'08 CA LB Anthony McDonald (4/11/07 Notre Dame LOI)

[Svoboda]

Inside Linebacker
Notre Dame High School (http://www.ndhs.org/) (Sherman Oaks, CA)


Ht: 6-foot-3
Wt: 220 lbs
Forty: 4.5 secs

Links of Interest: None

[Svoboda]

Reserved for photos.

[untitledproject]

Update.

[IrishCalves]

This guy screams "stereotypic football player" when you listen to him.

Anthony McDonald update (http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/video.asp?section=fbrecruit&vidtype=amp&vidid=2614) (rivals)

Just by looking at him, I think he's bigger than the 220 listed by the recruiting services.

[IrishKnight1023]

This guy screams "stereotypic football player" when you listen to him.

Anthony McDonald update (http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/video.asp?section=fbrecruit&vidtype=amp&vidid=2614) (rivals)

Just by looking at him, I think he's bigger than the 220 listed by the recruiting services.

--------It's funny watching him trying to cover because all he wants to do is punish these weak WR's and flaten them. He is not just big, but cut...a true physical specimen.

[irishunclebill]

The NDSO defense dominated defending state champ Canyon in their 17-7 opening day victory forcing 5 turnovers and limiting the vaunted Canyon rushing attack to less than 50 yards. McDonald played both ways throughout the game at LB & OT.

[daytonirish]

Great article about him in todays S.B. Tribune. Says he isn't talking to anyone other than Charlie and N.D. coaches. And the first game he will see in S.B. is the first one he dresses for next year.

[demetrius07]

mcDonald is my favorite defensive recruit. From everything Ive seen on him, he has a natural ability to shed blocks and get the perfect angle on the ball carrier. With the way our LBs miss out on tackles, it will be nice to have one come in and make the tackle on first contact instead of just running into the RB.

[Fishin'_Irish]

Going to send in his LOI at 7 tomorrow along with Dayne.

[notredomer23]

He was at the game.

[IrishKnight1023]

http://notredame.scout.com/2/750695.html




At Notre Dame, Anthony was reunited with a former opponent in quarterback Dayne Crist.

“I didn’t know him, but we started playing against each other in Pop Warner,” McDonald said. “We scrimmaged Notre Dame when I was a freshman at Burbank and I sacked him. Dayne likes to say that I never sacked him, but I have pictures.”

[IrishGrizz]

That was good- like the competitiveness of these guys coming up.

[IrishKnight1023]

How do you post a video from youtube? I used to know how. There is a McDonald one of all of his Sr. highlights.

[HoffVir]

How do you post a video from youtube? I used to know how. There is a McDonald one of all of his Sr. highlights.

There should be an "imbed" link somewhere on the YouTube page. Copy, paste, and voila.

[irishunclebill]

There should be an "imbed" link somewhere on the YouTube page. Copy, paste, and voila.

Unfortunately, the embed copy from YouTube to here does not seem to work, at least not when I do it on my computer. I take the embed code related to the specific video and insert it between a set of parameters that I know works.


BTW, IK is this the video on A-Mac that you are talking about.

W0uipN1YBz8&hl

[IrishKnight1023]

Yeah thanks

[IrishKnight1023]

http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080623/SPORTS0302/806230316


On road to future stardom

SHERMAN OAKS, Calif. – Anthony McDonald was watching the Blue-Gold game in April at Notre Dame Stadium when reality hit.

The next time anyone saw a game there, he’d be a part of it.

“It was nerves and excitement, too,” McDonald said. “We’re going to be there.”

In McDonald’s case, that thought may have been stronger than most.

If he didn’t switch high schools three years ago, the linebacker is pretty sure he wouldn’t be at Notre Dame.

As a freshman at Burbank, a public high school in the San Fernando Valley, Calif., McDonald played a little bit of everything. He was the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive end, linebacker and safety.

He had the talent and pedigree to play defense as the son of former NFL linebacker Mike McDonald, but Burbank used him at multiple positions. The constant position switches and lack of exposure his brother, Mike, received at Burbank led the family to look for a private school.

