While the next Notre Dame game is many months away, college football never stops, as nearly every program not named Oregon and Ohio State transitions to the next major event: National Signing Day, where football recruits offer their final pledges. Notre Dame’s upset victory over SEC powerhouse LSU will provide the Fighting Irish with extra selling points, which could not come at a better time. The Midwest is trending toward becoming a heavyweight fight for talent.
Ohio State’s upset victory over Alabama and national championship appearance should skyrocket the Buckeyes’ recruiting power moving forward, and with the current No. 7 class in the nation, the ceiling was already almost within reach. Michigan State’s dramatic come-from-behind victory over Baylor will keep the Spartan recruiting machine rolling. Michigan State had already started to emerge from mid-tier Big Ten program to power by landing a 5-star player such as Malik McDowell, something not seen prior to head coach Mark Dantonio’s arrival. Yet another double-digit winning season for Dantonio’s Spartans – his fourth in five seasons – will continue to make East Lansing an attractive location for top recruits. And of course, who could neglect the Jim Harbaugh effect? The new head coach of the Michigan Wolverines will experience the expected boost in recruiting that nearly all new head coaches receive, but with Harbaugh’s success at both the professional and collegiate level, the Wolverines should shoot to the top of the recruiting rankings moving forward.
Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly will definitely have his work cut out for him for the foreseeable future. So, what are the most significant recruiting developments occurring at the moment?
Offensive Line
Notre Dame’s offensive line recruiting has been one of the very best in the nation since offensive line coach Harry Hiestand’s arrival in 2012. That momentum has carried over into the current recruiting class when Notre Dame was able to secure the commitment of Rivals 4-star offensive tackle Jerry Tillery from Shreveport, LA. Together with linebacker commitment Bo Wallace, the duo is the first Louisiana recruits Notre Dame has landed since the dawn of the Internet recruiting era, though the SEC was not going to allow blue chip prospects to leave without a fight.
Notre Dame has been engaged in an ongoing battle with LSU for Tillery’s services, which has seen the talented Louisiana native visit Baton Rouge on multiple occasions. Thanks to defeating LSU in the Music City Bowl – where Notre Dame’s offensive line dominated LSU’s vaunted defense to the tune of 263 rushing yards – the Fighting Irish have pulled in front, likely for good, as Tillery sent out the following tweet shortly after Notre Dame’s victory.
I knew I made the best pick. #MusicCityBowl #Irish
— Jerry Tillery (@JerryTillery) December 31, 2014
If Notre Dame’s ability to dominate the line of scrimmage against one of the premier squads in the SEC isn’t enough of a selling point, the success of Zach Martin, starting guard for the Dallas Cowboys and former Notre Dame standout, should be. Scott Hanson, reporter for the NFL Network, explains why in a brief but powerful tweet.
Zack Martin of @dallascowboys is the first Rookie offensive lineman to be named 1st team AP All-Pro since 1947.
— Scott Hanson (@ScottHanson) January 2, 2015
Notre Dame beating LSU head-to-head, as well as the historic success of Zach Martin in the NFL, solidified Jerry TIllery’s commitment and will make the Fighting Irish a power in recruiting elite offensive linemen from here on. In fact, Tillery has recently indicated he will start his college career at Notre Dame on the defensive side of the ball, as Notre Dame’s recruiting at offensive line has been so stellar it can afford to lend talent to help shore up a struggling defensive front, even if the move is just for Tillery’s freshman season.
Running Back
The departure of senior Cam McDaniel leaves Notre Dame with little depth at the running back position. Sophomore Tarean Folston has become the workhouse back in the Irish offense but very little is now behind him. While Greg Bryant, a former Rivals 5-star, has incalculable potential, his experience has been limited due to indecisiveness when hitting the line of scrimmage. Kelly and staff have managed to secure the commitment of Josh Adams, a 6-foot-3-inch, 210-pound 3-star bruiser, but more depth is needed at the position.
Soso Jambo, a Rivals 5-star prospect from Plano, TX, has long been Notre Dame’s crown jewel at running back. The Irish appeared to be in the driver’s seat until the Lone Star State native’s October visit to UCLA, which appears to have swayed Jambo toward the Bruins. Soso’s future destination may receive yet another curveball if rumors of UCLA head coach Jim Mora, Jr., heading to San Francisco to replace Jim Harbaugh are proven true, but for now Notre Dame can ill-afford to place all of its running back eggs in one basket.
