Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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2015 RECRUITING ISSUE BY ANDREW OWENS When four-star quarterback Blake Barnett of Corona (Calif.) Santiago High School decommitted from Notre Dame in June following a seven- month commitment, it looked like the Irish would hold off on adding a quar- terback until the 2016 cycle. After all, with Barnett in the fold, Notre Dame had not cultivated rela- tionships with any other 2015 signal- callers during that span. For a while, the Irish appeared poised to land a commitment from 2016 — five-star quarterback Malik Henry of Braden- ton (Fla.) IMG Academy, but all of that changed once Notre Dame set its focus on Brandon Wimbush. Wimbush, a four-star quarterback from Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter's Prep, had committed to Penn State in May, but began to consider the possibility that South Bend should be his ultimate destination in September. "He came to me with concerns after his initial commit," St. Peter 's head coach Rich Hansen said. "We talked for a couple days actually, and I think after hearing him out, we talked about seriously considering his other op- tions. "Notre Dame was another option and he took his visit and fell in love with the place. During the visit, we spoke and I knew he was really com- fortable." A surprise official visitor for Notre Dame's 17-14 win over Stanford Oct. 4, Wimbush learned everything he needed to know during that trip to South Bend that included a meeting with head coach Brian Kelly. "Coach Kelly brought me down to the locker room and told me that was the foundation of what they stood for and all the discipline that goes into the locker room and the type of guys I'd be around every day," Wimbush said. Three days later, he called Kelly with the news that Notre Dame had landed its quarterback after all. "He was excited," Wimbush said. "He was in a meeting he had to step Notre Dame FouND Its Quarterback IN braNDoN WImbush Wimbush accounted for 3,910 yards of total offense and 46 touchdowns (37 passing and nine rushing) while leading St. Peter's Prep to the Non- Public, Group 4 state championship as a senior. PHOTO BY MOLLY SMITH/THE JERSEY JOURNAL