Archive for the ‘Notre Dame Recruiting’ Category

Milton Knox visited Notre Dame this past weekend and for a while it looked like he could end up with the Irish.  Tonight, however, Inside UCLA reported that Knox would be sticking with his original commitment to UCLA.

Milton Knox Sr. said his son “was leaning’’ toward Notre Dame, but after talking about it as a family stuck with UCLA. Knox originally committed to UCLA in June, but was contemplating a switch to Notre Dame after making an official visit over the weekend.

“He is,’’ Knox Sr. said when asked if Milton was attending UCLA. “It was a pretty tough decision for him. I think the thing that played a big role is family, and being close to home.

“The family is here, and his grandmother, who he is close with, is up in age, and it would have been tough to go to his games (at Notre Dame). I’ve been watching him play since Pop Warner. I coached him in Pop Warner.’’

Odd that all of the quotes from from Sr.  Rumors were floating around that Jr was indeed leaning towards Notre Dame, but the family wanted UCLA.  Unfortunately, the family won out and he won’t be attending ND.  Too bad too, he looks like a dynamite back.

According to IrishEyes.com, Milton Knox received an offer from Notre Dame recently and will be visiting Notre Dame this weekend.  Knox, a talented running back out of California has some impressive offers - Florida, Florida State, and UCLA - and would be a nice addition to this class.  Knox committed to UCLA a while back, but the coaching change in Westwood got Knox to open his recruiting back up and the Bruins are now battling it out for Knox with Notre Dame and Florida.

He’s listed on Scout.com with 4.6 speed, but in watching the clips I included below, he certainly looks like he has good football speed.  Rivals gives him a little more credit for his speed with a listed time of 4.52.  Rivals also ranks Knox as their #12 running back.  He also looks like a hard runner with some elusiveness.  He can make sharp cuts without losing much speed at all and doesn’t go down on first contact very often.

After watching some of the video on him, its easy to see why Weis has extended the offer to him.  That offer would have likely come a lot sooner for Knox, but he had to raise his test score up before Weis could officially offer it.

This past season Knox ran for  2,210 yards and 39 touchdowns and for his career has amassed 6,995 yards and 103 touchdowns.

Earlier this year, Knox’s Birmingham HS team upset Dayne Crist and Anthony McDonald’s Sherman Oaks Notre Dame team in front of a national audience on ESPN with Knox running 32 times for 136 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Dayne Crist has been one of the best recruiters for Notre Dame this year among the committed players and he should be able to help the staff out again with Knox since the two were on the same Pop Warner team.

Oh, and apparently, Knox has also had aspirations of boxing in his past.

Looks like he can catch the ball too

Here is a look at how we currently stack up with our major yearly rivals (Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, and USC) in terms of top 100 prospects according to both Scout and Rivals.

• There is still a lot of time left in recruiting, but it is very nice to see us ranked even with USC and ahead of Michigan in terms of top 100 players.
• It is very unlikely we’ll add anymore Top 100 prospects from either rankings as most of our remaining prospects are not ranked in either top 100 list.

And here’s a breakdown of which commits are in the top 100 from each service for each school.

• In looking at USC’s commits in each, Horton is ranked 40th overall in Rivals, but is not in Scout’s Top 300. Armstead is also barely in the top 300 in Scout at #287. Matt Meyer is just outside Rivals’ top 100 at 151.
• For Michigan, Dan O’Neil is ranked 147 in Scout while McGuffie isn’t ranked in Rivals in their top 250.
• All of Notre Dame’s commits in the top 100 on Rivals are all at least in the top 300 on Scout and all of the Scout top 100 are at least on the Rivals top 250.

(Photo from Marin Media)

Both Rivals.com and Scout.com released their new Top 100’s on Tuesday with changes based on observations at the Army and Under Armour All American games. Here’s a look at how Notre Dame commitments have moved up and down in the rankings with some comments after each. Rivals hasn’t released their new individual position rankings yet so I did not include them here.

