Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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PREP PROFILES Farmington (Mich.) High four-star wide receiver Desmond Fitzpatrick holds early offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Il- linois, Ohio, Toledo and Wake For- est. However, the 6-2, 185-pounder has made multiple trips to South Bend throughout the past y e a r, a n d N o t r e Dame would be an immediate player in his recruitment if the Irish send an offer his way. "Notre Dame has always stood out to me," Fitzpatrick said. "It's the aca- demics, the football and just the life after football. Notre Dame has it all." Sources close to the situation tell 247Sports national director of recruit- ing Steve Wiltfong that Louisville leads at this point, but the Irish could trump the Cardinals with an offer. "The last time I was at Notre Dame was perfect. The trip couldn't have gone any better," Fitzpatrick said of a late-summer visit to South Bend. "The summer camp was a lot of fun. I learned a lot. The atmosphere, the campus and working out for the coaches was all great. "It was good working with [quarter- backs] coach [Matt] LaFleur and just hanging out with him. He's actually been by my school three times already, and he's really showing a lot of inter- est in me. He just makes me feel like a priority." Fitzpatrick's trip in the summer bested all of the other visits he had taken in the past. Getting to see how the Irish staff oper- ates and coaches their players was k e y i n b e c o m i n g even more interested in Notre Dame. "We were work- ing with the whole coaching staff and even [Notre Dame running back] Greg Bryant up there," Fitzpatrick said. "He was coaching with our group a little bit. For a running back, he knew a lot about the wide receiver position. "It was just nice to see how everyone got along, how hard everyone worked and why they have had the success they've had." The only thing that would have made this visit better was if Fitzpat- rick added an offer from Notre Dame. However, he does believe that it could happen soon. "I expect it to come," he said. "I'm in no rush, either way." — Tom Loy Irish Are In The Hunt For Four-Star Michigan Receiver DESMOND FITZPATRICK ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Farmington High School Farmington, Mich. Status: Interested Class: 2016 Position: Wide Receiver Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 185 40-Yard Dash: 4.58 247Sports Rankings: No. 48 wide receiver nationally and No. 8 player in Michigan