Upshot for the Rest of the Class (2013 edition)

[ndfi78]

Everyone is aware that we could legitimately finish with Redfield, AQM, Braynt, Treadwell, right? That's 3 5-stars and a high 4-star. It's a big if, but that finish could make this ND's best ever recruiting class. I wouldn't hate it

I would say that there is less than a 2% chance that Treadwell comes here. For goodness sake, we haven't even been in his top 5 for months and months.

 

[Me2SouthBend]

This thread seems the appropriate place to post this link. Yes, from Keith.

Looking for context as you measure the quality of Notre Dame’s 2013 recruiting class? The Rivals250 — the final grades for the recruiting class set to ink this February — have been finalized, and as you’d expect, Notre Dame has put together a terrific class

Irish recruits all over the Rivals250 list | Inside the Irish

 

[Emcee77]

Possibly.... My reasoning was that earlier in the year it was stated that if Tate started (instead of Golic) he would play tackle and Lombard would be moved to guard. I took from this that Lombard may have some flexibility. On the current depth chart N.Martin is the back up tackle so my thinking was they would plug Martin into tackle and move over Lombard but I could be wrong.

You are right that Lombard can play guard, and that he would have been a guard this year if Tate had proven to be a better tackle than Golic was a guard; Golic beat out Tate for a starting spot on the line, even though they don't play the same position.

But why move Lombard now, when he has already been playing tackle for a year. N. Martin has the footwork to play tackle and he is the backup there because we are shorthanded, but he is a more natural guard.

I think if everybody stays healthy then Lombard will stay a tackle and Martin will be a guard. But if we have any more injuries or transfers, that could change.

 

[Domina Nostra]

You are right that Lombard can play guard, and that he would have been a guard this year if Tate had proven to be a better tackle than Golic was a guard; Golic beat out Tate for a starting spot on the line, even though they don't play the same position.

But why move Lombard now, when he has already been playing tackle for a year. N. Martin has the footwork to play tackle and he is the backup there because we are shorthanded, but he is a more natural guard.

I think if everybody stays healthy then Lombard will stay a tackle and Martin will be a guard. But if we have any more injuries or transfers, that could change.

Personally, I think that if you have two guys quick enough to play Tackle, you move the stronger one inside. I imagine DTs to be slower but stronger than DEs. I think of Lombard as being sronger than N. Martin.

If Z. Martin leaves, I see us starting:

Stanley--Watt--Hanrratty--Lombard--N. Martin

But I agree that Lombard and Martin could flip positions.

I would also not be totally socked to see:

Stanley--Watt--Hanrratty--Lombard/Martin--Elmer.

I have a good feeling about Elmer, but its obviosly not likely.

 

[Jebediah Springfield]

Recruiting, Rumors, and ND Football

He has 7 predictions... the 4th is:

There will be at least one Notre Dame commitment beyond Mattingly and James that sign with a school other than Notre Dame that’s currently committed to Notre Dame (I feel strongly that both will not be a part of this recruiting class). Remember Jack’s saying, “That’s recruiting.”

 

[NDdomer2]

Just going to quote the whole story since it is free.

There’s much to be thankful for this holiday season. Irish fans should be happy with the no. 1ranking on the gridiron, in the classroom, and possibly with recruiting, too. Time to analyze the scholarship numbers and project the final recruiting spots for the class of 2013.

Since I began in this business few catch-all phrases stuck with me like “That’s recruiting,” that my old colleague Jack Freeman from Blue and Gold used to say to me. In essence, nothing surprised Jack about college football recruiting. The cheating down South, kids not truly caring about going to class, coaches lying about looking at other jobs while still recruiting for their current school amongst many other sad patterns were discussed. “That’s recruiting,” Jack would say. His comment still holds true today, but for at least the time being things are really looking good for the Irish with that phrase. Notre Dame’s momentum on the field carried over to recruiting, and there are several good trends. Still, Notre Dame only holds so many scholarships.

Playing the cards at the proper time

Go to any Notre Dame recruiting site and a prominent theme comes up. How many scholarships do the Irish possess? Honestly, that number is in flux. There are rumors (pretty accurate, I’m told by people that should know) about players being lost to career-ending injury, sadly. There are rumors about potential fifth-year candidates either coming back or not coming back, there’s quite a bit of debate regarding whether a couple of recruits (Mattingly and James) will be a part of this class, and there’s discussion about whether Louis Nix decides to return for another year of eligibility (I’ve heard he’s coming back, believe it or not).

