Notre Dame Recruiting Big Board (Offense)

Nathan Erbach
Jul 30, 2017 · 4 min read
Fans congratulate Brandon Wimbush #12 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish after he ran for a 58 yard touchdown against the Massachusetts Minutemen at Notre Dame Stadium on September 26, 2015 in South Bend, Indiana. Notre Dame defeated Umass 62–27. (Sept. 25, 2015 — Source: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images North America)

Landing three top of the board targets in a week’s span is rare for any university, but Notre Dame has done just that in RB Jahmir Smith (Sanford, NC), ROVER Shayne Simon (Jersey City, NJ) and ILB Jack Lamb (Temecula, CA). Check the areas in which these recruits come from, and it is even more impressive what the staff has done of late.

Fall camp is set to begin next week and 15 commits are in the fold. It is about time to look at what is remaining on the Notre Dame recruiting big board. Official visits are starting to materialize and there will be some gigantic recruiting weekends in South Bend this season; Georgia and USC to name a few. For the sake of argument, I will be including most players on the board that are known to fans; including committed players. I will also give a breakdown of how many the staff plans to take. Let’s start with the offensive side of the ball:

Quarterback (1)

Committed: Phil Jurkovec — Jurkovec was the first recruit in the class and there are no signs of him looking around. He was the top target for the staff, and Notre Dame is very happy with where things stand at QB. The 2019 class is already set at QB as well with the addition of Cade McNamara a few weeks ago.

Running Back (2)

Committed: Markese Stepp, Jahmir Smith — Stepp has been committed for over a year and was someone the staff coveted for a long time. It was well documented Notre Dame wanted to add another RB, but it was not known if there would be room to do so. With Smith in the fold, the Irish are adding two power backs for OC Chip Long to dream over. By the time these two see the field in South Bend, Josh Adams and Dexter Williams will be gone. Adding two RBs is important to the depth chart.

Wide Receivers (3–4)

Committed: Micah Jones — Jones committed to Notre Dame soon after Irish Invasion. He provides the staff with another athletic and tall target. Jones stands at 6’5 and 200+ pounds.

Targets: Braden Lenzy bolted for the in-state Ducks to pursue both football and track and has left a huge void in the Notre Dame receiver class. Look for the staff to push for at least two more players. The top target is Kevin Austin, and he is expected to announce his college decision on August 11th, with the Irish the perceived leader. The two most realistic targets after Austin are Califonia speedster Geordon Porter and Texas two-sport standout Bryson Jackson. Porter has speed to match Lenzy, and with his height could be a more intriguing prospect down the road. Jackson has stated in the past that a Notre Dame baseball offer would go a long ways toward the Irish chances. He received that offer Friday afternoon, and Notre Dame has moved into his top group. Other targets include Amon-Ra St. Brown, Chase Cota, Tommy Bush, Lawrence Keys III and Kobe Smith. Landing one of these players on top of Austin and/or Porter and Jackson is ideal, but not a necessity.

Tight End (1–2)

Committed: George Takacs — Takacs pledged to the Irish back in June, and he is the prototype of what Chip Long looks for in a tight end. He has all the attributes to be a dominant in-line blocker at the college level, but he can also split out wide and be a threat as a receiver. He reminds me a lot of former Notre Dame tight end Troy Niklas.

Targets: The staff really wants to add Georgia tight end Tommy Tremble, and for awhile that looked to be the case. He will take an official visit for the Georgia game, and will most likely make a decision soon after. If Notre Dame is unable to land Tremble it is probable they stay put and only sign Takacs. Mustapha Muhammad is a name to watch, but Michigan is likely the destination for the Texas product.

Offensive Line (4)

Committed: John Dirksen, Cole Mabry The offensive line class is off to a good start with John Dirksen and Cole Mabry in the fold. Dirksen is seen as an interior prospect while Mabry has some position flexibility.

Targets: Harry Hiestand has his work cut out for him, but he is always up for the challenge. The main target to watch is OL/DL prospect Sam Taimani. He recently visited South Bend, and Notre Dame gained a lot of traction. He is another interior prospect. The staff really wants to add a true left tackle to the 2018 class, however, and there are two names to keep an eye on. Nicholas Petit- Frere has been the top target of the staff for a long time, but we won’t know much about his recruitment until after official visits are completed. The other name is Will Craig. Craig, newly a Cal commit, was offered on June 11, and Notre Dame instantly became a top choice. His Cal verbal comes as no surprise as the staff prefers Petit-Frere, and distance was always a concern with Craig. I expect new names to emerge during the season as the staff is able to evaluate more tackle talent. The last name to watch along the offensive line is probably the top lineman in the class, consensus five-star Jamaree Salyer. He has been to campus twice, so the interest is genuine, but he will still be a tough pull from the South. Salyer will visit Notre Dame again for the Georgia game.

Golden Domer Daily

A one-stop blog for Notre Dame athletics and recruiting.

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