Notre Dame Trending Upward For Elite Offensive Tackle Tyler Booker
After a junior season that culminated in a National Championship victory at IMG Academy, 2022 offensive tackle Tyler Booker is one of the most sought after blockers in the country. Booker, who already checks in at a whopping 6-5 and 315 pounds, was a key lineman for the Ascenders last season, and nearly 30 Power Five programs have already extended scholarship offers to the Connecticut native.
Notre Dame is one of the more recent schools to enter Booker's recruitment after offering him on Feb. 2, and since that time Fighting Irish offensive line coach Jeff Quinn has already worked to sell the four-star blocker on the Notre Dame program.
“What I love about [Notre Dame] is their tradition and their legacy on and off the field,” Booker told Irish Breakdown. “So many doors open for you when you get that Notre Dame degree. On the field, obviously, they are putting out offensive linemen in the top half of the first round every year.
“Their schedule is just second to none,” continued Booker. “They play top teams in all conferences. I feel that's one of the benefits to being independent is you get to play top teams in all conferences. You're really in charge of your school's schedule.”
So far, Quinn is the only Notre Dame assistant coach to speak with Booker, but current Fighting Irish quarterback Drew Pyne, who has a pre-existing relationship with the touted IMG lineman, has shared his perspective since heading to South Bend.
“Drew Pyne is another Connecticut guy like me,” Booker added. “I kind of grew up looking up to him because he had a lot of success as another guy coming out of Connecticut. Just being able to talk to him and ask him some questions means a lot.”
Booker mentioned that former Notre Dame captain Robert Hainsey, who also played high school football at IMG, is another Golden Domer that he looks forward to speaking to in the future.
So where does Notre Dame fit into Booker's recruitment as one of his most recent offers? Back on Dec. 31, 2020, Booker released his top 10 as a sign of which schools he was most interested in. Since that time, however, Booker has continued to think more about his future school, and the Fighting Irish are on an upward trajectory.
“I'll probably trim my [top group] down when I get to my birthday, sometime in April,” Booker detailed. “I've been thinking about that. I might add some schools that weren't in the top 10. I'm looking to learn more about these schools and seeing which one is going to be the best for me.
“There is definitely a chance that [Notre Dame] cracks my top group and make their way into my top 10,” Booker said of the Irish. “They probably will even make my top group when I cut it down too.”
Once Booker drops his top group in a couple months, the next move will be for the blue chip recruit to announce his commitment, which has a loose timeframe of either June or July. From a larger perspective, Booker is looking to graduate from IMG early so that he can be an early enrollee in college, which means that the next six to 10 months will be pivotal for the coveted prospect.
Sandwiched in the middle of that timeframe will be Booker's senior season, one in which he hopes to help his team repeat as National Champions. In order to make that goal a reality, Booker has focused on refining his diet and becoming “bigger, stronger and faster” for the start of his senior campaign.
Booker ranks as the nation's No. 18 overall prospect and the No. 2 offensive tackle according to ESPN. At the moment, the Fighting Irish already have a pair of four-star offensive linemen committed in the 2022 class (Joey Tanona, Ty Chan), so the addition of Booker would give Notre Dame one of the premier blocking groups in the country.
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