ISD's Recruiting Week in Review

[irishunclebill]

ISD's ubiquitous Recruiting Week in Review is free and it is not published weekly despite the title. It usually doesn't include anything that is not already common knowledge, but is a decent summary of whatever particular recruiting week it is referencing. Listed below are all of the YTD Recruiting Week's in Review pertaining to the 2012 class.

[irishunclebill]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting?start=35


Recruiting Week In Review
Monday, 21 February 2011 14:50
Joe Bradshaw

Notre Dame’s coaching staff is currently working very hard on 2012 recruiting. While the staff obviously pushed hard and to finish out the class of 2011 successfully, they also got a good jump on the class of 2012 and have issued a significant number of scholarship offers already.

Additionally, the Irish have evaluated or are in the process of evaluating numerous recruits that could receive offers in the not-so-distant future. Last week, Irish Sports Daily spoke to two young men who are being heavily recruited by the Notre Dame staff. And is always the case with the Irish, the coaching staff has cast a large geographic net in seeking young men to wear the Blue and Gold. What have you been missing by not being a member of Irish Sports Daily?

Greg McMullen, DE, 6-4, 255 Archbishop Hoban High School (Akron, Ohio) has yet to receive a Notre Dame scholarship offer, though the Irish are recruiting him very hard. Even though Notre Dame signed one of the best defensive end classes in its history, the staff realizes one class doesn’t build a program and they are continuing to seek the kind of big, rangy defensive ends needed for defensive coordinator Bob Diaco’s defense.

Though McMullen has been receiving considerable recruiting attention, he has yet to really focus on it.

“I’ve been worried about it, but I haven’t been focusing on it too much because right now my own studies and schoolwork have been pretty tough,” said McMullen. “I’ve just been trying to form where I possibly want to go. I want to focus on what I want to go to school for and what college fits me best.”

McMullen is currently considering law, sociology and business. He sees many future opportunities in those fields.

“Those are the three broad categories with a lot of jobs within those fields,” he said. “Right now, I’m looking at those three.”

Three seems to be a magic number for the talented Ohio athlete. He also has three schools on which he is currently focusing on visiting.

“I’m going to Notre Dame Junior Day next weekend,” he informed. “I plan on going to Ohio State’s spring game and Nebraska’s spring game. I have those three things for sure.”

McMullen currently holds offers from Ohio State, Nebraska, Michigan, Cincinnati, Purdue and Michigan State. He is also receiving quite a bit of interest from Alabama, Florida, Oregon and Notre Dame. The Irish could be close to joining that list.

“I haven’t been to Notre Dame, but I’ve heard a lot about it and going to Hoban High School, I feel like I know a lot about the school itself,” said McMullen. “Going out there next weekend should be a good experience for me.”

McMullen commented on why he’s interested in the Irish.

“Just the atmosphere of the school,” he said explaining his interest in Notre Dame. “Obviously it’s a Holy Cross school, so I’ve got a feel for it, but I don’t have the feel for it at the college level; just basically seeing if it’s welcoming and if it’s comfortable enough to fit my taste.

McMullen’s head coach Ralph Orsini is handling much of his recruitment. Orsini told his star player that the Irish have been showing a large amount of interest.

“He said they’ve been talking to him a whole lot and they’re interested in getting us both up there to see the campus, the community and see a basketball game,” explained McMullen. “They’re interested in us.”

While the Midwest represents the Irish’s recruiting base, Notre Dame - more than any other school in the nation - must be able to recruit nationally. One of the places that the Irish’s wide recruiting net has landed is Puyallup, Wash. They recently offered standout offensive tackle Josh Garnett. Garnett a 6-foot-5, 290-pound offensive lineman from Puyallup High School currently holds offers from nearly every program on the West Coast so Notre Dame will face serious competition for Garnett’s signature.

Garnett’s head coach Gary Jeffers talked to Irish Sports Daily’s Christian McCollum about what makes his player so special.

“He’s a big kid, he’s got great feet,” said Jeffers of Garnett. “He’s a phenomenal athlete, he’s a great student. He’s a good human being. I think he’s a pretty special kid.”

Jeffers continued.

“He’s a great pass blocker, he’s a great run blocker. When you’re the biggest guy out there, it’s both a good and bad thing. Certainly he’s bigger than most of the guys he’s playing against, but he gets the most attention as well. He’s often having to fight off double teams and pick up two guys off the edge. I think he has a very unique blend of size and speed and quickness and overall athleticism that allows him to do pretty well.”

