Notre Dame Signs Offensive Lineman Ashton Craig
Notre Dame has signed 2022 Indiana offensive lineman Ashton Craig.
ASHTON CRAIG PROFILE
Hometown: Lawrenceburg, Ind.
High School: Lawrenceburg
Height: 6-5
Weight: 275
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 250 caliber prospect)
Upside Grade: 4.5
Offers: Notre Dame, Michigan, Florida State, Nebraska, Baylor, Boston College, Cincinnati, Iowa, Purdue, Iowa State, Wake Forest, Indiana, Duke, Northwestern, Vanderbilt
Recruited By: Jeff Quinn
Player Comp: Zack Martin, Notre Dame
RECRUITING RANKINGS
On3: 4-star - No. 25 interior lineman
247Sports: 4-star - No. 27 offensive tackle
Rivals: 3-star - No. 36 guard
ESPN: 3-star - No. 47 offensive tackle
Consensus: 3-star - No. 509 overall - No. 39 offensive tackle
FILM ANALYSIS
Craig made a huge jump as a senior, and it made the line class as a whole much better. His grade jumped up to the four-star range, and his upside also saw a jump up. I was pleasantly surprised with how good he was as a senior.
Although recruited as an interior player, there is no doubt that Craig has the length and athleticism to play on the edge, but he has the demeanor and physicality to thrive inside. Craig gets out of his stance in pass protection better than any of the linemen Notre Dame signed in this class. He keeps a good base, he anchors well and his lateral quickness is really impressive.
Craig is still on the thin side but he is a really strong and physical young blocker. If he can fill out his frame and get anywhere close to 300 pounds (or more) he'll become a force in the run game in college. Craig has long arms and fast hands, but he also packs quite the punch with his hands.
He dominates in the run game in high school and plays with great pad level. He finishes at a high level and does a great job driving his feet through contact. Moving forward, however, he needs to fill out his frame and add good weight. He's a bit thin right now and his strength allows him to dominate at the prep level, but he'll need to build up his lower body in order to hold up in college.
NOTRE DAME FIT
Craig was recruited to play center for Notre Dame, but he could play at all three inside positions and I do like his ability at tackle. His pass protection fits the Irish offense well inside and outside. His athleticism and run game ability fits very well into Notre Dame's zone schemes, and like the rest of the 2022 line class he brings a much more aggressive demeanor than we saw from the line this past season.
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