• Walker dropping as far as he did is really a shame because all he did to hurt his stock at the Under Armour game was get injured in practice. What really hurt him, however, was how well some of the other wide receivers in the country like our own Mike Floyd performed in the two All Americans. While Walker was limited in what he could do, the other top notch wide receivers in the country showcased their wares to the country and his rankings fell because of it.
• Speaking of Floyd, his stellar performance in the Army All American game skyrocketed his stock and he is now a five star prospect on Rivals. He moved up 45 spots after his two touchdown outing in San Antonio.
• Robinson’s week of practice in San Antonio shot his stock up as well. He was a standout all week and the result is a 62 spot increase to #37 overall.
• Not surprised Filer fell out of the top 100. Filer played in a 3-4 defense in high school and had to learn the 4-3 in a week of practice at the Army game.
• Like Walker, all Gray really did to hurt his cause was get injured at the Army game and then saw other backs standout. Gray reportedly looked very impressive early on in San Antonio before his ankle injury.
• I’m actually a little surprised that Ethan Johnson stayed as high as he is considering he was hurt for this past season.
• What did Dayne Crist exactly to drop at all in the rankings? I don’t know either.

• Brandon Newman added a 4th star after a pretty impressive week in San Antonio. Not much was expected of him at the Army game, but he surprised a lot of people and showed he might have quite a bit more potential than most of us originally thought.
• Braxston Cave put Omar Hunter on his behind a couple of times at the Under Armour game and capped off his impressive performance by getting a 4th star from Scout and getting moved up to the #2 ranking amongst centers.
• Not surprised to see Clelland drop after the Army game. He got overpowered at times while playing at his wrestling weight and nursing an injury. I wouldn’t put too much stock into his drop.
• Surprised to see Filer rise in the rankings after a rough week at the Army game. Rivals dropped him out of the top 100 all together, but Scout moved him up 15 spots.
• Floyd was already a 5 star give, but his performance in San Antonio pushed all the way up to 16th overall and he is now the highest rated Notre Dame commitment.
• Fleming had a great at the Army game and he shot up to 56th overall after previously being unranked.
• John Goodman moved up to 21st among wide receivers, but he is still probably a little under rated. In a normal year, Goodman would be ranked much higher, but the overall talent at wide receiver this year is crazy.
• Surprised to see Trevor Robinson drop out of the Top 100 after moving up so much in the Rivals rankings. Robinson didn’t have a great game performance in San Antonio, but he was one of the most impressive OL down there all week.
• Just like in Rivals, Walker dropped to a four star prospect. That still makes absolutely NO sense to me, but at least Scout kept him in their top 100 albeit 18 spots lower than his previous ranking.
• I find it a little interesting that Gray is only the 21st ranked RB on Scout, but is in the top 100 overall on Rivals.

The South Bend Tribune has a nice piece on this year’s early enrollment recruits Sean Cwynar and Trevor Robinsontoday.

When Jimmy Clausen, Armando Allen and Gary Gray followed last year, it gave rise to Clausen-mania, Elbow-gate and certainly was a contributing, if not dominating, factor in Notre Dame setting an attendance record at its spring football game last April.

And now the 6-foot-5, 300-pound Robinson and 6-4, 283-pound defensive end Sean Cwynar of McHenry, Ill., are Nos. 7-8 in a lineage that resumed after four decades of resistance. There was never a written rule banning or even discouraging January enrollment, but the idea was never embraced, even for non-athletes.

“I really don’t look at it as that big of a deal,” Robinson said. “I think maybe it’s going to be an easier transition playing spring football than it would have been coming in the summer or fall. I don’t know, I was just ready for something different.”

