Notre Dame Commits Discuss Status After Chip Long's Departure
On Wednesday it was reported by FootballScoop.com and confirmed by Irish Maven's Bryan Driskell that Notre Dame offensive coordinator Chip Long would not return to lead the Irish offense in 2020.
Long spearheaded the recruiting efforts for a 2020 and 2021 offensive haul that is among the very best in the nation. With Long now gone there is an immediate question about whether or not the current commits are still locked onto the Irish.
I was able to discuss this with several commits, and here is what we were able to gather from those conversations.
WR Xavier Watts - The talented wide receiver from Nebraska said that an in-home visit with wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander and head coach Brian Kelly helped reaffirm his commitment after some initial concerns. Recruiting coordinator Brian Polian also reached out to Watts to make sure he understood how vital he was to Notre Dame's class and future plans, and that call also had a significant impact on Watts.
Watts told Irish Maven he will sign with Notre Dame on Wednesday, Dec. 18th and still plans to enroll early.
WR Jay Brunelle - Like Watts, Brunelle had his commitment solidified by an in-home visit with Alexander and Kelly. Brunelle noted that Long departing would not affect his decision to sign with Notre Dame. Like Watts, Brunelle plans on enrolling early with the Irish.
TE Kevin Bauman - The talented tight end also received an in-home visit from the head coach and told us that he plans on signing early with Notre Dame. He also reaffirmed that pledge publicly.
OL Michael Carmody - When we spoke with Carmody he had yet to hear that Long would not return to Notre Dame, but he immediately followed up by stating it would not change his plans at all and that he planned on signing with Notre Dame on Dec. 18.
OL Tosh Baker - The ultra-talented offensive tackle informed Tom Loy at 247Sports that he is locked onto Notre Dame and will sign on Dec. 18.
A pair of talented 2021 commits also reaffirmed their pledges to Notre Dame.
OL Blake Fisher - "Coaches come and go, that’s why you can’t commit to a school just for the coaches!! I will still be recruiting to get the best guys to Notre Dame!"
WR Deion Colzie - “I personally like Coach Long, he’s a great coach. I am pretty bummed that he may possibly leave, but I’ll still be committed to Notre Dame regardless.”
Other Notre Dame players have tweeted that they are still set with Notre Dame.
RB Chris Tyree
RB Will Shipley is a five-star running back from the 2021 class, and the talented runner is the top priority at the position for running backs coach Lance Taylor. Shipley had some encouraging words for where Notre Dame stands after Long's departure.
“Chip Long had a great year and is a great offensive coordinator. Notre Dame football is going to continue to be a great program, and they are going to hire or name a new offensive coordinator who is going to be right for the job.”