Recruiting: Notre Dame and Elite 2022 RB Share Strong Mutual Interest
Notre Dame is still in the early stages of putting together its 2021 class, but that hasn’t kept the staff from working on top players from the 2022 class.
One of those early targets is Highlands Ranch (Colo.) Valor Christian running back Gavin Sawchuk. The 5-11, 175-pound athlete is already one of the nation’s top offensive players. He’s ranked as the No. 39 player in the country according to 247Sports after rushing for 1,786 yards and 23 touchdowns as a sophomore.
Schools from all over the country are after Sawchuk, including Notre Dame. He spoke with BuffsCountry.com publisher Chase Howell about his recruitment and about the Fighting Irish.
“I’ve always been interested in Notre Dame,” Sawchuk told Howell. “When I was growing up, in my childhood, that was my favorite school. I used to watch their games all the time and had a whole bunch of Notre Dame gear.
“I’m definitely interested in them,” he continued. “The spring of my freshman year I took a trip up there and I really enjoyed it. It’s a beautiful place. I love talking to Coach (Lance) Taylor about football and life. I really do like that place, it’s really cool.”
Sawchuk is still a sophomore, so he’s not someone that Notre Dame can initiate direct contact with, but that hasn’t kept him from building a bond with the Irish running backs coach.
“I'm trying to build a relationship with Coach Taylor, so I've been calling him recently,” Sawchuk stated. “A little bit more than what I used to, but probably like every other week or so.”
Sawchuk holds one of the few 2022 offers that Notre Dame has handed out. He’s also been offered by Ohio State, Oklahoma, USC, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, Oregon, Washington, Stanford, Utah, Iowa, Nebraska, Mississippi State, Michigan State, Duke, Arizona State, Cal and Colorado.
Despite the early attention, Sawchuk has enjoyed the process.
“It’s been good. It has been a lot of work, but I’m really blessed that I have these opportunities at such an early stage of the process,” Sawchuk said of his early recruitment. “I don’t have to stress about it. When it comes down to making a decision, I won’t have to worry about places I haven’t seen.”
Sawchuk is a dynamic athlete with game-changing speed, which he also shows off on track, having run a personal best 6.78 in the 60-yard dash. The COVID-19 outbreak canceled his outdoor track season, but he was still able to impress on the track.
“I got to do an indoor one which was really fun,” Sawchuk stated. “But outdoor … they decided to postpone it before canceling and that was the week of my first meet. So it does suck but at least it's not football season.”
Sawchuk is further along than most sophomores, not just from an offers standpoint, but from a decision-making standpoint. He already knows what he’s looking for in a school, and he shows impressive maturity for such a young student-athlete.
“Of course I want a good program, a good football program. But the main thing I've been looking for is education,” Sawchuk explained to Howell. “I just want to be able to get a degree that I can carry with me into something for the future, as well as just find a place with a good culture.”
“I'm thinking about going into engineering,” continued the four-star back. “I'm not sure what field yet. It may be mechanical, but I know I want to be an engineer.”
He’s already started narrowing down his list.
“The way I'm going about it is I'm just trying to visit any place I'm interested in and make sure I give them an opportunity to see what they have to offer,” Sawchuk explained. “Make sure I’m not missing out on anything. I’ve also set up a spreadsheet that has categories of stuff that I’m looking for and whether that college meets that requirement or to what degree it meets that requirement.
“So those are the ways I’m looking at the technical side of colleges but it’s also about the feel,” continued Sawchuk. “Being up there, how I feel about the coaching staff. So those are the ways I’ve been limiting it and focusing on certain schools.”
Sawchuk told Howell he plans to get back to Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan and Oregon once the dead period ends. He’ll also make trips to USC, Stanford, Cal, Northwestern and Wisconsin before really narrowing things down.
Expect him to continue to be a priority for Taylor and the Notre Dame coaches.
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