Considering our depth along the defensive line, Cwynar could benefit greatly from the head start which may result in early playing time for the All American defensive tackle. As for Robinson, given our performance along the offensive line last year, it is safe to say that he too could earn some playing time this fall thanks in part to starting his Notre Dame career early.Dan Saracino did his best to make early enrollment seem like a horrible, terrible thing in the article

Saracino’s own son transferred from Cal Poly into the regular-student population at ND in January of his freshman year, shortly after his father had taken his current job roughly a decade ago.

“He came very close to transferring back to Cal Poly,” Saracino said. “Now, he has gone on to graduate, but he would tell you exactly why admitting students in January at Notre Dame isn’t a good idea. It’s gray, it’s dismal here. The winters are brutal, especially if you’re not from this part of the country.

“They had a hard time finding a roommate for him, and when they did, it was someone he was completely different from. He had a hard time meeting other freshmen. His courses were a little out of sequence. He didn’t get exactly what he wanted as far as course selection. For all those reasons and more, that’s why we’re reluctant to do it — especially with kids graduating from high school, not to mention kids transferring in.”

Gee, thanks for painting such a wonderful picture of Notre Dame Dan.

Omar who?  Just kidding of course, but watch this highlight reel of Mike Martin and imagine him in the middle of ND’s 3-4 defense.  He looks like he’s got some ready good technique for a high school DT - especially his swim move - and would be the perfect way to cap off our defensive recruiting this year.  He’s is supposed to visit this month, but I think Corwin and Charlie will have to work to do between now and then for us to have a decent chance at landing him.

Note: The music on this video is Eminem and has some colorful lyrics (Sorry, I didn’t make it, just posting it)

Looks like there could be some future “trickeration” in the offense with John Goodman. This highlight video is mainly Goodman at QB, but it really shows the kid’s athleticism.

Notre Dame had more than 1/2 of this year’s recruiting class on display in San Antonio this weekend for the Army All American Bowl and here are some observations after watching the game and seeing random video clips throughout the week.  All in all, the ND guys were very impressive.

