ND has a really well rounded class committed and some of ND's recruits are having incredible senior seasons. In particular, Phil Jurkovec, Shayne Simon and Derrik Allen have been dominant. Not surprising given their lofty rankings.
Here is an update on some of the uncommitted guys that ND is in the mix for.
5 star WR Amon-Ra St. Brown: ND is still in this race, as if Stanford, but USC leads. That's pretty much the consensus in the recruiting community. Some people think that the parents would like him in California where it is easier for them to watch him to play and others have said that he kind of wants to make his own path and not follow either brother. I think He's a long shot to ND right now.
4 star WR Chase Cota: Likely following his father and good friend Braden Lenzy to Oregon, but most feel that it's a 3 team race between Oregon, UCLA and ND. Personally, I think It's Oregon and ND at the top and despite Polian's best efforts, he ends up a Duck. Too many family ties.
3 star WR Geordon Porter: The California speedster loved his Notre Dame visit and will visit some West Coast schools before he makes his decision. I think Porter is comfortable leaving the West Coast but UCLA and Washington will be heavily in the mix. At the end of the day, if ND keeps winning, I have Polian winning this one and Porter coming to ND.
3 star WR Lawrence Keys: Will visit for the USC game. Staff loves him. Michael Young will almost certainly host the Louisiana pass catcher. Will know much more about how serious he is in his willingness to leave the South, after he visits. A number of schools still in the mix, including in state LSU. I'm quietly optimistic on this one. Especially if ND were to pull off a huge win with USC in town.
4 Star TE Tommy Tremble: Out for his senior season with a broken ankle. ND vs Georgia battle at the end of the day, with both schools playing well. My brain tells me ND (Who he named his leader after the visit) but my heart tells me Georgia. Picking the Dogs in a close battle, if they don't fill up.
5 star OG Jamaree Salyer: ND has tried. He has visited 3 times and still plans to OV for a fourth visit. I just don't see him being this year's Stephon Tuitt. He has named Georgia and Clemson his co-leaders and I'm taking Georgia, where he will start from day one beside longtime friend, Andrew Thomas.
4 star OT Nick Petit-Frere: Doesn't talk to the media much at all. Mom likes ND a lot, but also want a him to play in Florida, closer to home. He will likely also visit officially for ND. Everyone in the South think He has a top 3 of Florida, Alabama and Notre Dame. We'll know more after his visit. I'll take Florida as of today, with Bama running second. ND needs to make a serious push on his visit or It's all but over for them.
4 star OG / C Sam Taimani: This one is really disappointing because I believe ND led by a wide margin in this one and was on track to get a really good interior lineman, but recent sources have suggested that something undisclosed has happened in the recruitment and Taimani is no longer expected to end up at Notre Dame, but rather, stay on the West Coast instead. It's a darn shame if true.
3 star OG Chris Murray: Another Californian, who is high on Stanford, but will give ND a look. Was excited to get an ND offer and will visit for USC as Well, I believe. I would take Stanford as the pick as of today, but ND can still chip away. Too early to tell given that he is yet to visit. We'll know more a month from now.
4 star DE Thomas Booker: Has gone fairly silent with the media. It will be ND or Stanford. Both schools are recruiting him hard. Has great relationships with both staffs. Loves ND's tradition and how seriously the school and fan base support football. Loves Stanford's prestigious education and style of play. Too close to call, but I'm making a prediction anyways. I'm going Notre Dame in an extremely difficult decision for the kid.
4 star DE Jayson Oweh: Parents want him at ND, kid is enamored with Penn State and Ohio State. Right now I think Penn State gets him and ND finishes third. I don't think that changes anytime soon. I'm about ready to move on.
4 star DE Joseph Ossai: This one is strange. Another quiet kid who Doesn't talk to the media much. It was a three team race between ND, Texas and Texas A&M. Loved his ND visit and some even felt they may have moved in the lead after the visit. I think a lot will ride on how Texas finishes the year and if Texas A&M retains Sumlin and his staff. As of today I think A&M would be the choice if Sumlin is back. This is a wait and see kid and ND will have to keep winning to stay in it. Don't be shocked if he gives TCU a long look as well. Very religious kid and they're playing great ball right now.
3 star CB Noah Boykin: Maryland commit and recent ND offer. Good offer list and seems interested in visiting. Can't make any kind of predictions until the proposed official visit comes to fruition. ND flipped two Maryland commits in 2016, can they do it again?
4 star CB Julius Irvin: He was surprised how much he liked his visit. Son of an NFL safety who played with Todd Lyght. Wants to play corner in college a d ND has promised him a chance. Is going to take some more visits out West, but I like where Lyght and Polian stand on this one. I think if ND wins 9 games they pull him off the West Coast and he becomes.an excellent addition to the class. Washington, Oregon and UCLA aren't.going let him get away easily, however. Kid is a friggen baller.
4 star CB Kyler Gordon: Another kid who was blown away by his visit. Will also visit TCU and has been to hometown Washington a number of times. I think ND made up a lot of ground on the Huskies on both Kyler and his mom. A prominent ND writer recently stated that he thinks this is an ND vs Washington battle all the way, and he likes where ND stands. Personally, I feel that ND falls a painfully close second and this kid develops into a stud for Chris Petersen.
4 star CB / S Houston Griffith: In a positive turn of events it looks like ND and FSU are at the top for the Chicago native who is playing down at IMG in Florida. Mike Elko is personally recruiting Houston and he is extremely close with Derrik Allen, who I think he could pair up with to form the best safety tandem in the country down the road. If he wants to play boundary corner I'm also fine with that. Reminds me a lot of Nick Watkins as a corner. Here is the deal. I think academics have been and continue to be an issue here. If Houston sorts them out, I think he comes to Notre Dame. If he can't / doesn't want to, I think he has an excellent career at FSU. Fingers crossed It's not too late for him to put in the work.
3 star CB Tariq Bracy: Really good all around player in a similar mould to to Julian Love coming out of high school. Jack of all trades. Will visit for USC with a list full of West Coast offers. Like most Left Coast kids we won't know much until he visits. Seems like an ND kid and He's a guy I like a lot. Hope he likes ND (on his visit) as much as they like him.
3 star CB Donte Burton: Kind of expected a commitment to ND from Burton by now but he was adamant that after backing off his North Carolina commitment that he'd take his time making a final decision. ND still leads, but academics could soon this recruitment as well. I'm still confident they land him as the #2 or #3 CB in the class, if his academics are in order, but as is the case with Griffith, that isn't the case right now and some quality ACC schools are lurking.
3 star CB Joe Wikens Jr: Already would have visited if not for hurricane Irma. Has his visit rescheduled. Down the list of CB's on the board but a viable option down the stretch if ND is short a CB in their class. Will know more after his visit and once other guys start making decisions.
3 star S Paul Moala: Having a great senior season, against ok competition. I think ND is slow playing him a bit right now and he's evaluating his options. If ND makes a serious push down the stretch I think they can get him, but they only want two potential safeties in the class and Julius Irvin and Houston Griffith are the priority right now. Moala is a good plan B though so they have to keep recruiting him.
3 star S DAngelo McKenzie: Another guy who really likes ND but who is being slow played a little bit. In this case it's fine because McKenzie is working on test scores anyways. Another solid plan B if he gets his grades in order.
Here is an update on some of the uncommitted guys that ND is in the mix for.
5 star WR Amon-Ra St. Brown: ND is still in this race, as if Stanford, but USC leads. That's pretty much the consensus in the recruiting community. Some people think that the parents would like him in California where it is easier for them to watch him to play and others have said that he kind of wants to make his own path and not follow either brother. I think He's a long shot to ND right now.
4 star WR Chase Cota: Likely following his father and good friend Braden Lenzy to Oregon, but most feel that it's a 3 team race between Oregon, UCLA and ND. Personally, I think It's Oregon and ND at the top and despite Polian's best efforts, he ends up a Duck. Too many family ties.
3 star WR Geordon Porter: The California speedster loved his Notre Dame visit and will visit some West Coast schools before he makes his decision. I think Porter is comfortable leaving the West Coast but UCLA and Washington will be heavily in the mix. At the end of the day, if ND keeps winning, I have Polian winning this one and Porter coming to ND.
3 star WR Lawrence Keys: Will visit for the USC game. Staff loves him. Michael Young will almost certainly host the Louisiana pass catcher. Will know much more about how serious he is in his willingness to leave the South, after he visits. A number of schools still in the mix, including in state LSU. I'm quietly optimistic on this one. Especially if ND were to pull off a huge win with USC in town.
4 Star TE Tommy Tremble: Out for his senior season with a broken ankle. ND vs Georgia battle at the end of the day, with both schools playing well. My brain tells me ND (Who he named his leader after the visit) but my heart tells me Georgia. Picking the Dogs in a close battle, if they don't fill up.
5 star OG Jamaree Salyer: ND has tried. He has visited 3 times and still plans to OV for a fourth visit. I just don't see him being this year's Stephon Tuitt. He has named Georgia and Clemson his co-leaders and I'm taking Georgia, where he will start from day one beside longtime friend, Andrew Thomas.
4 star OT Nick Petit-Frere: Doesn't talk to the media much at all. Mom likes ND a lot, but also want a him to play in Florida, closer to home. He will likely also visit officially for ND. Everyone in the South think He has a top 3 of Florida, Alabama and Notre Dame. We'll know more after his visit. I'll take Florida as of today, with Bama running second. ND needs to make a serious push on his visit or It's all but over for them.
