National Signing Day 2018 is approximately eleven-and-a-half months away. It’s much too far away for anyone to have a clear idea how Notre Dame’s Class of 2018 will turn out.
Which makes it the perfect time for me to throw out a prediction just for the hell of it.
Here’s a list of Irish targets and potential targets that I think I am POSITIVE will end up signing with the University of Notre Dame next February.* And I’ll even throw in a few words about each future Golden Domer.
Current commits are in italics, those with an asterisk (*) have yet to be offered by Notre Dame.
(Name, Height/Weight, State, Composite Score)
OFFENSE
Quarterback (1)
Phil Jurkovec — 6-5/190 — PA — .9833
Elite prospect just barely outside of 5-star range. Ideal measurables, nice arm, great athlete.
Running Back (1)
Markese Stepp — 6-0/205 — IN — .9222
Solid all-around athlete. Does everything well, though not quite elite in anything. Great vision, patience. Great fit for what ND wants out of its running backs.
Other names to keep an eye on: TJ Pledger, Jaelen Gill, Keaontay Ingram
Wide Receiver (3)
Amon-Ra St. Brown — 6-1/185 — CA — .9833
Youngest St. Brown sibling. Possibly the best of the bunch. Another elite athlete just outside of 5-star range. Irish currently among his leaders for sure, but plenty of work to do.
Joshua Moore — 6-1/160 — FL — .9664
IMG prospect, originally from Texas. Big-time downfield threat. Has expressed a high degree of interest in Notre Dame, but it’s still early.
Bryson Jackson — 6-0/170 — TX — NR
Bryson is a speedster. Big-time speed and explosiveness. Flying a little under the radar right now, although major programs have started to take note. The Irish got in on him early. They were his first offer. That offer put him in tears.
Other names to keep an eye on: Brian Hightower, Jahan Dotson, Kevin Austin, ???
Tight End / Wide Receiver (1)
Micah Jones — 6-5/200 — IL — .8945
Big kid. Decent athlete but maybe a bit slow to play wide receiver. Notre Dame appears to have a big lead for him right now. He’ll be in South Bend this weekend for the first Junior Day.
Other names to keep an eye on (TE): Jeremy Ruckert, Mustapha Muhammad, Will Mallory, Judge Culpepper
Offensive Line (4)
Ryan Hayes — 6-7/250 — MI — .9000
Elite frame, but needs to fill out. Recently picked up an offer. Main competition right now is Michigan State. Look for Hiestand to do his thing.
John Dirksen — 6-5/295 — OH — .8974
Another recent offer. Powerful guy, a real mauler. Needs to work on some technical things, but nice upside. Again, Michigan State looks like the main competition.
*Tommy Brown — 6-7/315 — CA — .9645
BIG kid out of Mater Dei. Honestly surprised ND hasn’t offered yet. They will have a great shot to land him when they do.
*Wyatt Blake — 6-4/310 — IL — .8726
Solid prospect. Another vicious, physical player. Would fit in nicely at guard. Decent early offer list. Has visited Notre Dame numerous times already. I would expect him to commit shortly after offered.
Other names to keep an eye on: Dawson Jaramillo, Blaine Scott, Nicholas Petit-Frere, Jamaree Salyer, ???
DEFENSE
Defensive Tackle (2)
Jayson Ademilola — 6-3/285 — NJ — .9089
Excellent early pick-up for the Irish. One of the best in New Jersey. Was nearly unstoppable last year for St. Peter’s Prep.
PJ Mustipher — 6-6/285 — MD — .9690
Brother of starting center Sam Mustipher. Elite prospect. Would be one of the biggest pick-ups in recently memory along the defensive line. The Irish will be in this one until the end.
Other names to keep an eye on: Aeneas Hawkins, Josh Walker
Defensive End (4)
Justin Ademilola — 6-3/230 — NJ — .8878
Good, but not not elite athlete. Really improved between his sophomore and junior years. Probably weighs more than his listed weight at this point in time. Twin brother of Jayson. Another really good early pick-up at a position of need.
Malik Vann — 6-2/245 — OH — .8888
Notre Dame leads for Malik right now. Will probably commit to the Irish this summer if ND continues to push for him. Would be a composite 4-star if he were a couple inches taller.
*John Waggoner — 6-5/230 — IA — .8851
Great frame. Would be a good pick-up at rush end. The Irish would jump into his top group if offered. Described ND as his dream offer.
*Madison Norris — 6-4/200 — IN — .8400
In-state kid. Long, lanky prospect. Explosive. Really high upside as a rush end. Decent early offer list. Visited Notre Dame this past fall.
Other names to keep an eye on: Elijah Wade, Tyreke Smith, Devin O’Rourke, ???
Linebacker (3)
Matt Bauer — 6-3/215 — PA — .9394
Huge early pick-up. Could really turn into a special player.
Ovie Oghoufo — 6-3/210 — MI — .8875
Long, lean prospect. Really good athlete. Another solid early pick-up for the Irish.