• Dayne Crist, QB
  Crist looked like a natural leader on the field and threw a very nice pass.  He’s got a big league arm and a quick release.  After watching him play in person earlier this year, the one knock Ihad on Crist was his accuracy and that was a bit evident on Saturday as well.  Crist missed a couple open receivers, but overall, he turned in a fantastic performance.   Crist was 5 of 12 for 113 yards with a 56 yard touchdown to fellow ND commit Michael Floyd.  He showed he’s got all the tools to be a star quarterback for the Irish.
• Michael Floyd, WR
  If there was a better wide receiver in the game, I didn’t see him.  Floyd showed he can burn a corner one on one when he torched Michigan commit Boubacar Cissoko on the 56 yard touchdown.  He also showed he can use his body to shield a defender in the end zone when he caught a jump ball from Andrew Luck for a score over fellow ND commit Robert Blanton.  Floyd’s performance did nothing to quiet the internet chatter that he will start from day one at Notre Dame.
• John Goodman, WR
  Goodman looked pretty skinny compared to the other wide receivers in the game, but he looked pretty good out there and ended up catching a fourth quarter touchdown pass over Gerrell Robinson after Robinson picked Arizona State over the Irish.  The Samardzija comparisons are a bit premature right now because he doesn’t have the kind of size and strength that Jeff had, but he looks like he’ll be a pretty good receiver.
• Kyle Rudolph, TE
  Rudolph didn’t see too much action in the passing game this weekend, but by all accounts he was pretty impressive throughout the week in practice.  Rudolph will be the #3 tight end next year at least and appears ready to play.
• Lane Clelland, OL
  Clelland will probably drop down in the recruiting rankings a bit after the game, because it showed that he is still a bit raw and needs some work in the weight room before he’s ready to play.
• Mike Golic Jr, OL
  Golic was easily the smallest offensive lineman in the game, but he actually surprised me with how well he played despite the size disadvantage he was at.  Golic looked like a very polished blocker already and looked pretty good at run blocking.  He is going to need to spend a ton of time in the weight room, but if he makes Reuben Mendoza his best friend once he gets to Notre Dame, Golic is going to be much more than a “filler” recruit as many felt.
• Trevor Robinson, OL
  Robinson got some rave reviews throughout the week, but didn’t quite live up to those reports in the game.  Robinson was not by any means disappointing, but he did not dominate in the game as many reports had suggested he was doing all week in practice.
• Darius Flemming, DE/OLB
  Flemming was playing defensive end in the 4-3 defense the East team was using and showed that he is quick off the line and can rush the quarterback pretty well.  Flemming nearly had (and probably should have had) Luck sacked in the end zone for a safety.  He was tough to block for the West OL whenever he was in the game and showed that he will most likely be able to come in and play next year.  Brian Smith and Kerry Neal will likely cement the starting OLB positions in the spring, but I would expect we will be seeing Darius get snaps on passing downs next fall.
• Sean Cywnar, DT
  Cywnar ended up recovering a botched snap by Crist in the first half and showed a good motor in the game.   He reminded me of a much bigger Pat Kuntz during the game.  He’s not the biggest or fastest guy, but he plays hard from snap until the whistle.  With Cywnar enrolling early, it is conceivable that he will be worked into ND’s thin defensive line rotation next year.
• Brandon Newman, NT
  No one player may have surprised people as much this week.  By all accounts, Newman was much, much better than most people expected he would be in practice all week long.  Newman showed that he is quick off the snap and can handle double teams.  He will need to start working on his conditioning right away, however, as he showed up pretty out of shape.  Still, Newman probably could not have surprised anyone anymore than he did this week.  Newman could be able to take some snaps at NT next year if necessary.
• Anthony McDonald, LB
  McDonald was playing in a 4-3 defense this weekend after playing a 3-4 in high school and looked a bit out of place at times.  He over pursues a couple of running plays early, but he looked pretty athletic for an inside linebacker and his game should translate very well into Notre Dame’s 3-4 attack.  He wasn’t among the most impressive linebackers in the game, but he was far from the least impressive either.
• Steve Filer, LB
  Filer was adjusting to the 4-3 defense this week just like McDonald so its tough to judge his performance too much.  He did make one nice stop on a run play in the game, but other than that, his name was not called that much.  He already looks about as big as Mo Crum though which is encouraging considering our lack of size among the interior linebackers.
• Robert Blanton, CB/S
  Blanton played safety in the game, but will be lining up as a corner once he gets to Notre Dame.  Blanton looked great in run support and hit pretty well.  He’ll need to add some size before he’s an every down type of player, but he raised some eyebrows this week.  He did get beat by Floyd in the jump ball in the end zone primarily because Floyd just out positioned him and shielded him from the ball showing that Blanton will need some work on his technique as well.
• Jonas Gray, RB
  Gray was slowed by injuries during the week and didn’t see a whole lot of action.  He had a couple runs up the middle, but never really got into space to show his speed.   He had 3 attempts for 8 yards in his limited action.

Two of Notre Dame’s top remaining prospects made their college decisions known during the two All Star games on Saturday afternoon.  Gerrell Robinson, who was playing safety for the West squad during the Army All American Bowl, picked local Arizona State, but Deion Walker, a five star wide receiver from Virginia, picked the Irish during ESPN’s Under Armour All American game.

Conventional wisdom suggested we wouldn’t get both prospects considering we already had two wide receivers committed in this class in Mike Floyd and John Goodman, so it’s not surprising that we landed only one of the two.

No matter which way this played out for the Irish, it was a win-win situation as both Robinson and Walker are very gifted prospects at the position.  Had the Irish coaching staff been able to convince Robinson to play defense, where many believe is better suited for, its likely he would have landed in South Bend.

Regardless, getting Walker is HUGE for this class by giving it three All American wide receivers.  Here’s some quotes about Walker’s decision from an ESPN article.

