Notre Dame 2024 Class Will Be Defined By Its Success In June
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Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and his staff put together an outstanding recruiting class in 2023, which was his first full class. The Irish staff is off to a quality start in 2024, especially on offense, but there is a lot of work to be done. When the final story is written on the 2024 class, the success the staff has in June will be what defines how good this class ends up being.
Not every must get target is slated to visit this summer, with elite defensive tackle Justin Scott and standout cornerback Kaleb Beasley both scheduled to visit in the fall. But Notre Dame cannot land a truly gap closing, big time class without having great success with the June visitors.
Freeman, Chad Bowden and the Irish assistants have an impressive group of players slated to be on campus in June, and now the key is dominating the visits. I dropped an intel piece on this weekend's visitors on the Champions Lounge premium board, and you can read that HERE.
Let's take a look at where things stand, beginning with the defense. That side of the ball needs the most work finishing out the class.
SAFETY HELP NEEDED
Notre Dame has one commit already in the class after landing Arizona safety Kennedy Urlacher in May. Notre Dame still needs two more safeties in the class, and they need higher level players.
There is a group of about five players that I would consider "A Group" prospects at safety, and four of those prospects will be visiting in June. If Notre Dame wants to land a gap closing safety class it needs to land two players from this group.
Fort Wayne (Ind.) North Side athlete Brauntae Johnson being back on the board is huge for the Irish. Notre Dame has been high on Johnson since he had a dominant performance at last year's Irish Invasion. Both sides have always wanted to make it work, and Johnson has done his part to make himself a legitimate option for Notre Dame.
If Notre Dame can close on Johnson, who is ranked as the No. 56 player in the country by Rivals, it gives the staff a much-needed impact safety in the class.
American Fork (Utah) High School standout Davis Andrews has been a staff favorite for months, but there's a chance he ends up taking a mission before enrolling in college. That would make Andrews a 2026 target, which shakes things up a bit for Notre Dame. Andrews will be on campus from June 6-8, which should end with both sides having some answers about this.
Maryland star Dejuan Lane and New Jersey standout Jaylen McClain are two other "A Group" players. Lane has yet to schedule a visit to Notre Dame and although McClain is visiting the weekend of June 16-18, the Irish are way behind other programs in his recruitment.
The final member of the "A Group" is Cibolo (Texas) Samuel Clemens two-way standout Paul Mencke Jr. The nation's No. 138 overall player according to On3, Mencke has a bit of a higher floor than other safeties in the class. He is a strong Notre Dame fit on and off the field,
If Notre Dame can somehow close on two of the players above it will meet its numbers, talent and versatility needs in the class.
Notre Dame is also hosting Texas athlete Oliver Miles III and California safety Marquis Gallegos. Miles is extremely raw, but he's a dynamic athlete. Gallegos has outstanding film, but his size is my only draw back with him.
LINEBACKER GROUP IS SMALL, BUT TALENTED
Notre Dame already has commitments from Virginia backer Bodie Kahoun and Nebraska athlete Teddy Rezac. It's a high-ceiling duo that can run, but they both are developmental players. The key for Notre Dame is adding an impact talent to finish off the class.
Notre Dame is hosting talented Arkansas linebacker Brian Huff and Alabama linebacker Bradley Shaw in June, but the ultimate success of the linebacker class will be if Notre Dame can land one of two other star linebackers.
Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco standout Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa has been the top linebacker target on Notre Dame's 2024 board for a very long time. He's been on campus twice already, and the third visit will be the key to beating Ohio State and USC. Viliamu-Asa is a must-get player for Notre Dame. Land him and the linebacker class is once again one of the nation's best. Miss him and it could be much tougher to land that kind of class.
I would argue that Salem (Va.) High School athlete Chris Cole is also that type of player. Cole isn't as physically advanced, but his combination of length, speed and playmaking ability is truly outstanding. Notre Dame is going against some big time programs for Cole, but he is also making his third trip to South Bend. He'll be a tougher pull than Viliamu-Asa, but Notre Dame is pushing hard for him as well.
If Notre Dame can somehow close with one of Viliamu-Asa or Cole this linebacker class will be darn good, again.
FIVE-STAR D-LINE FINISH
Notre Dame is likely to add Florida nose tackle Sean Sevillano Jr. to the class, and if the Irish can close on him it would give them a fourth player, and a pure nose. That would allow Notre Dame to meet its needs, and he would join an outstanding defensive end class.
Notre Dame will look to cap the class off with a pair of five-star lineman. Elite defensive tackle Justin Scott is one of those players, but he won't be visiting in June. Five-star defensive end Elijah Rushing of Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe Catholic will be on campus this month.
The Irish were once considered a major player for Rushing, if not his leader. Over time the Irish fell back, but they have made strides in recent weeks. Notre Dame still has a ton of work to do with Rushing, and a great visit is a must if they are going to have any chance of landing him when it's all said and done.
Let's take a look at the offensive board.
OFFENSIVE LINE QUESTIONS
Notre Dame has two quality players already committed with Peter Jones and Anthonie Knapp already on board. I'm a lot higher on Jones than Knapp, but line coach Joe Rudolph is extremely high on the Georgia native.
Notre Dame needed tackles in this class, and right now both Jones and Knapp project more as interior players. That puts Notre Dame in a unique position, because three linemen was the initial numbers need in the class from a big picture standpoint, but it leaves them a tackle short.
If Notre Dame is going to land two tackles in this class, and two high-level tackles, Rudolph will need to pull a royal flush. That means landing both Guerby Lambert and Styles Prescod. Lambert is a big time, Top 100 caliber talent with five-star upside. Prescod is a long, quality athlete that needs a lot of work, but he has a lot of talent.
Prescod would be a quality pickup, but the key to the class is also landing Lambert. Do that and Rudolph's first line class becomes a legitimate success.
MORE OFFENSIVE PLAYMAKERS WANTED
Notre Dame is full at wide receiver and has already landed talented players at running back (Aneyas Williams) and tight end (Jack Larsen). The staff would like to add one more player at both positions, and they have zeroed in on a small number of targets.
The two top running backs on the board will both be on campus in the first week of visits. Notre Dame is high on Texas standout Kedren Young and Oklahoma big man Xavier Robinson. Young will be on campus this weekend and Robinson will be on campus in the middle of next week.
It will be interesting to see if Notre Dame takes the first one that wants to commit, or if they are going to prioritize one player over the other.
There's no question who Notre Dame wants at tight end. That would be Nebraska athlete Carter Nelson, who has arguably the highest ceiling of any tight end in the class. Notre Dame has its work cut out if it is going to land Nelson, but the staff has made him a top priority, making multiple trips out to his high school. If Notre Dame can somehow land Nelson it will be hard for any team to land a better group of pass catchers than the Irish would have.
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Irish Breakdown Content
2023 Scholarship Chart
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Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers
2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense
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