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Notre Dame football hosted 2025 offensive tackle target Jack Lange on a visit this weekend for its junior day. Lange, a four-star recruit out of Eureka (Mo.) High, was last on campus in October for the Pittsburgh game.

Per Rivals, Lange is the No. 19 offensive tackle and No. 164 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class. He has 19 total offers including Arkansas, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Penn State, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

I spoke with the 6-foot-8--8, 275-pound Lange on Sunday to discuss his trip, impressions of the staff, overall takeaways and more.

"I definitely saw the culture of Notre Dame way more and I think it’s a very special place," Lange told Inside ND Sports. "I really liked the conversations I had with the coaches and I think that they all do a really great job. I think they want me there."

According to Lange, offensive line coach Joe Rudolph has made him a priority and sold him on playing either left or right tackle at the college level.

Lange said it was nice catching up with former middle school teammate and Notre Dame 2025 RB commit Justin Thurman, Lange was one of three offensive linemen present — alongside 2025 OT targets Owen Strebig and Matty Augustine — and said the vibes were positive throughout the day.

"I loved the recruiting staff’s energy," Lange said. "It was great to see the other recruits and connect with them ... it was good to put [it all] into perspective. I loved playing dodgeball with them."

Lange said he has firm interest in the Irish and wants to return for an official visit later this year.

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I saw season PFF grades for Alt (80s for both pass and run blocking), and the PFF grades for the reconstructed o-line in the bowl game (50s on average) ;additionally in the past 3 years, Washington (2023) and Michigan (2021-2022) won the Joe Moore award for best o-lines, which leads to a few questions:

(I understand there are other factors: rushing offense, passing offense, sacks, tackles for loss, performance in big games, etc,, BUT)

1). How high does a "Joe Moore winning" o-line generally grade on PFF?
2). Is it generally all 5 o-lineman scoring high, or is it generally 3/5 or 4/5?
3). How high will ND o-lineman as a unit have to grade in PFF to (generally) "rush well, even if the other team knows a rush is coming?"
4. How good were Joe Rudolph lines at Wisconsin as measured by PFF?
5. CAN/WILL ND o-lineman reach the necessary grades in pff in 2024?

I figure there might be some interest here, if Jim Harbaugh ends up leaving Michigan for the NFL, which would be my prediction.

The Los Angeles Chargers confirmed they interviewed Harbaugh for their head coach position.

Inside ND Sports looks at five 2026 quarterback targets on the board and provides early thoughts on Notre Dame's standing with each in the 2026 class in addition to expert analysis from Rivals national recruiting analysts Adam Gorney and John Garcia Jr.

Players highlighted include:

2026 four-star QB Brady Smigiel

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2026 four-star QB Noah Grubbs

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2026 four-star QB Will Griffin

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2026 unrated QB Ryder Lyons

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2026 unrated QB Brady Hart

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Notre Dame football hosted 2026 quarterback target Brady Smigiel on an unofficial this weekend for its junior day. Smigiel, a four-star recruit out of Newbury Park (Calif.) High, made the trip with his father, Joe Smigiel, who is also his high school head coach.

Per Rivals, Smigiel is the No. 13 overall player in the 2026 recruiting class. He has 24 total offers including Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Oregon and USC. Smigiel stands 6-foot-4, 195-pounds and is considered a pro-style quarterback.

I had the opportunity to chat with Smigiel on Saturday night and he was positive about his trip, interaction with the staff, meeting other recruits and more.

On his visit:

"You know, you hear a lot about Notre Dame just being a human being," Smigiel told Inside ND Sports. "There's fans everywhere for Notre Dame across the country [and] across the world and they just have a high reputation ... just the university itself. I did have high expectations and I think my expectation was blown out of the water. Not only football-wise but just religiously and university and education-wise."

