'15 CA QB Blake Barnett (Arizona State Transfer)

[STLDomer]

Reading Hopkins' update makes me feel a little better.

How so? It made me feel a lot worse.

The way I read it, he'll flip to Oregon within the next couple weeks and not visit ND for II (which he was supposed to be in town for like 5 days for)

 

[koonja]

Won't he also be with a couple of our commits this weekend?

Edit: yep, 5 Star Challenge with Barajas and Tillery.

On the flip side I'm sure Oregon commits will be there and in his ear too.

 

[Luckylucci]

What's super awesome about this is that now we've also missed out on a myriad of other hyper-talented QBs as Blake was committed for 6+ months.

Brady White, etc. all could've been great fits. I don't even know who you scramble for at this point.

This can't be stressed enough. We pass on everybody because we have our guy. The only way he's not at ND is if BK was gone. Well looked like that was bull.

 

[aubeirish]

James Morgan. Not mobile, but a decent pocket passer.

I mean... gosh... we passed on so many guys with legit interest in ND.

Obviously, it sucks, but the good news is we still have some good horses in the stable. 1-2 years of EG, Zaire, Kizer. Morgan could add depth. This is worst case scenario. Everybody wants Blake to rethink this and stick with us.

 

[jerboski]

This can't be stressed enough. We pass on everybody because we have our guy. The only way he's not at ND is if BK was gone. Well looked like that was bull.

Yep, its some bullshit! I would bet money that he doesn't come for II, what a crock. Hoping Coach Kelly is on the phone with him tonight reassuring him and to come check ND out again just TO BE SURE

 

[koonja]

IMO Kizer is awful compared to Barnett, and if Barnett comes to ND, Kizer will never see the field.

This is a fucking killer. All is not well so let's not pretend like it is.

 

[IrishLax]

How so? It made me feel a lot worse.

The way I read it, he'll flip to Oregon within the next couple weeks and not visit ND for II (which he was supposed to be in town for like 5 days for)

Basically how I read it. Sounds like he's been talked into Oregon and that pending parental approval he's extremely likely to flip in the coming days to Oregon.

Reading between the lines of that article, it seems like Oregon/Hopkins sold him on their "coaching stability" above all else painting Kelly's flirtation 2 years ago with the Eagles as a big negative. The next step was then feeding him some bullshit on how a communications degree was awesome to deflate the academic angle for ND. And then it was just a matter of pushing him over the hump to actually make the visit.

I'll tell you what... as recently as late last week people in his family were still rather pro-ND, anti-Oregon so I don't think this is a done deal... I think it all depends on whether or not he makes the visit to ND in June.

 

[Big23Head]

IMO Kizer is awful compared to Barnett, and if Barnett comes to ND, Kizer will never see the field.

This is a fucking killer. All is not well so let's not pretend like it is.

While I agree Kizer is not Barnett, Barnett was all about football and Kizer was not. I think and am hoping Kizer has the ceiling Dilfer talked about in his review of him. I do agree as I think most would that Barnett has the chance to be special though.

 

[aubeirish]

IMO Kizer is awful compared to Barnett, and if Barnett comes to ND, Kizer will never see the field.

This is a fucking killer. All is not well so let's not pretend like it is.

The kid is not even on campus yet. Let Kizer show us what he can do before we make any kind of assumptions. That said, Barnett is fantastic prospect and we all wish he will be coming to ND. That doesn't make him Joe Montana just yet.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I'll tell you what... as recently as late last week people in his family were still rather pro-ND, anti-Oregon so I don't think this is a done deal... I think it all depends on whether or not he makes the visit to ND in June.

That's my thinking, too. If the staff hustles to counter the transparent bullshit Hopkins and UO sold to him, and Blake makes it to II later this month, then I think we hang onto him. A lot is going to depend on his parents and our staff, though.

 

[STLDomer]

If he truly wants to make a business decision, canceling a long planned trip is not good or smart business.

 

[aubeirish]

Basically how I read it. Sounds like he's been talked into Oregon and that pending parental approval he's extremely likely to flip in the coming days to Oregon.

Reading between the lines of that article, it seems like Oregon/Hopkins sold him on their "coaching stability" above all else painting Kelly's flirtation 2 years ago with the Eagles as a big negative. The next step was then feeding him some bullshit on how a communications degree was awesome to deflate the academic angle for ND. And then it was just a matter of pushing him over the hump to actually make the visit.

I'll tell you what... as recently as late last week people in his family were still rather pro-ND, anti-Oregon so I don't think this is a done deal... I think it all depends on whether or not he makes the visit to ND in June.

We need someone to send the kid the ROI chart, and his mom lots of pictures of Bon Jovi haha.

 

[ndfb3]

I'm glad he is thinking about life after football but last time I checked there were 10x as many ND alums in prominent broadcasting roles than Oregon. Joey Harrington is the only one I can even think of.

Dan Fouts is not too bad.

 

[Folsteam_Ahead]

hate this news, but i'll take a flip in summer over winter. other fish in the sea. making the playoffs this year could convince someone else to flip to nd, or win back barnett.

