Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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44 APRIL 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY DAVID MCKINNEY Notre Dame added a third member to its 2019 class Feb. 20, when four- star Sachse (Texas) High defensive lineman Hunter Spears announced his commitment. He visited South Bend for the USC game Oct. 21 and for Junior Day Jan. 27, and said he knew immediately after the second visit that Notre Dame was the place for him. "When I got back from the Junior Day, I had pretty much made my mind up," Spears said. "It just felt right. It was time, and I didn't want to wait." Spears had originally announced a commitment date of Sept. 15 — his 18th birthday — but decided what Notre Dame has to offer was too good to delay a decision. "They excel in education, and they excel on the football field," he said. "It's a wonderful place that will help me achieve all I want to in my life." Another big factor in Spears's com- mitment was his relationship with de- fensive line coach Mike Elston. Elston, Spears said, showed him that he cares deeply about his players on and off the field. "He's always been open and honest with me," he said. "He's been a really crucial factor for me, just being such the wonderful guy he is and the fam- ily man he is. "He's someone I trust, and someone I know can help develop me mentally, spiritually and physically." With his recruitment now behind him, Spears will head into his senior year completely focused on football. After missing his junior season due to a knee injury, he said he's more than eager to get back on the field. "I personally feel like I have a lot to prove this season," Spears said. "Being able to put all my focus on that is big." Spears said he's also going to spend some time recruiting fellow four-star defensive linemen NaNa Osafo-Men- sah, a fellow Texan, and Joseph An- derson of Tennessee. Spears will be tag-teaming those recruitments with fellow defensive line commit Jacob Lacey, who he has already struck up a strong friendship with. "He's a really good guy," Spears said of Lacey. "He's definitely someone I'm looking forward to playing with." According to Sachse head coach Mark Behrens, Spears is exactly the kind of young man Notre Dame regu- larly brings in. "He's No. 4 in his class, and he's got a 4.5 GPA," Behrens said. "He's as solid as any of the kids I've ever had, and I've done this for 36 years." On the field, Behrens said Spears — a four-star talent, the nation's No. 170 overall player in the country and No. 19 defensive end according to ESPN — is the type of player you build a defense around. "He's got a skill kid's quickness, but it's in a big lineman's body," Behrens said. "We're going to [build] our de- fense around him." During his sophomore year, his first year on varsity, Spears was backing up a senior who was headed off to the University of Texas at San Antonio the next fall. When that senior went down with an injury, Spears had his number called and immediately provided a spark for his team. "We put Hunter in there, and we didn't know what to expect," Behrens said. "He not only played well, but he played great in that first ballgame. "We went into overtime, and he made a huge tackle that helped secure the game." Since then, Behrens said, Spears has been a force to be reckoned with for Texas offensive lines. "He made big plays for us," the coach noted. "From the minute he got in all the way through the end of the season." Unfortunately for Spears, an injury suffered in a camp derailed his junior season, but Behrens said he never saw any quit in the Texas talent. "That guy works hard," Behrens said. "He'll be the first guy to tell you how hard he worked to get back." ✦ COMMITMENT PROFILE HUNTER SPEARS Notre Dame Is Too Good To Wait On For Texas Lineman Rivals rates Spears as a four-star prospect, the No. 38 player in the Lone Star State and the No. 20 weakside defensive end in the country. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL FILM ANALYSIS Strengths Hunter Spears can play end or tackle … At 6-5 and 260 pounds, he already has the size to play college football, and once he gets time in a college weight room his frame is going to fill out quite nicely … Gets off the line quickly and shows the ability to "get skinny" and work through gaps on his way to the ball carrier … Shows a good knack for setting the edge ag- gressively in the run game, but also has a knack for getting after the quarterback on the edge … Displays strong hands and advanced technique for his age. Areas For Improvement Spears missed his junior season with a knee injury, so there is some uncertainty at this point about what his game will look like after the recovery, and his time off created some bad weight … Has to be more consistent with his pad level when engaged with a blocker. — Bryan Driskell