Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/718674
84 PRESEASON 2016 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED FOOTBALL RECRUITING ROUNDUP Pete Werner, 6-3, 210, Indianapolis (Cathedral) Drew White, 6-1, 225, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (St. Thomas Aquinas) De'Andre Wilder, 6-2, 204, Miami Gardens, Fla. (Carol City) Cornerback Paulson Adebo, 6-1, 177, Mansfield, Texas (Mansfield) Yusuf Corker, 6-0, 173, Stockbridge, Ga. (Woodland) Elijah Gates, 5-10, 170, Buena Park, Calif. (Buena Park) Deangelo Gibbs, 6-2, 207, Suwanee, Ga. (Peachtree Ridge) Thomas Graham, 5-11, 177, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. (Rancho Cucamonga) Elijah Hicks, 6-0, 185, La Mirada, Calif. (La Mirada)* Darnay Holmes, 5-11, 195, Calabasas, Calif. (Calabasas) Jaylon Redd, 5-8, 168, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. (Rancho Cucamonga) Ambry Thomas, 6-0, 170, Detroit (Martin Luther King) Shaun Wade, 6-2, 179, Jacksonville, Fla. (Trinity Christian) — Ohio State commit Jamyest Williams, 5-9, 173, Lawrenceville, Ga. (Archer) Safety Chaz Ah You, 6-2, 199, Provo, Utah (Timpview) Amari Carter, 6-2, 180, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (Palm Beach Gardens) Jaiden Cole, 6-1, 196, Monroe, La. (Neville)* Todd Harris, 5-11, 185, Plaquemine, La. (Plaquemine) Devon Hunter, 6-1, 206, Chesapeake, Va. (Indian River) KJ Jarrell, 6-3, 175, Scottsdale, Ariz. (Saguaro) Jaylen Kelly-Powell, 5-11, 174, Detroit (Cass Tech) Jeffrey Okudah, 6-2, 188, Grand Prairie, Texas (South Grand Prairie) Isaiah Pola-Mao, 6-4, 196, Phoenix (Mountain Pointe) Isaiah Robertson, 6-3, 190, Naperville, Ill. (Neuqua Valley) Devondre Robinson, 6-0, 190, Santee, S.C. (Lake Marion) Athlete Salvon Ahmed, 6-0, 186, Kirkland, Ga. (Juanita) Rahyme Johnson, 6-4, 197, Los Angeles (Bishop Mora Salesian) • Notre Dame seemed out of the race for Beaver Falls (Pa.) High 2017 defen- sive tackle Donovan Jeter when the four-star eliminated the Irish and cut his list down to Pittsburgh, Penn State, Alabama, Ohio State and Tennessee in late July. But then about a week later on Aug. 3, Jeter changed his mind and made his top five a top six, bringing the Irish back into the mix. Current Notre Dame defensive tackle commit Kurt Hinish of Pittsburgh Cen- tral Catholic is who Jeter credits for getting him to think more about Notre Dame and ultimately put the Irish back on his list. He will take his official visit Sept. 17 when Notre Dame takes on Michigan State. The 2018 list for the Michigan State game is off to a good start. Thomson (Ga.) High four-star cornerback Chris- tian Tutt, four-star Springfield (Ohio) High tight end Leonard Taylor and in- state Indianapolis Cathedral four-star offensive lineman Emil Ekiyor are all expected to be in attendance. • Speaking of the Michigan State weekend, it is already shaping up to be a star-studded visitor list for the Irish with plenty of chances to impress 2017 and 2018 targets. Along with Jeter, the expected visitors for the 2017 class include four-star Ran- cho Cucamonga (Calif.) High cornerback Thomas Graham, four-star Stafford (Texas) High wide re- ceiver and Texas A&M commit Hezekiah Jones, and East Nashville (Tenn.) Magnet four-star line- backer Jacob Phillips. This list is expected to grow and include other top targets. Several commits like four-star Pitts- burgh Central Catholic linebacker David Adams are expected as well. • Another four-star who will be at Notre Dame for the Michigan State game is Kirkland (Wash.) Juanita athlete Salvon Ahmed. The 6-0, 186-pound Ahmed performed very well at Nike+ Football The Opening Finals in Beaverton, Ore., finishing in the top 20 overall in the Nike Foot- ball Rating (a measure of overall athletic ability). Ahmed ran a 4.32 electronically timed 40-yard dash, posted a 4.04 time in the 20-yard pro agility shuttle and notched a 35.7-inch vertical jump. • Notre Dame is still looking to add another safety to the mix, and one the Irish con- tinue to go hard after is Provo (Utah) Timpview four-star Chaz Ah You, who listed the Irish in his top 12 the first day of August. Ah You is a Mormon and one of the criteria for him when choosing a school is being allowed to serve a two-year mission. Notre Dame is supportive of his mission, and he wouldn't be the first player to do so under head coach Brian Kelly. Chris Badger, who attended the same high school as Ah You, was part of the first class to come in under Kelly in 2010. Badger served his two- year mission and joined Notre Dame in 2012 before transferring to BYU in 2013. Ah You may be a tough pull from the West, but he will take an official visit to Notre Dame this fall. • Graham (Wash.) Graham-Kapowsin five-star offensive tackle Foster Sarell is planning to take his official to Notre Dame for the Stanford game. Sarell, who is ranked as the No. 1 player in the country by 247Sports, No. 2 by Scout. com and No. 3 by Rivals, wants to take all five of the allowed official visits this fall. Notre Dame appears to be in the running with Sarell and will get another chance to impress the big-time tackle. It appears the Irish may be fading for their other major tackle target, Jedrick Wills of Lexington (Ky.) Lafayette. Stanford and Washington are also major players for Sarell. • Indianapolis Cathedral 2018 running back and Notre Dame commit Markese Stepp injured his hamstring on his first, and only, carry of the season, which he took for a 46-yard touchdown. He walked with a noticeable limp following the conclusion of his Aug. 19 game. — Corey Bodden and David McKinney Follow @BGI_CoreyBodden and @BGI_DMcKinney on Twitter for daily recruiting updates available on BlueandGold.com! Recruiting Notes Graham (Wash.) Graham-Kapowsin five-star offensive tackle Foster Sarell is planning to take his official to Notre Dame for the Stanford game Oct. 15. Notre Dame, Stanford and Washington appear to be his frontrunners. PHOTO BY ANDREW IVINS Commitments in bold italics; * Received a scholarship offer between July 18 and Aug. 22