Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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52 MARCH 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2018 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY DAVID MCKINNEY On National Signing Day, Notre Dame wide receiver signee Law- rence Keys III and his mother Lan- tanya Manning sat on stage at Mc- Donogh 35 High School with three hats in front of them and beside a framed Roneagles jersey. The jersey belonged to Keys' fallen teammate Devin Winters, who passed away in January. Keys was a close friend of Winters, and said seeing his chair empty at the signing ceremony was crushing. "It was tough," Keys noted. "It was a hard pill to swallow. We would talk to each other on a daily basis, and we always talked about college. "It was hard not having him right next to me." The moment was challenging for Keys, and his mother was right there offering comfort, just as she has so many times before. Manning is a single mother, and Keys said he wouldn't have come anywhere close to the level of success he's achieved without her. "I'm very thankful," he said. "I can't count all the times that she's been there for me." It wasn't a recent development ei- ther. Keys and Manning have been a two-person team for 18 years now, and the future Irish football player said he's worked to make sure his mother always feels his gratitude. "She's been there for me my en- tire life. I have to thank my mom every time, for everything that she does," Keys said. "She's raising me by herself." Dealing with the challenges of a national college football recruit can be challenging, and Keys said his mother handled the stress of the recruiting process with incredible grace. Now that he's made things official with Notre Dame, Keys said it's time for his mother to take some time off. "She's been through a lot, and now it's time for her to take a break," he said. "I'm committed now, and she's been on a long run traveling from state to state. She's been sticking by me through it." Thanks to Keys' skills on the foot- ball field and his mother 's tireless efforts off of it, a Notre Dame degree will come without a price tag. He said that's one of the best gifts he could give his mother in return for turning him into the young man he is. "It's wonderful," Keys said. "She really needed it after all her hard work and everything that she's done for me. It's time for it to pay off." For that to happen, Keys will have to take advantage of the opportuni- ties in front of him and work at get- ting to the NFL as hard as his mother did raising him. The Louisiana talent said he's fully prepared to do just that. "I have to go up there and do what I have to do for the next three or four years so I can get my mom out of here," Keys said. ✦ LAWRENCE KEYS III WIDE RECEIVER 5-11 · 170 MCDONOGH 35 H.S. NEW ORLEANS RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ — — 22 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 150 21 4 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 79 17 STATISTICS • Hauled in 58 receptions for more than 1,000 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior. • Caught 50 passes for 975 yards and 14 scores during his junior campaign. HONORS • Selected to the 4A all-state squad by the Loui- siana Football Coaches Association as a junior and senior. • Named first-team 4A all-state by the Louisiana Sports Writer Association as a senior and was an honorable mention pick as a junior. • Tabbed to the New Orleans All-Metro Large Schools Team as a senior by NOLA.com. • Four-star member of the PrepStar Top 300 Dream Team, and was ranked as the No. 47 wide receiver No. 264 overall player nationally. ALL-STAR GAMES AND CAMPS • Participated in Rivals' 3-Stripe Camp in New Orleans on March 12, 2017. • Competed at Nike Football's The Opening Re- gional New Orleans on March 19, 2017. Recorded a 4.76 40-yard dash, a 4.26 pro shuttle and a 33.0- inch vertical jump. RECRUITMENT • Committed to Notre Dame on Feb. 7, 2018. • Took official visits to Notre Dame (Jan. 19, 2018), Texas and SMU. • Primarily recruited to Notre Dame by wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander. NOTABLE • Born on Dec. 9, 1999. • Plans to major in sports marketing. • Boasts a 3.7 GPA. • Also runs track at McDonogh 35. • Enjoys drawing in the offseason. 2018 PROJECTION • Keys is an advanced route runner with impres- sive ball skills, which could help him get on the field early. THEY SAID IT Head coach Brian Kelly: "When you add two guys like [Braden] Lenzy and Keys, who are ex- tremely athletic with the ball in their hand, it com- plements very well the entire receiving class with Micah Jones, who's already here." Wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander: "His mom has been kind of his role model, and I think because of her guidance he's been able to be different, and to be someone who can come from Louisiana to Notre Dame and have a tremen- dous amount of success in the classroom and on the field." BGI football analyst Bryan Driskell: "Keys is an efficient athlete that gets to full speed quickly and shows smooth and easy movements. On film, he blows past defenders and displays big-play abil- ity once he gets the ball in his hands. His sound technique and quick burst off the line help him maximize his athletic skills. "He's an advanced route runner that knows how to work himself open. Opponents have a very hard time handling him at the line, and Keys is excellent at using body language to set up down-field cuts. "Keys will have to continue getting stronger, and he's not very big, but his overall game is im- pressive. He has outstanding ball skills and makes tough catches in traffic. He has the body of a slot player, but his route running, athleticism and ball skills project outside." Lawrence Keys III Owes Everything To His Mother Keys was a two-time 4A all-state selection at wide receiver by the Louisiana Football Coaches Association. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM