2018 Notre Dame Football Big Board Catchup

It’s been a while since we’ve updated the 2018 Notre Dame football big board, largely because not a whole lot was happening. A few guys here and there committed to this school or visited that one, but that was it. Now that the season has started and everyone’s boards are a bit tighter and official visits are happening, things should develop quicker. With that in mind, we wanted to put together a summary of the current board so you all have a clear picture of where the Irish stand today. We’ll list everyone still technically on the board, but for the most part only give updates on kids still considering Notre Dame. Unless there’s some weird shtuff going down that’s worth talking about, of course. We’re nothing if not gossipy.

A few things to keep in mind as you peruse the board:

Notre Dame currently has 16 commits, and presumably is aiming for 6-8 more. At times it feels like the target is even higher, but it’s very hard to see how the numbers could work out. In any case, keep in mind that space in this class is extremely limited, so you would expect the board to be somewhat reduced. In other words, it’s not that surprising (or worrying) to see so many “Cold” prospects.

The 247 Composite scores are a great reference point, but we know many of our readers aren’t, um, dedicated enough to know offhand how they translate to rankings. So… Usually, .9800 is at or just below the cutoff for five-star status, which 247 awards to the top 32 prospects in their final rankings. .9500 is just about where the top 100 breaks, .9200 where the top 200 breaks, and .9000 at or a little above where the top 300 breaks. Those could move a little bit from year to year, but they’re going to be at least ballpark equivalents.

Finally, a quick key on our temperature ratings. “Cold” essentially means you can forget about a prospect – either he has eliminated us or has never shown any interest. “Cool” means there has been some contact and some level of interest, but as of today the Irish would be the longest of long shots. “Mild” means he’s taking a serious look, at least, and/or has Notre Dame in his final group. “Mild+” means Notre Dame is probably the leader, but there’s still a ways to go. “Warm” means the Irish are almost certainly either the leader or co-leader, and a decision could be coming soon. “Hot,” which we almost never use, is pretty much synonymous with “Commit Watch.’

2018 Notre Dame Football Big Board – Offense

Notes

Jamaree Salyer planned to take an official visit for the Georgia game, but was forced to cancel after a death in the family. He has said he intends to reschedule. The Irish are playing from behind here with Clemson and Georgia, but there is legitimate interest.

Sam Taimani loved his unofficial visit over the summer. He has tabbed Notre Dame as one of his five official visits, but he hasn’t locked in a date yet.

Mater Dei (CA) product Chris Murray is Notre Dame’s most recent line offer, as he joined the list in August. He had very complimentary things to say then and emphatically said he wanted to visit, but like Taimani, nothing is scheduled yet.

Elite tackle Nick Petit-Frere visited over the summer and is expected to official as well. The Floridian is a great fit for Notre Dame on an off the field, but distance could be a concern – or more accurately, a concern for his mother. Alabama and Florida loom large here as well. The official visit will be huge.

Tommy Tremble also was a scratch for Georgia weekend, but in his case it was because he broke his ankle in the first game of his season and wasn’t allowed to travel. Look for him to reschedule a visit once he’s healed enough to get on a plane. In the “small consolations” department, the Georgia football legacy (and double Georgia legacy) predicted an Irish win over Georgia.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is marked as “Mild” because he continues to say the right things about Notre Dame. Realistically, though, the Irish are probably a long shot and USC is in the driver’s seat. His current quarterback, 2019 five-star JT Daniels, recently committed to USC, which many expect tilted the balance heavily in their favor for St. Brown. He intends to take an official visit for the USC game.

Kamryn Babb visited Notre Dame over the summer and was intrigued enough to talk about a possible official visit, but the Irish are an extreme long shot right now. He tore his ACL in a preseason practice but it hasn’t slowed his recruitment down at all, which tells you what kind of prospect he is. Ohio State is his likely destination.

Oregon legacy Chase Cota just visited for the Georgia game with both parents, and by all accounts the Irish staff knocked this visit out of the park. He could very well prove too difficult to get away from the West Coast, but Notre Dame has done everything it can to increase his comfort level. Cota saw that he’s a great fit on and off the field and he has bonded well with a number of the commits in the 2018 class. It’s also worth noting that Bill Polian, father of current special teams coordinator Brian Polian, signed Chase’s father Chad to the Indianapolis Colts back in the day. Chad is familiar with Brian and others in Indiana, so there could be more of a comfort level there than it might seem at first.

Louisiana speedster Lawrence Keys has been on the radar for a long time and also says all the right things about Notre Dame. He hasn’t visited yet but says he intends to; if that visit doesn’t materialize, you can take him off the board.

Kobe Smith was one of two receivers offered the day that Braden Lenzy decommitted. He’s listening to Notre Dame right now but it’s not clear if it’s anything more serious than that. This feels like a kid who will stay out west.

Geordon Porter is the other guy; he just used his official visit for the Georgia game. Still some distance to go here, but based on his reaction – he was blown away by everything about the school, telling the South Bend Tribune’s Tyler James that he had “never seen a football game like that ever in my life” and tweeting about it for days afterward –  it seems safe to say that the Irish took the lead. Didn’t hurt that he ran into Tim Brown and Jerome Bettis, either… Of note, Porter just broke current Detroit Lion Marvin Jones’s school record for all-purpose yards in a game in his opener; he also ran a 10.68 100M last spring as a junior. Not too shabby.

One of those gossipy things, by the way: Elite WR Justin Watkins has already decommitted twice – once from Florida State and once from Texas. Notre Dame isn’t remotely in play; in fact, Alabama is widely considered his new leader. No doubt his recruitment will go to signing day no matter what or when he announces. ‘Crootin.

2018 Notre Dame Football Big Board – Defense

Notes

Houston Griffith, somewhat surprisingly, returned to the radar after apparently disappearing for months. The staff kept on him and it paid off in the form of an official visit for the Georgia game. How interested is he really? It’s very hard to tell as he keeps pretty quiet about his recruitment. But the Irish are in it, at least.

Kalon Gervin is another returnee to the board; most of you will probably remember that the Detroit Cass Tech prospect decommitted in May and had some unkind words about the staff’s effort. Few believed him at the time, and it appears the staff disproved the notion anyway by getting him back to campus for an unofficial visit. He just took an official visit to Oklahoma, where no doubt Kerry Cooks filled his head with his usual garbage. Gervin said he intends to take an official visit for the USC game; if that visit happens, I like our chances to overcome Cooks’s influence.

Kyler Gordon took an official visit for the Temple game; he and his mother reportedly loved everything they saw. He could be a tough pull from the Northwest, with Stanford and hometown Washington also well-positioned, but Notre Dame did everything it could to state its case. He’s from Keivarae Russell’s town, which I supposed could cut either way…

Noah Boykin is the newest addition to the board regardless of position, picking up an offer on Monday. The Washington DC athlete is committed to Maryland, but don’t let that fool you; he has offers from Clemson, Georgia, Michigan, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Tennessee, USC, Virginia Tech, and Wisconsin, among many others. He’s open to other schools and told 247’s Steve Wiltfong that he’ll visit Notre Dame soon. The Irish will look to continue their luck from last cycle, when they flipped Kofi Wardlow and Jon Doerer from Maryland.

Tariq Bracy  is a plus athlete who will need some work defensively but has big upside. The Californian’s career so far includes 2,313 rushing yards at 9.1 yards per carry, 1,543 receiving yards at 20.6 yards per reception, 44 offensive touchdowns, 3 defensive touchdowns, 3 special teams touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. He does a little bit of everything. He said back in the summer that he thinks highly of Notre Dame and wants to visit, but he doesn’t have anything locked in just yet.

Georgian Donte Burton hasn’t been shy about naming Notre Dame his leader, even though has has never visited – a summer visit fell through, and he couldn’t schedule his official yet because he had to take his ACT. If he eventually makes it to campus, you could probably put him on commit watch. His ranking isn’t great but his film is impressive, showcasing plus man coverage skills.

Solomon Tuliaupupu was completely off the radar until recently, when he said he’d like to use one of his official visits for Notre Dame. USC is the leader here, and I think it’s pretty much a done deal for them; still, he wants to visit, and you never know. You would think the Irish are full at linebacker, but this is the kind of kid you would take no matter what and figure out where to put someone else.

Talented safety Julius Irvin just visited for Georgia weekend with his father, LeRoy Irvin, and both were blown away. If you’re a football fan in your 40’s or so, you may remember LeRoy – he was a Pro Bowl defensive back for the Rams in the 80’s. He and Todd Lyght just missed each other in LA, but they know each other well and that’s definitely a factor here. Washington and UCLA are big players in this recruitment as well, but I like where Notre Dame sits right now.

Reading the tea leaves, it seems like Notre Dame is keeping Paul Moala, D’Angelo McKenzie, Chris Mitchell, and BJ Crim in a bit of a holding pattern pending Irvin’s decision. Moala has visited unofficially for Irish Invasion and both home games this year. McKenzie visited with his father over the summer and probably would’ve committed on the spot if the staff let him. Mitchell hasn’t visited yet but has remained in touch with the staff and plans to schedule an official visit at some point. Crim, who doesn’t have an offer yet, was going to visit for Georgia but had to cancel due to Hurricane Irma. He’s working on rescheduling.

Thomas Booker looks to be the annual Top Guy Stanford and Notre Dame Will Fight Over. He reportedly favored Stanford for a long time, even spending a couple of weeks on campus auditing classes in 2016, but didn’t get an offer. Then he was on commit watch as a summer visit to Notre Dame loomed, and magically a Stanford offer materialized. Ah, that David Shaw, such a good-natured kidder of a guy… Many, including yours truly, figured the race was over at that point. But he’s had that Stanford offer for three months now and he still hasn’t committed.

Booker just released a top five of Notre Dame, Stanford, Penn, Princeton, and Harvard. He wants big time football, so he’s not going to the Ivy League, but that’s still a pretty freaking impressive final group. He also just visited Notre Dame for the Temple game and loved it. You can expect him to visit Stanford at some point but nothing is scheduled yet. He has built a strong relationship with the Irish coaches and other commits (including his former teammate and current friend Ja’mion Franklin), and I think Notre Dame being on him longer will be meaningful. I’m cautiously optimistic.

Jayson Oweh might manage to get an official visit in to Notre Dame – he said he wants to, but I’m not sold it will actually happen. I think his parents like Notre Dame more than his other finalists, Ohio State and Penn State, but he himself has little to no interest. In fact, I almost marked him as Cold, but he did say he’s going to visit. So, there’s that, anyway.

Joseph Ossai was also in for the Temple game and seems to have had a good visit, but I’m not sure it moved the needle enough to pull him out of Texas. If Kevin Sumlin gets canned this could get interesting, but right now it seems unlikely that the Irish will get his signature.

Expect more WDE offers to go out as senior film becomes available.