Notre Dame Recruiting Mailbag

August is finally upon us. We are just a few short days until the opening of Notre Dame training camp, as well as the pending decision of top 2023 linebacker target Jaiden Ausberry on Thursday. This is the time of the year where recruiting is supposed to start slowing down, but someone forgot to let Marcus Freeman and the rest of his staff know.

In this week’s recruiting mailbag, we dig into some of the final dominoes that are waiting to fall in the 2023 recruiting class, a little insight into the 2024 class and the overall impact that the staff has had on the program. Sit back and relax, football is almost officially back!

The questions for this week's mailbag were provided by several of our wonderful subscribers on the Irish Breakdown premium message board!

@benjamin-kartje: How would you rate the job that Marcus Freeman has done so far? Which recruiting service does the best job of evaluation? Who is the best recruiter among the assistant coaches?

Without becoming too hyperbolic, it is impossible not to feel ecstatic about the job that Freeman and his staff are doing on the recruiting trail. Obviously that is only one layer of the head coaching job, but it is a huge one on the college level. We also don’t have a full scope understanding for how special this staff can be on game days so that is all we really can evaluate them on right now.

So far they are exceeding all expectations. This staff has a legitimate chance to close on the top class in the 2023 recruiting cycle, which would be a monumental accomplishment following the previous staff who preferred to “shop down a different aisle.”

It pains me to say but ESPN is actually the recruiting service that I agree with most so far for the Notre Dame recruits in the 2023 recruiting class. They are pretty on par, which is still surprising to me. 247Sports is also not bad in terms of rankings, although players like Drayk Bowen (No. 143), Elijah Paige (No. 237), Jaden Greathouse (No. 238), Adon Shuler (No. 229) and Brenan Vernon (not ranked) are too low for my tastes.

The best recruiter among the assistant coaches is a very tough question. It is a staff of fantastic recruiters. We are just a year removed from Al Washington being named as the top recruiter in the Big Ten while at Ohio State. Harry Hiestand has historically done a tremendous job as a recruiter, and coach of course. Mike Mickens has put together two of the better back today back cornerback hauls in recent years for the Irish. Tommy Rees has also developed a good reputation as a recruiter. In all, the staff is littered with big time recruiters.

I think taking it a different angle of which coach has been the biggest surprise may be more appropriate. In that case, Chansi Stuckey has quickly eliminated question marks over his ability on the trail. It looks like he is going to put together a stellar first class and already has a big win for the 2024 group. After just one year as a college position coach, it has been incredible to see.

@donjeezle: To take this a bit further, how did you view each position coach's recruiting ability when they were hired, and how do you view it now?

I love these types of questions. I think it is extremely important to take a look back, evaluate past thoughts and understand progression, or lack thereof. For the new assistants, there’s some fascinating evolution to consider.

Deland McCullough

McCullough came to Notre Dame with a reputation as a good recruiter but the majority of his impact in that department came at the University of Indiana. Obviously recruiting at this level is a step up from Bloomington. Since landing with the Irish, he has landed a couple talented runners, including 2022 running back Gi’Bran Payne (who was previously committed to Indians and 2023 running back Jayden Limar. Notre Dame is still in the running for ultra talented athlete Jeremiyah Love in the 2023 class as well. If they are able to close on Love, it’s apparent that McCullough is clearly up to caliber.

Chansi Stuckey

This was the biggest wildcard of the hiring cycle for the assistant coaches. It was safe to assume, despite the lack of experience, that Stuckey would have an attention to detail at the wide receiver position that was sorely missing. From the recruiting perspective, you just didn’t know what to expect. It was just not something that he had experience doing. Stuckey has quickly erased that hesitation. He has the chance to put together a truly gap erasing class and has created a bunch of momentum in wide receiver recruiting. Stuckey still needs to show that he can close but potentially getting Ronan Hanafin and Dylan Edwards in this class would be another great sign. From there, the 2024 class is another opportunity to cement his impact in the recruiting department.

Gerad Parker

This is going to remain a little bit of an incomplete grade. As a former offensive coordinator, Parker has had his fair shares of recruiting wins in the past. There wasn’t necessarily a worry as a recruiter. It was more just how dynamic he would end up being. Parker did do a great job to ease Cooper Flanagan’s uneasiness after John McNulty left for Boston College. He also got a nice early victory in the 2024 class with Jack Larsen. While that’s solid, recruiting tight ends at Notre Dame isn’t the most difficult thing. The opportunities to land elite talent has obviously been limited but there isn’t anything to worry about early on.

Harry Hiestand

It’s been business as usual for Hiestand since returning to South Bend in the recruiting end. He has put together a really strong five man group in the 2023. Next step: coaching them up and nobody has any concerns over Hiestand’s ability in that department. He has quieted some of the doubts over his “drive to recruit” on his return.

Al Washington

There may not have been a more hyped recruiter walking in than Al Washington, who was instrumental to Ohio State’s success in that department over the last few seasons. So far he has lived up to that billing. Since coming aboard, Washington has landed three commitments, including 2023 commits Boubacar Traore and Devan Houston, as well as 2024 standout Brandon Davis-Swain. He does have a miss recently when Jason Moore opted for Ohio State but you can’t undersell Washington’s role in keeping Keon Keeley in the class even through a coaching change. Everyone should be excited for defensive line recruiting in 2024 to continue.

Al Golden

Like Parker, this one is an even larger incomplete grade. I would be very surprised if Al Golden isn’t an impact recruiter with his background but we just haven’t heard his name much on that side of the coin. Now as a new coordinator coming in, it’s very possible that Golden has been given the main push to implement his system and nuances defensively. He does have a massive opportunity to land an impact linebacker in Jaiden Ausberry on Thursday. One big layer that can’t be overlooked is solidifying a stellar defensive class that he walked into. So far, the elite plays have remained.

