'13 OH DE/TE Jacob Matuska (Notre Dame Signed LOI)

[CHIDomer9]

Hearing that Michigan leads for this kid, plus the fact Bosch committed there immediately after visiting ND.... Would love to know what Hoke is selling against ND.
Especially when you take into account that supposedly Hoke doesn't allow commits to take other visits post-commitment, something is really fishy here. There are plenty of other programs that won bowl games and are on the upswing. But none have as many commits as UM at this point.

 

[rtrn2glory]

mabye the fact we like him on the d line is the reason that ann arbor leads.

 

[Emcee77]

I hate to say it but I have to give Hoke and his staff a lot of credit. Hoke seems to be a great recruiter. E.J. Levenberry spoke glowingly about him as a guy who reminds him of his father. Hope not all recruits agree (or that they don't want to play for their fathers, lol).

 

[BeauBenken]

Sorry ND staff likes him as a D-lineman. Wasn't clear.

Yay! I'm glad I wasn't crazy when I looked at the kid and thought he could play DE...

 

[irishff1014]

Yay! I'm glad I wasn't crazy when I looked at the kid and thought he could play DE...

but if he doesn't want to play end he says bye bye

 

[OCIrish]

but if he doesn't want to play end he says bye bye

His decision, staff can't help that.

 

[ChiRish]

I hate to say it but I have to give Hoke and his staff a lot of credit. Hoke seems to be a great recruiter. E.J. Levenberry spoke glowingly about him as a guy who reminds him of his father. Hope not all recruits agree (or that they don't want to play for their fathers, lol).

Yeah, I agree. It just hates me hate Michigan more to know they made a good hire, well at least for sure on the recruiting front. We'll see how they do this season on the field.

 

[IrishLax]

Guess what? BK & Co. are good recruiters too and they don't put the screws on kids like Hoke. Hoke already had that backfire once with Armani Reeves... pushed him real hard to commit and he said "F U" and eventually ended up at their rival. Urban takes a similar tact with his high-pressure approach and it works.. but also fails (see: Davonte Neal). Different strokes to different folks there is no "right way" to recruit.

On Jacob Matuska, it's already been clarified but I want to state again emphatically that we are currently recruiting him as a defensive player.

Anyone saying "Michigan leads" reminds me when I had to call BS on "Michigan leads" for Yuri Wright. Here are the facts of the matter:

1. There was an anecdote on ISD about him wearing a Notre Dame tie to school or something like that... too lazy to relisten to power hour, but go do it if you want to hear it it's in the first 20 minutes somewhere.

2. He (supposedly) prefers to play TE... maybe that hurts us. At the same time, Michigan has already signed a TE... so I'm not sure exactly how that helps them very much either.

3. He already has visited ND for both camp and the USC game... so...

4. ISD mods won't be surprised if he commits this weekend.

And as everyone knows... ISD is conservative in their predictions.

 

[ChiRish]

Guess what? BK & Co. are good recruiters too and they don't put the screws on kids like Hoke. Hoke already had that backfire once with Armani Reeves... pushed him real hard to commit and he said "F U" and eventually ended up at their rival. Urban takes a similar tact with his high-pressure approach and it works.. but also fails (see: Davonte Neal). Different strokes to different folks there is no "right way" to recruit.

On Jacob Matuska, it's already been clarified but I want to state again emphatically that we are currently recruiting him as a defensive player.

Anyone saying "Michigan leads" reminds me when I had to call BS on "Michigan leads" for Yuri Wright. Here are the facts of the matter:

1. There was an anecdote on ISD about him wearing a Notre Dame tie to school or something like that... too lazy to relisten to power hour, but go do it if you want to hear it it's in the first 20 minutes somewhere.

2. He (supposedly) prefers to play TE... maybe that hurts us. At the same time, Michigan has already signed a TE... so I'm not sure exactly how that helps them very much either.

3. He already has visited ND for both camp and the USC game... so...

4. This is a quote I'm going to share from ISD (mods, please delete if it's not OK to share two sentences verbatim):


And as everyone knows... ISD is conservative in their predictions.

Yeah I agree with you, I was just saying that regardless of how much I may dislike Michigan or whatnot, they've been recruiting remarkably well. That doesn't take anything away from our staff, which I have full confidence in.