Garnett is just as outstanding off the field as he is on the field.

“He’s a very, very, very nice young man,” Jeffers said. “He comes from a good family, he’s a good student. He’s been offered by Stanford and Cal-Berkley, so he’s that kind of kid academically. He’s a hard worker. He’s a very strong kid, works very hard in the weight room.”

Garnett’s father played football at Washington and he has family in Anaheim so his connections to the West Coast are very strong. However, Jeffers doesn’t believe that his star player is a lock to stay out west.

“Because he is such a strong student and academics are so important to him, of all things, I think that could play the strongest role,” Jeffers opined. “Where he feels he’s going to be able to get the best education and create the best opportunities for himself after football and also a place where he has the potential to get in and play quickly.”

Jeffers has been encouraging Garnett to make an early decision so that his star tackle can focus on his senior season. That could bode well for Notre Dame since the Irish have been recruiting him very hard.

“From our team’s perspective, we need him one hundred percent focused and one hundred percent present,” said Jeffers. “The way recruiting is these days, that’s hard to do.”

These two summaries represent just a sample of the Notre Dame football recruiting information available each week on Irish Sports Daily.

[irishunclebill]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting?start=15


Recruiting Week In Review
Monday, 07 March 2011 14:00
Joe Bradshaw

Notre Dame’s first junior day has come and gone and the Irish coaching staff remains hot on the recruiting trail. Though the Irish picked up their first two commitments last week, highly regarded cornerback Tee Shepard and Ohio offensive tackle Taylor Decker, the Notre Dame staff has, if anything, intensified its efforts.

Last week, Irish Sports Daily spoke to two young men who have recently heard from the Irish, one picking up an offer and the other apparently close to one. As usual, Notre Dame is being very aggressive in its efforts in the Midwest while looking for elite prospects around the rest of the nation. What have you been missing by not being a member of Irish Sports Daily?

Jordan Westerkamp, WR, 6-1, 190, Montini High School, Lombard, IL attended Notre Dame’s Junior Day. While he did not come away with a scholarship offer, he did leave campus with a much greater appreciation of Notre Dame, its coaching staff and the school’s history.

“It was awesome,” said Westerkamp of his Notre Dame visit. “It’s just great being at a place like that with so much history. We got to see all the facilities and I got to meet all the coaches so it was pretty cool.”

Though Westerkamp has already received 10 scholarship offers, he has yet to receive one from Notre Dame. However, he has reason to believe that one might be coming soon.

“Basically all the coaches just introduced themselves to everyone, but I got to talk to coach (Chuck) Martin who is my recruiter, and the receiver coach Tony Alford personally,” remembered Westerkamp. “Coach Martin was telling me they had a list of about 200 receivers in the whole nation and they recently cut it down to 15 and he said I’m still on that list of 15 receivers. He just told me to be patient and I could possibly get an offer, hopefully soon.”

Though the Illinois standout enjoyed all aspects of the visit, he was especially inspired by the campus tour.

“The church there is really nice,” said Westerkamp. “It was beautiful and really neat. We got to tour other places also like the Grotto, which was a really great place to see. All of the facilities there are just unbelievable.”

Westerkamp hopes to return to South Bend sometime but at this point doesn’t have anything definite planned.

“I plan to get back up to Notre Dame sometime, but right now I’m still real busy,” he said. “This weekend I’m in Wisconsin on Saturday and Minnesota on Sunday. The weekends have been just crazy.”

Notre Dame must recruit nationally, probably more so than virtually any other major program. In recent years, the Irish have looked to the Pacific Northwest and even Hawaii for impact players and have found a few. Now, they’re looking in the state of Washington at a very talented running back in the class of 2012.

Keivarae Russell, ATH, 6-0, 175, Mariner High School, Everett, WA is more than just an outstanding football player. He is also on the swim team, track team, just got elected class president and plans to get involved in a tutoring program.

“I put a little bit too much on my plate at times,” Russell admitted. “It kind of kills me, I’m not going to lie, but it makes me tougher where later on in life I can overcome adversity.”

Russell continued.

“I’m a busy guy, that’s why when I choose my school, I’m going to see how my teammates are. Are they just doing football? Are they not trying to do anything else? Are they getting 2.1 GPA’s? Are they not trying to work hard? I don’t want that to rub off on me. I want people around me that want to do the best of their ability.”

