ISD Intel (1/27)
Every year here at Irish Sports Daily, our last edition of ISD Intel prior to National Signing Day is centered around our final picks for the upcoming class. Our readers know we don't like making predictions unless we have some concrete information to go on and we refrain from putting out wild guesses just to do so. But we also understand that at this time of year, readers want to know our guesses. Every year, there are prospects who could go swing either way in the final hours, but with so many new targets on the board this cycle, we're not sure there have ever been this many targets we don't have a great feel on this late. Are staff selections are listed below, but they certainly aren't all consensus picks. You can follow the Prediction link to see where individual staff members are projecting each prospect HERE. WR Jafar Armstrong Prediction: Notre DameThe Missouri commit has kept a low profile since receiving interest from other schools in the final weeks, so it's been hard to get a true grasp on what the Kansas native is thinking or leaning toward. But based on Armstrong's actions an official visit to Minnesota last week and an official to South Bend this week it's clear he believes there could be a better option out there for him than Missouri. Some have used the phrase "dream school" when referring to Notre Dame and we're told Armstrong specifically mentioned Notre Dame as a school he hoped to hear from earlier in the process. Are the Irish coming in too late? We don't think so. We'll know for sure following this weekend's visit, but everything we've heard coming into the visit is extremely positive. WR Mac Hippenhammer Prediction: Penn State After talking with some sources this week, Hippenhammer will sign with Penn State on Wednesday. It was definitely a tough decision for the Fort Wayne native, as Notre Dame was his dream school, but the Irish just got in too late and he couldn't build relationships with the new staff quick enough. "He's solid with Penn State," stated a source. Notre Dame sent DelVaughn Alexander to meet with Hippenhammer last week prior to his official visit to Happy Valley. The three-star was receptive, but once he got to Penn State it was a done deal. The length and strength of the relationships he has with the coaching staff and commits at Penn State provided a sense of comfort that he simply didn't have at Notre Dame. We've removed Hippenhammer from our Target List. WR Oliver Martin Prediction: Notre Dame???To be honest, we don't know. We've heard a lot of positive things from the Notre Dame side in the months and weeks leading up to Signing Day, but we've also heard plenty to give us pause. We don't know if Martin knows what he's going to do to be honest. Last weekend, he was initially expected to take an official visit to Florida, but apparently told the Gainesville staff he had family plans and couldn't make it. Then he was supposedly ticketed for an official visit to Ohio State, but didn't make that either. It sounds like he'll end up in Ann Arbor for a visit this weekend, but just days ago, we were told there were four schools thinking they could get him on campus this weekend Michigan, Ohio State, Florida and UCLA. This has been one of the strangest recruitments to follow this cycle and we could see an unexpected finish. If the field was an option, we'd choose the field. But, if we have to choose one school over all of the rest, we'll take Notre Dame. DE Jalen Harris Prediction: Notre DameCan Notre Dame finally land edge rusher who simply sees the depth chart situation? We think Harris is as good of a shot as any. It won't be easy, but the Arizona commit will be at Notre Dame this weekend and the Irish will get the final shot at flipping him. There are a few factors working against Notre Dame, including the fact both of his parents attended Arizona and played sports in Tucson. However, Notre Dame has explained where it sees Harris fitting in and it's been a receptive fit. Harris' father, Sean, played football in college and the NFL, so coaches aren't going to pull a quick one over on his son with scheme fit. With that said, Harris' father has said it's his son's decision in the end and he is only involved with making sure the fit is right with how coaches plan to use his son. Harris visited Illinois recently and really enjoyed the chance to be away from home and outside of his comfort zone of Arizona. If Illinois can impress the four-star prospect, then Notre Dame can surely make him think hard and long about his commitment to the Cats. DE Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa Prediction: Notre Dame It's been a heck of week for the four-star prospect as he is taking three official visits in six days, but Notre Dame hit all the right notes on day one of the visit. The Irish have made him a priority and the family felt the same way, as their itinerary included meetings with Jack Swarbrick and Father Jenkins. It's not a secret that USC was the leader for Tagovailoa-Amosa, but with two interior defensive linemen commits in the last week, the 6-foot-3, 275-pounder could be feeling a numbers crunch. Can Brian Polian and the Irish pull another kid from Hawaii at the last minute? We feel Notre Dame checks all the boxes in terms of what the family and Tagovailoa-Amosa are looking for and distance won't be a factor. It's all going to come down to how comfortable he feels around the team and the campus. DE Kofi Wardlow Prediction: Virginia TechNotre Dame did a good job getting in with the Washington, D.C. native early this month, in fact, the nation's capital was one of new Irish defensive coordinator Mike Elko's first stops when the dead period expired. That effort resulted in getting the Maryland commit up to South Bend for an official visit last weekend. He'll take an official visit to Virginia Tech this weekend, so it's obvious he's open. We think he'll ultimately flip, but we think he'll probably stay on the East Coast. LB/S Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah Prediction: Michigan StateThis one is a true coin flip. The linebacker/safety prospect backed off his pledge to in-state Virginia earlier in the week and announced that his decision will come down to the Irish and Michigan State. He visited East Lansing last weekend and was impressed with what he saw. He announced his decommitment from the Cavaliers shortly after a meeting with Brian Kelly, so that's encouraging from a Notre Dame standpoint. Owusu-Koramoah will be looking to see how he fits with the coaches and players this weekend in South Bend. If he feels comfortable, Notre Dame will have a chance, but we already know how he feels about Michigan State. S Evan Fields Prediction: Kansas StateThe Oklahoma safety is one prospect we expected to shoot up the board in terms of most likely targets following last weekend's official visit and, frankly, it just didn't happen. As we've reported, Notre Dame isn't necessarily out of the mix here and is included among the top six schools he'll choose from on Monday, but we thought the Irish had a chance to have a firm grasp on this race coming out the visit, especially since they got the last say with Fields in Orlando all week for an all-star game. Arizona State has been a trendy pick coming out of his other official visit earlier this month, but his relationship with the Kansas State staff goes back and we think the lure to stay a bit closer to home will be enough for the Wildcats. ATH Russ Yeast Prediction: Notre DameOne of the most interesting races to follow down the stretch will be one of the most difficult to follow as Yeast has made it clear he won't be speaking with reporters until after he announces his decision on National Signing Day. The one-time Kentucky and current Louisville commit seems to be choosing between the Wildcats, Cardinals and the Irish. Given the fact that he immediately scheduled an official visit to South Bend after receiving a long-coveted offer from Notre Dame while declining to schedule one to Kentucky the final weekend makes us believe the Irish have some serious momentum. There's been some chatter about Yeast's father potentially taking a job on the staff at Kentucky, his alma mater, but we haven't seen any credible reports as such. CHANCE FOR STRONG MOVE WITH ARMSTRONG: Initially, we had Jordan Genmark-Heath on the above list, but he went ahead and committed yesterday. At the time, we were labeling him as the most likely to end up at Notre Dame for obvious reasons.That distinction know falls to Jafar Armstrong. The Irish still have some work to do with this weekend's visit, but based on what we know about the Missouri receiver commit in the past and the present, we like their chances to do just that. We're told Brian Kelly's visit to Bishop Miege High School on Wednesday was a productive one. He was joined by offensive coordinator Chip Long and wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander and they were able to get into the nuts and bolts of exactly how Armstrong would be used in their system. On-field fit is important to the Kansas native and Notre Dame should be able to pick up that conversation again in South Bend this weekend. Most importantly, both sides seem to agree that the 6-foot, 200-pounder brings a great deal of versatility. It'll be necessary he feels comfortable with the Notre Dame coaches and players as well, especially since he already feels good about the people at Missouri and Minnesota, where he took an official last weekend, but we think he will. Despite the January officials, the Tigers aren't quitting and apparently visited Armstrong before and after the Irish earlier this week. We don't know when he'll announce it publicly, but we expect Armstrong to make his decision sometime Sunday night or Monday morning if not sooner. WAITING ON WARDLOW: Although we're currently projecting Kofi Wardlow to stay on the East Coast, by no means do we think the Irish are an extreme longshot or are out of this race. In fact, we caught up with a source close to the Washington, D.C., native who told us the defensive end "absolutely" enjoyed his trip to Notre Dame last weekend. "He liked it a lot," we were told. "He liked it academically. He thought the guys on the team were great guys. They were all very good to him. I think he likes the coaches." The relationship with the Notre Dame coaches is in the very early stages while some other schools have relationships that go back much further. Still, our source wasn't sure that would be a deciding factor in the end. "You have the beginning of one because they spent a couple of days together, but two days does not a relationship make," the source said. "Obviously, there are some schools that saw him earlier and there is sort of a relationship with a couple because they saw him two years ago and nosed around and got on him pretty hard early. "I think in the end, you feel like you're going to establish relationships anyway. You're just kind of really looking at the programs, the schools, the academics, what they offer, the alumni, everything. There's so much that a kid looks at and things that I wouldn't look at that a kid does." Wardlow will likely alert the schools of his decision prior to Signing Day, but he probably won't go public until Wednesday. BALIS KICKING BUTT: Prior to being officially hired, we talked about what Notre Dame players should expect from new strength and conditioning coach Matt Balis in this space. Following his hiring, we got some initial feedback on what the players first impressions were. Now, after a couple weeks of working with him, we're hearing more. One thing we feel comfortable predicting is some local gyms losing a couple memberships as it's doubtful players are going to still feel the need to get additional work in anymore. Balis is the talk of the program at this point, at least among the players. As has been reported in the past, the players asked for more in the weight room following the 2016 season and they're getting it. And while there may be some wondering