“The value of Notre Dame’s academics is excellent, and I have developed a strong relationship with Charlie Weis,” said Walker. “He is just a cool guy and really put in a lot of effort calling and recruiting me personally.” From a football and receiving standpoint, Walker felt there would be no better mentor than the three-time Super Bowl winning offensive coordinator.

“He is an offensive-minded coach who knows the game and how to get the ball to his wide receivers. Coach sees me as a receiver who can play in the slot and also split out wide. “He said I have the green light to come in and challenge for a starting job.” We agree with Weis’ assessment of the Virginia prep standout and feel Walker possesses the elite receiving skills and elusiveness needed to become a much needed playmaker for the anemic Fighting Irish offense. ESPN’s No. 8-rated receiver prospect is tall with a long, rangy body and is very smooth in all of his movements. Walker displays very soft hands and precise route running skills with a good burst out of his breaks for a taller receiver.

I’ll post more thoughts on the game later on.

As reported by ESPN on Sunday, Omar Hunter has officially decommited from Notre Dame and it appears as though the Irish are now completely out of the picture for the five star defensive tackle.

“I committed to Notre Dame four or five months ago,” Hunter said. “I went there on my visit and my intentions were to commit to Michigan. I fell in love with Notre Dame when I was there and I liked the coaching staff and facilities and that won me over.”

It was a little more than distance that weighed into his decision, but he is certain he will not be playing for Notre Dame next season.

“Just watching Notre Dame, their style and how they played,” Hunter said as reasons for making the switch. “It doesn’t really fit with the way I play. I am not really sure about the coaching staff there, I know they are good guys and I love them, but I am not comfortable with the decision I made. I am officially decommitting from Notre Dame.”

For now there are three schools in the race, two which are geographically close to Buford.

“I am definitely looking at USC, Florida, and Auburn, those schools that have kept in touch with me,” Hunter said. “Those are the schools I am looking at. This dead time I have been looking around and see what I like.”

The loss of Hunter is no doubt a huge blow to Notre Dame’s and the whole saga which has been unraveling over the last couple weeks has tested Weis’s policy of “If they’re looking, we’re looking,” that he instituted last year after the defections of Justin Trattou, Greg Little, and Chris Little all in January. According to Jeff Carroll of the South Bend Tribune, citing two different sources including Tom Lemming, Notre Dame informed Hunter that his Notre Dame offer would be off the table if he visited elsewhere.

According to an Internet report earlier this week by Rivals.com’s Mike Farrell, the Notre Dame coaching staff had informed Hunter that if he chose to take other official visits like he was talking about, then the Notre Dame offer would be withdrawn.

“That’s a fact,” competing recruiting analyst Tom Lemming confirmed Tuesday from the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio. “You can print that.”

Many will debate whether or not this was the best course of action over the month and it will be very interesting to see what Weis has to say on the matter at his Signing Day press conference next month.

Regardless, the only silver lining in this mess is that it happened in the beginning of the month and not the middle to end of January as last year’s defections did. The most likely replacement for Hunter in this class seems like it may be current Michigan commit Mike Martin according to NBCSports.com.

With committed nose tackle Omar Hunter now looking at Florida and USC, one name to keep in mind for the Irish is Novi (Mich.) Catholic Central’s Michael Martin. The 6-2, 290-pound Martin committed to Michigan but could be open to switching because of the coaching changes in Ann Arbor.

Martin is a four star DT from both Rivals and Scout and ranked as the #12 DT by both. ESPN has Martin as the #9 DT in the country. Look for Martin to visit Notre Dame sometime this month and decide whether or not he is sticking with Michigan or joining the Irish.

Martin would be much, much more than just a plan B type recruit should he land at Notre Dame . Martin likely would have been very heavily pursued by the Irish staff all along had Hunter not committed to the Irish so early which in essence ended Notre Dame’s recruiting at the position. The Irish staff, however, thought they were done recruiting DT’s and didn’t pursue any others at the time.