Irish Breakdown

Notre Dame Recruiting: What Does Adding Star LB Madden Faraimo Mean for 2025 Class?

Notre Dame pulled in a stud on National Signing Day, right from under USC's nose.

Mason Plummer

Nov 30, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman gestures in the first half against the Southern California Trojans at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Nov 30, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman gestures in the first half against the Southern California Trojans at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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On what was initially anticipated to be a dry signing day with no surprises planned, Notre Dame managed to land a commitment from four-star linebacker Madden Faraimo out of San Juan Capistrano, CA.

Notre Dame and USC were the final two teams in the hunt for Faraimo's pledge and on National Signing Day, Faraimo chose the Fighting Irish after all signs had pointed towards him ending up staying home as a Trojan.

Faraimo was in attendance for Notre Dame's win over USC on November 30, but still did not have his decision made until Signing Day on December 4. Marcus Freeman touched on his conversations with the California linebacker in his press conference today, stating that his recruitment truly came down to the very end.

One would have to imagine that Notre Dame's 49-35 victory over USC in the Coliseum would have had some sway on Faraimo's decision, but we may never know exactly what pushed the Fighting Irish over the line for him.

Faraimo's recruitment is strikingly similar to that of current freshman linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa. KVA committed to Notre Dame much earlier than Faraimo, but was torn in his decision making all the way until signing day.

Viliamu-Asa and Faraimo were friends and high school and have stayed in touch since, with Viliamu-Asa being a leader to his younger counterpart during his numerous visits to South Bend.

As for how Faraimo impacts this 2025 Notre Dame class, he puts a bow on a cycle that brings in a ton of talent in much needed positions.

Linebacker is a current strongsuit for Notre Dame, but you can never have too much talent and there is no doubt that Faraimo took notice of how well KVA has played as a true freshman in Notre Dame's defense, as well as how great of a season the Fighting Irish are having in 2024.

It may be a lazy comparison but Faraimo's game is strikingly similar to Viliamu-Asa. Both are long, rangy linebackers with speed that hit with violence. Neither are afraid of contact and have the football instincts you would expect from a top-notch recruit playing high school football at the top level in California.

All in all, Faraimo's addition means another top-100 talent for the Fighting Irish and continues to establish Notre Dame as one of the premier spots for linebackers to play college football.

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Mason Plummer
MASON PLUMMER

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