@99problems-but-bk-aint-1: I really like some of the recent 2023 offers (Blake Purchase and Dylan Edwards). Composite rankings aside, how do you think they affect the 2023 class? To me adding Purchase would also make this a generational defensive line class. I think he brings something different than what Jason Moore would have brought, and I view him as bumping up this defensive line class just like Moore would have, albeit differently. Same with Edwards, does he elevate the wide receiver haul in 2023 (assuming Notre Dame can close on Ronan Hanafin) despite the fact that Notre Dame missed on Rodney Gallagher? He seems more similar to Gallagher than Purchase is to Moore, but still different in his own right and adds a missing element to the wide receiver class.

In Dylan Edwards’ case, it gives Notre Dame the chance to get back to their previous strategy: get to five wide receivers in the 2023 class while adding a dynamic element to the slot. The key is still Ronan Hanafin, who offers just an absurd amount of upside to the position. If Notre Dame is able to solidify that five man class then it is a gap closing class. I was incredibly high on Rodney Gallagher, and still am. He is a potential dynamic slot receiver with high volume ability. Edwards may not be quite the high volume player as him but he does bring more game breaking ability. It may be more of a niche fit but that niche is incredibly valuable.

As for Blake Purchase, I like him. He would absolutely be a take for me if he wanted to come to Notre Dame. There’s no question that he would be a much different approach than adding Moore stylistically. He would obviously fit more into the Vyper role, comparative to Moore fitting as a big end with some inside potential. It would give Notre Dame a little bit more outside track potential but it would not be the same caliber of success for me. Moore is an incredible talent and will be a very good player for the Ohio State. I still think this is bordering on a historic class but it would be at that level with Moore without question.

@bplence1189: If Notre Dame landed both prospects, which would you rather see at running back and which player would be in the slot between Dylan Edwards & Jeremiyah Love? Hoping Notre Dame can land both EXPLOSIVE athletes.

Edwards would be my slot wide receiver without question if both players end up a part of the class for Notre Dame. At a hair over 5-8 and 155 pounds, Edwards has a frame that I don’t envision getting much over 175 pounds. Obviously the upside as a pure running back is a bit limited with that fact. Also his long speed is his biggest asset so I also don’t want to overload his frame and compromise his athleticism.

At 6-1 and 195 pounds, Jeremiyah Love has the profile that should project incredibly well at running back. Love has been on record that he would be willing to play either wide receiver or defense on the next level but I still believe that his best upside is in the backfield. The Missouri star has a frame that should carry 215 plus pounds with ease.

@bplence1189: Do you see both Caleb Herring and Blake Purchase projecting to Vyper in college or will they grow into a different position in your opinion? Where do you prefer each defensive lineman?

I believe their initial positions would definitely be Vyper. I wouldn’t be shocked if some members of the staff would be curious of Purchase’s potential fit at rover with his experience and comfort working in space.

Ultimately he has so much natural ability as a pass rusher, including flexibility and explosiveness. That alone offers the biggest upside as a Vyper, varying between a three point stance and a standup rusher.

Caleb Herring is a little more interesting of a fit. He is used basically as a 3-4 outside linebacker for his high school but due to facing so many spread offenses, he actually spends more time working in space than I would like. At 6-6 and 220 pounds, Herring has the ideal projection as a Vyper early on. He is also a really exceptional run stopper with surprising play strength.

Herring has the type of frame that I believe could become big enough to eventually develop into a big end down the line. Either way, he is a high upside edge who has not even begun to tap into his overall potential.

@villanovairishfan: Any word on Ronan Hanafin?

Ronan Hanafin has seen everything that he needed to see from Notre Dame and Clemson, and heard every pitch for what makes each school the best fit potentially for the talented pass catcher. We put a little intel on him on Sunday and to make it as easy as possible, we still like where Notre Dame is in the recruitment. Clemson has made it a two horse race but the Irish have a chance to close it out down the stretch.

@burgere23: What is Notre Dame’s biggest need for 2024 and will they go after any Estime sized running backs?

The biggest needs for Notre Dame in the 2024 recruiting are continuing to restock the wide receiver position, adding talent to the defensive backfield and getting the right combination for a potentially smaller defensive line group. From an overall larger scope perspective, the Notre Dame staff has to continue to maintain that momentum on the recruiting side of things.

Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna Prep running back Davion Gause is one of the bigger running backs on the board for Notre Dame. He is not quite the unit that Estime is but there obviously is still a lot of room to grow. The biggest running back on the board in general is McKinney (Texas) High School star Bryan Jackson, who is listed around 250 pounds. Jackson is a load of a runner who current Notre Dame safety Peyton Bowen has been on record saying just how difficult he is getting to the ground.

@quickslant46: It seems like there aren’t a lot of 2024 offensive line offers. Is this just a down year for 2024 lineman?

It is an interesting question to really dig into. On the surface, it does not seem like a great year for offensive lineman in the 2024 recruiting class. That, of course, needs some context. We are talking about a bunch of recruits who haven’t even played their junior year yet. That could change very quickly. For now, that is what it appears.

There is also the possibility that it may be a somewhat smaller offensive line class compared to the 2023 cycle. I could see Notre Dame taking three to four offensive lineman in the class and being good with it. Harry Hiestand also has a history of keeping smaller boards, especially early on, so this may be more of a testament to his process.

So far the Notre Dame staff has identified Peter Jones, Guerby Lambert, Josiah Thompson and Kyle Altuner. I would expect that number to expand over the next few months.

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