Last week, Russell received a scholarship offer from Notre Dame to go with those he has already received. In addition to the Irish, Russell currently holds offers from Stanford, Cal, Washington, Washington State, Wyoming and Boise State.

“It was a special moment,” Russell said of his Notre Dame offer. “It was great to have such a great program like Notre Dame recognize me and offer me so soon. It’s crazy. Them noticing me as a student-athlete in the classroom and on the football field shows I’m one of the top players. It’s an honor.”

Russell’s top priority in choosing a program is academics.

“I’ll probably look at what the degree is like,” he explained. “Football is going to come second. Can the degree help me throughout life? That’s going to be important.”

While Russell doesn’t know much about the Irish he does know the value of a Notre Dame degree.

“I’m trying to major in business and I know that their business program is number one in the nation so that sparks some interest in my mind,” he related. “If I get a degree from Notre Dame, I can go anywhere in the world and tell them where I went.”

Russell plans to take an unofficial visit to Notre Dame at some point but has yet to think about official visits. Those decisions will come later.

“I’m not going to promise any official visits just yet because I’m so far away from that,” he said. “I’m trying to at least take an unofficial down there and if it happens to be a place where I want to take an official then I would do that.”

Russell also indicated that location isn’t a major concern at this point.

“I’m open to anything right now,” he said. “Just because they’re far away I can just cancel them out. That might be the best school for me.”

Russell’s ability on the football field is just as impressive as his work off it. Last season he rushed for 1,859 yards on 228 carries and scored 20 touchdowns. In addition, he caught three touchdown passes, returned two interceptions for touchdowns, threw a touchdown pass and recovered a fumble for a score.

Most schools, Notre Dame included, are recruiting Russell as an athlete and that’s just fine with him.

“I can be a slot back, a corner, a safety, a running back if you need one,” Russell said. “I can do multiple things.”

Notre Dame just hopes that Russell will be doing those things in the Irish Blue and Gold.

These two summaries represent just a sample of the Notre Dame football recruiting information available each week on Irish Sports Daily.

[irishunclebill]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting/4420-recruiting-week-in-review


Recruiting Week In Review
Monday, 28 March 2011 00:05
Joe Bradshaw

Some of the early reviews of Notre Dame’s spring practices have been very positive concerning the development and play of the offensive line. That unit had chronically underachieved during the Charlie Weis era but showed marked improvement in its first season playing for head coach Brian Kelly and under the tutelage of offensive line coach Ed Warriner.

If they continue to progress, it’s not hard to imagine Notre Dame will become a very desirable choice for top prep offensive linemen. Last week, the Irish received visits from two young men who could possibly help rebuild the offensive line tradition at Notre Dame. What have you been missing by being a member of Irish Sports Daily?

Mark Harrell, OL, 6-5, 265, Charlotte Catholic High School, Charlotte, NC attended Notre Dame’s Junior Day in February and came away with mixed feelings. More specifically, he felt like he got mixed signals from the Irish coaching staff. He hoped to leave the Junior Day with a scholarship offer, but didn’t. However, it didn’t take Notre Dame long to step to the plate. Just two days after the Notre Dame Junior Day, Irish assistant coach Mike Elston offered the talented North Carolinian a scholarship.

“I think at that point they were just making sure I was the right fit and they didn’t just want to promise me anything before they offered,” Harrell opined. “That was probably the explanation for that.”

Harrell and his family flew into Ann Arbor last weekend for a Michigan Junior Day on Saturday but found the time to drive to South Bend on Friday morning, staying until late afternoon.

“It went great,” said Harrell. “They really spent a lot of time on me and I think they did a great job with me. They all seemed like they were on the same page and they said they think I’m going to fit into their system fine if I do choose to go there.”

Harrell continued.

“It was just a very informative day. They worked hard to make sure that I got to know what they were all about. Basically they just didn’t let any piece of information slip by. They let me know everything about the program and about the school. They definitely helped themselves.”

Harrell said that his latest visit to South Bend was very different than the Junior Day trip. Having the scholarship offer in hand gave him a much greater sense of belonging.

“You can kind of picture yourself going to that school now that you have the option to,” he said. “It was definitely a lot different. It definitely put a lot of things in perspective. It was a great time.”

Harrell’s parents got the same feeling from this visit as well.

