Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 21, 2016 45 PREP PROFILES Notre Dame recently joined an im- pressive offer list for 2018 four-star cornerback Anthony Cook of Hous- ton Lamar. Cook, Rivals.com's No. 3 corner and No. 14 overall player in the class of 2018, received his Irish offer on Nov. 8, his 25th to date. Other offers for the elite corner include Alabama, Florida State, Clemson, LSU, Michi- gan, Ohio State, Texas, Texas A&M and several other big-time programs. Cook, who attended Notre Dame's season-opening game at Texas Sept. 4, said an Irish offer is one he's been waiting for. "I wasn't expecting it," Cook said of the offer. "I've been wanting a Notre Dame offer. Notre Dame is a big college." Cook, who recorded six intercep- tions as a sophomore and returned three for touchdowns, said he's been attracted to Notre Dame since seeing them play in Austin. "It's just their level of play," Cook stated. "I went to the Notre Dame versus Texas game, and I liked the way they were all fired up. Even though they didn't win, it was still a physical game. Who wouldn't want to go to a physical school and play football?" Cook said that since the 2018 pros- pect contact period started Sept. 1, he's been hearing from Notre Dame every day. The four-star said he's had the most contact with defensive backs coach Todd Lyght, who he would be excited to play for in college. "He's pretty much second to none," Cook said. "Most of the time, you don't get to get coached by a coach like that, that has experience under his belt. You've just got to take advantage of it. "If I were to go to Notre Dame and get coached by him, it would be a blessing." Cook clearly has plenty of schools to choose from, and Notre Dame was somewhat late to the party with an offer, but that doesn't seem to bother him. The four-star said he is eager to continue his relationship with the Irish, and is hoping to visit South Bend in the near future. "I really like Notre Dame," Cook said. "I told them on the phone that I want to learn more about them, and I'm looking to get up there soon. I know I want to learn more about the program." — David McKinney The top athlete in the country for the 2018 class is Huber Heights (Ohio) Wayne four-star L'Christian Smith. Notre Dame extended an offer to Smith — who goes by the nickname "Blue" — on June 14, and the 6-5, 215-pounder is "very interested" in the Irish program and what it can offer. "I love the tradition," Smith said. "Receiving the offer was a blessing because of their history. It let me know my hard work is paying off." Outside of tradition, Smith also in- cluded how Notre Dame typically is "playing at a high level" as part of the factors in his high interest in the program. He talks to the coaching staff on a weekly basis, and most of the communication comes with line- backers coach Mike Elston. The staff continually expresses how interested they are in the junior. "He is nice to talk with," Smith said of Elston. "He seems like a play- ers' coach." Over the summer, Smith released a list of visits he would be taking this fall, and one stop included South Bend when the Irish will host Vir- ginia Tech Nov. 19. He isn't 100 per- cent sure the visit will happen, but he is looking to make the trip. "I want to get on campus to see the team in person," Smith said. "I'm looking forward to getting on cam- pus and building relationships with the coaches." Even though he has never been in South Bend, Smith is keeping tabs on the program and its future. "I watch them on TV," Smith said. "They are down now, but they have some good recruits coming in." For now, Smith is simply enjoying the recruiting process. His early of- fer list also includes Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State. He has taken visits to Ohio State, Tennessee and Kentucky this fall. Be- sides Notre Dame, he is hoping to make it to Michigan and Michigan State as well, along with another trip to Columbus. Smith is rated as the No. 7 wide receiver in the nation and No. 5 player in Ohio in the class of 2018 by 247Sports. — Corey Bodden Elite 2018 Cornerback Excited About Notre Dame Offer Top 2018 Athlete Is 'Very Interested' In The Irish ANTHONY COOK ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Lamar H.S. Houston Status: Offered Class: 2018 Position: Cornerback Ht.: 6-1 • Wt.: 170 Rivals Rankings: No. 3 cornerback and No. 14 overall player in the nation L'CHRISTIAN SMITH ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Wayne H.S. Huber Heights, Ohio Status: Offered Class: 2018 Position: Athlete Ht.: 6-5 • Wt.: 215 Rivals Rankings: No. 1 athlete and No. 33 overall player in the country "RECEIVING THE OFFER WAS A BLESSING BECAUSE OF THEIR HIS- TORY. IT LET ME KNOW MY HARD WORK IS PAYING OFF." SMITH ON NOTRE DAME "IF I WERE TO GO TO NOTRE DAME AND GET COACHED BY HIM, IT WOULD BE A BLESSING." COOK ON IRISH DEFENSIVE BACKS COACH TODD LYGHT