 

[jimmymac]

Hearing he is still planning on visiting ND as of now.

 

[Wild Bill]

Yeah, this is exactly the bullshit that has me thinking he's gone. If he actually truly believed that crap then he'll believe anything and ND has no chance.

Probably doesn't help that his "mentor" Justin Hopkins is probably reassuring him on all the positives of Oregon (did you catch the drop-in of "long tenured coaching staff" in his article?) etc. etc.

The only saving grace is that I do truly think some (all?) of his parents are squarely in ND's corner.

Also...

Stop. Recruiting. California.

ND has to take a shot on this type of player, whether he's from California or Communist Russia. Disregarding the entire state, which happens to have an enormous amount of talent, is not the answer. California has more than enough QB talent this year to reasonably assume we could have pulled one. We just don't have the same level of talent in Indiana, I'm sorry to say.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

We need someone to send the kid the ROI chart, and his mom lots of pictures of Bon Jovi haha.

That, along with a list of prominent ND alumni in the media, and maybe some stats from Kelly's offense at Cinci when he had competent QBs.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Hearing he is still planning on visiting ND as of now.

Yes Jake Brown just reported that after his intramural Frisbie golf match ended.

 

[koonja]

hate this news, but i'll take a flip in summer over winter. other fish in the sea. making the playoffs this year could convince someone else to flip to nd, or win back barnett.

Yeah but Barnett is a great fucking white. He's fucking Jaws.

 

[koonja]

That, along with a list of prominent ND alumni in the media, and maybe some stats from Kelly's offense at Cinci when he had competent QBs.

Whiskey, seriously, do it. There's no shame in information. I broke the ice with the golf bag tweet, the ball is in your court.

We all trust you.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Also, Blake went on his own to Oregon, no parents or coaches. ND staff not thrilled but is ready to dig in on Barnett.

 

[STLDomer]

Per Loy:

Confidence is not high in SB

Before the visit, Barnett planned to return for II but now Hopkins report refutes that

Barnett hasn't been returning contact with the other 2015 commits

 

[rocket66]

If he doesn't visit for II, then it's just an excuse to get out of his commitment. It looks like he is still coming to south bend in June so there's plenty of time to reaffirm his commitment with the staff.

Remember who wrote that update - Hopkins. He tried as hard as he could to make it pro- UO, but there still wasn't enough in there to make me think a decommit is imminent.

 

[aubeirish]

Yes Jake Brown just reported that after his intramural Frisbie golf match ended.

 

[ResLife Hero]

When does/did Barnett get home? Sounds like there will be some important discussions at the Barnett dinner table.

 

[Big23Head]

When does/did Barnett get home? Sounds like there will be some important discussions at the Barnett dinner table.

Per Anna, his dad is on the way to get him now.

 

[andre784]

This is confusing..

 

[West Coast Domer]

If my memory is correct there has been some corona kids which is the area Blake lives in that have gone to Oregon. The interesting thing is if he does go to Oregon where does Travis Waller go from Servite? He has been high on Oregon.

 

[koonja]

This would by far be the worst recruiting loss for ND since I've been alive. Probably ever.

 

[IrishLax]

Loy just dropped some great info:

Notre Dame is not hearing about this information for the first time today. In fact, the staff first became aware that he was visiting Oregon nearly a week ago. Although the staff isn't happy about their elite signal-caller visiting elsewhere, the staff never played hard ball with Barnett or his family. We're hearing that confidence is not high that he will stay committed to Notre Dame, but the staff is hoping that he doesn't make any quick decisions following his trip to Eugene. They would like a shot to keep him committed and are hoping that a return visit to South Bend could do just that.

The key here is to see how this plays out over the next 48 hours. We're told that prior to his visit to Oregon, Barnett told the staff that he will return to South Bend for a visit during the Irish Invasion camp on June 20. That would be big for the Irish and it would be difficult for Barnett and his family to turn away Notre Dame in person, especially with the staff laying out the red carpet. However, in the interview with Hopkins, Barnett stated that he won't be taking any other visits. That will be interesting to watch and Notre Dame is hoping that Barnett keeps his word and makes the return trip.

One factor working against Notre Dame at this point is regarding Barnett's actions over the past week. We've been informed by multiple Irish class of 2015 commits that they have tried to reach out to Barnett over the past week, but they haven't heard back at all. That is a rarity. Barnett has never been difficult to reach, per one source.

And his take:

If Barnett doesn't flip in the next 48 hours and he commits to a return trip to South Bend, I think he sticks with Notre Dame. Location is not ideal and Barnett has never been keen on playing in the cold weather, but he was able to look past that and focused on the big picture. I'm told that his mother prefers that he stick to his word and stay committed to Notre Dame, but in the end, this is strictly Blake's decision. He truly loves both schools. Getting him back on campus for the Irish Invasion will only strengthen my thoughts. The staff will take their recruiting efforts to a new height and layout everything for Barnett and his family. If he steps foot on campus in South Bend again, I can't see him ending up anywhere other than Notre Dame. If not, he'll likely flip to Oregon.

Bolded the part that reinforces communications I'd seen last week.