Samuel M'Pemba Continues Connecting With Notre Dame, Sets New Official Visit Date

Five-star athlete Samuel M'Pemba continues to connect with Notre Dame, and he changed his visit date

One of the more exciting players on the Notre Dame board in the 2023 class is Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy athlete Samuel M’Pemba, who spent some time Tuesday night answering questions and discussing his life, football journey and more with Irish Players Club and former Notre Dame quarterback Malik Zaire.

Utilizing the Twitter Spaces feature, the 6-4, 230-pound standout spent a large portion of the time answering Zaire’s questions, plus additional questions from the Irish Players Club and fan submitted questions. It was an intriguing discussion that covered an array of topics, including head coach Marcus Freeman and the entire coaching staff.

The talented five-star recruit spoke about his journey to football, which started much later than you would think for a player of his caliber.

“I used to be a soccer player," M'Pemba told the Twitter Spaces chat. "… My family is from West Africa, I grew up a soccer player and started playing football in 7th grade."

He adds his mom needed convincing from his dad before he suited up to play football, a path that will lead him to any Power 5 school of his choosing.

It started on the offensive side of the ball for the versatile athlete, who played receiver and tight end before settling at defensive end in his early years. Since then, M’Pemba spent some time playing both ways, but he's found a home on the defensive side of the ball.

“I’m playing defense from now on, I feel like I have more opportunities to make plays on that side of the ball,” M’Pemba noted.

Growing up and playing his first few years of high school football in St. Louis, M’Pemba decided to transfer to the IMG Academy in the spring before his junior season, a decision he called during the Twitter Spaces a “no brainer.”

He referenced several times during the interview that he had no issue being far from home, transplanting from St. Louis, Missouri to Bradenton, Florida, to be a part of the IMG Academy. 

It is evidence that M'Pemba isn't afraid to go to school away from home, which could be impactful for Notre Dame.

"Destination doesn’t have an effect on me, whatever is the best fit for me, I will go,” noted the five-star athlete.

Gauging Notre Dame Interest

Part of the reason the spaces occurred, outside of getting to know M’Pemba off the field, was gauging the interest he has for Notre Dame, which became very apparent early in the interview. While there is no indication the talented athlete narrowed down his schools just yet, he certainly took the time to express his appreciation for the Notre Dame coaching staff and fans.

In fact, when asked which coaching staff has called him the most or has the hottest trail on him right now, a familiar school topped the list of names.

“Notre Dame, Georgia, Miami (FL), Oregon, Penn State, Missouri, those are for sure the top right now,” the St. Louis native declared before then talking about the schools that show him the most love. “Definitely Notre Dame, they’ve been showing love since I was in St. Louis, Georgia as well showing me a lot of love”

Deeper into the interview, Zaire pitched some coaching staff questions, including Notre Dame adding former Cincinnati Bengals linebackers coach Al Golden as their new defensive coordinator. The do-it-all high school defender spoke highly of learning under an NFL mind such as Golden, who is coming off a Super Bowl appearance.

“At first I didn’t know he was a coach for the Bengals," M'Pemba explained. "I think it’s great because he just came off the Super Bowl, a lot of time you’re looking at NFL tape, so I think it was great to have him as an addition to the staff.”

With Golden coming in as defensive coordinator with experience coaching linebackers, it’s important to note that M’Pemba sees himself as one of those hybrid athletes that can come off the EDGE and rush the passer. When talking about what position he hopes to play at the college level, a recent first round linebacker was name dropped in his response.

“I want to play Outside Linebacker like an EDGE," M'Pemba noted. "I like Micah Parsons because he’s an edge and linebacker type that I want to be … that boy a dog."

M'Pemba was previously slated to visit Notre Dame the weekend of June 17-19, but he and the Irish staff worked together to move that back. As Irish Breakdown reported last week, M'Pemba will now use his official visit to Notre Dame in November on the weekend when the Irish host Clemson.

“I want to see the atmosphere of the game and see the rest of the campus.”

Near the end of the interview, the IMG Academy standout mentioned that he would like to do a hat ceremony for his official commitment, admitting he would like to fake out a few schools with his decision. Zaire pushed a little more on that topic, asking M’Pemba straight up if there were any recruiting hats he liked a little more than the others. His response to that question could give Irish fans a reason to be a bit more optimistic of their chances to land the five-star recruit.

“Yeah I have a couple hats I like right now…[one of the hats] it happens to be green.”

Notre Dame has certainly made it clear they want Samuel M’Pemba part of their program, and will continue to push for the five-star as he continues to weigh his options. One thing M’Pemba mentioned several times was the ‘brotherhood’ feeling he has playing at IMG Academy. It’s something he saw within the Irish coaching staff as well.

“I talked to everybody on the staff, especially on the defensive side of the ball," said the standout defender. "It reminds me of IMG, the relationships they have, the brotherhood … it’s not a lot of partying but going to class, working, getting it done.”

M'Pemba is the kind of dynamic player that a team trying to compete for titles recruits until the end. He's the kind of recruit you make room for if the need arrives. His recruitment isn't close to over, but Notre Dame continues to be in great position.

The five-star athlete has offers from Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Texas, Florida, LSU, USC, Auburn, Oregon, Penn State, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Florida State, Ole Miss, Wisconsin, Washington, Arkansas, Michigan State, Missouri, Virginia Tech, Purdue, TCU, Louisville, Boston College, Mississippi State, Maryland, Indiana, Kansas State, Arizona State, California, Illinois and Vanderbilt.

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