For the sake of argument, I will use the number of scholarships available as four. It could increase, it may decrease, but I am using four. That’s why Notre Dame must be careful with how many recruits it accepts a commitment from right now. Consider the top-notch names that are still available:

Tarean Folston, RB/ATH, Cocoa, FL

Greg Bryant, RB, Delray Beach, FL

Max Redfield, FS, Mission Viejo, CA

Eddie Vanderdoes, DT, Placer, CA

Al-Quadin Muhammad, OLB/DE, Ramsey, NJ

Laquan Treadwell, WR, Crete, IL

And that’s just a few of the names still available to Notre Dame.

So how should Notre Dame proceed? It’s about timing and to a certain degree needs.

Filling needs

From everything I heard to date, Cierre Wood has his heart set on the NFL after this season. Fair enough. Along with losing Theo Riddick to graduation, that leaves a big void at running back. Thus, at least one running back is needed. I feel very good about Notre Dame landing Folston and Bryant. There’s ample playing time available, prestige, and Notre Dame running back and assistant coach Tony Alford just happens to recruit Florida where Folston and Bryant played high school football. They are familiar with coach Alford. Big bonus for Notre Dame in both of their recruitments. I also feel that both players will pick Notre Dame well before national signing day. That’s based on what I’ve heard about where each recruit is with his recruitment, combined with my gut feel. I believe Bryant picks Notre Dame by no later than a week from Friday, or he’s likely headed to South Carolina to play his college football. Folston beats to his own drummer, but he’s a very articulate young man. I’ve met him. He’s not going to drag his recruitment out for media attention. Heck, he hates interviews. He should make his college selection by mid-January at the latest. That leaves two scholarships.

The best available option

This is where it becomes quite complicated. This section can only properly be completed with finalized information, and obviously that’s not possible because the fifth-year candidates are not finalized, NFL decisions not yet made, and so on and so forth. So, in essence, I’m guessing, or projecting, if one will. Take it for what it’s worth.

With two remaining scholarships I think it really comes down to timing. I believe that both Redfield and Muhammad will decide for Notre Dame by Christmas. Both players are very talented and play defense, the side of the football Notre Dame traditionally struggles to recruit more than offense. That would mean Notre Dame would be left with one scholarship. That would make Folston a prime target although with possibly Treadwell, but he’s a tough kid to project, and maybe Vanderdoes assuming he’s still on the market by the time he takes his visit to Notre Dame in January. So, that means Notre Dame must be really careful with hot it proceeds. Here’s how I see it unfolding, with the timeline beginning before Folston’s final decision (one scholarship left).

Prediction time

1 Folston picks Notre Dame (just before or after the national championship game).

2 Notre Dame’s coaching staff will be quite rigid about recruits taking visits to other schools. Visit elsewhere, you quite possibly lose your spot.

3 There will be (and probably already are) recruits that contact Notre Dame and are interested in visiting that were not visiting until Notre Dame had its magical regular season. Notre Dame will recruit those players and keep them on the radar in case a scholarship opens up.

4 There will be at least one Notre Dame commitment beyond Mattingly and James that sign with a school other than Notre Dame that’s currently committed to Notre Dame (I feel strongly that both will not be a part of this recruiting class). Remember Jack’s saying, “That’s recruiting.”

5 At least one recruit not currently being discussed in the Notre Dame recruiting world will become a prominent name by mid-January.

6 If a fifth scholarship becomes available, look for Notre Dame to land yet another top-notch recruit. The Irish mojo is at its peak. Notre Dame will take advantage.

7 Bottom line, Notre Dame will finish with one of the top recruiting classes in the country.

Go Irish! Beat ‘Bama!

 

[Emcee77]

Some interesting stuff in there. Especially interesting that he feels so confident about Folston. Most people seem to think that Folston is quietly waiting for spots to open up at Florida schools.

 

[johnnykillz]

We need to secure Eddie V.

I do not want ND to have to play against this kid.

He's unreal.

 

[tko]

Eddie V reminds me of a young Johnnykillz.

 

[johnnykillz]

Eddie V reminds me of a young Johnnykillz.

Lol.

The big meaty head?

Gigantic melon: big enough for a dozen or so tamales.

 

[cyrano]

Honestly, I could see ND taking LaRue over Folston if he gets the transcript thing sorted out before Folston is ready to commit. Especially because we already have Davonte Neal, who is very similar to Folston.

 

[sparkyND]

Honestly, I could see ND taking LaRue over Folston if he gets the transcript thing sorted out before Folston is ready to commit. Especially because we already have Davonte Neal, who is very similar to Folston.

and if we strike out on Greg Bryant too.

