Notre Dame Recruiting: 2020 Defense Big Board

Breaking down and ranking the defensive players in the Notre Dame 2020 recruiting class

Notre Dame landed a defensive class that right now has seven signees, although more could be added in the near future. Four were defensive linemen and three were secondary players. The Irish staff chose to pass on linebacker in the class.  

Here's a breakdown of Notre Dame's defensive signees:

RYLIE MILLS, DEFENSIVE LINE

6-5, 270 — Lake Forest, Ill. / Lake Forest

IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 150 nationally)
Upside: 5.0

Composite: 4-star / No. 164 nationally / No. 14 SDE
247Sports: 4-star / No. 283 nationally / No. 14 SDE
Rivals: 4-star / No. 161 nationally / No. 9 SDE
ESPN: 4-star / No. 139 nationally / No. 14 SDE

Senior Highlights

Analysis: Notre Dame made Mills a top priority back when he was a sophomore, and line coach Mike Elston had to beat out Ohio Stat and Wisconsin to land him. Mills is a versatile defender that could play inside or outside in the Irish defense, and the diversity only adds to his value as a prospect. Mills brings a size/power/athleticism combination that Notre Dame wants more of in its defense.

Mills has a thick, athletic frame that should allow him to easily get to at least 290 pounds, if not more. Just as important, Mills has long arms and a powerful lower body, a combination that allows him to lock out blockers and get a push into the backfield. He does a great job keeping his pads low and shooting his hands into blockers, and when he does that he gets tremendous movement. Elston has done well developing players with long arms like Mills, so I expect this to become a tremendous asset for the talented big man.

What makes Mills such a top prospect is the athletic traits he combines with his size and power. Mills shows an excellent burst at the snap, showing the ability to consistently beat offensive linemen off the ball. His athletic skills are even better when working in shorter areas, which is why he projects so well to defensive tackle.

Mills has the power and mass to anchor against the run and the quickness to penetrate and disrupt the backfield. Those traits fit well at both defensive end and defensive tackle in the run game. As a pass rusher, however, Mills’ skills are at their best when he’s inside. His power moves up the middle are already top-notch, and if he learns to better use his hands to shoot gaps and get off blocks Mills has the same pass rush potential that former All-American Jerry Tillery brought to the defense.

JORDAN BOTELHO, DEFENSIVE END

6-3, 230 — Honolulu, Hawai’i / St. Louis

IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 150 nationally)
Upside: 4.5

Composite: 4-star / No. 114 nationally / No. 6 ILB
247Sports: 4-star / No. 43 nationally / No. 4 ILB
Rivals: 4-star / No. 198 nationally / No. 12 ILB
ESPN: 4-star / No. 183 nationally / No. 14 OLB

Senior Highlights

Analysis: Botelho is a unique prospect that has the traits to play on the edge or to line up inside at linebacker. That versatility only adds to his value as a prospect, and it helps ease the decision to not take a linebacker in this class. Should Notre Dame have a need at linebacker down the road, Botelho could easily make the transition.

But Notre Dame recruited Botelho to play on the edge as a drop end, and he fits that position extremely well. He is already a dominant pass rusher as the prep level, and the traits that make him such project well to the drop position at Notre Dame. Botelho has a special motor, and he plays with an edge and intensity that reminds me of another Hawai’i native, Manti Te’o.

Botelho uses his speed and power to dominate with speed rushes, and he has a strong rip move and a quick double move inside. He will need to enhance his repertoire at the next level, but all the tools are there; speed, agility, balance, power, length. As his bag of tricks expands, Botelho’s ability to rush the passer will become even more effective.

Botelho projects to have plenty of strength and size to be effective as a run defender, and his ability to get low and explode into blockers is highly effective when setting the edge. His speed and agility allow him to cover a lot of ground, which aids his ability in coverage as much as it does his ability to rush the passer. Notre Dame has talent already on the roster at the position, but that won’t keep Botelho from making it very hard to keep him off the field next season.

ALEXANDER EHRENSBERGER, DEFENSIVE END

6-7, 240 — Dusseldorf, Germany

IB Grade: 3.5
Upside: 4.5

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Rivals: 3-star
ESPN: 3-star

Senior Highlights

Analysis: If you know defensive line coach Mike Elston at all you completely understand why Notre Dame took a flier on a German prospect that is about as raw and unknown of a prospect as you will ever see the Irish land. Elston loves tools, he loves upside, and I truly believe he feels he can take tools and upside and mold it into an impact player. After watching his lines the last three seasons, can you blame him?

