Notre Dame Signs DE Will Schweitzer
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have signed defensive end Will Schweitzer
WILL SCHWEITZER PROFILE
Hometown: Los Gatos, Calif.
High School: Los Gatos
Height: 6-4
Weight: 215
IB Grade: 3.5 (Top 400 caliber player)
Upside Grade: 4.0
Offers: Notre Dame, Nebraska, TCU, Utah, Virginia Tech, Arkansas, Michigan State, California, Duke, Arizona State, Colorado, Kansas State, Washington State, Syracuse, Arizona, Kansas, Oregon State, Boise State
Recruited By: Mike Elston
ESPN: 3-star
Rivals: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Composite: 3-star - No. 582 overall
FILM ANALYSIS
Anyone that has followed me over the years knows I absolutely love versatile players, and Schweitzer is a versatile athlete. On film he makes plays off the edge, from an inside backer spot, against the run, as a pass rusher and in coverage. As an inside linebacker, Schweitzer shows good downhill quickness, he's nimble for a player his size and he makes clean reads. His footwork in coverage is solid and he shows good in-the-box range. He's not someone who is going to dominate running to the sideline, but in the box he can be an effective linebacker.
Where Schweitzer really stands out is as an edge player. He shows an impressive first-step (burst) off the line. Schweitzer gets off the line in a hurry and he quickly eats up the gap between himself and the tackles he faces. He will need to fill out his frame and add a lot of strength to stick on the edge, but that is where his game is ideally suited. He shows strong hands, and the natural pop is there, but he must fill out, and he looks to have the frame to do that.
Schweitzer's range and experience in coverage makes him a great fit for the weakside position. He can run with tight ends and backs to the sideline, and he can run with tight ends up the field, something you don't often find with an edge player with his length.
There's a lot of projection to this pick up for Notre Dame, but there's a lot of impressive tools to work with for strength coach Matt Balis and defensive line coach Mike Elston. I like Schweitzer's frame and athleticism, he's a really smart player and makes a lot of plays. The only question is can he fill out enough to play on the edge and can he continue to enhance his pass rushing moves. If he does, he'll have a chance down the road to be a productive player in the Irish defense.
JOHN GARCIA, SI ALL-AMERICAN ON SCHWEITZER
"Another multi-position threat headed to Notre Dame, Schweitzer lines up at linebacker and tight end at the prep level, combining for pass rusher upside when projecting forward. He'll fill out his 6-foot-4 frame in no time, yet his instincts as a player in space will allow him to line up at multiple spots within a front seven. High level awareness, great change of direction, plus leverage and closing speed will put pressure on edge blockers and lend itself to stunts and counters down the line."
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