 

[NDPhilly]

There will be at least one Notre Dame commitment beyond Mattingly and James that sign with a school other than Notre Dame that’s currently committed to Notre Dame (I feel strongly that both will not be a part of this recruiting class).

Can't think of anyone wavering besides those two.

 

[ThePiombino]

Can't think of anyone wavering besides those two.

That's just him grasping at straws. It may very well happen, but I don't think he's basing that on anything he knows (or thinks he knows). Remember- "that's recruiting."

 

[yankeeND]

Can't think of anyone wavering besides those two.

I can't either, feel like he is going off of history more than anything. To be honest, I can see why he would feel that way. Hope he is wrong though.

 

[NDdomer2]

I think he is 100% right that we will see a name pop up that we aren't currently talking about though!

 

[CanadalovesND]

Danny Mattingly gone per II

 

[Me2SouthBend]

First of all, there is no way that this recruiting class loses 2 of the current verbals. Second, now that Greg Bryant has committed, is it really possible that Max, AQM and Eddie could join him? That would be 3 5* recruits on the Defensive side of the ball. Add in Diaco the 6* recruit and this would be a epic haul of historic proportions.

 

[IrishLax]

Updated! Was waiting on Bryant before I did an update.

Added a couple names to watch, updated overall scholarship situation, removed Khalfanni Muhammad completely as it's a safe assumption our staff is probably only looking at Folston now as an additional RB to Bryant. Also removed Treadwell. Leaving Clement and Isaac on the list for just a bit longer in case something develops.

LJ Moore and Priest Willis staying off the list because it's my understanding that the staff is hardly, if at all, recruiting them anymore and both have more-or-less made decisions for other schools. Things can change, but no reason to include them right now as a serious prospect.

Oh, also hyperlinked all players to their recruiting profile.

 

[Rocky2820]

Major reps, Lax!

 

[jason_h537]

Ty Isaac has no interest in ND, he never did. Why is he on the list? Also I would take Clement, Hooper, and Duarte off.

 

[rtrn2glory]

isaac never had interest in ND??

 

[jason_h537]

isaac never had interest in ND??

Never, other then a name on a list. The only reason he is always brought up is because he is from Illinois.

 

[Ironman8]

Never, other then a name on a list. The only reason he is always brought up is because he is from Illinois.

Eh I am inclined to disagree with you here. I don't think ND was ever his favorite, as some people said, but he visited ND an awful lot for a person who never had interest in ND other than a name on a list.

 

[jason_h537]

Eh I am inclined to disagree with you here. I don't think ND was ever his favorite, as some people said, but he visited ND an awful lot for a person who never had interest in ND other than a name on a list.

When did he visit? He never took an OV, He kept cancelling over the summer. Last time he was on campus was as a high school junior.

 

[Ironman8]

When did he visit? He never took an OV, He kept cancelling over the summer. Last time he was on campus was as a high school junior.

Yeah, which is when a lot of recruits get the majority of their recruitment done these days. He attended several games, our summer camp and Junior day. Again, that is a lot of visits for someone "not interested".

 

[IrishLax]

Ty Isaac has no interest in ND, he never did. Why is he on the list? Also I would take Clement, Hooper, and Duarte off.

So what exactly is your gripe? Ty's thing says: "We've gotten back in contact with Ty, but everything I've read has us as a serious longshot right now. Ty really doesn't seem to be buying what Notre Dame has been selling throughout the process and if he doesn't end up at USC he probably ends up at Michigan. Next Marc Tyler, IMO... so not sure this is really a situation to monitor unless Notre Dame misses on Folston."

And then my update said "Leaving Clement and Isaac on the list for just a bit longer in case something develops." As long as he continues to talk with our coaches though and let them visit him, he's staying on the list until he cuts off contact or something happens with Folston/another RB. It's a little ridiculous to gripe about him being onthe list when he's accepted multiple in home visits from our staff in recent weeks.

Hooper and Duarte are still being recruited and, as it clearly says, could end up being part of the class only if things fall through with other players.

 

[IrishLax]

Never, other then a name on a list. The only reason he is always brought up is because he is from Illinois.

And because he's had our coaches over multiple times since the season ended..... are you really that ruffled about him being in the longshot category?

 

[BMT]

We now have Greg Bryant, GA111, Mahone, and Carlisle at RB. Ty I. would be a cherry on top but not needed

 

[jason_h537]

And because he's had our coaches over multiple times since the season ended..... are you really that ruffled about him being in the longshot category?

Yes i am sick of hearing about Ty Isaac, maybe I am spending too much time in the 4HL but fucccckkkk let it go already.