Ehrensberger will have a lot to learn, but this young man has tools that defensive line coaches drool over, and from all accounts he has a tremendous work ethic. At 6-7 with long arms he has exceptional length, but he has a natural ability to bend and stay low. He is listed at 240 pounds, but he has a frame that should allow him to add at least 25-30 pounds while gaining strength and explosiveness. He has a similar physical upside to current Irish end Ade Ogundeji, but Ehrensberger is even bigger than Ogundeji as a prep player.

Athletically, Ehrensberger shows the kind of first step you want in an impact playmaker. He explodes off the ball and has the speed to get around the edge and the quickness to shoot gaps and get immediate penetration. He’ll need to get a lot stronger and learn to use his hands much better, but if he can gain the necessary strength and weight he has the makings of a playmaker at the strong side end position.

Ehrensberger has a natural feel for the game, and once his technique catches up to his raw tools he could be a difference maker, but he will likely need time to get to that level.

AIDAN KEANAAINA, DEFENSIVE TACKLE

6-3, 305 — Denver, Colo. / Mullen

IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 300 nationally)
Upside: 4.5

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Rivals: 4-star
ESPN: 3-star

Analysis: Notre Dame has done quite well in recent seasons by adding athletic, penetrating interior defensive linemen. But the Irish have an undersized group of defensive tackles, so there was a need for a big, wide, physical run stopper that it can plug into the middle of the defense. That is exactly what Keanaaina is, and beating out Ohio State and Alabama for his services was huge for the Irish.

Keanaaina is a power player that does his best work against the run. He has a thick, squatty build and powerful legs. When he stays low and comes off the line well he dominates as a space eater, showing the ability to anchor against double teams and to drive blockers into the backfield in one-on-one situations. Keanaaina has powerful hands and he knows how to use them effectively.

The 6-3, 305-pound nose tackle shows good foot quickness and vertical speed. His lateral speed isn’t as good, but when playing on the inside that isn’t overly detrimental to his ability to make plays. I like how quickly he closes on the football for such a big player, which is why he made so many plays at the prep level, and why he projects to eventually be more than just a plugger in the Irish defense.

Like all young players he’ll need to be more consistent from snap-to-snap, but Keanaaina has all the traits you want in an impact big man: size, a strong lower body, powerful hands, quick feet and the ability to play with leverage. Once he gets into a college weight room you’ll see Keanaaina’s game really take off as he reshapes his body. That will also make him an even more disruptive player.

LANDEN BARTLESON, CORNERBACK

6-0, 185 — Danville, Ky. / Boyle County

IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 300 nationally)
Upside: 4.5

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Rivals: 3-star
ESPN: 3-star

Junior Highlights

Analysis: When I evaluate Bartleson I get a lot of the same vibes I did when evaluating Troy Pride Jr. back in his high school days. Pride began his career as a track athlete learning to play football and eventually developed into a very good college cornerback. Bartleson has gone through similar development, but Bartleson is even more advanced from a technique standpoint than Pride was as a senior.

Bartleson doesn’t have the truly elite speed that Pride brought to the game, but he is one of the faster players in this class. In fact, his track times as a junior were better than Top 100 cornerback Clark Phillips. Bartleson is much longer than Phillips, and that combination of speed and length is a big reason why the Irish staff pushed for Bartleson over Phillips even when Notre Dame was considered a strong contender for the highly ranked cover man.

Bartleson is a fluid athlete with smooth hips and top-level agility. The Boyle County standout is explosive and shows suddenness as a runner, and those traits have always been present when he played running back. As a senior, however, those traits showed up even more on defense thanks to improved technique. Bartleson’s pedal was much improved, which allowed him to quickly plant and drive on the ball and allowed him to make clean and fast transitions when covering down the field.

There is still plenty of technique improvement needed, and Bartleson must also get better as a tackler, but from a pure tools standpoint he’s one of the top players in the class. He won’t excite fans who put an emphasis on national recruiting rankings, but on my board he’s a Top 300 player right now and a Top 100 caliber player based on upside.

CLARENCE LEWIS, CORNERBACK

6-0, 180 — Middletown, N.J. / Mater Dei

IB Grade: 3.5 (Top 400 nationally)
Upside: 4.0

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Rivals: 3-star
ESPN: 3-star

Junior Highlights

Analysis: Like Kevin Bauman on offense, there just isn’t a lot of film available on Lewis. I have yet to see a full game of him as a senior, and the lack of game film will drop his grade a bit more than usual. But what I do see on the junior game film and from his highlight clips is a player with the tools that Notre Dame covets in a cornerback.