“They’re encouraged by it,” he said of his parents. “They really liked what they saw. Just like me, this time with an offer was different for them as well. They definitely enjoyed it. Everyone has a real great time.”

This trip for Harrell was much more personal than the Junior Day.

“There was definitely a lot of one on one time with me and the coaches, players and staff,” he said. “It was definitely a great time. All of the coaches were incredibly nice.”

Notre Dame typically doesn’t find many recruits in the state of Indiana, but last weekend they hosted one from Avon, Ind. DeAndre Herron, OT, 6-6, 300, Avon High School, Avon, Ind., had heard from friends and family that he should go visit Notre Dame because it was such a special place. Herron just didn’t see what all the fuss was about. After spending time on campus, though, he began to understand.

“Notre Dame is a really good school and I liked it better than I thought I would,” he said. “I have family around here and they were like, ‘Notre Dame this and Notre Dame that,’ and I was like “what’s so great about this place?” After being there today I know exactly what they mean.”

Herron doesn’t yet have an Irish scholarship offer, but he got the opportunity to talk to the coaches and find out exactly where he stood.

“I talked to Coach (Mike) Elston and Coach (Ed) Warriner and they said they’re interested in me,” he said. “They said they’re going to base things off my test scores, which I took not too long ago and they want me to go to their one day camp. I’ll definitely be there.”

Herron currently has three offers, from Louisville, Toledo and Southern Mississippi. He also plans to visit Western Michigan this coming weekend. In addition he’s hearing from Arkansas State, Northern Illinois and Buffalo. Herron’s recruitment would probably be even bigger had he not just begun playing offensive tackle two years ago. Before that he played exclusively on the defensive line.

“This is only my second year playing offensive tackle,” he explained. “I had been playing defensive tackle all my life, but we had a new head coach come in and he said ‘you’re an offensive lineman now.’ They put me at tackle and I didn’t like it at all at first.”

Herron continued.

“They sent me to a camp for linemen to learn the position and I fell in love with it instantly. I was like, ‘O.K. I can do this.’ I came back and we had some competitions against some other schools and I just went in and put in work. Now I love being on the O-line.”

Herron has a very good idea of what he’s looking for in a college program.

“First, I’m going to have to have a good relationship with the coach,” he said. “My family will have an input in my decision and how good a school is in my major will be a factor. I want my education to be first and then football.”

After his visit to Notre Dame, the Irish are definitely in the running.

“I’m definitely interested in them because Notre Dame is Notre Dame,” he said. “I have nothing but good things to say about them. I’m going to be calling to see if I can visit again. I have family up here and my grandfather is a real big Notre Dame fan. He came with me and got a big kick out of being there today. This isn’t the first or last time they’re going to see me.”

[Revolver]

Hey, I went to Avon!

[CincyDamer]

That explains a lot :)

Center Grove. Class of 2002

[Revolver]

That explains a lot :)

Center Grove. Class of 2002

Ah Center Grove. I think we beat you for mid-state in 8th grade basketball in 1987. I could be wrong though, maybe it was Beech Grove. It was so long ago. Darrin Bowling played for us. He ended up being 6'8" and played for tenessee Martin.

Funny thing about Avon, you can still see a whiffle ball wedged against a speaker and the ceiling in the varsity gym. It's the ball that I foul tipped so hard as a freshman that it went straight up all the way up there to get lodged.

You can also see my name, and a couple of others along with a Newspaper photo and the displays of the Toys For Tots cars that we made in 1989 in Industial Technology class, displayed in a case in the 'shop wing'. We gave Toys for Tots hundreds of those cute little cars.

We all loved doing it for the kids. Good times.

[NDgrandson]

Funny thing about Avon, you can still see a whiffle ball wedged against a speaker and the ceiling in the varsity gym. It's the ball that I foul tipped so hard as a freshman that it went straight up all the way up there to get lodged.


That's some serious foul ball power. Straighten it out Rev!

[Purebred Irishman]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting/4491-recruiting-week-in-review


Notre Dame always looks to recruit the Midwest well, particularly among the private Catholic schools in the region. However, the Irish would love to make some inroads into the Chicago Public League which annually produces several FBS-level players. Last week, the Irish coaching staff hosted a highly sought-after young man from Simeon Academy in Chicago as well as confirmed an unofficial visit from a player from Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, IA. Irish Sports Daily managed to speak with both highly coveted recruits. What have you been missing by not being a member of Irish Sports Daily?

