Issues Brewing at Corner?

Cornerback recruiting in South Bend has been a hot topic for several months. After missing out on the position during the 2017 cycle and currently having no one committed in the 2018 class, it is fair for fans to be skeptical. Many questions need to be answered:
Is Todd Lyght in over his head? Is the 4–8 season to blame? Has it simply been a fluky 12 months? All of these questions come with some level of legitimacy. Notre Dame has had 4 cornerback commitments in the last calendar year, but none have stuck.
Here is my take on why Irish fans should not be concerned… yet:
I will be the first to admit recruiting has has fallen off and lost momentum in the last few seasons. Fewer top-50 recruits are coming in at important skill positions over the last two cycles (2016 and 2017), and that is a cause for concern. Without getting too far off topic, I want to see how the newly situated staff elevates play on the field before I judge recruiting going forward, and I believe many recruits feel the same way. A solid season on the field for the Irish will go a long way.
As for the corners, here is why I am more optimistic than most. First off, their is plenty of talent and youth on the current roster. Freshman All-American Julian Love along with Donte Vaughn and Troy Pride, Jr. are entering their sophomore seasons after receiving a ton of playing time as freshmen. The position will also receive a nice boost when Nick Watkins and Shaun Crawford suit up on September 2nd after missing all of 2016 with injuries. The addition of Coach Mike Elko’s defensive scheme should help immensely, but he will also be coaching the safeties. My hope is that this begins a domino effect at most of the defensive positions, but in-particularly in the secondary. Lyght will be able to devote all his time to the cornerbacks which should help both on-field performance and recruiting.
This leads to my questions above, and all three play a role. Specifically in regards to cornerback recruiting, the last few years have been somewhat fluky. Paulson Adebo (Stanford signee) and Elijah Hicks (Cal signee) were both verbally committed to Notre Dame last season while Thomas Graham, Jr. (Oregon signee) was a silent commit according to 247.com. However, there is a catch to all three of these players. It is well documented that Paulson Adebo wanted a Stanford offer and once he got it he jumped fairly quickly. There wasn’t much the staff could do. As for Hicks, he was never given the approval by the university to early enroll and thus decided to pursue other schools. Again, not much the staff could do. The most interesting case is Graham, and the recruitment that has Coach Lyght under the microscope. He received an in-home visit from Kelly and Lyght late in the process, and 247.com reported it did not go well. Soon after, he went public with his Oregon commitment. No one really knows what happened, but many fans have questioned Lyght’s ability to recruit since. Fair or not, he needs to prove he can bring in talent consistently.
Some fans will never be able to look past the de-commitments. Something is always to blame, and the 4–8 season or the staff’s incompetence is always a scapegoat for many. Sometimes, though, there is a deeper issue. Recruiting is a fluid, complicated process and many factors play a prominent role.
Personally, I want to see how this season and recruiting cycle plays out before I harshly judge the state of cornerback recruiting. If the team performs well and the corners stand out, I have a hard time seeing Notre Dame striking out again.