Lewis has length, quickness, loose hips and he’s physical. Notre Dame also puts a premium on two-way players, and Lewis was an all-state wide receiver for Mater Dei. The ball skills and length that make him a standout high school wide receiver project incredibly well at cornerback. Listed around 6-0, Lewis has better length than your typical 6-0 defender. That length makes him a much harder target to throw around, and it gives him the ability to recover a bit easier than a shorter defender.

Once Lewis starts focusing just on defense his technique will make much-needed improvements. One that happens his game should take off, and Lewis should start to tap into his upside rather quickly. He’s a savvy football player that has a knack for making plays on both sides of the ball. A lot of the things he does well on defense he does on just natural ability and instincts, so as the technical part of his game improves you’ll see him make even more plays.

Lewis must fill out his frame and get stronger, but he’s a willing tackler and he’s physical with the ball in his hands on offense. He high points the ball effectively as a wide receiver and he gets off the ground quickly, which should combine with his length to make him a good downfield ball defender at the next level.

RAMON HENDERSON, CB

6-2, 185 — Bakersfield, Calif. / Liberty

IB Grade: 3.5 (Top 400 nationally)
Upside: 4.5

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 4-star / No. 266 nationally / No. 11 ATH
Rivals: 3-star
ESPN: 3-star

Senior Highlights

Analysis: When Notre Dame first offered and made a push for Ramon Henderson I was opposed to it. Opposed might be too kind of a word, I was adamant the staff was making a mistake passing on other players for Henderson. After breaking down senior film of Henderson it’s easy to see why the staff felt the opposite of how I did.

Henderson has always been a top-flight track athlete, with a personal best of 10.59 in the 100-meter dash and 21.67 in the 200-meter dash. Consider that Notre Dame sophomore speedster Braden Lenzy had a personal best of 10.82 in the 100-meters in high school. Henderson’s junior film did not show that kind of speed, and Henderson often looked out of place in pads, especially on defense. His senior film showed a completely different player, with Henderson looking far more comfortable as a football player on both sides of the ball.

As his technique improved you could see Henderson open and run with ease, and that kind of clean transition ability is not something you often see in such a long athlete. Combine that with high-end speed and elite length and Henderson has the tools to develop into a top cover player down the road.

There is work to be done from a technical standpoint, and that is what drags his grade down right now. I don’t see the consistent ball skills of a more experienced player, and Henderson will need to get a lot stronger and improve his tackling quite a bit. But when you have a player that runs like this, moves like this and has the kind of length Henderson is bringing to the table you take him without hesitation.

CALEB OFFORD, DEFENSIVE BACK

6-1, 175 — Southaven, Miss. / Southaven

IB Grade: 3.0
Upside: 3.5

Composite: 3-star
247Sports: 3-star
Rivals: 3-star
ESPN: 3-star

Senior Highlights

Analysis: I get why Notre Dame took a chance on Offord, and I get why the staff was willing to look past the holes in his game. Offord is your prototypical low-floor/high-ceiling defensive back target. My concern, and why he ranks so low on my board, is there is a long gap between where he is now and where he needs to be to contribute at Notre Dame.

But the reasons why the staff took him are obvious, and the first is Offord has truly elite length. The reports I’ve received are Offord checked in with 34-inch arms, which is rare for a defensive back. That’s length you expect from a lineman, not a 6-1, 175-pound corner. For context purposes, Vanderbilt cornerback Joejuan Williams - who is 6-4 and was a 2nd round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft - measured in at the Scouting Combine with 32½-inch arms.

Offord has a strong, athletic body, and the hope for Notre Dame is that he’ll add more strength and size to that long frame. He uses his length effectively when playing man coverage, and when the rest of his press technique improves he should be able to use that length to overcome areas where he isn't as strong.

Right now Offord is all about projection as both a corner and safety prospect. His technique leaves a lot to be desired, and it often gets him in trouble by creating slow transitions and by putting him out of place when he needs to plant and drive. That lack of efficiency from a footwork standpoint makes him look slow. On the snaps where he keeps a good base and shows clean technique you see a player with good speed and change of direction skills.

GRADE KEY

5.0 - Elite player
4.5 - All-American caliber player
4.0 - Multi-year starter
3.5 - Key role player
3.0 - Backup

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