Braylon James Entering Recruiting Crunch Time Ahead Of Notre Dame Visit

Braylon James is winding down his recruitment, and his visit to Notre Dame will be a key part of the decision

It has been a hectic few months for 2023 Del Valle (Texas) wide receiver Braylon James on the recruiting trail, being eyed by several of the top programs in college football. Recently, James updated his top schools, releasing a top nine programs that included Notre Dame, Stanford, Oregon, Texas, Texas A&M, TCU, LSU, Georgia and Ohio State.

The 6-4, 185-pound pass catcher has been diligently narrowing his list as quickly as possible. Decision time is getting closer for James.

“Man, extremely hard but it’s crunch time,” James said. “At the end of the day, you can only pick one school so I had to put something out. I have been able to develop relationships with a lot of coaches so I feel like there were no hard feelings about narrowing things down.”

He has not lost sight of how fortunate his situation is. It has been a surreal experience.

I’m just blessed, super blessed and just extremely excited to even have that opportunity,” James explained.

Since releasing his updated top schools, programs have continued to recruit James hard and turn up the heat. The hectic recruiting environment does not look like it’s ending anytime soon. James let Irish Breakdown in on a few schools that have made big impressions throughout.

“Definitely LSU, they have been picking it up since the visit,” explained James. “They have been showing me a lot of love, a lot of FaceTime calls. Notre Dame has been consistent. Stanford has been consistent ... along with TCU.

“Georgia is another one that has turned up the heat,” James continued. “Now that they have Coach (Bryan) McClendon in there, we have been talking a lot and developing a relationship. Those are pretty much the ones who are standing out amongst the list right now.”

LSU in particular has done an admirable job since Brian Kelly has taken over, and especially recently it seems. They have left James with a lot to think about after his recent visit.

“It was awesome,” said James. “I said this in a previous article but I have a lot of ties to that coaching staff. Coach (Frank) Wilson grew up with some of my family. Coach (Cortez) Hankton, his grandma actually used to ride my uncle’s bus to work everyday.

“The family ties are pretty crazy because my dad is from New Orleans. That’s about 45 minutes from Baton Rouge. It just feels like home every time I’m down there so it’s a really great connection.”

Kelly has apparently taken the best of two worlds with the LSU program, or at least that is what he is trying to sell. James went in depth on Kelly’s mission.

“He just explained what he was trying to do at LSU. He wants to implement the Notre Dame feel, the academic side and character at the school and feels like that was really what was missing with the program to be a national contending program,” he explained “He feels like he can do that at LSU and getting to know him, there’s not reason to think that he can’t do it.”

By all accounts, proximity to home is not going to be a huge sticking point in James’ recruitment. In many ways, he seems hesitant to stay close to home. For the University of Texas, it may just be a little too close in the backyard.

“I think it is a little too close to be honest,” James said with a chuckle. “My sister went to Texas so she was always back and forth. I think it’s tough to fully grow when you’re that close to home.”

The timeline is something that James has been adamant about - citing his expectations for getting it done before the next season. The chaos looks like it may be coming to an end in the near future.

“I definitely want to be committed before the season, locked and loaded and ready to go,” James explained. “Maybe late July-early August, who knows. It’s always possible that someone turns it up and gets back in but definitely want to be committed by the summer.”

“But that can always change. When I know then I’ll know.”

James would be a huge addition for a talented 2023 Notre Dame class that currently lacks a commitment from a wide receiver. He is considered a top 100 national recruit by both Rivals and ESPN, who rank him at No. 79 and No. 67 respectively.

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