*Cameron McGrone — 6-1/215 — IN — .8806
Another in-state kid. If offered, I would expect him to end up in this class.
Other names to keep an eye on: Palaie Gaoteote, Dallas Gant, Dax Hollifield, ???
Cornerback (3)
Houston Griffith — 6-0/180 — FL — .9740
Another IMG kid. Originally from Illinois. Irish got in on him early, and are now in a battle with Ohio State. Would be a HUGE pickup.
Kalon Gervin — 5-11/180 — MI — .9147
Another recent offer. Cass Tech kid, but not your typical Cass Tech kid. Sounds like Notre Dame was a special offer for him, and the Irish should be in this one until the end. Of course, Michigan and Michigan State will be competition here. The Irish will have to battle this one out.
*Donald Johnson — 5-11/170 — IN — .8567
Final in-state kid on the list. Not much film on him, so he’s lightly recruited right now. Solid player, though.
Other names to keep an eye on: Brendan Radley-Hiles, Tre Douglas, Christian Tutt, Braden Lenzy, ???
Safety (2)
Derrik Allen — 6-1/205 — GA — .9849
Elite prospect, 5-star player. One of the best athletes in the country. Could play anywhere in the secondary. Notre Dame appears to have a slight lead for him right now. Lots of work to do, though.
Shayne Simon — 6-3/185 — NJ — .8689
Another St. Peter’s kid. Notre Dame has recruited this school well in recent years. Ademilola twins have got to be in his ear about ND. Has expressed high interest. Good prospect with a very good early offer list.
Other names to keep an eye on: Jeremiah Salaam, Tyreke Johnson, ???
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So there you have it. These are the 24 guys that Notre Dame will sign** in the Class of 2018, which would give the Irish a final 247 Composite Score of about 283*** and would have placed them at #8 in the final rankings for the 2017 class.
The Irish are bound to sign a Top Ten class this cycle. So it has been written, so it has been foretold. I’d bet my esteemed reputation as a Notre Dame blogger on it.****
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*I’m actually not positive. It’d be pure luck if this guess is half-right.
**Could sign.
***I actually don’t expect this to happen.
****My reputation really isn’t that esteemed.
I’m not trying to be a sunshine-pumper with this guess, guys. I actually fully expect a few more 3-stars and a few less blue-chippers in this group when all is said and done. It’s just really early now, and so many guys haven’t even popped up on our radar yet.
Also, 247 updated their rankings last night, so these 247 Composite scores are all out of whack.
@FIRE TY.@
What about Cameron McGrone’s twin brother,
Holden?
I hear he’s a real baller.
No no no, that’s Dr. Drake Ramoray. Do me a favor, if you see him again tell him to watch out for open elevator shafts.
Sorry, but a Cass Tech kid is a Cass Tech kid until proven otherwise. It was a big deal that Mike Weber ended up at OSU, and that was only because Brady Hoke got fired. Those kids will stay in MI.
Odds are you’re right. But until other targets pop up on our radar here, I feel better about him than others we are in on right now.
What’s it mean to be a “Cass Tech kid” other than a strong, strong Michigan lean? I went to high school in Detroit.
In this reference, that’s pretty much it.
Kalon sounds (at least right now) more genuinely open to other schools than other kids in recent years.
Tyler’s completely on top of it here (nice work, by the way!)
Since you went to H.S. in Detroit, you’re probably aware that Cass Tech is an athletic powerhouse. They’ve been producing top-flight D1 football talent for the past decade, and Mike Weber is literally the only one I can think of who left the state for college. Michigan and MSU are automatic favorites to land those guys.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d absolutely love to get some Detroit kids to ND (I’m from the suburbs, myself). It just hasn’t historically worked out that way.
I’ll still wait until Signing Day for it to be official…but someone prepare the crow. I’ll eat it.
Hah, love it! And the more we can troll Harbaugh by grabbing kids out of Detroit & the metro area the better.
I see ND offered 3 LBs in N.Car. the other day. That Hollifield kid had something like 115 tackles with 50+ being TFLs.
A lot of blue chip talent out there that we actually have a real shot at getting. This new staff is going to be aggressive and attack recruiting. I am excited to see what they can do.Also, Markese Stepp is going hard on social media trying to get big time recruits to join the Irish. This dude is hitting up everybody!
I’ve got a feeling we should swap out one of those OL for 3-star Cole Mabry out of Brentwood, TN. He got offered today during his Junior Day visit.
Also keep an eye on OSU for Malik Vann. He’s visiting there now. I’m assuming he doesn’t get an offer from them, but if he does he’ll be a much tougher pull.
I was hoping the staff would get someone to pop during Junior Day this weekend. I understand they only invited a small number of recruits not counting the guys that are already committed. Its not to late. Maybe we get someone on Sunday to give their verbal.
Keep an eye out tomorrow or later this week. Sounds like we got 1 or 2.
Rumor seems to be one is a 4 star cornerback who had a good trip and said he’s announcing a decision Monday. That obviously would be a really, really good sign if it holds through.