2016 Notre Dame college football recruiting: Robert Hainsey commits to the Irish!

The Irish landed a big time offensive guard for the class of 2017 in Robert Hainsey. Hainsey is a 6'4", 276 lbs prospect from Bradenton, Florida where he plays at IMG Academy. IMG Academy is the same school that produced current Irish players Spencer Perry and Tony Jones. It's really encouraging to see the Irish staff making headways into not only Florida, but a power program that produces a lot of talent. It really just seems like Hiestand is just drafting what recruits he wants at this point.

Cohort

Hainsey currently holds offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Miami, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Auburn, Penn State, Florida, LSU, and Louisville, among a plethora of offers from other major programs. This recruiting battle really came down to Notre Dame and Michigan with Michigan State a close third. I guess Hainsey saw the news about the ND/Michigan rivalry coming back in a couple of years and wanted to make sure he would playing on the right sideline.

Recruiting Service Rankings

Scout: 4 star, #16 OG, #02 OG in FL, #111 overall

247 Sports: 4 star, #6 OG, #22 in FL, #108 overall

Rivals: 4 Star, #11 OG, #64 overall

247 Sports Composite: #4 OG, #17 in FL, #70 overall

Highlights

I won't pretend to breakdown his film and know what I'm talking about when scouting Hainsey. However, just by looking at his Hudl, you can tell he has a mean streak to him (he doesn't give up on a block until his defender is firmly on his backside, even stepping over one of the defenders after Hainsey threw him down). Some of the things that Scout has analyzed about Hainsey is that good explosion and flexibility, but needs to work on technique and pass protection. But then again, what 18 year old lineman doesn't need to work on those two things? With a year to sit and learn under Hiestand, Hainsey could develop into another nice prospect for the Irish.

Just imagine him throwing Rashan Gary to the ground in a couple of years.