if it's a case of "be careful what you wish for," the consensus has been overwhelmingly positive. "He's really tough," one source told Irish Sports Daily. "It's a lot harder of a workout. Some of the guys have been getting sick and stuff, but it's a good thing because it's a different type of training." Many of the players on the roster know what hard work looks like, but seeing a player vomit while in the squat rack was a new sight inside the Gug. "It's just harder," a source reiterated. "Harder lifts." But sources say the entire team is willing to put in the work and take things to the next level in order to get back to where they believe they should be. "Think about what happened last year, nobody wants that to happen again," we were told. One source close to a player said, "They're all in, but they're all hurting." Multiple sources describe the plan in the weight room as better than the past and one said he believed the entire team across the board was weaker than opponents last year. "It goes to show you that obviously, it wasn't enough," another source said of the previous strength plan. Another source said the fact that players were looking to get additional work on their own was telling. "You shouldn't want nothing else," he said. That same source said he didn't believe the plan under the previous regime was sufficient. "They probably had good intentions," he said. "Their intentions were to think differently during the offseason and differently during the season and I don't really believe that. "I don't think you should die off, you should get stronger. Sometimes you can take certain training approaches that you think are new, but you have to go back to the X's and O's, not in football, but in training." That source has seen a change already and is confident the new staff will continue to push the players, which is what they want. "I think the structure of the workouts is a lot different compared to before," he said. "I don't believe in saving players. I believe in training players for tough times. I think he's more of a guy who trains you for tough times and puts you through a tough workout. "If you want it easy, you don't get the results. It's like preparation for a test. Are you going to study 15 minutes or are you going to study an hour or two hours or three hours?" As necessary as the increases in size and strength are moving forward, one person we spoke with believes this new devotion will help bring the squad even closer together. "They're all excited. I think it's going to be a really good year for them and a bonding year. They have to really be strong together because they've faced a lot of adversity." Additionally, Balis' presence is bringing an increased level of confidence to the Gug. "We're going to be some bad *** ************* next year," one source said. BALLOU WILL BRING CHANGE AS WELL: The on-again, off-again notion of having Balis team up with Dave Ballou to head the strength and conditioning program appears to be on again and in a major way. As we reported earlier this week, there are strong indications that it's only a matter of time before Ballou, who was at IMG Academy, is introduced as part of Notre Dame's program. Not the least of those indications were a series of tweets from current players at IMG thanking Ballou and wishing him luck with Ballou responding from "South Bend, IN." Earlier this week, we spoke with a source who is familiar with Ballou's methods and believes Notre Dame would be improved with his addition. The source said Ballou was well-liked at IMG, but also stressed that was unimportant. "To be honest, in any situation that you're in when it comes to sports, the like factor shouldn't be present," he said. "What should be present is the production factor. "When it comes to a strength and conditioning coach, he is there to get you through the third and the fourth quarter." The source saw Ballou's results up close at IMG. "I could see how bigger and stronger the players were under him," he said. "They were much faster and stronger after working with him. "He's a hard worker. He's a guy who demands production. I think they're getting a good one in him and he's an Indiana guy." COACHING ADDITIONS WELCOMED: We're still working to get a better feel for what the new assistant coaches will bring to the program and we'll get a better handle on each of their personalities when they're introduced to the media, which should be soon. But the early returns are positive. We haven't talked with many people who have had lengthy interactions with new offensive coordinator Chip Long just yet, but it's clear he has a great sense of optimism heading into the season. We're told upon meeting one offensive standout, Long didn't say much other than, "Hello" and "You'll have more than 1,000 yards next year." "I was impressed with that," the source told us. "I was real excited when I heard that." Long isn't just displaying confidence in himself, but in the players he'll be working with and that's obviously been encouraging. New wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander does have relationships with some of the current players through recruiting them in the past. One source familiar with Alexander from beforehand was happy to hear he was being brought to South Bend. "I was excited," the source said. "I liked him." Some on the roster are aware of Alexander's rsum both as a player and a coach. "The good thing is he played at USC and has sent guys to The League, so he understands new millennium route-running because it's changed," one source said. "He understands how you should get out of your breaks, if you're standing too high. He understands that." One player we spoke with, who is not currently on the Irish roster, said Alexander put time in to recruit him when he was just a freshman. "He's a real cool guy," that player said. "I think we had like an hour-long meeting that we sat down and talked. As a freshman wide receiver who had three more years to be recruited, the fact that he sat down with