Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/705594
FOOTBALL RECRUITING ROUNDUP Recruiting Notes • Notre Dame has already received commitments from a pair of four-star tackles in Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy product Robert Hainsey and Wexford (Pa.) North Allegheny standout Joshua Lugg to go along with Clearwater (Fla.) Central Catholic tackle Dillan Gibbons, who projects at guard. Offensive line coach Harry Hiestand is still looking to add to the class, though, and the Irish are in good shape with a pair of outstanding offensive tackles. Rivals five-star offensive tackle Jedrick Wills of Lexington (Ky.) Lafayette has Notre Dame as one of his final eight schools, along with Kentucky, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, LSU and Florida. Notre Dame also made the final six for Jackson (Tenn.) University offensive tackle Trey Smith, whom ESPN ranks as the No. 1 player in the country. Smith is down to the Irish, Alabama, Clemson, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Ohio State. Smith and Wills were July standouts at the Nike+ Football The Opening in Beaverton, Ore. Both players also mention Hiestand as one of the primary reasons for their interest in Notre Dame. "His history and the way he coaches and the way he develops players and sends them to the draft," Wills told Blue & Gold Illustrated at The Opening. "He puts the focus on you and all the players he has at Notre Dame. He wants to treat them like his own and make sure they get the best experience he can give them." Smith echoed those sentiments when asked about his relationship with the Notre Dame line coach. "Definitely Coach Hiestand and the tradition of that program," Smith said when asked about why Notre Dame made his final list. "Coach Hiestand, to me, is one of the top O-line coaches I've ever seen. "I love the intensity he coaches with … I really like the values he stands for, the types of guys he recruits." Rivals rates Wills as the nation's No. 3 offensive tackle and No. 17 overall prospect, while Smith is listed as the No. 33 tackle in the land. • After inking a total of six cornerbacks in the 2015 and 2016 classes, Notre Dame is focusing on quality over quantity in the 2017 class. After landing Mansfield (Texas) cornerback Paulson Adebo in June, the Irish staff has been able to narrow its focus on a smaller number of elite cornerbacks. One in that group that holds Notre Dame in high regards is Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.) High's Thomas Graham, who was another attendee at The Opening. Notre Dame has sold Graham on what a good match he is for its defensive system. "They say that I'll fit perfectly because my high school defense is similar to theirs," Graham noted. "They need a corner with aggression; he might not be the biggest guy but he's aggressive and he can cover man to man, press or off." Graham — a one-time commit to USC — has yet to narrow down his list of schools, but he said Notre Dame would be in his top five, whenever that list is released. He plans to visit Notre Dame for either the Michigan State (Sept. 17) or the Stanford (Oct. 15) games. Rivals ranks Graham as four-star recruit, and the No. 7 cornerback and No. 67 overall prospect nationally. • Olney (Md.) Good Counsel defensive end Josh Paschal also lists Notre Dame among his final schools. The Irish are joined by Maryland, Oklahoma, Clemson, Tennessee, USC and North Carolina. Paschal visited Notre Dame in June and was blown away by the visit.