Notre Dame State Of Recruiting: Defensive End Recruiting Is Picking Up

The perception isn't great, but Notre Dame has added some very talented defensive ends in recent seasons

Defensive end recruiting has been a wildly inconsistent affair for Notre Dame for years, but things are starting to trend in a much better direction.

The position got off to a strong start early in Brian Kelly's career, with the Irish landing Stephon Tuitt, Romeo Okwara, Aaron Lynch, Ishaq Williams, Isaac Rochell and Prince Shembo in the first four classes. Andrew Trumbett is the only regular rotation player to sign with Notre Dame in the 2014 class, and the Irish completely struck out at the position in 2015.

Notre Dame's 2016 defensive end class of Khalid Kareem, Julian Okwara, Daelin Hayes and Adetokunbo Ogundeji was brilliant, with all four players eventually getting drafted. From 2017 to 2021, the Irish landed just three players at end that became regulars and just one (Isaiah Foskey) that became a full-time starter. 

Things began to turn around with the 2022 class and the Irish are currently having their best three-year stretch of defensive end recruiting since the 2011-13. cycles.

2022-24 RECRUITING SUCCESS

The 2022 class has seen a lot of movement, but the reality is there is a lot of potential on the defensive end roster from that class. Aiden Gobaira and Tyson Ford were the defensive end signees in the class, but Ford has already moved inside. Linebacker signees Josh Burnham and Junior Tuihalamaka, a pair of Top 100 recruits, have already moved to Vyper.

Tuihalamaka and Burnham are both expected to get a lot of playing time behind Jordan Botelho, another converted linebacker that is now playing end. Gobaira is likely still a year away but he flashed at times this spring.

Notre Dame's 2023 defensive end class is a bit on the raw side, but there is loads of potential in that group, and a lot of length and size. Armel Mukam, Boubacar Traore and Brenan Vernon are all at least 255 pounds and very long. There were some huge misses in the class (Keon Keeley, Jason Moore), but the three edge players Notre Dame landed are very talented.

I am very high on the 2024 class as well. Georgia athlete Cole Mullins is my top ranked defensive player in the class, earning a Top 100 caliber grade. Mullins plays both inside linebacker and edge for Mill Creek, and his size, athleticism, power combination makes him a unique fit for both end positions in the Notre Dame defense. His three-star national ranking is puzzling, because his film and skill set tells a very, very different story.

Texas standout Loghan Thomas is another player that earned high marks on the Irish Breakdown board (4.0-star grade, Top 150 caliber prospect), but his upside is what makes him a big pickup. Thomas is still raw, but his length and explosiveness is very impressive. North Carolina edge Bryce Young is another raw but very high upside pickup.

Notre Dame has not been able to land a lot of highly ranked edge players in the 2023 and 2024 classes, but the God-given ability is very, very good. Think about prospects like Isaiah Foskey, Khalid Kareem, Julian Okwara and Adetokunbo Ogundeji. The rankings won't impress you, but there is loads of length and NFL potential.

That's what Notre Dame has landed in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 class. If the players are developed properly the defensive end position should be absolutely loaded for years to come.

2025 BOARD

Whether or not defensive line coach Al Washington can keep this going in the 2025 class remains to be seen. The list of offers is extremely long, and no other position group has received as many offers as defensive end. 

Notre Dame appears to be very high on Illinois end Christopher Burgess, who has made multiple trips to campus. Burgess is a strong and powerful edge who is still very new to the game of football. Like the big ends in the 2023 class, Burgess is more about upside at this point than he is proven production, but his upside is very, very high. He already looks like a college player physically, and I'm looking forward to seeing his game develop the next two years.

The Irish have also hosted North Carolina end Gus Ritchey on multiple occasions and he's expected back again at the end of the month. Ritchey is a vastly underrated two-way standout, but defensive end is where his game best projects. He's a high-motor edge rusher with impressive power and a really nice first step. His game reminds me quite a bit of Kareem at the same age, although Ritchey is a bit quicker off the ball.

North Carolina standout Bryce Davis, Alabama athlete CJ May, Georgia edge London Merritt, Illinois end Gabe Kaminski and Illinois edge Joseph Reiff are just some of the early names to know, but the list will continue to grow in upcoming months.

TRENDING

The defensive end position has been aided by converted linebackers in recent seasons, something I wouldn't mind seeing continue. But no matter where they started, the reality is Notre Dame has added some very impressive talent at defensive end in recent seasons. 

We'll need to see if Washington can continue that moving forward, but the 2023 and 2024 edge classes do have loads of potential. While much of the focus is on the players he's missed, there's no denying that what Notre Dame has landed is an impressive group of players. 

At some point Washington will need to land some of the more high ceiling players as well, and so far that has been an issue. But if he can coach at a high level there is no doubt he'll be working with a very talented group of players in upcoming seasons.

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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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