@IrishInOntario
@NDAFArly
Any thoughts on the following:
Monkell Goodwine(SDE)
Cooper Jones(SDE)
Dylan Rooks(WDE)
Kechaun Bennett(WDE)
Kyran Montgomery(WDE)
Since you’re at it, your evaluations for every 2021 prospect would be greatly appreciated. LOL
I'll start with my thoughts on the guys you specifically mentioned...
Monkell Goodwine: Kid is a stud. 6'4, 250lbs and powerful. Don't believe ND will be in on his recruitment though. Alabama, Georgia, LSU and Ohio State will all be in contention. I don't think ND will be on his list.
Cooper Jones: I like the Indiana kid and I think he'd be a lock if ND offered and pursued. He's down the board, however, in a year a where ND will only take 1 SDE due to numbers. If this were a 2 SDE class he'd be a no brainer as the 2nd guy, but ND has guys ranked ahead of him and they like where they are currently with those guys.
Dylan's Rooks: Maybe the best WDE in the class. ND has absolutely no chance. He's from Alabama and Auburn and Alabama are fighting hard for him. He's not leaving the state unless it's to go to LSU. He'll be enjoyable to watch in coming years... Whe you tune into the SEC on Saturdays in the fall.
Kechaun Bennett: This is a kid ND will absolutely be in on, with the likes of Michigan, Nebraksa, Penn State and others. A little shorter than what I would consider ideal but really explosive. Built like Ovie Oghoufo at the same age. A guy that would take a couple years. ND would take 2 WDE in this cycle and Bennett is the type of guys you hope you get as the #2 guy that you can develop, behind a complete stud at that position.
Kyran Montgomery: This is the type of kid that is seemingly available to ND every year in Indiana and Ohio. A guy that you be maybe #4 or #5 on the board at a position should you miss out on your top guys. I like his film and I think he has reasonable upside, but he doesn't show me anything that tells me that the elite schools are stupid for passing in him. Montgomery will likely end up at a middle-of-the-pack Big 10 school like Indiana or Purdue. Could wind up being a good get for a school like that.
Here are the guys that you should relative to ND's D-line board. I'll list them in order of priority for the ND staff according to what I know at this point.
SDE (taking 1)
1. Elliott Donald (Aaron's brother)
2. Aaron Armitage
3. Bryce Carter
4. Cooper Jones
WDE (taking 1 or 2)
1. Brock Bowers
2. Keanu Koht
3. TJ Bollers
4. Kelvin Gilliam
5. Kechaun Bennett
6. Jason Onye
NG (taking 1)
1. Gabriel Rubio (Committed)
DT: (taking 1)
1. Aaron Armitage
2. George Rooks
Unless somebody new shows up on ND's board in the next 2 months, the above players will be those of consequence relative to ND's D-line class in 2021. It is expected to be a 4 man class. A 5th player might be the take if he's the right DT or WDE, but as of right now the numbers dictate that it should be 4 guys.
NG is already done with a top 100 player committed in Rubio. Armitage is interesting because I'm expecting him to commit to ND in the spring, but I'm curious to see if ND ultimately takes him as an SDE or DT. What they do there will help in the decision regarding what they do with Rooks, who ND also leads for, but might get pushed out (due to numbers) if ND takes Armitage as a DT. The guy that they really want is Elliot Donald, but we won't know where he's going to end up until spring visits. Hard to believe he's going to follow in his brother's footsteps and go to Pittsburgh, but I guess we'll see. WDE is the only position without much clarity at this point. The players ND wants are becoming increasingly more clear, as is the pecking order, but we'll play the wait and see game relative to interest.
As of today the MOST LIKELY DL class for ND is...
SDE: Aaron Armitage
NG: Gabriel Rubio
DT: George Rooks
WDE: Brock Bowers or Kechaun Bennett
As of today the BEST DL class ND can hope for is...
SDE: Elliot Donald
DT: Aaron Armitage
NG: Gabriel Rubio
WDE: Brock Bowers or Keanu Koht
