Elite Defender Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng Recaps Special Visit To Notre Dame

Star 2025 linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng goes in depth about first trip to Notre Dame

Notre Dame has been working diligently for some time to get elite 2025 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng on campus in South Bend. Whenever that trip did happen, it would be his first to Notre Dame, which obviously some are surprised by considering he is the brother of former Irish star Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.

Over the weekend, the Notre Dame staff hosted their first junior day of the offseason. Owusu-Boateng, who is one of the elite defenders in the 2025 recruiting class, braves the bad weather and made the visit.

“Everything is going well,” Owusu-Boateng told Irish Breakdown. “I’ve been having a great time in South Bend. It’s really been great just meeting all of the coaches and soaking in the atmosphere. It has not disappointed.”

There, of course, was going to be a question about the weather. Not only was snow in the forecast, but it was also a very cold day in South Bend. It didn’t seem to deter the standout linebacker, who spent a lot of time modeling the uniform on the snowy field of Notre Dame Stadium.

“It isn’t a problem,” Owusu-Boateng said about the weather. “I loved the photo shoot in the stadium. Being in that uniform in the snow was pretty incredible. You could just feel the energy.”

Seeing the elite defender sport the same No. 6 jersey that his brother once wore was a pretty special moment for Notre Dame fans. That word “special” was also used frequently by Owusu-Boateng as the visit wound down. By all indications, it exceeded his expectations.

“Notre Dame is a special place,” Owusu-Boateng said. “I didn’t have an expectation that it didn’t hit. I can’t wait to get back here again.

“I could definitely see myself fitting,” he continued. “They are a great program, that’s for sure. You can tell that something special is happening up there.”

In all, the recruits had a chance for that photo shoot, as well as checking out the hockey game later that night. Add in the downtime for the recruits and coaches to get to bond, and you have a successful Junior Day despite less than ideal weather conditions.

This was also a big chance for Owusu-Boateng to get to know the coaches on a deeper level. He was thoroughly impressed by what the Notre Dame coaches are building.

“It was big for me to be able to sit down with the coaches, especially Marcus Freeman,” he said. “I really like what he is building. Coach Freeman is a person that everyone wants to play for. You can tell he loves that program and wants to build something great.”

There appears to be no rush for Owusu-Boateng to make a decision. He still has the desire to make some school visits and make a sound decision, hopefully before his senior year. This is going to be a process, a fight, but Notre Dame is firmly in the race now.

Before this weekend, there was some obvious interest in Notre Dame with his family ties and alignment with what he’s looking for in a program. Until Owusu-Boateng made the trip, however, the fit just wasn’t going to make sense. This first visit offered a realistic chance of pursuing and eventually landing one of the elite defenders in all of high school football.

In eight games with the Ascenders as a junior, Owusu-Boateng led the team with 45 total tackles, while also collecting six tackles for loss and a sack. The 6-2, 210-pound linebacker also recorded a fumble recovery, one pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. He has been a star since he got his first varsity action as a freshman while at DeMatha Catholic in the state of Maryland.

Every major recruiting platform currently has Owusu-Boateng rated as a four-star recruit, including three of the services ranking him as a Top 100 overall player. He ranks highest by Rivals, who has him pegged as the No. 19 overall player and No. 1 linebacker in the 2025 recruiting class.

Owusu-Boateng is being courted by some of the best programs in all of college football. His offer list currently includes the Irish, Georgia, Ohio State, Miami, LSU, Michigan, Florida State, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M, USC, Penn State, Oregon, Auburn, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Louisville, Colorado, UCF, Maryland, Cincinnati, Pitt, Boston College, Stanford, Rutgers and Vanderbilt among others.

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