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According to an Instagram post by Devin Aupiu, an early enrollee freshman defensive end for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, he is entering the transfer portal.
Auipu was a big recruiting win for the Irish late in the 2021 recruiting cycle. Devin was a longtime commit to the UCLA Bruins, and the Irish flipped him late in the game. He was a 3-Star LB, but his length and potential meant the Irish wanted him at defensive end — most likely at the Vyper position.
Notre Dame remains deep on the defensive line, and Auipu was one of three defensive ends that the Irish signed in the 2021 class (Jason Onye and Will Scweitzer).
2021 Notre Dame Football Scholarship Chart
| Position / Year | Freshmen | Sophomore | Junior | Senior | 5th Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position / Year | Freshmen | Sophomore | Junior | Senior | 5th Year |
| Quarterback | Tyler Buchner, Ron Powlus | Drew Pyne | Brendon Clark* | - | Jack Coan |
| Running Back | Logan Diggs, Audric Estime | Chris Tyree | Kyren Williams* | C'Bo Flemister* | - |
| Tight End | Cane Berrong, Mitchell Evans | Michael Mayer, Kevin Bauman | - | George Takacs* | - |
| Wide Receiver | Lorenzo Styles, Deion Colzie, Jayden Thomas | Xavier Watts | - | Kevin Austin*, Braden Lenzy*, Joe Wilkins*, Lawrence Keys III* | Avery Davis |
| Center | - | - | Zeke Correll* | Jarrett Patterson* | - |
| Guard | Pat Coogan, Rocco Spindler | - | Hunter Spears* | John Dirksen* | Cain Madden |
| Tackle | Blake Fisher, Joe Alt, Caleb Johnson | Tosh Baker, Michael Carmody | Andrew Kristofic*, Quinn Carroll* | - | Josh Lugg** |
| Defensive Tackle | Gabriel Rubio | Aidan Keanaaina, Rylie Mills | Howard Cross*, Jacob Lacey | Jayson Ademilola | Kurt Hinish**, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa** |
| Defensive End | Jason Onye, Will Schweitzer | Alexander Ehrensberger, Jordan Botelho | NaNa Osafo-Mensah*, Isaiah Foskey* | Justin Ademilola* | - |
| Linebacker | Prince Kollie, Kahanu Kia | - | Jack Kiser*, Osita Ekwonu*, Marist Liufau*, JD Bertrand* | Bo Bauer, Shayne Simon, Paul Moala | Drew White, Isaiah Pryor |
| Safety | Justin Walters, Khari Gee | - | Litchfield Ajavon*, Kyle Hamilton, KJ Wallace* | Houston Griffith, D.J. Brown* | - |
| Cornerback | Ryan Barnes, Chance Tucker, Philip Riley, JoJo Johnson | Clarence Lewis, Caleb Offord, Ramon Henderson | Cam Hart* | TaRiq Bracy | - |
| Specialists | Josh Bryan (K) | Alex Peitsch (LS) | Jay Bramblett | - | Jonathan Doerer** |
| Totals | 26/85 (26) | 41/85 (15) | 60/85 (19) | 76/85 (16) | 85/85 (9) |
It’s kind of weird to think that in a year where the 85 man scholarship limit is out the window due to the COVID rule, the Irish are sitting at exactly 85 at the end of June.
While there are no concrete reasons why Aupiu had a change of heart, the way schools were allowed to recruit with NO official visits could have played a factor. Maybe he just didn’t care for South Bend coming from California — but that’s just a logical guess.
Another guess is that the roster looks to remain loaded over the course of his time there — although I doubt the commitments of Keeley and Vernon in the 2023 class over the past few days played much of a part in his decision.
2022 Notre Dame Football Scholarship Chart
| Position / Year | Freshmen | Sophomore | Junior | Senior | 5th/6th Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position / Year | Freshmen | Sophomore | Junior | Senior | 5th/6th Year |
| Quarterback | Steve Angeli | Tyler Buchner, Ron Powlus III | Drew Pyne | - | - |
| Running Back | Jadarian Price, Gi'Bran Payne | Logan Diggs, Audric Estime | Chris Tyree | - | - |
| Tight End | Eli Raridon, Holden Staes | Cane Berrong, Mitchell Evans | Michael Mayer, Kevin Bauman | - | - |
| Wide Receiver | Tobias Merriweather | Lorenzo Styles, Deion Colzie, Jayden Thomas | - | - | Braden Lenzy, Joe Wilkins, Avery Davis, Matt Salerno |
| Center | Ashton Craig | Pat Coogan | - | Zeke Correll | Jarrett Patterson |
| Guard | Billy Schrauth | Rocco Spindler | - | Andrew Kristofic, | Josh Lugg |
| Tackle | Joey Tanona, Ty Chan, Aamil Wagner | Blake Fisher, Joe Alt, Caleb Johnson | Michael Carmody, Tosh Baker | - | - |
| Defensive Tackle | Donovan Hinish, Tyson Ford | Gabriel Rubio | Aidan Keanaaina, Rylie Mills | Howard Cross, Jacob Lacey | Jayson Ademilola, Chris Smith |
| Defensive End | Aiden Gobaira | Jason Onye, Will Schweitzer | Alexander Ehrensberger, Jordan Botelho | NaNa Osafo-Mensah, Isaiah Foskey, Osita Ekwonu | Justin Ademilola |
| Linebacker | Nolan Ziegler, Joshua Burnham, Junior Tuihalamaka, Jaylen Sneed | Prince Kollie | - | Jack Kiser, Marist Liufau, JD Bertrand | Bo Bauer |
| Safety | Jayden Bellamy | Justin Walters | Xavier Watts, Ramon Henderson, Brandon Joesph | - | D.J. Brown, Houston Griffith |
| Cornerback | Jayden Mickey, Benjamin Morrison | Ryan Barnes, Chance Tucker, Philip Riley | Clarence Lewis | Cam Hart | TaRiq Bracy |
| Specialists | Bryce McFerson (P) | Josh Bryan (K) | Alex Peitsch (LS) | - | Michael Vinson (LS), Blake Grupe (K) |
| Totals | 22/85 (22) | 45/85 (23) | 60/85 (15) | 71/85 (11) | 86/85 (15) |
It is what it is, and we should wish Devin the very best of luck with whatever he decides is next for himself.