Notre Dame hosted Indianapolis native Brandon Tiassum on Sunday just a little over a week after they offered the defensive in-state defensive tackle prospect. That visit was all that it took for Tiassum to decide that Notre Dame was the place he would like to spend his college career. Tiassum committed on the spot to push Notre Dame’s commitment total back to 9 after the decommitment of Blake Barnett last week.
Thank you all the school that recruited me and have given me a chance to play for them but now I am officially committing to Notre Dame #
— Brandon Tiassum (@tiassum) June 8, 2014
Tiassum is rated by 247 Sports as a 4-star prospect as the #21 DT in the country and the #4 recruit in the state of Indiana. Rivals ranks Tiassum similarly as the #24 DT overall and #4 ranked prospect in Indiana although Rivals has Tiassum as a 3-star recruit.
Notre Dame only recently offered Tiassum right at the end of May. It didn’t take long for him to make the short trip to South Bend to take in the campus and meet with coaches and decide that he was ready to end his recruitment. Before selecting Notre Dame as his college choice, Tiassum picked up offers from Miami, Louisville, Cincinnati, and Boston College.
At 6’5″, 295 lbs Tiassum fits the new profile of interior defensive linemen that Notre Dame has been recruiting since Brian VanVorder was named defensive coordinator last January following the departure of Bob Diaco to UConn similar to Daniel Cage and Peter Mokwuah.
Notre Dame now has four commitments out of nine total on the defensive side of the ball with Tiassum being the first defensive linemen to join the class. The Irish are not done recruiting along the defensive line by any means though. Notre Dame will be looking to continue to add talent and depth in the trenches with more four man defensive fronts being incorporated in Brian VanGorder’s defense.
With their latest picked, Notre Dame is really staking its claim in Indiana already this year with Tiassum the #4 ranked prospect in the state after already locking up the #1 ranked Hoosier State native Josh Barajas a little over a week ago. Notre Dame is still heavily pursuing another highly rated Indiana linebacker – Asmar Bilal. Like Tiassum, Bilal is an Indianapolis native.
There had been some speculation that Notre Dame was in line to get a commitment this weekend, but that was before Tiassum ever stepped on campus which could mean that more good news could be coming for Notre Dame in the near future.
Brandon Tiassum Highlights
Brandon Tiassum highlights: 2014 Ohio Rivals Camp from Peegs.com on Vimeo.
Tiassum is another brick in the defensive wall.
He and Barajas are the just the first of many to populate the depth chart along with the massive haul of the 2014 recruiting class, bolstered
by the shift of Drew Tranquill to linebacker.
Tiassum’s shift to Park Tudor from Ben Davis shows he accepts the primacy of education. A probable 2015 redshirt, he keeps the depth chart filled.
And, really, other than Gunner, who is the last Indiana kid that Notre Dame misjudged, especially now that Turner has found himself at linebacker?
Word is that Brandon Tiassum is pretty awesome.
That’s the word of my brother, who lives in Indy. Coming from a (sc)UM B-school grad, that is really good praise!
Ah I see what you did there with UM. Very clever.
Thanks, Ron. Wish I could take credit, but if I did my priest would have a confessor. (me!) I read that reference years ago on some board. And some things are too kool to forget!
AND GO IRISH!!!