On his time with head coach Marcus Freeman, offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock and quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli:

"I've already met all three of them. I met coach Denbrock back at LSU and I had a long conversation with him ... he's a very good guy. Easy to talk to just like the rest of the staff was. Coach Freeman came out and saw me on Wednesday. I met him and we didn't get to talk much then but we got to have a long conversation today and that was really special."

On his favorite moment of the visit:

"Coach Freeman was obviously really special, sitting in a meeting with him. I mean, honestly, the whole weekend was really special. But I think walking into the church, I don't know if you've ever walked into that church ... it was just breathtaking. I've never seen a church so beautiful."

Smigiel's father only visited alongside him this weekend, and Brady said he wants to bring his mother and two siblings for a game-day visit in the fall. He said he's excited to to watch the offense and see how the program takes the next step in 2024.

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@Tyler James ...You were there weren't you?

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Thanks to all who submitted questions for me and @Eric Hansen on our latest podcast. These are the questions we answered with timestamps.

21:46 • Michael Kelley - @NDLawyer1990: ND has a lengthy record of developing great OL and a recent record of producing great Safeties. Why does it appear that ND has no shot at Proctor or Downs from Alabama? Both would likely start immediately alongside other talented players at ND.

25:13 • Rick Dierolf - @Irish357: Any chance we land Caleb Downs in the portal. He was seriously considering Notre Dame in his recruitment, any reason to hope he comes where he should have from the beginning

28:19 • @ldlgoirish: it appears this go around that transfers of underclassmen has been easier. Is that just athletes or can all undergraduate students transfer easier?

30:49 • Nathan Reynolds - @Enforcers2117: Now knowing Saban retired.. do you think Freeman would’ve offered Rees the oc job or do you think Freeman would’ve still went after Denbrock first and Rees would’ve been a back up option?? Do you think Rees will now end up at LSU?

34:15 • @stevegoforth5: Do you think the new tv deal with NBC has allowed ND to pay more for coaches? I feel the tv deal helped us pay for Denbrock and help retain Golden.

35:32 • @DanQuinlin: Excited to have CJ Carr as a member of the Irish. But when Tyler Buchner first arrived on campus we considered him the same “can’t miss” superstar. What did we not realize when evaluating Buchner? How is CJ Carr different? Thanks.

42:44 • Greg Perez - @MiddleManPerez1: Which under the radar players are you looking forward to watching the most this season?

47:05 • Marie Biafore - @biafore_marie: Looking at all the players coming for the junior weekend, can each of you please pick the three that you feel are must gets for Notre Dame?

49:42 • @CharlesWWolfe: I know classes just started, but is it too early to ask about the new strength and conditioning program?

51:01 • Jack Quinn - @jq6008: Has there been a resolution as to whether or not Stanford will count as an ACC game? And is/should ND pushing for it TO count so that they can add another non-ACC opponent? Or would they rotate Stan and Cal (I’d like the annual Stanford game to go away).

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Notre Dame hockey won a pair of home games against Penn State by three goals apiece on Friday and Saturday.

The Irish won 4-1 on Friday thanks to a big night by goaltender Ryan Bischel. Notre Dame gave Bischel plenty of support Saturday with a 6-3 victory.

Records: Notre Dame 13-11-2, 7-7-2 Big Ten; Penn State 10-11-3, 2-9-3

FRIDAY

Bischel denied 38 shots on Friday night, including 17 in the first period alone.

Notre Dame managed only four shots in that first period, but the Irish still scored twice. Danny Nelson gave the Irish a 1-0 lead 6:28 into the game. Then Trevor Janicke gave ND a 2-0 lead with short-handed goal following a Nelson pass. Janicke's shot crossed the goal line in the final second of the period.

Penn State cut the deficit to one goal with an even-strength score by Dylan Lugris at 10:51 into the second period. Notre Dame regained its two-goal lead within three minutes. Maddox Fleming gained control of a Penn State giveaway in its own end and beat goalie Noah Grannan, who saved 21 shots in the game.

