Just a few quick notes as the fall recruiting period is now underway.
- Notre Dame visited Charlottesville (Va.) St. Anne's-Belfield forward Javin DeLaurier inhome today, even though he just visited campus last weekend. Arguably the Irish's top target, ND has at worst been strongly in the mix for months now, and is/was in great position to land him. But Duke is starting to emerge in the recruitment as dominoes fall - one source thinks five-star forward Wenyen Gabriel chooses Maryland over Duke, Kentucky, UConn & others - and the more Duke really starts pushing for DeLaurier, the less I like ND's chances.
- Should Duke start emerging as the top candidate for DeLaurier, look for the Irish to put the full court press on four-star forward DeAndre Hunter. He's scheduled to visit for the home game against USC, and it doesn't hurt that he's an Under Armour kid. He actually doesn't trail DeLaurier that far in our rankings - DeLaurier is ranked No. 42 overall nationally, Hunter No. 67. That puts Hunter right in the range of commitment Temple Gibbs Jr.'s talent, and many fans have been just fine with his pickup. If Hunter is your "consolation" get, you know you're doing something right. We'll see how it plays out.
- I can report Notre Dame also saw three-star forward Clevon Brown work out. The San Antonio (Texas) Churchill standout has listed Notre Dame previously in his top ten schools.
