Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BY JORDAN WELLS Entering his official visit to Notre Dame Oct. 10, Mono (Ontario) Oran- geville Prep guard Nikola Djogo all but ruled out a possible commitment to the Irish, citing a desire to let his recruitment play out into the spring and take more official visits. However, the South Bend campus can leave a special impression on a visitor — and that's what happened with Djogo, who committed to the Irish Oct. 14. "The same way I was feeling after the visit on Sunday is the same way I'm feel- ing now," Djogo said. "Everything was amazing. "I checked off all the boxes, and you can't go wrong with Coach [Mike] Brey." Djogo's courtship with the Irish went from start to finish in a matter of weeks. Brey walked into Orangeville Prep Sept. 14 to watch five-star center and current Notre Dame target Thon Maker work out, and stumbled upon Djogo in the process. There was little prior knowledge of the guard among recruiting circles, due to him sitting out summer ball with an injury and living in Canada. Brey extended a scholarship offer the very next day to join a list at the time that included just Northeastern, East Tennes- see State, Winthrop, North Florida and Penn. When news broke that the Irish had offered the 6-7, 185-pound guard, more major coaches began calling. "UNLV offered right after Notre Dame," said Brandon Lesovsky, Djogo's coach at Orangeville Prep. "Tennessee was here and wanted to get involved. Wisconsin and Wichita State were other good ones. If he had played through November with us up here, even more would have joined in. "A lot of other people started to call, but they weren't sending coaches up here, they weren't making him a focus and he felt like Notre Dame did that. The other coaches even admitted, 'If he goes to Notre Dame, I can see that.' "I think if we would have played in July, he would have taken all five official visits to high-major schools in August. There's no doubt in my mind." Brey and the staff moved quickly, getting the versatile guard on campus with his father over the Oct. 10 weekend on an official visit for the home game International Guard Picks The Irish Djogo, a 6‑7, 185‑pound guard at Mono (Ontario) Orangeville Prep, committed to the Irish shortly after his Oct. 10 official visit to South Bend. PHOTO BY ANDREW IVINS COMMITMENT PROFILE NIKOLA DJOGO