the road and, if time permits, I'd love to get up there for a visit. "This is a very big offer. I know they are very selective about who they of- fer, so this means a lot." During their conversation, Booker told Jennings why the Irish decided to extend a scholarship offer to him, and it was about more than just football. "The first thing he told me was that I have great academics, and he stressed the importance of that," Jennings said. "He said that I play very well on the defensive side of the ball, and I've got- ten bigger in the weight room. " T h e y o ff e re d me as an athlete. I play cornerback, safety and then wide receiver on offense. I like hav- ing the ball in my hands, but I'm not opposed to play- ing defense at all." Due to the time- liness of the offer, there are plenty of schools that sit higher than Notre Dame on Jennings' list. However, a December visit to South Bend could change everything. "I don't have a leader," Jennings said. "I do have a top five, though — Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Virginia and Boston College. Notre Dame is just outside of that right now. "The only visit I have lined up is Wisconsin when they play Illinois on Oct. 11. If time permits, I'd like to use all five of my official visits. I believe Coach Booker is hoping that I can get out to Notre Dame on Dec. 6 or on Dec. 13 and to take an official visit then." — Tom Loy Under-The-Radar Virginia Athlete Nabs Irish Offer GARY JENNINGS ✪ ✪ ✪ Colonial Forge Stafford, Va. Status: Offered Class: 2015 Position: Athlete Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 190 40-Yard Dash: 4.55 247Sports Rankings: No. 126 wide receiver in the land and No. 36 player in Virginia