New Commit Philip Riley Is A "Notre Dame Fit"
Living about a half an hour from now Notre Dame commitment Philip Riley, it was easy to drive over to his house and do an interview. What shocked me would be how obvious Notre Dame would be the best fit for the high-profile cornerback recruit.
Some kids fit Notre Dame, others do not. Without question, Riley fits Notre Dame. While the videos below will show his physical talent, the following is a little bit more about Riley as a person and his relationship with the Irish coaching staff.
The first time I met Riley was memorable. When I first pulled up to Riley’s house, I placed the car in park, started to grab my cell phone, and here comes Riley around the side of the house, welcoming me. From the outset, his genuine nature and open mindedness stood out.
We went inside for the interview, and he immediately opened up about his recruitment, and did so with a yes sir, no sir attitude. It was refreshing. No entitlement, no ‘Look at me’ attitude that often happens with today’s athletes.
Within a short timeframe, I knew Riley would not be the typical interview.
He kept discussing how different college coaches, from across the country, would detail their experiences in football and life with him. Riley showed his enthusiasm and passion about being a part of those conversations. Riley truly enjoyed the recruiting process, and his pleasure did not stem from sheer attention.
He liked to learn.
Getting to know people, places, and their experiences probably made Riley’s recruiting process a little bit different than most prospects. For a player that’s lived in Maryland, Ohio, the state of Washington, and twice in Florida, he’s certainly seen his fair share of change. It probably helped Riley relate to coaches from across the country that recruited him.
One of the most wide-spread recruitments in the country, Riley’s offer list includes Notre Dame, Florida State, Miami, Washington, Virginia Tech, Minnesota, USC, Penn State, Texas, Clemson, Oregon, Mississippi State and Duke, just to name a handful. That’s a diverse list of schools, and as he discussed each with me, it was clear that he liked many different programs.
Specific coaches pitched Riley on their respective schools. Why this school would benefit Riley more than the next. It was clear that he enjoyed learning about the schools, but he also seemed to mesh with certain coaches more than others.
Among the coaches Riley discussed, he came back to Notre Dame cornerback coach Mike Mickens multiple times. If I asked questions about Mickens, Riley openly showed he was happy to discuss more details.
This response could be taken many ways, although I tend to believe that Mickens and Riley simply hit it off from the outset. Riley genuinely seemed to like Mickens and it was not only an interest in Notre Dame. I, like most people that follow Notre Dame, did not hold much knowledge of Mickens at the time. He just came to Notre Dame from the University of Cincinnati.
Therefore, when Riley explained how Mickens was recruiting him, with detail, it became clear the Irish would be in serious contention for his signature.
Fast forward to Monday, and Riley was his usual happy self as he prepared for a hard workout. Despite being an hour deep into a defensive back workout, Riley happily greeted me when I walked onto the practice field to watch everyone perform. Same good nature, same positive vibe.
When I asked him if he had spoken to Mickens recently, Riley replied, “We talk almost every day.”
I honestly did not ask another recruiting question. Riley did the rest for me. He randomly mentioned the Notre Dame commitment group chat. Kind of a dead giveaway where he was headed to play college football.
From there, Riley discussed how Notre Dame commitment Blake Fisher and some of the other recruits were getting to know one another. Additionally, unsolicited, he would be meeting with multiple Notre Dame coaches at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, via the Internet. He planned to break the news that he would be committing to Notre Dame. That’s when we decided to do the commitment video after the workout concluded (which you can watch at the top of the article).
Then it was back to work. Like a light switch, Riley was back in drills, full speed.
After the workout and besides the commitment video, Riley discussed how hard Notre Dame went after him, yet did not push him into committing. Several other schools attempted to do that, and it backfired. That’s recruiting.
Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly was continually involved with his recruitment, as was defensive coordinator Clark Lea. Of course, Mickens was the mainstay. He provided the conversation about how Notre Dame’s balance of academics and athletics could benefit Riley long term, and proved to be a key factor in Notre Dame beginning to turn the tide and gaining Riley’s commitment.
Overall, Riley is the type of kid that would do well at Notre Dame even if he did not play any sport. He’s competitive, intelligent, and thoughtful. It’s just ironic to see those traits in a cornerback, a position that’s oftentimes played by players with a very loose and demonstrative attitude. Regardless, Riley is one heck of a cornerback recruit for the Notre Dame coaching staff to lock up.
Here’s a look at some of the videos of Riley I shot on Monday. As well as a podcast defining more about Riley the player and person.
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