Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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32 JANUARY 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED FOOTBALL RECRUITING BY COREY BODDEN AND DAVID MCKINNEY I ndianapolis Cathedral four-star linebacker Pete Werner caused some concern among the Irish faith- ful Nov. 29 when he decided to open his recruitment and decommit from Notre Dame. He has since committed to Ohio State. Werner — who is rated as a four- star prospect, the No. 3 player in Indi- ana and the No. 18 outside linebacker nationally by Rivals — was consid- ered a strong commit and had said so himself on multiple occasions. Losing Werner, who has tremen- dous upside at the next level, hurts a bit more given he is from Notre Dame's backyard. Werner 's decision dropped the Irish from No. 6 in the Rivals team rankings to No. 10, but Notre Dame jumped back up to No. 7 following the Dec. 9 commitment of four-star offensive tackle Aaron Banks of El Cerrito (Calif.) High. With just a few targets left on the board, Notre Dame wants to finish the 2017 class strongly, and that in- cludes ensuring the current 18-man class signs with the program in Feb- ruary while adding several more top prospects to the group. Here are the top five commits the Irish cannot afford to lose at this point in the process. DARNELL EWELL DEFENSIVE TACKLE NORFOLK (VA.) LAKE TAYLOR Rivals Rankings: Four-star talent, and the No. 8 defensive tackle and No. 131 overall prospect nationally. Ewell could provide immediate help stopping the run for the Irish with his size (6-4, 295 pounds) and physicality. He has a good burst to complement his power to allow him to get movement off the line and col- lapse the pocket. He won't put up top-flight sack numbers, but his pen- etration ability will allow his team- mates to make QB hits. Losing Ewell would be a major blow for the Irish up the middle given the potential early impact he could have at tackle with the loss of fifth-year senior nose guard Jar- ron Jones and future numbers at the position. The Irish will return senior Daniel Cage and junior Jerry Tillery as upperclassmen. Pete Mokwuah, Brandon Tiassum, Micah Dew-Tread- way and Elijah Taylor, who all will be redshirt sophomores, also return. If Ewell were to move on from the class, the Irish would have signed only one true defensive tackle in the past two cycles (2016 and 2017) in Pittsburgh Central Catholic three- star Kurt Hinish (2017 class). The whole dynamic of the defensive line class would change. Keeping Ewell on board is vital to the class given his potential at a vital- position. Blue & Gold Illustrated foot- ball analyst Bryan Driskell graded out Ewell significantly higher as a prep prospect compared to the re- turning defensive tackles on the roster for next season. Signing only Hinish could create future depth problems and would make securing commitments at defensive tackle in the 2018 class even more crucial. ROBERT HAINSEY OFFENSIVE TACKLE BRADENTON (FLA.) IMG ACADEMY Rivals Rankings: Four-star recruit, and the No. 10 offensive tackle and No. 79 overall player nationally. Notre Dame has put together a good offensive line class, especially with the recent addition of Banks. Af- ter signing five offensive linemen in the past two classes, it is imperative the staff continues to build its depth. The 6-5, 276-pound Hainsey is one of the more important players in the class due to his versatility along the front. He has the skills sets to play on the interior at guard or center, or outside at right tackle. Hainsey possesses good technique, quickness of the snap and strong, fast hands to make up for his lack of ideal athleticism. He gives the Irish the flexibility Harry Hiestand always wants in his offensive linemen. JOSHUA LUGG OFFENSIVE TACKLE WEXFORD (PA.) NORTH ALLEGHENY Rivals Rankings: Four-star pros- pect, the No. 8 player in Pennsylva- nia and the No. 35 offensive tackle nationally. Keeping Lugg and Hainsey part of the class is critical, given their talents. Both can contribute at a high level while at Notre Dame. Lugg has more upside than Hainsey with his tremendous size and frame at 6-7, 280 pounds, but his technical skill needs polishing. Once he shores up his technique Lugg's overall impact will take off. He also possesses the power and hands needed to be dom- inant in the run game, and has the quickness off the snap to handle edge rushers in passing situations. Notre Dame beat out Alabama, UCLA, Tennessee and several others for Lugg, and he has the skills to be a very good player for the Irish. Driskell ranked him as the No. 2 player on Notre Dame's offensive line board, ahead of five-star tack- les such as Foster Sarell of Graham (Wash.) Kapowsin and Jedrick Wills of Lexington (Ky.) Lafayette — and just behind Tennessee commit Trey Smith of Jackson (Tenn.) University School, who is ranked as the No. 1 player nationally by ESPN. Sarell is ranked as the top offen- sive tackle and among the top three overall players nationally by three of the four major recruiting services. He is listed No. 1 by 247Sports, No. 2 by Scout and No. 3 by Rivals. ESPN ranks Sarell as the No. 4 offensive tackle and No. 12 overall recruit in the nation. Finish Strong: Five Key Irish Commits Norfolk (Va.) Lake Taylor four-star defensive tackle Darnell Ewell could provide immediate help stopping the run for the Irish with his size (6-4, 295 pounds) and physicality. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM