Recruiting Comparison: Notre Dame vs Oregon State
Notre Dame and Oregon State were very similar teams in 2023, although the Irish finished one game better. Notre Dame comes into this matchup ranked 16th and the Beavers ranked 19th in the polls, but how they go here from a recruiting standpoint is quite different.
That's what makes this matchup even more intriguing. For Notre Dame, the opt outs will sting, but if you look at it from a purely recruiting standpoint, Notre Dame will put a lot more higher ranked players on the field than it did the last time the team took the field.
Let's take a look at how Notre Dame stacks up against the Beavers from a recruiting standpoint. All rankings are 247Sports composite rankings.
Notre Dame Offense vs Oregon State Defense
Notre Dame will have six new starters on the field from where it ended the 2023 season, and seven new players based on the final depth chart of the regular season. Interestingly, five of the seven new starters were higher ranked recruits coming out of high school, and in multiple cases the new starters were much higher ranked.
At quarterback, Notre Dame went from a 3-star recruit that was ranked No. 767 overall to a 4-star recruit in Steve Angeli that was ranked as the No. 365 overall player. At running back, Notre Dame is going from a 4-star recruit that was ranked No. 242 in the country to Jeremiyah Love, who was a 4-star recruit and the No. 72 overall recruit in the land. While Notre Dame takes a big backfield hit from an experience standpoint, it's a significant jump up from a recruiting rankings standpoint.
At wide receiver, freshman Rico Flores Jr. was ranked as a 4-star recruit and the No. 242 player in the land, while Jaden Greathouse was ranked as a 4-star recruit and the No. 139 overall player in the country. At tight end, Notre Dame is going from a 4-star recruit and the No. 288 overall player to a 4-star recruit in Eli Raridon that was ranked as the No. 173 overall player.
Another huge jump is at left tackle, where Notre Dame went from a 4-star recruit and the No. 400 overall player to a 4-star player in Charles Jagusah that ranked as the No. 61 overall player. Of course, that No. 400 overall player was Joe Alt, who was an elite player in college and earned unanimous All-American honors in 2023.
The biggest jump in the opposite direction is at slot receiver, where Notre Dame went from a 4-star recruit that ranked as the No. 70 player in the country to Jordan Faison, who didn't earn a grade coming out of high school. Faison has clearly already outplayed his ranking.
Another drop is at right tackle, but it's not that big of a drop. Notre Dame is going from a 4-star recruit that ranked No. 55 overall in the country to a 4-star recruit in Tosh Baker that ranked as the No. 100 overall player in the country.
Notre Dame will put nine 4-star recruits on the field against the Beavers, while Oregon State puts just two 4-star recruits on the field on defense. Six of Notre Dame's starters were ranked as Top 200 recruits while the Beavers don't have anyone on its defense that was ranked in the Top 200.
Notre Dame Defense vs Oregon State Offense
Notre Dame will only have two new starters with its base defense when they take on Oregon State, and in both cases the Irish have a much stronger recruiting profile.
Sophomore linebacker Jaylen Sneed is listed as the starter at Rover. He was ranked as a 5-star recruit and the No. 34 overall player. The positions are shuffling around, but he replaces Marist Liufau, who was a 3-star recruit and the No. 457 overall player in the nation.
Notre Dame loses star cornerback Cam Hart, who was ranked as a 3-star recruit and the No. 635 overall player. He'll be replaced by a tandem of Jaden Mickey and Christian Gray, who were both 4-star recruits that ranked No. 217 and No. 103 respectively as high school players.
Notre Dame's recruiting profile on defense looks stronger in this game, as a pair of 3-star recruits are replaced by a 5-star and a 4-star tandem. Of course, recruiting rankings don't dictate or determine on-field success, so there will be plenty of pressures on the Irish defense in this game. Notre Dame will put eight 4-star recruits on the field in the Sun Bowl as well as a 5-star and a pair of 3-stars.
Oregon State will be without several starters on offense, but only one of its starters on offense was a 4-star recruit coming out of high school.
CLASS RANKINGS
Here are the class rankings of the two programs from the last five seasons. (247 Composite Ranking)
NOTRE DAME
2023 - 12
2022 - 7
2021 - 9
2020 - 18
2019 - 14
OREGON STATE
2023 - 49
2022 - 53
2021 - 109
2020 - 53
2019 - 53
Advantage: Notre Dame
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Irish Breakdown Content
2024 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule
Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers
2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense
2024 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2024 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense
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