Class Impact: Breaking Down Devan Houston Committing To Notre Dame

Notre Dame landed a commitment today from Hagerstown (Md.) St. James School defensive tackle Devan Houstan. It was a huge pickup for Notre Dame, who made Houstan a priority for months. Landing the 6-5, 270-pound defender adds to Notre Dame's top ranked recruiting class.

Let's take a look at how the commitment of Houstan impacts the Notre Dame 2023 recruiting class and the Fighting Irish depth chart.

NOTRE DAME CLASS IMPACT

Houstan is the 12th player to commit to Notre Dame in the 2023 class. He is the eighth defensive player and fourth defensive lineman to pick the Fighting Irish. Houstan is a consensus four-star recruit, and right now all 12 of Notre Dame's commits in the class are either four or five-star players according to Rivals and the 247Sports composite rankings. All four defensive line commits are ranked in the Top 200 on the 247Sports composite rankings.

Coming into this class Notre Dame didn't necessarily have a need for numbers along the defensive line, but there was clearly a need to add more impact players and more length to the front. This was especially true for players that project to the interior, and that need arose even more when Aidan Keanaaina tore his ACL in the spring.

Notre Dame's future at the nose guard position is especially concerning. Both have redshirt seasons left, but Howard Cross III and Jacob Lacey are both going into their senior seasons. Notre Dame has quality young players like Gabriel Rubio and Jason Onye, but there is no doubt the Irish defense needed another influx of high-level interior talent.

Houstan gives the defense exactly what it needed. He looks bigger than his listed weight of 270 pounds, and he has the frame to keep adding good weight. He'll be easily over 290 pounds early in his career, and Houstan has very good length for a nose tackle. Houstan isn't a gap filler either, and he brings playmaking skills to the interior, which is also something the Notre Dame interior needs more of.

NOTRE DAME FIT

Houstan fits into both interior defensive line positions in the Notre Dame defense. He has the athletic talents to play three-technique, but it's the nose guard position that Houstan fits best. Notre Dame wants a nose guard that can not only hold up and eat up space, but they want one that can also penetrate and be disruptive, and that is what Houstan can do.

Houstan is tall and has above-average length for an edge player, which is where he mostly plays in high school, but his length projects even better inside. At times he'll lift up at the snap, but more often than not he keeps his pads low and flies off the ball. Houstan has powerful and quick hands, and his block destruction potential is outstanding. He has a good feel for how to use his hands already, and Houstan shows a good array of pass rush moves both inside and outside.

You can see Houstan's hand quickness and power on defense, but it really flashes when he's playing offensive line. On that side of the ball he uses his hands to strike and his punch is excellent. Houstan is a physical defender that plays with a mean streak. With some body reshaping and time in a college weight room he projects to be a big, thick, powerful interior player that can shut down the run.

Athletically, Houstan shows an impressive burst off the line, especially when he keeps his pads down. He's a nimble athlete for his size, which allows him to make double moves with relative ease. This allows him to quickly shoot gaps and execute counter moves. When this is combined with his quick hands and natural power it makes Houstan a highly disruptive player up the middle, evidenced by his 15.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks in just eight games last season.

Right now he's an even better pass rusher than a run defender, but with continued enhancement from a technical and consistency standpoint I see Houstan developing into an impact run defender at the next level, one of making plays in the backfield.

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Irish Breakdown Content

Notre Dame 2022 Roster
Notre Dame 2022 Schedule

Notre Dame 2023 Class Big Board
Notre Dame 2023 Commits Board - Offense
Notre Dame 2023 Commits Board - Defense

Notre Dame 2023 Scholarship Offers
Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers

Ranking The 2022 Signees - Offense
Ranking The 2022 Signees - Defense

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