Men, to the recruits!!
Lets finish up the defensive side first:
Two defensive players remain that made visits over the last week or made it to the Blue Gold Game on Saturday.
One is Khairi Fortt, a 4* linebacker prospect from Stamford Connecticut. Is he a stud you ask? Yes, he had 118 tackles and two interceptions, one was ran back for a TD. This is what Notre Dame needs most from its linebacker core, more tackles from them and less from their safeties. Fortt can do this and he absolutely loved that Tenuta told him that ND was going to be blitzing 80% of the time. Fortt wants in on that. Time will tell if Florida, or Ohio State can take top honors before it's all said and done, but for now Notre Dame has made a really good impression.
The last, and surely not the least is Dakota Royer Outside Linebacker from Manheim Pa. At 6'3 220lbs and room to grow he could possibly grow into a DE, however if he retains that size he will be as productive in the backfield in college as he is in high school. His production numbers are sick. At OLB he had 86 tackles last season, why so sick you ask? They seem like barely above average right? Wrong. 32 of those bad boys behind the line of scrimmage. That's right. 32. He also nabbed 13 sacks, four pass deflections, and four blocked punts. You say, "so he can run ahead pretty good and be physical and make big hits, is he athletic enough to play OLD at the college level, is he fast enough?" Your answer is yes. Royer also played on the offensive side of the ball as a slot receiver and caught 56 passes for 1,099 yards and 7 touchdowns. In short. This kid is a monster you want on your side. Does anyone else hear Tenuta drooling with the possibility of having Royer join the fold with the already staggering talent that Notre Dame is recruiting?On to the Offense!
We didn't talk about 5 offensive guys last time around. 2 Quarter Backs, 1 Offensive Tackle, and 1 receiver/safety recruit. Lets do the QBs first.
Possibly the most intriguing scenario in Notre Dame recruiting in recent memory is the one Nick Montana is currently in. Yep, the "other" son of Joe Montana. And you know, nothing would make Daddy happier than being able to watch both of his sons throw towards Touchdown Jesus on home games. Aye, but there's the rub. It may not happen. Nick is out looking around and with good reason. Notre Dame fans are often unrealistic and will undoubtedly look for Nick to be the second coming of Joe- The Comeback Kid. So the question is, does he go to somewhere like Ohio State who would take him in a heart beat and after this Pryor Project wraps up start him like a Ferrari, or does he care about the pressure or relish it and go to Notre Dame? He has been several times (obviously) unofficially, usually with Joe. This time was the first time as a true recruit. He is definitely a skilled QB and has showed some interest, but he isn't letting his hand show other than to say Notre Dame is a possibility. No shoot Sherlock.
The next quarterback is Luke Massa, one of the top quarter back prospects from Ohio. He doesn't have a ton of big time offers, yet, but this is to be expected at this part of the game. He isn't one of the big names that people are throwing around, such as Heaps, etc, but he has a solid game and the Irish offered him because they thought they really wanted him on the roster. He can make throws, is accurate, and has that "something" of a leader. Notre Dame has also offered his team mate Matt James a 4* Ot prospect.
Another offensive prospect that is also intriguing, but for different reasons, is Cory Cooper. He showed his stuff at a Notre Dame camp and literally wowed them. I image that after you watch Floyd and Golden and the rest of the talent work out, if your "wowed" by a kid he has got some ball skills. He is a 4* prospect at wide receiver, where Notre Dame is recruiting him, however he could also play safety and this is where most other schools like him. Notre Dame wants him at WR but if it came down it to, his talent could be used at Safety. Either way ND used the weekend to wow the recruit and as such Notre Dame has moved up to be tied with Illinios for first. Cooper is currently a soft verbal to the Fighting Illini. That's great news as Notre Dame could always use more quality wide receivers.
As I mention before, Notre Dame has also offered Matt James, Luke Massa's teammate. Matt James is a stud 4* Offensive Tackle. Notre Dame really needs to land a few quality OTs in this recruiting class to shore up what could be a thinning out of the position in the next few years. This kids size would be a great asset to shore up Notre Dame. He stands 6'7 and weighs in at 285. That's big, and he is still lean with room to grow. That's even better news. Notre Dame would love to add this kid as he has serious skills on the field and has been offered by schools like Ohio State, Florida, Stanford, Tennessee, and Cincinnati. Notre Dame has done a great job and James has said that Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Cincy lead for his services. He won't decide until he feels ready, most likely around the beginning of his senior season.
Our last recruit has no real flashy stats, except for his size that is. James Stone is a big man at 6'5 295 and still growing. At offensive tackle he is a stud and a dominant force of the field at keeping great defensive linemen from the quarter back. Notre Dame needs this dominance to anchor the offensive line for the Irish and protect their future QB. He is from Nashville, Tenn, and has already made friendships with Golden Tate and Alex Bullard , both also from Tennessee. This bodes well as he has said that Notre Dame will be in it to the end. Notre Dame needs to keep recruiting these big athletic guys to keep the talent level high and deep on the offensive line.
