IB Recruiting Notebook: Notre Dame Making Big Moves In 2023

News and notes from the Notre Dame recruiting trail

Notre Dame has been incredibly active in recruiting the 2023 class. Here are news and notes gathered from the recruiting trail over the last week, with an emphasis on the sophomores.

ELITE 2023 CORNER CONTINUES CONNECTING WITH IRISH COACHES

One of the top players on the board for Notre Dame in the 2023 class is Phenix City (Ala.) Glenwood cornerback A.J. Harris, a sophomore recruit who picked up an offer from Notre Dame on Feb. 26. 

Since that time, the Fighting Irish coaches have taken the time to get to know Harris and his family further, and one aspect working in ND's favor is that Harris' father is a big fan of the program. We detailed that in a previous story about Harris, which you can read HERE.

With that feather in the school's cap, Notre Dame recently conducted a virtual visit to help teach Harris more about the program and campus since the dead period is still ongoing. During the visit, Harris mentioned that he had an opportunity to check out the game day atmosphere, the locker room and the weight room while also furthering his connection with cornerbacks coach Mike Mickens.

“My favorite aspect of the visit was honestly just talking to the coaches,” Harris told Irish Breakdown. “They talked me through a game day and how it feels to be in a stadium.”They continue to stress that [I'm a priority] to me every time I get on the phone with them! It seems genuine, and that's why I definitely want to get on campus ASAP.”

On the heels of what was a positive virtual visit with the coaching staff, Harris is enjoying his contact with Notre Dame especially since the school seems to provide a lot of what he is looking for.

“It's more than just football with me and my family,” Harris said. “Academics will definitely go into my decision, so just seeing that the Notre Dame degree means so much, that means a lot to me and my family. The academics definitely stand out to me. Football, Notre Dame is already known for football, so that takes care of itself.”

Harris is hoping to take a handful of visits once the dead period opens up, but Notre Dame has further secured its position on that list after a strong virtual visit on March 10 with the standout defensive back prospect.

TALENTED TIGHT END HIGH ON THE FIGHTING IRISH

According to 247Sports.com, Notre Dame has only offered two tight ends in the 2023 cycle up to this point — St. Louis (Mo.) DeSmet's Mac Markway and Phoenix (Ariz.) Pinnacle's Duce Robinson. Out of those two prospects, the latter picked up his Fighting Irish offer earlier this month while the former landed his Notre Dame scholarship on Feb. 3.

Robinson spoke with Irish Breakdown about his interest in ND for an interview that will be released in the coming days, and Markway also shared his quick thoughts on the program.

“I love Notre Dame,” Markway exclaimed. “Their tradition is top notch, and I love the way they use their tight ends.”

At the moment, Markway is listed at 6-4 and 250 pounds and also checks in as the No. 3 tight end in the country and the No. 100 prospect overall by 247Sports. Both Robinson and Markway are highly coveted tight ends with double-digit offers, and Notre Dame is thoroughly in the mix for the pair. 

POT OF GOLD 

Notre Dame launched a massive social media push in Wednesday, it was called the Pot of Gold. Here's an example that went out to Harris:

Irish Breakdown publisher Bryan Driskell wrote about the significance of this movement, and how important it was for the Irish staff to get a jump start on the 2023 class.

The push was coupled with the staff throwing out a high volume of offers. Here is the list of 2023 prospects that were offered by Notre Dame on Wednesday.

Arch Manning, QB, 6-3, 200, New Orleans (La.) Isidore Newman
Dante Moore, QB, 6-2, 180, Detroit (Mich.) Martin Luther King

Dalton Brooks, RB, 6-1, 175, Shiner (Texas) High School

Jalen Hale, WR, 6-2, 175, Longview (Texas) High School
DeAndre Moore, WR, 5-11, 180, Las Vegas (Nev.) Desert Pines
Jaquaize Pettaway, WR, 5-11, 170, Houston (Texas) Langham Creek
Kykeem Williams, WR, 6-3, 195, Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Stranahan

Victor Burley, DE, 6-4, 255, Warner Robins (Ga.) High School
Avion Carter, DE, 6-4, 240, Amarillo (Texas) Tascosa
Keon Keeley, DE, 6-6, 220, Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep
Samuel M’Pemba, DE, 6-4, 230, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy
Lebbeus Overton, DE, 6-5, 250, Alpharetta (Ga.) Milton
Matayo Uiagalelei, DE, 6-5, 260, Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco
Jayden Wayne, DE, 6-5, 240, Tacoma (Wash.) Lincoln

Troy Ford Jr., DE/LB, 6-2, 240 Savannah (Ga.) Calvary Day

Jayvant Brown, LB, 6-0, 195, Deerfield Beach (Fla.) High School

Jaden Robinson, ROV, 6-2, 210, Lake City (Fla.) Columbia

Daylen Austin, DB, 6-0, 175, Long Beach (Calif.) Poly
Peyton Bowen, DB, 6-1, 185, Denton (Texas) Guyer
Michael Daugherty, DB, 6-1, 180, Loganville (Ga.) Grayson
Daemon Fagan, DB, 6-2, 160, Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) American Heritage
Mikal Harrison-Pilot, DB, 6-0, 185, Temple (Texas) High School
Kayin Lee, DB, 6-0, 165, Ellenwood (Ga.) Cedar Grove
Terrance Love, DB, 6-2, 195, Fairburn (Ga.) Langston Hughes
King Mack, DB, 5-11, 180, Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas
Malik Muhammad, DB, 6-0, 170, Bradenton (Fla.)
Caleb Presley, DB, 6-0, 170, Sammamish (Wash.) Eastside Catholic
Isaac Smith, DB, 6-2, 180, Fulton (Miss.) Itawamba
Jayvon Thomas, DB, 5-11, 170, Dallas (Texas) South Oak Cliff
Javien Toviano, DB, 6-0, 185, Arlington (Texas) Martin
Derek Williams, DB, 6-2, 185, New Iberia (La.) Westgate
Ryan Yaites, DB, 6-1, 175, Denton (Texas) Guyer

To comment below be sure to sign up for a FREE Disqus account, which you can get HERE.

———————

Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content, our premium message board and gets you a FREE subscription to Sports Illustrated! Click on the link below for more

BECOME A MEMBER

Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!

Join the Irish Breakdown community!
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel
Follow me on Twitter: @EricRutterSI
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook

Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter