Notre Dame State Of Recruiting: Interior Defensive Recruiting Must Get Better

Notre Dame has struggled to recruit the interior of the defensive line for years, and it must get better

Much like the defensive end position, recruiting the interior of the defensive line has been a wildly inconsistent affair for Notre Dame. It's a vitally important area of a championship defense, and the lack of consistency on the recruiting trail has often fueled the inconsistency of the on-field production.

This has been going on for years, and it is something Marcus Freeman must find a way to address the issue. In the past, Notre Dame has had years where it had great interior classes, like we saw in 2012 when the Irish landed Sheldon Day and Jarron Jones, but then other years - like 2011, 2013, 2016 - the Irish completely struck out at the position, or landed mostly projects with low floors.

Whether it's landing pure interior players, or finding bigger edge players that can move inside, the reality is Notre Dame must continue to upgrade its talent level on the interior, and also develop the position even better than it has.

2022-24 RECRUITING SUCCESS

Notre Dame is starting to show a bit more potential recruiting this position, but there is still plenty of work to be done. After landing Gabriel Rubio and Jason Onye in the 2021 class, the Irish followed that up with just one defensive tackle in the 2022 class (Donovan Hinish), one defensive tackle in the 2023 class (Devan Houstan) and just one in the 2024 class (Sean Sevillano).

Fortunately, former Top 100 recruit Tyson Ford has already grown to the point where he can move inside. There's also a chance that one of the 2023 ends and possibly one of the 2024 ends has the frame to grow into an interior player. There's value to landing bigger ends that can grow into interior players. For one, that increases the chances that Notre Dame can put good athletes on the field, and for two the edge position has been a bit more easy to recruit for Notre Dame relative to the interior positions.

But moving players inside has also been about need due to misses on the recruiting trail. Notre Dame didn't sign just one defensive tackle in the 2022 and 2023 classes, and get a commitment from just one in the 2024 class by design. Even Onye in the 2021 class was originally recruited as an end, which means in each of the last five classes (2020-24) the Irish landed just one player that was primarily recruited to play inside.

Notre Dame missing on Justin Scott in the 2024 class is the kind of miss that has been far too typical over the last decade. In fact, the only high draft pick at defensive tackle at Notre Dame - Jerry Tillery - was actually recruited initially to play the offensive line. 

Those misses are an issue, and the numbers are an issue, but the positive is that the players Notre Dame has landed are talented prospects. Ford, as mentioned, was a Top 100 recruit. 2023 signee Houstan is another four-star prospect that was one of the top players in the Notre Dame defensive class. Hinish is more talented than his brother was, at least from an athleticism standpoint, and Sevillano adds some much needed beef and power.

2025 BOARD

Notre Dame has already landed a 2025 defensive tackle commitment, and that was from Florida big man Davion Dixon. The 6-2, 305-pound defender is an impressive combination of quickness, size and power. His game is still developing, as you would expect of a player who is not yet a junior, but Dixon has a lot of potential and talent.

Recruiting nose type of prospects has been an issue for Notre Dame, and by that I mean the bigger body type of players. Dixon brings exactly the kind of frame and game that Notre Dame wants and needs more of up front. He was a highly productive sophomore, and he's transferring to Miami (Fla.) Palmetto for his junior season.

Notre Dame will need a second interior player in the 2025 class, and who that will be is a major question mark. If position coach Al Washington wants to get fans on his side, landing a top notch interior player to line up beside Dixon is a huge must, along with obviously keeping Dixon in the class. 

Jarquez Carter is another Florida defender that Notre Dame is making a hard push for. Although his recruiting profile isn't going to excite fans, his first step on film and ability to disrupt is very impressive. Beyond him, the defensive tackle board is still a work in progress, and the Irish could once again recruit a third edge player with size that could move inside.

TRENDING

The interior defensive line recruiting is trending in a positive direction from a talent standpoint, but a lot more work is needed. Numbers continue to be an issue on the recruiting trail, and that will be what Washington must fix. The lack of numbers makes for a more narrow margin for error, and the lack of ideal size and length has also been an issue. What happens in the 2025 class will go a long way towards determining if Notre Dame can turn the corner with its DT recruiting.

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