'14 CA DL Matt Dickerson (UCLA Verbal)

[Ironman8]

mea culpa


.......................Day....................

JSmith........NMorgan.......CAT.........CAT


CAT........CAT.................CAT.........CAT

................KRussell...........Redfield......................


CHAMPIONSHIP

Much better. I think that's perfect.

 

[ND NYC]

Did you just create a defensive lineup without Max Redfield?

Get off the site.

he could be one of the 7 CATS LOL

 

[anarin]

wellllllll

It perplexes me that ZERO DT's like early playing time at a national program.

 

[ACamp1900]

Geez... This is unreal...

 

[ND4LIFE]

wellllllll

It perplexes me that ZERO DT's like early playing time at a national program.

I can't help but think the Staff will come up with something by NSD. I hate to bring up the Vanderdoes debacle but, the Staff pulled his commitment out of their asses last minute. I'm hopeful they can do it again with a better result. Big bucks, no whammies!!!!!

 

[Kak7304]

Notre Dame football recruiting: Family reroutes defensive line prospect - South Bend Tribune: Recruiting

It looked like a twisted version of deja vu Thursday, when Notre Dame lost another defensive line recruit to UCLA's football program.

This time, the parting of the ways didn't come with bitter feelings. In fact, it was anything but.

Matt Dickerson, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound senior from San Mateo, Calif., found out three weeks ago that his father, Clarence, has prostate cancer - that according to Dickerson's coach at Junipero Serra High, Patrick Walsh.

"Clarence is probably going to have surgery at the end of the month," Walsh said in a phone interview Thursday night. "His mom (Pam) has been battling an illness awhile herself. The overwhelming nature of what his family is going through forced him to kind of rethink things.

"He'll be a car ride away as opposed to a lot further away. It's just him and his twin sister, and they're kind of hunkering down to take care of their parents. UCLA's a good school, but he definitely loved Notre Dame and (head) coach Brian Kelly and (lead recruiter) coach Mike Denbrock.

"Matt thought it was the perfect match, I did too. But just kind of family realities overrode the entire thing."

Less than a year ago, another Northern California standout, Eddie Vanderdoes, committed late in the 2012-13 recruiting cycle and signed with the Irish in February. Three months later, it came to light he wanted to get out of his signed commitment, and he and ND got into a bit of a rules tussle over it in the weeks that followed.

Ultimately, Vanderdoes enrolled last summer at UCLA, then had his one-year sitting-out period waived by the NCAA through an appeals process.

In the moments after Scout.com and 247Sports broke the news of Dickerson's commitment flip on Thursday, fans and media started the Vanderdoes references on Twitter. The apparent parallels didn't seem to escape Vanderdoes, who tweeted shortly after the news broke.

"Of course I'll be blamed for this one," he wrote.

Vanderdoes, a five-star prospect who made several freshman All-America teams this fall, never made clear the reasons for his switch, at least not publicly. Initially, he hinted at an ill grandmother as his motivation before he was granted his release from ND, but later in interviews with UCLA media he said that was far down the list of why he had a change of heart.

Dickerson's heart never changed. Only the world around him did.

"He kind of made peace about his mom's illness, because Matt and Pam always had some concern about the distance and what she was going through," Walsh said. "But his affinity for Notre Dame still made it a slam dunk. When he heard the news about his dad, it was just too much.

"Coach Kelly was disappointed on one hand, but he understood. And I have so much respect for him and coach Denbrock. They hung in there with Matt even after he got hurt and couldn't play this season."

Dickerson originally committed to Notre Dame in August before his senior season. He then missed the entire regular season for Junipero Serra recovering from a preseason back injury. Dickerson described the injury as a small stress fracture that didn't require surgery.

Walsh said Dickerson is expected to be cleared to lift weights and to run in a pool sometime next month as long as the scans show the bone has healed, with a timetable to return to normal football activity coming sometime in the spring.

Despite not playing this season, Dickerson still was rated a four-start prospect by both Rivals and 247Sports, though he did not make either recruiting service's list of Top 250 prospects nationally.

Kelly and his staff can't publicly comment on recruits, per NCAA rules, until they sign national letters-of-intent. Signing day in this cycle is Feb. 5.

But the buzz around Dickerson was that the staff loved his upside and his versatility. He was even considered a top candidate to fortify the depleted nose guard position, even though most schools profiled him as an edge pass-rusher.

"He could have played anywhere across their defensive front," said 247Sports national recruiting writer Steve Wiltfong. "So they're losing a guy they really liked and who was pretty versatile. But this happens everywhere. It's not like the Notre Dame coaches are going to go into panic mode."

The Irish are still left with a handful of defensive line prospects, most of whom project as edge players, at least initially. Those include Jay Hayes (6-5, 260), Jonathan Bonner (6-4, 250) and Grant Blankenship (6-5, 245). Defensive end Andrew Trumbetti (6-5, 250) will enroll at Notre Dame next week.

The Irish may join the pursuit of four-star defensive tackle Thomas Holley, currently committed to Penn State but waiting to see how the coaching staff shakes out after Bill O'Brien's departure for the NFL. The Irish may be able to shake a prospect loose in other classes as well.