Kelly and staff took aim at 4-star Oklahoma State commitment Ronald Jones, whom the Irish hosted on an official visit during Notre Dame’s annual sports banquet. The trip to South Bend went well enough that Jones decommitted from the Cowboys shortly thereafter, narrowing his choices to Notre Dame and USC. The talented running back opted for the USC Trojans on national television at the Under Armour All-America Game this past Friday. Jones was sure to provide Notre Dame fans a sample of what they won’t be getting on a beautiful 58-yard touchdown run, blowing past defenders with ease and elite speed.
Eyes are now being cast on 4-star Dexter Williams from Orange, FL. Williams had been a Miami Hurricanes commitment since April but decommitted this past weekend. It is widely speculated that Notre Dame is recruiting Williams hard with Jambo fading and Jones coming off the recruiting board. That speculation intensified after Irish Illustrated tweeted Notre Dame will host a 4-star running back hailing from Florida shortly after Williams’ decommittment from Miami.
ND has a official set up with a 4-star running back from Florida. Details here for Irish Illustrated subscribers. http://t.co/YABzbYjwCZ
— Pete Sampson (@PeteSampson_) January 2, 2015
Notre Dame’s recruiting class could turn out a number of different ways, and UHND.com will be here to bring you the latest up to National Signing Day on February 4th.
Scott Janssen is a blogger for the Huffington Post and has authored several nationally-featured articles, including an appearance on MSNBC as a sports contributor. He talks football 24 hours a day, much to the chagrin of his wife and those around him. Scott can be reached at scottjanssenhp@gmail.com.
I agree with the above. Everyone want ND. Frankly, I hope Golson stays.
Zaire should start but what a backup with less pressure.
ND football is gold.
ND football is money.
ND football sells out wherever they go.
ND football has an extensive, loyal, and worldwide fan base.
ND football represents everything that college football is supposed to stand for.
The highest rated regular season game in 2014, in terms of viewership, was ND vs FSU at 7.9
The next closest was Alabama vs Missouri in the SEC Championship game at 7.8, followed by Auburn / Bama in the Iron Bowl at 7.4
If it’s true that money talks, and if ND wins, don’t doubt for a second that the selection committee won’t snap them up in a heartbeat regardless
of Conference influence or independent status, because the fact is that ND is good for college football…. and its good for business.
Let’s assume BK stays 3 to 5 years. How does Notre Dame prepare give the trending landscape? You’ll have a solid program but unlikely any national championships and the possibility of the power 5 finally pushing the Irish out of the club so to speak.
Some interesting stats from the bowls. Conference records were of note. Conference USA 4-1. PAC-12 6-2. SEC 7-5. Big 10(or whatever) 5-5. ACC 4-7. Big12 2-5.
First blush: The Pac12 clearly shined. The SEC wasn’t nearly as dominant as past years. The big10 was better than past years. The ACC was worse.
Deeper dive. The SEC and ACC clearly won the money game by being in the most bowls. The big10 being touted as good again with a 5-5 record is not entirely accurate.
Notre Dame may need to consider a conference with how independents are considered in the new format I hate to say it but it’s something of concern.
The non power 5 conferences had little or no access to even the midling bowls. The money is concentrating among the power 5 exclusive of the rest and one might say that the ACC and SEC monetarily top the rest.
Its sucks losing SoSo. There is nothing he can’t do at the RB position plus he has elite hands and vision. Its got to the point where the coaches are getting desperate to bring in another back and that shouldn’t happen at Notre Dame.
Hopefully they can flip Jones from UCLA to get a little payback because he is going to be special. I don’t care about stars and ranking, Alize Jones is the best TE in the country and in my opinion no one else is close. Jones if he flips to Notre Dame will start as a true freshman.
St.Brown should pick the Irish on NSD or at least the coaches feel like he will. He to has elite potential at 6’5. I hope they are right because some of the same things were said about SoSo before UCLA was able to sway him to be a Bruin.
Mora is interviewing with the Jets, so let’s see.
