Notre Dame 2024 Front Seven Commits Have Massive Upside

We are just a couple of weeks away from high school football officially getting up and going. The future of Notre Dame football is set to give Irish fans a glimpse into them talent coming to South Bend shortly.

In the 2024 recruiting class, Notre Dame has several front seven (defensive line and linebacker) commits who boast a lot of upside. Let’s take a look at those recruits, their film currently and areas that could take their games to a higher level this season.

DE Loghan Thomas - Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward

After starting for Paetow High School in the state of Texas, Thomas is making the move up to powerhouse St. Edward as a senior. Thomas is a long and twitched up pass rusher who brings a lot of upside to the table. With his long arms and burst, it allows Thomas to play outside of frame and make plays in space.

Versatility is another big sell or Thomas’ game. From a snap to snap basis, you will see him off the ball, on the edge as a pass rusher, dropping in coverage and everything in between. He projects as the perfect fit as a Vyper in Notre Dame’s system.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

This off-season, Thomas seems to have really filled out his frame. That’s something that was very much needed. Playing at a higher weight class, with the core strength developing with it, was much needed. This should allow Thomas to really add a power element to his game that you see in flashes.

There is also technical refinement that you want to see take a step forward. Thomas wins off the edge strictly as an athlete. Adding moves to the arsenal, as well improving his hand play, will make him that much more difficult to stop.

DE Cole Mullins - Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek

Despite playing for a Georgia powerhouse, Mullins has somewhat gone under the radar from a recruiting perspective. The Senior defender is used in a lot of different ways for Mill Creek, playing everything from defensive end, inside and outside linebacker. That versatility is a big sell. Mullins could do a lot of things for a defense potentially.

From a physicality perspective, Mullins packs in a punch in the run game. He maintains low pads, plays with violence and reckless abandon. Mullins can set a firm edge and routinely resets the line of scrimmage in the defense’s favor.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

Mullins plays with a nice level of linear burst but he isn’t the loosest athlete of all time. His hips are a bit tight, lacking the bend to consistently win around the outside. Showing an increased level of flexibility, or understanding how to soften angles, would go a long way to helping his upside as a pass rusher.

While he does some nice stuff working in pursuit, Mullins playing in increased space is a big question mark. There is some belief that he could occupy a role as a Vyper early on for Notre Dame, which will force him into space at times. Showing glimpses of an impact in that department would ease that projection.

DE Bryce Young - Charlotte (N.C.) Christian

Young has really blossomed this off-season, adding a ton of solid weight and muscle to his long frame. With that added weight, with even more potential for growth, Young has a physical profile that could potentially project either at field end or inside on the next level. That formula is one that Notre Dame has valued tremendously, having players like Young who can be diverse and work various alignments in multiple fronts.

For a player as big as Young, he does move incredibly well. He’s one of those true defensive ends who has slowly been growing into his frame. When you combine that added size to his moment skills, you have a very impressive developmental defensive lineman. That combination is very enticing.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

Seeing how Young carries the weight is going to be something to watch closely this season. Whenever a player puts up a substantial amount of weight, a question will naturally arise whether their frame can handle it. If Young’s frame can, then the developmental upside is even more salivating.

Technically speaking, Young can be all over the place. His hand play is extremely inconsistent, as well as his aiming points. A greater attention to detail on that area will go a long way towards making things a lot easier for the talented defender.

DT Sean Sevillano Jr. - Clearwater (Fla.) Academy International

Sevillano brings a boxy frame, playing with square pads to the line of scrimmage. This make him a very difficult player to move at the line of scrimmage, boasting really nice play strength and natural leverage. That projects very favorably at the nose tackle position.

For a nose, Sevillano does have some surprising quickness. This allows him to be a slippery interior rusher who can split gaps at times. Sevillano should be a versatile nose who can both be a one gap penetrator at times and also hold the point of attack against double teams.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

First step quickness is very inconsistent for Sevillano. That includes the timing, which can be inconsistent, and the explosiveness out of his stance. Improving the first sequence of his rep will allow him to be an even more difficult player to block one-on-one.

From the sounds of it, Sevillano has cut some bad weight off of his frame this off-season. This should increase his flexibility, improving his change of direction abilities. Keeping good weight on his frame should be an absolute area of focus.

LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa - Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco

From a technical perspective, Viliamu-Asa is about as refined of a recruit as you will find. He plays with outstanding control and attention to detail. From that standout, Viliamu-Asa brings a level of refinement that is pretty rare for a player his age.

The California native is also an incredibly smooth and efficient mover. He has very little issue working to the perimeter or in space. Viliamu-Asa checks all of the boxes in terms of requisite athleticism to play either the Mike or Will linebacker position.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

With Viliamu-Asa’s entire sophomore season lost to a knee injury, there are some questions whether he has gotten all of his explosiveness back. On film, he is a smooth mover but not necessarily explosive. If he does take a level up as a senior, there really aren’t many major holes in Viliamu-Asa’s game. He really does check most boxes.

LB Bodie Kahoun - Roanoke (Va.) Patrick Henry

With only five games playing linebacker last season, Kahoun is still new to the position. His athleticism and burst pop off the screen immediately, showing some outstanding closing speed for a player his size. Kahoun has true sideline to sideline speed to make a variety of plays all over the field.

Most of Kahoun’s experience comes at the safety position. That experience provides a lot of upside as a linebacker who can play in space. His combination of size, length and athleticism project very well in coverage on the next level.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

With such little experience at linebacker for Kahoun, he is understandably very raw at the position still. He has good vision on the second level but can be slow to react. That puts him behind early in reps, playing too much in pursuit too often.

As a tackler, Kahoun is still adding core strength to deliver more pop. He is a pretty consistent tackler but he doesn’t often arrive with force. As his frame fills out, so should his power profile.

LB Teddy Rezac - Omaha (Neb.) Westside

Long, lean and fast: Rezac brings an interesting overall athletic profile to the Rover position. He has experience playing out in space and as a traditional safety, showing a lot of comfort with his level of range. This allows Rezac to cover ground quickly and eat up grass. He is a plus athlete at the position.

As a tackler, Rezac brings a long tackle radius. This allows his open field tackling to be an area of strength. Rezac doesn’t miss many tackles, giving him ability as a finisher.

NEXT STEP AS A SENIOR

There is projection that needs to happen physically. Rezac is right around 190 pounds right now, appearing a lot more like a tall safety than Rover. In order to play with a requisite level of power in the box, he will need to add a substantial amount of bulk to his frame.

Rezac also does play a little tall. Playing with more consistent pad level overall would drastically help his power profile. Right now he is much more of a wrap up tackler who lacks core strength to come to balance with force.

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Irish Breakdown Content

2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule

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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