"The one thing is Notre Dame won't take someone to just take someone," Wiltfong said. "If there's someone who can help the Irish win and is a fit, then they'll explore that possibility."

Staff writer Tyler James contributed to this story.

Good luck Matt and hope things get better for your family.

 

[Emcee77]

If we could snag Holley, man, what a replacement that would be.

 

[mgriff]

I could never fault a kid for this. Hope it all works out for him.

 

[ND4LIFE]

If we could snag Holley, man, what a replacement that would be.

Agreed!

 

[ndcoltsfan2010]

This situation just sucks. Not only for us but most importantly, Matt and his family. We all need to remember that football is just a game, but family is what truly is important at the end of the day. I admire him for making such a tough choice, but I think he made the best decision for him and his family. I can't fault a young man for doing what he thinks is right. I will pray for him and his family during this difficult time.

 

[Monk]

This situation just sucks. Not only for us but most importantly, Matt and his family. We all need to remember that football is just a game, but family is what truly is important at the end of the day. I admire him for making such a tough choice, but I think he made the best decision for him and his family. I can't fault a young man for doing what he thinks is right. I will pray for him and his family during this difficult time.

Agree 100% with this. The kid is actually making a sacrifice for his family because Notre Dame seems to be the place he wants to be. I wish Matt all the luck in the world and hopefully everything works out for his family.

 

[RDU Irish]

Prayers and best of luck to the Dickersons. As much as I am growing to hate UCLA, I can appreciate what is going on in this case.

However from a bit of a non-PC standpoint, he is coming off an injury and does anyone really know what they are getting? Big dude with back problems doesn't seem like a recipe for production historically.

 

[50milesSE ND]

Good luck, and hope everything works out for you & your family!

 

[Irish#1]

Notre Dame football recruiting: Family reroutes defensive line prospect - South Bend Tribune: Recruiting



Good luck Matt and hope things get better for your family.

I had prostate cancer and while I don't know all the facts about his dad, this type is one of the slowest growing and least deadly of all cancers. If he's having surgery like I did, he will be back to normal in a couple of weeks. I went back to work three weeks after and my life didn't change.

 

[dublinirish]

I had prostate cancer and while I don't know all the facts about his dad, this type is one of the slowest growing and least deadly of all cancers. If he's having surgery like I did, he will be back to normal in a couple of weeks. I went back to work three weeks after and my life didn't change.

yep and when caught early and the person is young (which i presume matt's dad is) the survival chances are very good, best of luck to them all.

 

[TDHeysus]

Notre Dame football recruiting: Family reroutes defensive line prospect - South Bend Tribune: Recruiting

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[Irish#1]

yep and when caught early and the person is young (which i presume matt's dad is) the survival chances are very good, best of luck to them all.

I was 58 and I've had "zero" detect every year since.

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

Has continued to remain in regular contact with Denbrock who will visit him Thursday.

 

[rtrn2glory]

Has continued to remain in regular contact with Denbrock who will visit him Thursday.

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[ResLife Hero]

Has continued to remain in regular contact with Denbrock who will visit him Thursday.

First off, I hope everything works out for his family. Cancer is nothing to take lightly. That said, I hope he finds a way to make ND work for him because we need him, and the opportunities ND would provide him could do wonders for his future.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

To stay with the theme, a personal message : -

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[OCIrish]

I was upset when I first heard the rumors about UCLA.......having heard his situation, its so much more understandable......while I'm hoping for good results with his dad, cancer can be very unpredictable in how it attacks the body at times........good luck, Matt and the rest of your family!!!

 

[irishandy]

Best of luck to Matt and his family moving forward.

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

Best of luck to Matt and his family moving forward.

I agree 1000%.

 

[Rhode Irish]

I had prostate cancer and while I don't know all the facts about his dad, this type is one of the slowest growing and least deadly of all cancers. If he's having surgery like I did, he will be back to normal in a couple of weeks. I went back to work three weeks after and my life didn't change.

Shhhh! You cannot say things like this, or people will be pissed at you!

 

[Irish#1]

Shhhh! You cannot say things like this, or people will be pissed at you!

I hear ya.

I'm not an expert on cancer, but I understand what it can be and/or do. I lost my Mom, Grandfather and Aunt to cancer, along with my daughter having breast cancer. I was just pointing out that this is one where the survival rate is way up there. I hope his dad comes through fine and expect him to with today's technology.

 

[PerthDomer]

The old adage about Prostate cancer is you don't die of prostate cancer you die with it.

 

[ohara831]

Thoughts and prayers for he and his family. No hard feelings. Tough things happening for this young man. He's dealing with it the best he can.

 

[dwshade]

The old adage about Prostate cancer is you don't die of prostate cancer you die with it.

Generally true if caught early. My brother in law was diagnosed over 3 years ago with an aggressive form of the disease, unusual for his age. In November they found it spread to his spine and lung. Passed away Christmas Eve at the age of 54.

 

[Cali_domer]

Generally true if caught early. My brother in law was diagnosed over 3 years ago with an aggressive form of the disease, unusual for his age. In November they found it spread to his spine and lung. Passed away Christmas Eve at the age of 54.

Yeah... I lost a close friend pretty much the same way.. Catch it early your chances are really high of beating it.