Notre Dame Visit Preview: Important Weekend For Linebacker and Safety Recruiting

For the third straight weekend, Notre Dame is set to host some very important recruits on campus for official visits. It is not going to be a large group, bringing an intimate setting for the staff to have a chance to really move the needle.

This weekend will be big for the program to really develop clarity for how the linebacker and safety boards in 2024 will finish out. Let’s take a look at the three uncommitted targets who are set to visit this weekend.

LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa - Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco

There is no bigger official visitor this weekend than Viliamu-Asa. The 6-2, 225-pound linebacker is one of the premier defenders in America, and sits atop the Notre Dame defensive board along with five-star Justin Scott. With linebacker recruiting having so many questions, the star defender is a really easy answer.

Coming into the visit, Notre Dame is in a battle with USC and Ohio State for Viliamu-Asa. USC is a distant third right now. The battle is really between Notre Dame and Ohio State. This visit could go a long way to decide this final decision.

The California native put together a dynamic junior campaign for the 13-1 St. John Bosco team. He finished the season with 111 total tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks despite missing one game. Viliamu-Asa also recorded an interception, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and a pass breakup.

Viliamu-Asa is considered a four-star recruit by every major recruiting platform. He ranks highest on the Rivals ranking, currently sitting as the No. 35 overall player and No. 3 linebacker in the 2024 recruiting class. 247Sports sees the California star similarly, pegging him as the No. 89 overall player and No. 9 linebacker in the class.

LB Keyshawn Flowers - Severn (Md.) Archbishop Spalding

There isn’t much clarity for what to expect on this visit with Flowers. He’s a very talented linebacker but there is no indication just how high his interest is in Notre Dame. In case things don’t work out with Viliamu-Asa, it will make the visit with Flowers even more important.

Flowers is coming off of a standout junior campaign for Archbishop Spalding. In 12 games, the Maryland native collected 81 total tackles, 11 tackles for loss and five sacks. He also forced two fumbles and recovered two more. He's one of the more explosive linebackers in the country.

If Notre Dame wants to have any chance at all with Flowers moving forward the staff will have to have a tremendous visit with him this weekend.

The 6-2, 215-pound defender has garnered interest from a lot of blue blood programs. Some of his notable offers include the Irish, Alabama, USC, Miami, Oklahoma, Penn State, Michigan State, Maryland, Kentucky, NC State, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Virginia, West Virginia, Wake Forest, Duke and Indiana among others.

S Malcolm Ziglar - Fuquay-Varina (N.C.) HS

The Ziglar visit is another massive opportunity for Notre Dame, who still has several questions to answer at the safety position in 2024. Ziglar was just offered by the Irish staff on May 16th so he hasn’t been on the board for very long. This visit will determine just how much this fit could make sense.

Ziglar brings some of the highest upside on the safety board. Coming into the visit, Notre Dame is chasing several East Coast schools for Ziglar, so there is definitely some ground to make up here. The staff hopes that it can change that following this visit. They also have North Carolina wide receiver commit Micah Gilbert coming into town for his official visit, showing some tactical approach to this visit.

The Fuquay-Varina standout has a very strange ranking profile. Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports all rank him as a middle of the road three-star prospect, but On3 not only has him ranked as a four-star prospect, he's also ranked by the outlet as the nation's No. 79 overall player, the No. 5 safety and No. 2 player in the state of North Carolina.

Ziglar has now earned offers from the Irish, Penn State, North Carolina, South Carolina, Louisville, Duke, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Maryland, West Virginia, Wake Forest and Vanderbilt.

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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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