Other than that, I agree with everything you said.

 

[Grahambo]

2/28/12

We even have an extra day in February this year. We have a long way to go.

 

[Emcee77]

Guess what? BK & Co. are good recruiters too and they don't put the screws on kids like Hoke. Hoke already had that backfire once with Armani Reeves... pushed him real hard to commit and he said "F U" and eventually ended up at their rival. Urban takes a similar tact with his high-pressure approach and it works.. but also fails (see: Davonte Neal). Different strokes to different folks there is no "right way" to recruit.

On Jacob Matuska, it's already been clarified but I want to state again emphatically that we are currently recruiting him as a defensive player.

Anyone saying "Michigan leads" reminds me when I had to call BS on "Michigan leads" for Yuri Wright. Here are the facts of the matter:

1. There was an anecdote on ISD about him wearing a Notre Dame tie to school or something like that... too lazy to relisten to power hour, but go do it if you want to hear it it's in the first 20 minutes somewhere.

2. He (supposedly) prefers to play TE... maybe that hurts us. At the same time, Michigan has already signed a TE... so I'm not sure exactly how that helps them very much either.

3. He already has visited ND for both camp and the USC game... so...

4. ISD mods won't be surprised if he commits this weekend.

And as everyone knows... ISD is conservative in their predictions.

I wish I could post what Wiltfong actually said because I feel like it didn't warrant this strong a reaction. He did say he was hearing that we may "trail" UM but he immediately followed it up with something about how Matuska grew up an ND fan and there was no reason to doubt that ND could make up the ground when Matuska visited. So Michigan apparently made a great pitch to Matuska that impressed him, but it's true that there is absolutely no reason to think that he is on the verge of committing there or that he won't commit to us this weekend. Maybe that was unclear from the earlier posts on this site.

I will say that I'm never sure any more how much to read into the fact that a kid grows up a fan of one school or another ... it seems to make the difference in some cases but in others it seems to make very little difference if any.

 

[GBdomer]

Michigan is maybe selling him at TE and is probably recruiting him harder. Relax its freaking February.

 

[IrishLax]

I wish I could post what Wiltfong actually said because I feel like it didn't warrant this strong a reaction. He did say he was hearing that we may "trail" UM but he immediately followed it up with something about how Matuska grew up an ND fan and there was no reason to doubt that ND could make up the ground when Matuska visited. So Michigan apparently made a great pitch to Matuska that impressed him, but it's true that there is absolutely no reason to think that he is on the verge of committing there or that he won't commit to us this weekend. Maybe that was unclear from the earlier posts on this site.

I will say that I'm never sure any more how much to read into the fact that a kid grows up a fan of one school or another ... it seems to make the difference in some cases but in others it seems to make very little difference if any.

I read it, I subscribe to 247. I know he wasn't putting them forcibly ahead, and my response more to the Michigan group think than anything else. We (the ND fanbase) did the same type of crap last year with Keith Marshall... I think everyone is guilty of it at times... but I see it more prevalent with Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan boards than anywhere else where it seems everyone is downright convinced that they "lead" for every prospect who has ever shown any interest.

You saw it last year with Stefon Diggs and Yuri Wright... that sh*t really cracked me up. Especially the Stefon Diggs stuff. They were CONVINCED they lead or were seriously in the running based on one little quote about Blake Countess and then Diggs completely blew off a meeting with them when they were in town without even letting them know he wouldn't be there. This is all similar to what's happening here... yeah, Matuska COULD end up at Michigan but there is absolutely no "leader" right now based on current information.

I'm a Wiltfong fan, but in this case he is just exacerbating the Michigan group think by taking impressions from before ND offered and saying things like "make up ground"... that terminology just really applicable to Matuska. The whole paradigm of his recruitment completely changed the moment we offered and we'll know for the first time where things really stand after he visits this Saturday.

 

[IrishLax]

Good article on ISD. States that Jacob prefers offense but for the right place he's "willing to do whatever it takes." As mentioned earlier, ND definitely recruiting him for defense and his dad goes so far to say that even though most everyone around him leans towards the Buckeyes, Jacob has always been a ND fan.

So basically... if this visit goes well and he's OK with defense... we should be in very good shape.

 

[Redbar]

Apparently we trail Michigan for his services. Per 247

Maybe we should keep saying how slow and unathletic we think he is. Bang Bang

Pretend you are the kid or his parent previewing the site before you post.

 

[rtrn2glory]

Maybe we should keep saying how slow and unathletic we think he is. Bang Bang

Pretend you are the kid or his parent previewing the site before you post.

WAh wah

 

[TerryTate]

WAh wah

What do you mean? Redbar is right. Recruits and their families read this website. Do a google search.

Jacob Matuska Notre Dame

 

[rtrn2glory]

well aware of this fact...i can't imagine a kid choosing a school based on what we post in here.

maybe im wrong, but im pretty confident in this.

regardless, i like the kid as a D lineman, not at TE.

 

[dublinirish]

well aware of this fact...i can't imagine a kid choosing a school based on what we post in here.

maybe im wrong, but im pretty confident in this.

regardless, i like the kid as a D lineman, not at TE.

he is only being recruited by ND as DE/OLB.

 

[rtrn2glory]

he is only being recruited by ND as DE/OLB.

yep and i agree with the evaluation...not that my opinion matters.

 

[NDPhilly]

Matuska kind of reminds me of Hounshell with maybe a little smaller frame.

Chase Hounshell - Yahoo! Sports

 

[Irish Fam]

well aware of this fact...i can't imagine a kid choosing a school based on what we post in here.

maybe im wrong, but im pretty confident in this.

regardless, i like the kid as a D lineman, not at TE.

Maybe you weren't around a few days ago when discussing the bang bang Nd Gang facebook group and the negative impact it had on our recruitment of particular players. Kids read these sites and they absolutely have an impact on their decision.

 

[rtrn2glory]

kid was never interested in ND if that was the case.

 

[NDhoosier]

Maybe you weren't around a few days ago when discussing the bang bang Nd Gang facebook group and the negative impact it had on our recruitment of particular players. Kids read these sites and they absolutely have an impact on their decision.

while I agree people need to watch what they say when talking to the recruits. A recruit shouldnt based something as big as a college decision off of what fans say... If that is the case, I personally dont want them to play for Notre Dame and they need to check their priorities. EVERY fanbase has idiot fans and recruits should know this, the recruit would have never met the person who was on BANG BANG and his college career would have never been affected by that individual.

 

[Irish Fam]

while I agree people need to watch what they say when talking to the recruits. A recruit shouldnt based something as big as a college decision off of what fans say... If that is the case, I personally dont want them to play for Notre Dame and they need to check their priorities. EVERY fanbase has idiot fans and recruits should know this, the recruit would have never met the person who was on BANG BANG and his college career would have never been affected by that individual.

I agree they shouldn't base their college decision off of some idiots on a discussion board, but they do. And if you are against a kid signing with us who is impacted by what is said on a discussion board, then that is your opinion.

But lets get back to Jacob.

He is a big athletic guy who can play a variety of positions at the next level. He is a perfect target for this cycle where we are looking for big skill players.

 

[Emcee77]

update from Wiltfong after speaking with the Matuska family ... Michigan made "a nice impression" on the Matuskas but no mention this time of anyone leading or trailing. Family looking forward to a more in-depth look at ND's campus and football program this weekend and to a formal visit with the coaches. Wiltfong ends by reminding us that Matuska grew up an ND fan.

I'm feeling a commit this weekend ...

 

[Grahambo]

Sounds like after ND talked about moving him to the defense, he slowed down on Michigan. I know he's been a ND fan his whole life but now he is getting to play where he wants.

 

[ChiRish]

update from Wiltfong after speaking with the Matuska family ... Michigan made "a nice impression" on the Matuskas but no mention this time of anyone leading or trailing. Family looking forward to a more in-depth look at ND's campus and football program this weekend and to a formal visit with the coaches. Wiltfong ends by reminding us that Matuska grew up an ND fan.

I'm feeling a commit this weekend ...

I think there's a lot to look at here. What a perfect weekend for him to actually get an in depth look because there won't be a ton of recruits on campus. Once again I'm loving this strategy from the staff. Would love a commit

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

Sapp said he is hearing good things.

We will definitely get our chance this weekend to push to the top.

 

[aubeirish]

That's the kid who wears a ND tie when he meets with college coaches right?