Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/462058
2015 RECRUITING ISSUE prospects Notre Dame attempted to woo. Then, right up to signing day, the Irish tried to land Nathan Meadors (UCLA), Justin Reid (Stanford again) and Arrington Farrar (Wisconsin), but it was too late. ON PAPER GRADE: C This was the area where Notre Dame came up most short. Fertitta excelled on the nation's No. 1 high school pro- gram and will probably start on all the special teams from day one, but there will be some skepticism on the out- side about his 5-9, 175-pound frame at safety. Williams was a valued late addition in December and is a Rivals. com four-star prospect. It's not a bad haul, but there was disappointment about not adding a third safety. KICKER SIGNED: Justin Yoon MEETING NEEDS: Triple-threat Kyle Brin- dza (punting, field goals and kickoff) has exhausted his eligibility. Although Tyler Newsome was signed last year as his potential heir, Notre Dame landing Yoon, Rivals' No. 1 prospect at kicker this season, is huge. SUMMARY: Notre Dame has an ex- traordinary history with walk-on kickers, including longtime pros Bob Thomas and John Carney, 1988 national title hero Reggie Ho, and 2009-11 standout David Ruffer, but this position cannot ever be taken for granted in its value. ON PAPER GRADE: A Yoon is classified as elite, but who is going to punt? Newsome was more kicker than punter coming out of high school, and he is the heir at punting. If that doesn't pan out, there could be some distress. OVERALL ANALYSIS The collective grade on offense is around a B+ because of landing an ideal fit at QB, filling the numbers at running back and receiver, and inking an elite center and tight end. It's not quite at an A level because there isn't a knockout figure at running back or receiver, and the Irish did want one more offensive lineman, preferably a tackle. The defense graded out to about a B- to C+ level, with Tillery's develop- ment creating the most intrigue. Collectively, it came out to right around a strong B average, which falls into the "potential Top 10" cat- egory. That is in line with Rivals. com's No. 11 team ranking of this Irish harvest. ✦ Las Vegas Bishop Gorman safety Nicco Fertitta is expected to contribute immediately on the Irish's special teams units. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM