Notre Dame Set To Host Its First Junior Day Of The Marcus Freeman Era
Notre Dame is set to host its first Junior Day since Marcus Freeman became the program's head coach. The Irish staff is bringing together an impressive list of talented 2023 and 2024 recruits that Notre Dame hopes to add to their football family. There will even be a 2025 recruit on campus today.
There will be three commits on campus, which is always important to have when hosting a Junior Day. Top 100 players and Irish commits Drayk Bowen and Brenan Vernon will be on campus along with four-star running back Sedrick Irvin Jr.
Working off of what the Irish Breakdown staff has verified as visitors, the excitement for fans is going to be over who could join the class in the future.
Along with the “commit watch”, there are a handful of players that the Irish need to make big waves with this weekend, including some top targets and some must gets for the 2023 cycle. This Junior Day could go a long way for Notre Dame to continue their momentum on the trail in Freeman’s first full cycle as the man in charge.
LIST OF VISITORS
RB Sedrick Irvin Jr. (2023) (NOTRE DAME COMMIT)RB/ATH Kaden Feagin (2023)WR Malik Elzy (2023) WR Patrick Clacks (2024 – no offer) OL Sullivan Absher (2023) OL Austin Siereveld (2023) DE Brenan Vernon (2023) (NOTRE DAME COMMIT)DL Devan Houstan (2023) DL Brooks Bahr (2023 – no offer) LB Drayk Bowen (2023) (NOTRE DAME COMMIT) LB Preston Zinter (2023) CB Christian Gray (2023) CB/S Jyaire Hill (2023) ATH Ronan Hanafin (2023) ATH Angelo Stockstill (2024 – no offer)
TOP OL TARGETS WILL BE IN ATTENDANCE
Notre Dame is hosting Liberty Township (Ohio) Lakota East offensive lineman Austin Siereveld, a 6-5, 315-pound lineman that Rivals ranks as the No. 232 overall player in the country. It is also hosting Belmont (N.C.) South Point offensive tackle Sullivan Absher. The 6-7, 285-pound blocker is ranked as the nation's No. 168 overall player according to On3.
Offensive line coach Harry Hiestand returning to the Notre Dame staff was monumental for the future of the offensive line room. There is, however, some chatter about Hiestand’s willingness to get on the recruiting trail for some odd reason. While he has already been on the road, getting his eyes on some talented recruits and making a strong impression with a strong group is an important first step.
COMMIT WATCH
Right now Irish Breakdown doesn't have any players on the firm commit watch this weekend. At this point none of the prospects visiting are coming into the weekend with the intention of committing, but there are a group of players that could change that should they get blown away while on campus.
One of the best players on campus this weekend is St. Louis (Mo.) DeSmet Jesuit cornerback Christian Gray. He fits the bill as a player that isn't expected to commit this weekend, but a great visit could change things a bit.
Gray is the nation's No. 145 overall player on the 247Sports composite rankings. The 5-11, 170-pound corner has long been considered a Notre Dame lean, although that has gotten cloudier over the last few weeks. Junior Day provides an opportunity to get that relationship back on track.
To read the latest concerning his recruitment, and to know more about the program pushing for him check out the update on the Irish Breakdown premium board.
Cambridge (Mass.) Buckingham Browne and Nichols athlete Ronan Hanafin has not gotten the recruiting buzz from a rankings perspective that his talent deserves. Splitting time between wide receiver and safety for his high school, the 6-3, 205-pound athlete is starting to put together a healthy offer list, including the likes of Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State.
He is absolutely a take for Notre Dame, whether it comes on offense or defense. The interest is there on both sides. He told me in an interview this week that he grew up a fan of Notre Dame.
The Notre Dame roster currently lacks numbers at the wide receiver position, which makes it a huge priority in the 2023 class. Chicago (Ill.) Simeon pass catcher Malik Elzy is the only 2023 wide receiver that we know will be on campus. With Elzy’s playmaking upside, on top of the distance relation to Notre Dame, the fit makes a ton of sense.
Elzy, a 6-3, 195-pound pass catcher has very good size, and Notre Dame needs at least one "big" receiver in the class. He is ranked as the nation's No. 192 overall player and the No. 4 player in Illinois according to Rivals.
The No. 3 player in the state of Illinois, and the No. 156 overall player in the country according to Rivals is athlete Kaden Feagin. The 6-3, 220-pound running back/linebacker is being recruited on offense by Notre Dame.
With Sedrick Irvin Jr. already a part of the class, the Irish would be just fine leaving the cycle with one ball carrier. Still, the talent level of Feagin is enticing as a compliment. This one will come down to the Irish and whether they would take his commitment. This will be Feagin’s sixth time visiting campus - so the interest is clearly there.
OTHER TOP TARGETS
While Notre Dame is off to a great start at defensive end in the 2023 cycle, the interior of the defensive line still needs at least one prospect in the class.
Among the team’s biggest targets inside is Hagerstown (Md.) St. James School big man Devan Houstan. Houstan is a bit of a late bloomer who the Irish have high interest in. Despite holding down an edge position for his school, the 6-5, 270-pounder has begun to see a higher volume of snaps inside and has a clean frame that could hold near 300 pounds in the future.
Leaving Junior Day on a good note with Houstan would be a big step for new defensive line coach Al Washington.
Notre Dame is also keeping an eye on Wilmette (Ill.) Loyola Academy defensive lineman Brooks Bahr, a 6-6, 250-pound player with a lot of tools.
Linebacker Preston Zinter - the No. 215 overall player in the country according to Rivals - is making another visit to Notre Dame. This marks the fifth time Zinter has been on campus, which could make him a candidate to be on commit watch, but he doesn't appear to be in any hurry to make a decision.
Notre Dame's secondary board is still shaking out, but a player the staff recently went out and visited is Kankakee (Ill.) High School safety Jyaire Hill. The Irish and Hill are starting to build a connection and it will be interesting to see which direction it goes coming out of this visit.
2024 wide receiver Patrick Clacks and 2024 athlete Angelo Stockstill will also be on campus this weekend.
Be sure to check out the Irish Breakdown message board, the Champions Lounge
Irish Breakdown Content
Notre Dame 2021 Roster
Notre Dame 2021 Schedule
Ranking The 2022 Signees - Offense
Ranking The 2022 Signees - Defense
Notre Dame 2023 Class Big Board
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