Notre Dame tacked on its final goal at 18:45 in the third period against an empty net. Ryan Siedem launched it in from his own goal line.

BOX SCORE: Notre Dame 4, Penn State 1

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SATURDAY

Penn State switched up its goalie and took a one-goal lead on Saturday, but it didn't make a difference. The Irish broke open a 3-3 tie in the third period with three goals.

Notre Dame scored half its goals on power plays with one in the second period and two in the third period.

The Nittany Lions scored first with an even-strength goal by Reese Laubach. His shot crossed the goal line before he charged into Bischel for a five-minute major.

A cross-checking penalty by Penn State gave Notre Dame a 5-3 advantage into the first minute of the second period. That's when Patrick Moynihan scored ND's first goal just 43 seconds into it. Landon Slaggert gave the Irish a 2-1 lead late in the second period.

The third period had plenty of fireworks for both teams. Notre Dame took a 3-1 lead with Moynihan's second power-play goal with 17:24 left in regulation. Then Penn State responded with a goal less than a minute later. Simon Mack scored off a rebound of a Jacques Bouquot shot.

Notre Dame gifted Penn State a tied game by scoring an own goal. With Bischel leaving the net to take advantage of a delayed penalty, he redirected a pass backward by Grant Silianoff into the empty net.

The Irish regained composure and took a 4-3 lead with a power-play goal by Danny Nelson from that delayed penalty. The Irish added two more goals in the final two minutes on empty-netters by Janicke and Nelson.

Bischel recorded 35 saves for ND. Liam Souliere saved 27 shots in net for Penn State

BOX SCORE: Notre Dame 6, Penn State 3

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Next up: Notre Dame has next weekend off before a home series with No. 7 Michigan State (16-5-3, 10-2-2) on Feb. 2-3.

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Notre Dame men's basketball 2024 shooting guard signee Sir Mohammed has led Charlotte (N.C.) Myers Park to a 13-2 record this season and has the Mustangs as strong contenders to repeat as North Carolina Class 4A State Champions.

Mohammed has eclipsed 1,000 career points as a senior and is averaging 15.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game according to MaxPreps. He is shooting 37% from the 3-point line and sunk four 3-pointers in one quarter on Saturday night in Myers Park's victory against Northwood, where he finished with 18 points.

Per Rivals, Mohammed is the No. 66 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class and No. 21 shooting guard. He was previously ranked as high as No. 54 overall in the class and has been nationally ranked since July of 2022.

The 6-foot-6, 200-pound Mohammed is on pace to become the second former Rivals100 player on the Irish next season. Head coach Micah Shrewsberry's current roster only consists of one former Rivals100 player, freshman forward Carey Booth, who was ranked No. 82 overall in the 2023 class.

Mohammed's highlights below:

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Maybe too early to talk about it. He still has his senior yr of high school football and he didn’t sign letter of intent. LOL! thoughts?

It’s a big weeekend for Notre Dame football recruiting.

Inside ND Sports will use this thread as an update of pictures of visiting commits, targets and prospects at Notre Dame on Saturday on campus for junior day.

Starting with 2025 RB commit Justin Thurman

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Notre Dame commits, targets and prospects in the 2025 class arrive on campus for Saturday’s junior day. The recruits were greeted by Notre Dame director of recruiting Chad Bowden, recruiting analyst Dre Brown and recruiting associate Carter Auman dressed as leprechauns.

Featured in this video are targets Matty Augustine, Damien Shanklin, Dallas Golden, Mark Zackery, Elijah Burress, Jack Lange, Owen Strebig, Jerome Bettis Jr., Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng and Talyn Taylor, commits Justin Thurman, Dominik Hulak, CJ May, Davion Dixon, Daniel Anderson, Ivan Taylor, Cree Thomas, Joseph Reiff, Ethan Long, Deuce Knight and Christopher Burgess Jr., and prospects Cameron Herron and Shaun Terry.

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And yet both of them moved in this past weekend with the other six incoming transfers and 15 freshman early enrollees. So what's going on?

Both want to be grad transfers and both have degree work to finish at Northwestern (Heard) and Clemson (Collins). Those schools are allowing them to do that remotely this semester. So, they will live in South Bend and have some limited access to the team. The NCAA is pretty clear about this, so here's what it will look like:

They can NOT participate in spring practice, but they can attend practices, just as recruits can.
They can NOT participate in team lifts during winter workouts, but they do have access to the Gug when the team is not doing team lifts. And new director of football performance Loren Landow and his staff can supervise them for safety reasons once the players sign a waiver.
They can attend team meetings but not most team activities.
Once they enroll in June with the eight later-arriving freshmen they'll have access to everything. But the arrangement they have will allow them to absorb a lot and still fulfill degree requirements elsewhere.
If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.

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If I had to bet, these probably won't be the last with the area set to get hit by some more snow this weekend.

2025 WR target Daylan McCutcheon won't be making it to Notre Dame this weekend. He and his father have the flu.

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2025 CB target Devin Williams won't be making it to Notre Dame this weekend either. His family is worried about travel issues due to the weather. He plans to make it up to ND for a spring practice.

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Now that recruits have officially arrived at The Gug, Inside ND Sports takes a closer look at Notre Dame football’s junior day and what should be considered a success.

I've been waiting to make sure this visit got solidified, and I just heard from four-star linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng. His trip is booked and he's expected to arrive at Notre Dame on Friday evening.

Owusu-Boateng is the half brother of former Notre Dame star linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. Owusu-Boateng is one of the best linebackers in the country.

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Story:


UPDATE:

Henderson transfers to UCLA.

Notre Dame was a finalist in his recruitment, any pursuit from ND’s end?

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A source confirmed to Inside ND Sports on Friday that Notre Dame 2025 wide receiver target Talyn Taylor is now expected to attend Notre Dame's junior day this weekend.

Taylor, a four-star wide receiver out of Geneva (Ill.) High, was last on campus last September during the Ohio State game. He also visited last July for Notre Dame's Grill & Chill recruiting event.

Per Rivals, Taylor is the No. 27 overall player and No. 6 wide receiver in the 2025 recruiting class. He has 22 total offers including Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and UCLA.

As a junior, Taylor had 32 receptions, 512 yards and six touchdowns. He also threw four touchdowns and rushed for another. ND already has secured three commitments from the Chicago area in the 2025 class: DE Christopher Burgess Jr., DL Joseph Reiff and VYP Dominik Hulak.

Last spring, Taylor said he felt like a priority under former wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey and that looks to be the same under new wide receivers coach Mike Brown.



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Former Notre Dame wide receiver Robby Toma (2009-12) discusses ND's newest Hawaii commitment from 2025 linebacker Ko'o Kia, expectations for defensive end Kahanu Kia, the pride he takes in the Punahou School pipeline to Notre Dame, why Hawaii products have gravitated toward ND despite obstacles, the job special teams coordinator Marty Biagi is doing in maintaining Hawaii connections, what's left for ND DE Jordan Botelho, his experience with offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, Manti Te'o being embraced in recent years and more.

Then @Eric Hansen and I answer questions from Twitter and The Insider Lounge (21:03).

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My Spectrum package carries ACCN but not ACC. Can I stream it someway?
Nevermind. ESPN is steaming it.

Running through where Notre Dame stands with the 11 targets expected on campus for Saturday's junior day.

Dotting The Eyes, our Ohio State Rivals site, has confirmed the original Pete Thamel report that Bill O'Brien, the 2023 offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, will be hired as Ohio State's offensive coordinator.

His interesting career arc over the last 15 years:
Patriots QBs (2009-10)
Patriots OC (2011)
Penn State HC (2012-13)
Texans HC (2014-20)
Alabama OC (2021-22)
Patriots OC (2023)