I had seen every major recruit for Notre Dame in the state of Georgia this fall except for Buford (Ga.) High class of 2022 athlete Jake Pope. That of course changed last night as I made the trip for the region championship game against Dacula (Ga.) High, which is home to former Notre Dame target Kaleb Edwards, a defensive back in the 2021 class. Edwards was viewed by some as an Irish lean before picking the Yellow Jackets in July. Apparently, despite Edwards living less than 45 minutes from Georgia Tech's campus, he still hasn't been there yet and has been committed since July 1. That's a head-scratcher, if accurate. Edwards and Pope played on both sides of the ball and guarded each other often on both sides of the ball, matchups that Pope routinely won. Edwards is a really good athlete and certainly passes the eye test, but Pope got the better of him last night.
At 6-1, 190-pounds, Pope made plays in all three phases of the game. To open the game, Pope took a kickoff return down to the Dacula 28 yard line. He showed nice burst and vision with the ball in his hands.
Late in the 2nd quarter, Pope's number was called at receiver. He sold the slant with Edwards in one-on-one coverage but cut his route to the corner, which turned Edwards around. The ball was slightly overthrown, but Pope made a beautiful diving catch.
Notre Dame is talking to Pope mainly about playing safety for them, but the Irish are intrigued by his talents at receiver too. To be honest, I think he could be a guy who takes the safety-rover transition. Buford won the game 35-0 and Pope wasn't tested much. He recorded a few assisted tackles, including one on Edwards which you can see below.
I spoke with Pope after the game and chatted with his father at halftime too. I get the sense that Notre Dame is in the driver's seat in this recruitment. Irish defensive analyst Nick Lezynski has done a very good job making Pope feel like a priority and the two parties have daily text messaging contact. Notre Dame's biggest threat at this point is probably North Carolina, but if Clemson offers, it may be game over. His father, Brad, played for the Tigers, but they both admitted to me that they found themselves rooting for Notre Dame on Nov. 7 since they've developed such a strong relationship with the staff.
Notes On Irish Commits
- Pretty improbable run for Notre Dame 2022 offensive line commit Joey Tanona and his Zionsville (Ind.) High team. They entered the playoffs at 4-5 but have advanced to the 5A state playoffs. I have a really hard time seeing them beating Cathedral, the nation's No. 21 team per Maxpreps, but they've made it this far!
- 2022 TE Jack Nickel, 2021 WR Jayden Thomas all won in blowout contests to advance to the playoffs.
- 2021 TE Cane Berrong caught a 10 yard touchdown in a loss for Hart County last night.
- 2021 CB Philip Riley's and 2021 OT Caleb Johnson's teams won to move on in the playoffs.
I'll have the full commit tracker story posted Monday evening.
At 6-1, 190-pounds, Pope made plays in all three phases of the game. To open the game, Pope took a kickoff return down to the Dacula 28 yard line. He showed nice burst and vision with the ball in his hands.
Late in the 2nd quarter, Pope's number was called at receiver. He sold the slant with Edwards in one-on-one coverage but cut his route to the corner, which turned Edwards around. The ball was slightly overthrown, but Pope made a beautiful diving catch.
Notre Dame is talking to Pope mainly about playing safety for them, but the Irish are intrigued by his talents at receiver too. To be honest, I think he could be a guy who takes the safety-rover transition. Buford won the game 35-0 and Pope wasn't tested much. He recorded a few assisted tackles, including one on Edwards which you can see below.
I spoke with Pope after the game and chatted with his father at halftime too. I get the sense that Notre Dame is in the driver's seat in this recruitment. Irish defensive analyst Nick Lezynski has done a very good job making Pope feel like a priority and the two parties have daily text messaging contact. Notre Dame's biggest threat at this point is probably North Carolina, but if Clemson offers, it may be game over. His father, Brad, played for the Tigers, but they both admitted to me that they found themselves rooting for Notre Dame on Nov. 7 since they've developed such a strong relationship with the staff.
Notes On Irish Commits
- Pretty improbable run for Notre Dame 2022 offensive line commit Joey Tanona and his Zionsville (Ind.) High team. They entered the playoffs at 4-5 but have advanced to the 5A state playoffs. I have a really hard time seeing them beating Cathedral, the nation's No. 21 team per Maxpreps, but they've made it this far!
- 2022 TE Jack Nickel, 2021 WR Jayden Thomas all won in blowout contests to advance to the playoffs.
- 2021 TE Cane Berrong caught a 10 yard touchdown in a loss for Hart County last night.
- 2021 CB Philip Riley's and 2021 OT Caleb Johnson's teams won to move on in the playoffs.
I'll have the full commit tracker story posted Monday evening.