His father made the suggestion and when he toured the campus of Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, Calif., he knew he was going to that school.

“I’m pretty sure I would have transferred anyways even if my dad didn’t bring it up because I didn’t really like the school anyways,” McDonald said. “But it was a really good choice. A life-changing choice.”

At Notre Dame High, he settled in at linebacker and played sparingly as a running back and offensive tackle. He also rekindled a friendship.

Dayne Crist, another Irish recruit, was in one of McDonald’s classes their sophomore year. The connection between the two went back further than the previous year’s scrimmage between Burbank and Notre Dame High.

McDonald approached Crist and asked ‘Did you play for the Agoura Eagles?’ Crist said ‘Yes’ and the Pop Warner connection forged the friendship. The two had played against each other since they’d been 5 and for the first time were teammates.

“I recognized him because in Pop Warner, he was always the biggest guy and his head hasn’t changed a bit,” McDonald said. “His head has been this size since he was 5 years old. I’m not going to lie. It’s the truth.”

Sitting next to McDonald during lunch at an In-N-Out burger in April, Crist laughed.

“I’ve had a pretty big head my whole life,” Crist said.

“It was exactly like that,” McDonald added. “So I knew it was the same guy. That’s how I knew. He’s aged a little bit.”

But being able to play together was not easy, as McDonald dealt with injuries. He tore tissue in his foot as a junior, and he had plantar fasciitis – inflammation of the foot – and tore his groin as a sophomore. McDonald became frustrated when he had to miss games or play with excruciating pain.

Losses were even more devastating because McDonald knew how much better he’d be when he was healthy.

“He wished he could give more,” Mike McDonald said. “I think that was more painful than the pain itself.”

The injuries didn’t appear to slow down McDonald on the field. He had 101 tackles and 10 sacks as a junior. As a senior, he made 79 tackles.

Against Dominguez his sophomore year in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section Division III title game, he made 22 stops.

“You forget he’s had all these things until you see him in the training room after a practice or a game getting iced up,” Crist said. “You’d never think while he’s on the field that he’s being slowed down by any injury, which is kind of scary.”

Now healthy, McDonald is looking to enter the spotlight – one he shared with Crist, the quarterback, in high school.

“I mean,” McDonald said. “I’m going to make a name for myself up there.”

[polishdomer]

Mr. McDonald...please leave your dorm room and come to practice to watch some game film.

[irishunclebill]

http://www.irishsportsdaily.com/isdblogs/christian-blog/4435-irish-injury-updates

This was already posted in Roberson's thread, just adding it in here for the record.


Irish Injury Updates
Wednesday, 30 March 2011 07:46
Christian McCollum

Notre Dame running back Cameron Roberson and linebacker Anthony McDonald will both miss the remainder of spring practices due to injuries. Roberson suffered a torn lateral collateral ligament and partially torn anterior cruciate ligament while McDonald sustained a partially torn pectoral muscle. The injuries to both players will be surgically repaired. McDonald should be ready for the start of training camp in August while Roberson's return date is uncertain at this time

[NDisNCin2010]

crist and macdonald (cali buddies) sure have been bit by the injury bug in their ND careers...

[rikrok58]

its too bad for McDonald that he has had so many injuries, I had high hopes for him when he signed

[NotreDameNate]

^ This

I agree with you rikrok. I thought he was gonna be a beast. Just goes to show you why a person should focus on school as well though, too.

[SpanishElite]

^ This

I agree with you rikrok. I thought he was gonna be a beast. Just goes to show you why a person should focus on school as well though, too.

Exactly right. Just by the pure numbers of the sport.. a team signs 25 kids in a class you can except only about 15ish to finish as seniors (maybe in the 20 range) but its even a way smaller number like 10-12 who make any impact at all. And only about 5-8 who "live up" to the hype. But that is why kids pick Notre Dame because they know it will not always work out on the field.

[jbrown_9999]

McDonald transferring to Kansas. 14 transfers for them (five Div 1 and nine Jucos)

Kansas Football Adds Linebacker Anthony McDonald - KANSAS OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE (http://www.kuathletics.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/041312aab.html)