Notre Dame Makes A Move With Elijah Paige During His Official Visit

Notre Dame made a very strong impression on 2023 offensive tackle Elijah Paige

This weekend marked the first visit to campus for 2023 Phoenix (Ariz.) Pinnacle offensive tackle Elijah Paige, who the team has been working to create a strong relationship with since they offered in February. Leaving the visit, it appears that the Irish staff made a resounding impact on the Arizona star.

“It was great! The energy there is amazing," Paige exclaimed. "They have a beautiful campus. My relationship with Coach (Marcus) Freeman and Coach (Harry) Hiestand really grew over the last few days. It’s a family over there and it’s easy to see that from being around them just this weekend.”

Coach relationships and competitiveness on the recruiting trail have been recurring themes when talking about the Notre Dame program in the 2023 cycle. It appears that Hiestand especially made a huge impact on Paige.

“Talking with the coaches and getting to know them, I’d say that was the biggest highlight of the visit,” Paige said. “Breaking down film with Coach Hiestand was also awesome.”

They spent time not only breaking down film of Paige, but also went in depth on the current team. Hiestand’s prowess as a teacher left a huge impact. Paige was able to see the full scope of being a part of the program. It’s learning potentially from the best in the business - while getting a premier education and playing high level football.

With it being just his first visit on campus, there is also the underlying question of how willing Paige is to go to school so far from home. Roughly 1,800 miles from Phoenix, it isn’t a small trip up to South Bend. That distance, however, appears not to be much of an issue for Paige while making his massive decision.

“Yes, it’s far, but the distance will not factor into my decision at all,” he explained. “I can see myself there for sure.”

Notre Dame went into his visit with a ton of momentum building in this one but the trip may have sent it over the top. The relationship with Paige has been one that has been still a relatively new one, and the Notre Dame efforts will need to continue to close.

One thing is for certain as Paige heads back home, the staff has put themselves in firm position to close this one out.

Paige is currently painfully underrated when it comes to his ranking. He sits as a consensus three star recruit by every major recruiting platform. The 247Sports composite ranking pegs him as the No. 393 overall player and the No. 29 offensive tackle in the 2023 cycle.

His offer list, however, is a lot more impressive. Paige currently holds offers the Irish, USC, Oregon, Penn State, Auburn, Ole Miss, Stanford, Tennessee, Utah, Oregon State, Baylor, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Washington, UCLA, , Missouri, Nebraska, Washington State, Northwestern, Cal, Colorado, Duke, Arizona State, Indiana, Kansas, and Arizona among others.

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