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Notre Dame Football Recruiting: A quick update with signing day just a few weeks away

CROOTIN’ SZN!

By Joshua Vowles
Notre Dame v Stanford Photo by David Madison/Getty Images

The early period for national signing day is coming up on Wednesday, December 18 and runs to Friday the 20th. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are sure to be busy during those three days as basically all of their 2020 class is expected to send their NLI’s (national letter of intent) to Brian Kelly and his staff in South Bend.

Now seems like a good time to take stock of what the Irish have with a quick overview.

The commitments

Notre Dame currently has 17 prospects committed to the 2020 recruiting class. Chris Tyree is the only player under six feet tall... maybe we should kick him out?

Notre Dame Football’s 2020 Commit List (17)

POSITION PLAYER STATE HT WT RIVALS ESPN -247- 247 COMPOSITE COMMIT DATE SIGNED
POSITION PLAYER STATE HT WT RIVALS ESPN -247- 247 COMPOSITE COMMIT DATE SIGNED
QB Drew Pyne Connecticut 6'1"` 175 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/16/18 ✅☘️
TE Kevin Bauman New Jersey 6'5" 232 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6/13/18 ✅☘️
TE Michael Mayer Kentucky 6'5" 240 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 7/1/18 ✅☘️
DE Alexander Ehrensberger Germany 6'7" 238 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/31/19 ✅☘️
DT Aidan Keanaaina Colorado 6'3" 292 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 2/13/19 ✅☘️
WR Jordan Johnson Missouri 6'2" 180 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/6/19 ✅☘️
DE/LB Jordan Botelho Hawaii 6'3" 230 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/18/19 ✅☘️
LS Alex Peitsch Washington D.C. 6'6 220 KOHLS 5⭐️ KOHLS 5⭐️ KOHLS 5⭐️ KOHLS 5⭐️ 4/24/19 ✅☘️
DE Rylie Mills Illinois 6'5" 275 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/6/19 ✅☘️
OT Tosh Baker Arizona 6'8" 275 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/8/19 ✅☘️
RB Chris Tyree Virginia 5'9" 178 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/23/19 ✅☘️
CB Clarence Lewis New Jersey 6'0" 185 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6/10/19 ✅☘️
OT Michael Carmody Pennsylvania 6'6" 285 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6/16/19 ✅☘️
WR Jay Brunelle Massachesetts 6'1" 210 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6/26/19 ✅☘️
CB Caleb Offord Mississippi 6'1" 175 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 7/4/19 ✅☘️
WR Xavier Watts Nebraska 6'1" 185 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 7/5/19 ✅☘️
CB Ramon Henderson California 6'2" 185 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 12/18/19 ✅☘️

Here are the current class rankings according to ESPN, Rivals, and 247 Composite:

  • ESPN — #12
  • Rivals — #16
  • 247 Composite — #12

Because of a bit of a numbers crunch, the class may not see 20 players committed which will hurt them in the overall team recruiting rankings (plus a long snapper is one of the 17). The overall talent, however, is quite good — especially on offense.

Notre Dame is also adding former 4 Star Safety Isaiah Pryor from the transfer portal.

About that numbers crunch

We will get a much clearer picture about the roster moving forward over the next month, but until then, this scholarship chart lays it all out in a simple way. Every player that can possibly return in 2020 is listed, and names won’t be removed until an official announcement (of sorts) is made.

2020 Notre Dame Football Scholarship Chart

Position / Year Freshmen Sophomore Junior Senior 5th Year
Position / Year Freshmen Sophomore Junior Senior 5th Year
Quarterback Drew Pyne Brendon Clark* - - Ian Book
Running Back Chris Tyree Kyren Williams* Jahmir Smith*, C'Bo Flemister* Jafar Armstrong*, Avery Davis* -
Tight End Michael Mayer, Kevin Bauman - George Takacs*, Tommy Tremble* Brock Wright -
Wide Receiver Jordan Johnson, Jay Brunelle, Xavier Watts Kendall Abdur-Rahman* Micah Jones*, Kevin Austin*, Braden Lenzy*, Lawrence Keys III*, Joe Wilkins* Javon McKinley, Bennett Skowronek
Center - Zeke Correll* Jarrett Patterson* - -
Guard - Hunter Spears* John Dirksen* Dillan Gibbons*, Aaron Banks* Tommy Kraemer, Colin Grunhard
Tackle Tosh Baker, Michael Carmody Andrew Kristofic*, Quinn Carroll* - Robert Hainsey, Josh Lugg* Liam Eichenberg
Defensive Tackle Aidan Keanaaina, Rylie Mills Howard Cross*, Jacob Lacey Jayson Ademilola, Ja'mion Franklin* Kurt Hinish, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa -
Defensive End Alexander Ehrensberger, Jordan Botelho NaNa Osafo-Mensah*, Isaiah Foskey* Justin Ademilola*, Ovie Oghoufo* Kofi Wardlow* Ade Ogundeji, Daelin Hayes
Linebacker - Jack Kiser*, Osita Ekwonu*, Marist Liufau*, JD Bertrand* Bo Bauer, Jack Lamb*, Shayne Simon, Paul Moala Drew White*, Jordan Genmark Heath, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah* -
Safety - Litchfield Ajavon*, Kyle Hamilton D.J. Brown*, Houston Griffith Isaiah Pryor* -
Cornerback Clarance Lewis, Caleb Offord, Ramon Henderson K.J. Wallace*, Isaiah Rutherford*, Cam Hart*, TaRiq Bracy - Shaun Crawford**, Nick McCloud
Specialists Alex Peitsch (LS) Jay Bramblett - Jonathan Doerer -
Totals 17/85 (17) 38/85 (21) 60/85 (22) 75/85 (15) 85/85 (10)
*Eligible For 5th Year **Eligible For 6th Year

Obviously speculation about who will stay and who will go for this roster year has been discussed quite a bit over the last 10 months or so, but there’s always a few surprises here and there.

At six over the scholarship limit right now, Notre Dame will very easily be able to get to 85 by July. Even if the Irish add a couple more to this class, history has shown that attrition can and most certainly will happen.

What’s going to happen during the early signing period?

For starters, we should expect all 17 of Notre Dame’s commitments to sign with Notre Dame. It’s going to be a good day.

One uncommitted target that the Irish are working on is 4 Star Athlete Ramon Henderson from Bakersfield, California. Henderson will announce his decision and sign with his school of choice during a ceremony on December 20th (last day of the early period). The 247 Crystal Ball favors Notre Dame at this point. Henderson can play either WR or DB, but the Irish are recruiting him as a DB at the moment.

247 Sports

The upheaval with the Washington Huskies may push open another door as well. When Chris Peterson stepped down and Jimmy Lake promoted to head coach, Irish fans instantly wondered about the current status of 4 Star WR Jalen McMillen. The Fresno star was a huge target for the Irish before he committed to Washington, and perhaps the coaching turnover (combined with a very disappointing season) might be enough to change his mind.

I offer no inside information, but I will say that we can and should keep an eye on McMillan over the next few weeks. He can still use an official visit to take a trip to Notre Dame, and if he does that for the Echoes weekend — the Irish may be in business. Even if he does not visit South Bend before the early period, if he fails to sign with the Huskies during the early period — the Irish ARE in business.

247 Sports

Are there early enrollees?

Of course. With the help of Carter Karels over at ND Insider, this is the current list of Irish commitments that will begin their career early this winter:

  • DE Jordan Botelho
  • DE Ryan Mills
  • QB Drew Pyne
  • WR Xavier Watts
  • CB Caleb Offord
  • CB Landen Bartleson
  • WR Jay Brunelle
  • DE Alexander Ehrensberger

On the 18th

We will have full coverage of the early signing period here at OFD, so stay tuned. Although this new period has proven to be mostly a “going through the motions” type of thing with another signing day in February, locking up the talent the Irish have in this class is still pretty damn exciting.

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