Jordan Diamond, OT, 6-6, 290, Simeon Academy, Chicago, IL made an unofficial visit to Notre Dame last Saturday and came away very impressed.

“It went well,” Diamond said. “I learned some things, got a chance to meet some of the players, talk to the players and of course meet the coaching staff, so I had a good time.”

Diamond was impressed with Notre Dame’s outstanding graduation rate and also the pace of the Irish practice that he watched.

“They’ve got a fast-paced practice,” he said. “Up-tempo style, the style of play I’m used to and I’d definitely fit down here.”

Diamond commented on his meeting with Irish head coach Brian Kelly. He found Kelly to be straightforward and he liked that.

“Coach Kelly is a very up-tempo guy,” said Diamond. “He’s an up-tempo guy just like his practices. That’s unbelievable; a very down to earth coach and that’s what I like to hear.”

One of Diamond’s priorities in his recruitment is early playing time. Kelly let him know that Notre Dame definitely needed offensive tackles and that playing time could be had for the taking.

“They’re short on tackles so that could be a good opportunity for me,” said the talented Chicagoan.

Diamond enjoyed the opportunity to meet some of the Irish players, particularly fellow Chicago native Darius Fleming. From the players, and especially Fleming, he got a very good picture of what it was like to be a football player and student at Notre Dame.

“It was just an honor to meet some of the players and to hear about their thoughts on how their lives have been changed over the last couple of years,” he informed. “That was big for me. He (Darius Fleming) told me all about his experiences at Notre Dame. We have this bond because we’re from Chicago and have a mutual respect for one another. That played a key role too, just seeing some of the guys from Chicago going to Notre Dame and making it.”

Diamond has close to 20 offers and hopes to cut his list first to 15 then to 10. It looks as if the Irish should be in good shape to make both cuts.

“Notre Dame will most definitely be in my top 10, this puts the icing on the cake,” he explained. “They will most definitely be in my top 10. As far as the other schools, I have to check them out just like I checked out Notre Dame, but Notre Dame was pretty impressive.”

Amara Darboh, WR, 6-2, 200, Dowling Catholic High School, Des Moines, IA has visited Notre Dame twice previously and just recently scheduled his third visit for the April 16th Blue-Gold Game.

“Me and Eric Lee are going up there to check it out,” said Darboh. Lee will be attending Notre Dame in the fall and will be joining the football squad as a preferred walk-on. “Eric is a great player. He’s a hard worker; he played on both sides of the ball last year for us. He doesn’t get tired. I don’t think he ever got off the field.”

Darboh camped at Notre Dame last summer and visited for the Pittsburgh game last fall. The Iowa native is looking forward to his third trip to South Bend.

“It’s been a while, ever since the Pitt game,” he explained. “I’m looking forward to it. I saw about everything because I’ve been there twice already. I’m just excited to see the coaches again and also the players. I’m excited to meet the new players and see the offense and see them practice.”

Darboh has previously visited Iowa State and hopes to take more visits before trimming his offer list. Right now, Iowa and Wisconsin are part of his travel plans. He hopes to trim his offer list by the end of the summer, but realizes that recruiting is such a fluid process that it might take longer.

“There’s no way of knowing what’s going to happen,” said Darboh. “If my recruiting picks up some more and makes the decision harder then I’ll take a little bit more time.”

These two summaries represent just a sample of the Notre Dame football recruiting information available each week on Irish Sports Daily.

[Sparks inda Loo]

That's some serious foul ball power. Straighten it out Rev!

That's what she said.

[Purebred Irishman]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting/4554-recruiting-week-in-review


Beauty and the Beast: that phrase could aptly be employed to describe the recruiting formula used by most successful college football programs. Bringing in athletic skill position players and coupling them with powerful linemen has been a winning combination almost since the inception of the game. Notre Dame’s recruiting, both last year and this has reflected an adherence to this principle. Last week, Irish Sports Daily spoke to two young men who, should they ultimately sign with the Irish, would help Brian Kelly and his staff toward fulfilling this recruiting goal. What have you been missing by not being a member of Irish Sports Daily?

When fans think of dual-sport college athletes, they typically conjure images of blazing fast wide receivers who also excel in track and field. Or, they might even envision a tight end that takes his bruising presence onto the hardcourt as a power forward. What one typically doesn’t think about though is a 6-foot-9, 305-pound left tackle who doubles as a center in basketball. Yet, that is exactly what Zach Banner (OT, 6-9, 305, Lakes High School, Lakewood, Wash.) hopes to do. Banner would like to play both football and basketball in college. Currently, five major college programs have offered him the opportunity to do both. One of them is Notre Dame.

“I still haven’t decided for sure if I want to play both, but the plan right now is to do that,” said Banner.

Banner still has much to do at the high school level before he turns his full attention to recruiting. Last season, he helped Lakes High School’s football team to an 11-2 record and a state semifinal appearance. He also played a key role in Lakes’ state basketball championship, scoring 15 points and hauling down 12 rebounds in the title game.

“I want to bring a championship to Lakes for football and I want to win another basketball championship,” said Banner. “I’m playing in the Army All-American game and I want to be the first player to ever play in the Army game and the McDonald’s All-American game.”

While Banner certainly has set very high personal goals, his commitment to his teams still takes priority. Banner takes great pride in Lakes team-oriented focus.

“We have a big motto at Lakes, Family Over Everything,” Banner stated. “That’s my motto and something we started. You have a family, whoever is your family is your family. Whoever you let it, people you care about, blood or not. That’s one thing we have on our basketball team that our whole school has picked up. When you have that mentality of working together as a team, it’s as a team and you’re going to be happy about it.”

Banner is able to achieve his success on both the gridiron and basketball court through his commitment to excellent conditioning. He possesses a tremendous drive to be bigger, stronger and faster. Jokingly, Banner said he wanted to be the first offensive lineman to go into the NFL with a six-pack.

In addition to Notre Dame, Washington, Washington State, Oregon and Cal have offered him the option of playing both sports in college. However, the talented Washingtonian has not eliminated any schools from consideration, even those that want him for football only.

“The reason I haven’t narrowed down my list is because I don’t know yet if I want to do both,” said Banner. “I might want to do both, but I am still working through that. A lot of coaches get their feelings hurt if you don’t have them in their top 10 and they just give up on you, and I don’t want that.”

Banner has already visited several local schools, but his AAU basketball schedule prevents him from traveling too much so he will rely upon official visits to see those schools that are distant. There is one exception to this though and that is Notre Dame. Banner’s AAU team has a tournament in Fort Wayne, Ind., and plans to take the opportunity to make it up to South Bend for a quick visit.

“History,” said Banner of the attraction to the Irish. “Notre Dame is one of the top five most traditional schools you could ever think about.”

It’s always good news for a program when recruits get excited about a scholarship offer. If the level of excitement in any way indicates the chances for a school to sign a recruit, Devin Fuller (ATH, 6-0, 180, Old Tappan High School, Old Tappan, N.J.) could very well be headed to South Bend.

“I jumped in the air,” said Fuller of his reaction after receiving the Irish offer. “Every offer is exciting and I treat every offer like my first. It’s just an honor. I heard the other day only one percent of people get Division I scholarships, so that opens my eyes even more to how lucky I am.”

The Notre Dame offer adds to an already impressive list. Fuller has currently been offered by programs such as Alabama, Boston College, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Penn State, Rutgers and Vanderbilt.

Fuller played quarterback for Old Tappan and put up mind-boggling numbers. He threw for 1,844 yards and 20 touchdowns while rushing for 2,306 yards and another 32 scores. He would prefer to play quarterback in college but that isn’t his number one priority.

“I’m going to decide first on academics,” he explained. “If a school doesn’t have good academics, they’ll probably be out.”

However, Fuller would definitely like a chance to be a signal-caller in college.

“I would love to get a shot at it but if a school really loves me and I love them back with the same amount of love, I’m going to go with what they want me to play,” he said. “I’m not going to force anything on them.”

Fuller has already taken trips to UConn, Boston College, Rutgers, Georgia Tech and Penn State and was at Kansas last weekend. He wants to see all the others before making a decision. Because of his track schedule, he probably won’t make it to Notre Dame until summer. Still, he knows something about the Irish.

“Obviously they have one of the best graduation rates in the country,” he said. “The football team is outstanding. They haven’t been putting good records up as of late, but the offense is a high-powered offense, I know they can do good things.”

Fuller’s visit to Notre Dame would probably come as a part of a nationwide summer tour after which he would trim his list. He plans on a final decision when he feels comfortable with a school.

These two summaries represent just a sample of the Notre Dame football recruiting information available each week on Irish Sports Daily.