4 star OG / C Sam Taimani: This one is really disappointing because I believe ND led by a wide margin in this one and was on track to get a really good interior lineman, but recent sources have suggested that something undisclosed has happened in the recruitment and Taimani is no longer expected to end up at Notre Dame, but rather, stay on the West Coast instead. It's a darn shame if true.
3 star OG Chris Murray: Another Californian, who is high on Stanford, but will give ND a look. Was excited to get an ND offer and will visit for USC as Well, I believe. I would take Stanford as the pick as of today, but ND can still chip away. Too early to tell given that he is yet to visit. We'll know more a month from now.
4 star DE Thomas Booker: Has gone fairly silent with the media. It will be ND or Stanford. Both schools are recruiting him hard. Has great relationships with both staffs. Loves ND's tradition and how seriously the school and fan base support football. Loves Stanford's prestigious education and style of play. Too close to call, but I'm making a prediction anyways. I'm going Notre Dame in an extremely difficult decision for the kid.
4 star DE Jayson Oweh: Parents want him at ND, kid is enamored with Penn State and Ohio State. Right now I think Penn State gets him and ND finishes third. I don't think that changes anytime soon. I'm about ready to move on.
4 star DE Joseph Ossai: This one is strange. Another quiet kid who Doesn't talk to the media much. It was a three team race between ND, Texas and Texas A&M. Loved his ND visit and some even felt they may have moved in the lead after the visit. I think a lot will ride on how Texas finishes the year and if Texas A&M retains Sumlin and his staff. As of today I think A&M would be the choice if Sumlin is back. This is a wait and see kid and ND will have to keep winning to stay in it. Don't be shocked if he gives TCU a long look as well. Very religious kid and they're playing great ball right now.
3 star CB Noah Boykin: Maryland commit and recent ND offer. Good offer list and seems interested in visiting. Can't make any kind of predictions until the proposed official visit comes to fruition. ND flipped two Maryland commits in 2016, can they do it again?
4 star CB Julius Irvin: He was surprised how much he liked his visit. Son of an NFL safety who played with Todd Lyght. Wants to play corner in college a d ND has promised him a chance. Is going to take some more visits out West, but I like where Lyght and Polian stand on this one. I think if ND wins 9 games they pull him off the West Coast and he becomes.an excellent addition to the class. Washington, Oregon and UCLA aren't.going let him get away easily, however. Kid is a friggen baller.
4 star CB Kyler Gordon: Another kid who was blown away by his visit. Will also visit TCU and has been to hometown Washington a number of times. I think ND made up a lot of ground on the Huskies on both Kyler and his mom. A prominent ND writer recently stated that he thinks this is an ND vs Washington battle all the way, and he likes where ND stands. Personally, I feel that ND falls a painfully close second and this kid develops into a stud for Chris Petersen.
4 star CB / S Houston Griffith: In a positive turn of events it looks like ND and FSU are at the top for the Chicago native who is playing down at IMG in Florida. Mike Elko is personally recruiting Houston and he is extremely close with Derrik Allen, who I think he could pair up with to form the best safety tandem in the country down the road. If he wants to play boundary corner I'm also fine with that. Reminds me a lot of Nick Watkins as a corner. Here is the deal. I think academics have been and continue to be an issue here. If Houston sorts them out, I think he comes to Notre Dame. If he can't / doesn't want to, I think he has an excellent career at FSU. Fingers crossed It's not too late for him to put in the work.
3 star CB Tariq Bracy: Really good all around player in a similar mould to to Julian Love coming out of high school. Jack of all trades. Will visit for USC with a list full of West Coast offers. Like most Left Coast kids we won't know much until he visits. Seems like an ND kid and He's a guy I like a lot. Hope he likes ND (on his visit) as much as they like him.
3 star CB Donte Burton: Kind of expected a commitment to ND from Burton by now but he was adamant that after backing off his North Carolina commitment that he'd take his time making a final decision. ND still leads, but academics could soon this recruitment as well. I'm still confident they land him as the #2 or #3 CB in the class, if his academics are in order, but as is the case with Griffith, that isn't the case right now and some quality ACC schools are lurking.
3 star CB Joe Wikens Jr: Already would have visited if not for hurricane Irma. Has his visit rescheduled. Down the list of CB's on the board but a viable option down the stretch if ND is short a CB in their class. Will know more after his visit and once other guys start making decisions.
3 star S Paul Moala: Having a great senior season, against ok competition. I think ND is slow playing him a bit right now and he's evaluating his options. If ND makes a serious push down the stretch I think they can get him, but they only want two potential safeties in the class and Julius Irvin and Houston Griffith are the priority right now. Moala is a good plan B though so they have to keep recruiting him.
3 star S DAngelo McKenzie: Another guy who really likes ND but who is being slow played a little bit. In this case it's fine because McKenzie is working on test scores anyways. Another solid plan B if he gets his grades in order.
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