Notre Dame Should Be Patient Filling Out Its 2024 Receiver Class

Notre Dame has been outstanding recruiting on the offensive side of the ball over the last year, but the Irish suffered a loss this weekend when wide receiver Isiah Canion de-committed from the class. It was a blow for Notre Dame, and I was very high on Canion's potential, but if there's a position the Irish staff can absorb that kind of loss it's wide receiver.

That's strange to say after the position went through some struggles, but Chansi Stuckey has quickly turned things around in just over a year. Notre Dame will need to replace Canion, but they don't need to rush in an attempt to simply fill the numbers need.

Barring some elite player calling up and wanting to join the class, the best path forward for Notre Dame is to be patient. There are several reasons for this, but the fact is Notre Dame can afford to let the process play out a bit.

DEPTH CHART IS STRONG

Reason number one is that Notre Dame's current depth chart is strong, and it's still young enough that the 2024 roster will be a tough one for a freshman to crack. Notre Dame only has one receiver on the roster that isn't eligible to come back in 2024, and that would be Matt Salerno.

Tobias Merriweather, Jayden Thomas and the current freshman class are all eligible to return in 2025. Veterans like Chris Tyree and Deion Colzie will be off the roster after 2024, so there is still a need to land good numbers in the 2024 and 2025 classes, but the Irish can afford to be a patient.

I'm not advocating that Notre Dame doesn't need another receiver because of the veteran players that return, but I am advocating that if a player in the 2024 class is going to compete for playing time in 2024 and 2025 he'll need to be really good. Taking a solid prospect to fill a number does just that, it fills a number. Notre Dame is in position where it can be patient in order to focus on landing a more high upside and high impact talent.

QUALITY 2023-24 NUMBERS

The talent of the 2023 class that is already on campus and the two remaining commits in the 2024 class also gives Notre Dame the opportunity to be patient to fill out the third member of the group.

Jaden Greathouse, Braylon James and Rico Flores Jr. already went through a spring, and the trio made a very strong impression. Greathouse caught 11 passes in the Blue-Gold Game, Flores was a spring standout and James showed he's one of the most explosive athletes on the offense. They were joined this summer by Kaleb Smith, who is another player that earned a 4.0-star grade on the Irish Breakdown board.

Notre Dame also has commitments in the 2024 class from Cam Williams and Micah Gilbert.

Williams is one of the best receivers in the 2024 class, earning a 4.5-star grade (Top 50 player) on the Irish Breakdown board, and he's a Top 50 recruit according to On3 and Rivals, and is ranked No. 51 by ESPN and No. 52 by 247Sports. Gilbert is ranked as a Top 150 caliber player on the IB board and he's a consensus four-star recruit.

That's six receivers in a two-year stretch, and all of them earned 4.0-star grades on the IB board, three of them earned Top 100 or better player honors, and the group has a diverse skillset.

Simply put, recruiting is still going extremely well at wide receiver, even with the loss of Canion. This reality is another reason why Notre Dame can remain patient and shoot for a top target, or be willing to wait for a late bloomer with a very high ceiling. There's just not reason to rush the next commitment when you look at the current state of things.

WAIT TO SELL THE 2023 OFFENSE

It's very impressive that Stuckey and the offensive staff have been able to recruit as well as they have the last year when you consider the product the Irish have put on the field. Notre Dame's offense hasn't exactly lit the world on fire in recent seasons. This is especially true with its pass offense, and Notre Dame hasn't produced a 1,000-yard receiver since 2019 (Chase Claypool).

There is growing excitement about what the 2023 offense can be thanks to the arrival of former Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman, who is currently 19th all-time in passing yards and 18th all-time in passing touchdowns. The Irish also bring back one of the best tackle tandems in the country, a talented backfield and the group of aforementioned wide receivers.

If Notre Dame is confident in its ability to put a much-improved offensive product on the field in 2023 it serves as yet another reason to be patient filling out the receiver class. The below-average pass game product is one of the reasons Notre Dame faded with big time wide out Ryan Wingo, for example.

Put a strong product on the field this season, win a bunch of games and the Irish will have a chance to flip a talented receiver, land an uncommitted big time player or beat out other suitors for a fast-rising senior this season.

There are plenty of reasons for Notre Dame to show patience, and if the staff is willing to do that the wide receiver class will fill out just fine.

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Irish Breakdown Content

2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule

Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers

2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense

2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense

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