Hopefully Notre Dame can use that to possibly bring back SoSo into the fold the way Florida used Brian Kelly’s interview with the Eagles to steal 5 star LB Alex Anzalone a couple of cycles back.
I don’t think he gets the Jets job. They are said to favor the ex Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone.
Baloney
Has a first name, it’s B-R-U-C-E
Everett Golson threw 29 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions. While he had serious turnover problems, it is no secret that a couple of the interceptions bounced off receiver’s hands. Those are the facts.
One note on the bounces. Though he would never use it as an excuse, Corey Robinson was bothered by the broken thumb. He will return to gluestick hands in 2015.
There is not a recruiting hole on the defensive line.
That is LAMEBRAINED. NoOtre Dame will have a solid three deep with two spares for 2015.
And I support Golson. He is humble, not egomaniacal.
He has done everything that Kelly and the staff have asked of him.
We need more men like Golson, imperfect but full of effort and resolve
who are team players. He did NOT thrown more interceptions than touchdowns.Look it up.
We need fewer like Bruce Johnson, emotional, liar, undisciplined.
Let he among you who is without sin cast the first stone.
And I will be honored to count Mr. Golson as a fellow alum.
I think Golson showed what he can do. I think he started to press too hard when he saw all of the defensive players going down and unfortunately it took the full 13 games to figure out what the O line should be. If he goes to LSU the only bigger loser than us is Bama.
Golson is one of the many QB’s that has proven to be men of character at Notre Dame. Many men make mistakes but men of character face them head on.
Golson has talent and most of his mistakes were ones of trying to do too much. I think he is on the cusp of being one of the better QB’s we have seen in a long time. I hope he stays however I can understand if he sees better opportunities at other schools. There are many top schools that would love to have him.
Also, Kelly will eventually be considered one of the legendary coaches of Notre Dame.
I am offering my opinion and wanted to go on record. I know many have a different opinion.
Let him go, he is out of control, his cheating recked a whole season, he comes back throws more interceptions than touchdowns, thinks he is a god, shades of Allen Iverson, do all these guys put themselves above the team, the coach?
Now he wants to transfer? Kelly is recruiting the wrong type of men. Go Irish, to hell with Golson.
STFU!
Rumor around is Golson inquired with LSU about transferring after the spring. He is scheduled to graduate in May and wouldn’t have to sit the year out.
Golson will graduate from ND,
like K.Russell will and Ishaq.
re:rumors
I had a roomer once.
Had to let it go.
Always in others business,
and almost always wrong.
Tillery, at 6’6″ 315, along his Catholicism, fits the mold of a Stephon Tuitt type.
Which would put him as an edge rush DE instead of an interior lineman as stated above.
Now if he were pan out as a DE and Ishaq Williams returns to claim his old DE spot, we could really have something here.
That would seem to make the most sense considering the return of two, 325 pounders, in Daniel Cage and Pete Mokwuah, to go along with Day, Jones, Rochell, and Trumbetti on the interior D-Line.
“athleticism”
Thanks for that excellent recruiting update, “Saint” Michael. Great point about the geographic breakdown of the ’16 class. I totally agree with you, brother. Keep up the great contributions!
Happy New Year!
Have you calmed down yet from your infantile pre pubescent whining session during the bowl game yet? Did you wet the bed during the Steeler melt down Saturday night?
Happy New Year!
I hope the switch of Tillery to DL wasn’t prompted by just need, although I get that the key is to get your best players in a position to help as quickly as possible, as the era of “three and out” now more often means talented juniors leaving early instead of three plays and a punt. I did notice that the high school juniors being offered at this point is still predicated on getting California and southern recruits more than midwest recruits- so the competition with MSU and OSU and now, the Harbaugh effect, might not impact us as much as it did in past years. Of the 66 juniors currently listed on the ’16 scholarship offer master list, 48 are from California or the South (mainly Florida and Texas). All 5 QBs being pursued are from the South. Only eight prospects are from the midwest, and the rest from out east.
It certainly appears that Tillery wanted the switch to DL.
ND needs to turn its bowl win into a tangible result like a top 10 recruiting class. Need a top WR and RB. Moving Tillery to DL covers up a recruiting hole there. An elite CB would make this an excellent class.
Go Irish!