me and gave me an hour of his time was really good. "I really liked the way he talked about me and the university he was at. He's going to be a great recruiter for Notre Dame definitely." In addition to his work ethic, the source believes Alexander has the personality of a successful recruiter. "I think he relates to the players," we were told. "He's more of a relatable guy. He can get along with the players better. He's younger, he's not that old, so he can get along with the players and knows what the players are going through. He's definitely going to be relatable with the players and they're going to be able to get along with him." Meanwhile, the schedule has almost made it necessary for new Notre Dame defensive coordinator Mike Elko to relate to recruits more than his new players. "On the first recruiting weekend, when the guys came in, he felt like he knew (some of them) better than some of the players because he hasn't had a chance to meet them," one source said. That'll surely change and change fast after Wednesday. IF YOU STILL CARE: We have heard from a good source that former Notre Dame wide receiver commit Jordan Pouncey is likely to land at Texas in the end. It was assumed the Florida native was ticketed for Miami when he was offered by the Hurricanes and ended up decommitting from the Irish shortly after, but apparently, Miami is running out of spots. He's supposed to take an official visit to Tennessee this weekend, but after a trip to Austin last weekend, the sense is he's going to sign with the Longhorns. "He actually grew up a UT fan, just never heard from them before the new staff," one source said. "Parents had a ton of questions and they liked the answers. He clicked with the other commits and his host, John Burt, is from Florida, and they're two peas in a pod." KICKING AROUND: We're hearing there's a good chance Irish kicker Justin Yoon could miss part or all of spring practice with a knee injury that dates back to the season. John Chereson stepped in for Yoon on kickoffs toward the end of the season as the sophomore kicker was dealing with tendonitis. Now, we are hearing it might be more than a case of tendonitis, but the good news is Yoon should be ready to go by fall camp and the season. While it's not a huge issue if he doesn't kick this spring, it's still less than an ideal in terms of getting to work with new special teams coach Brian Polian and continuing to improve his game.
ISD Intel (1/6)
The Recruiting Yeti will finally speak and it will also be his final decision when Foster Sarell announces his commitment at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio tomorrow. Notre Dame has been right in the thick of things for the 2017 five-star offensive lineman from Washington since a summer visit to attend Irish Invasion. Sarell and his mother later acknowledged the trip to South Bend back in the summer was made essentially as part of due diligence with the idea of eliminating the Irish afterward, but that's not what happened. Instead, the family fell in love with the program and offensive line coach Harry Hiestand in particular.Distance has really been the only negative in terms of the recruitment, but it was always a big one. Sarell sees the opportunity on and off the field at Notre Dame in the future. The Washington native also knows that to better himself, he might need to get out of the area to grow, but Stanford would qualify in that category.Notre Dame has talent on the offensive line and have brought in talented tackles in Tommy Kraemer and Liam Eichenberg in the last year, but Sarell could give the Irish a player they don't have on the roster. He knows his skill set meshes well with Hiestand and the family feels very comfortable with Hiestand as a coach and a man. How is the relationship with Brian Kelly? We'd say it's good, as the family enjoyed having the head coach in their home and by all accounts was productive visit. Outside of Washington head coach Chris Petersen, the family hasn't really said anything about a head coach that had a 'Wow' factor. That's not to say they aren't complimentary of head coaches, but it's not a situation where it seems the head coach is going to be a major factor in the decision.If Sarell picks Notre Dame on Saturday, it will because of the relationship he has with Hiestand and the fact he wants to be part of the best offensive line class in the country. He knows he is wanted and fits in at Notre Dame, it will be a matter of him feeling comfortable to live across the country for the next four years. Additional Insight From Uyeyama: There are only so many Foster Sarells available each year. Like Kraemer and Quenton Nelson, he's that rare offensive lineman who is going to be physically ready to play as a true freshman even if he does not see action. Eventually, he is going to grow into the kind of player who can be equal parts elite pass protector and dominant run blocker. To use a basketball analogy, he is a 5 who can back down just about anyone to the basket, but has the feet of a stretch-4. When you miss out on a Joshua Kaindoh or a Robert Beal, guys who can be disruptive off the edge, the next best thing is to land a guy who can block them. Sarell is one of those guys. The four offensive linemen Notre Dame has earned commitments from all have the potential to be high-end starters for the Irish one day. With Josh Lugg, his ceiling is even higher than that. Adding Sarell means they would have one more player with a high ceiling wgo is a pretty safe bet to reach that ceiling at the next level. He could very well be an All-American at Notre Dame under Hiestand and you could jot his name down in permanent marker as a multi-year starter. So What Do We Think?: Unfortunately, we don't see this one going down that way. We get the sense Notre Dame believes it would have landed Sarell had the Irish had a successful season, but at this point, there doesn't seem to be an overwhelming sense of optimism heading into tomorrow's announcement. As of the middle of this week, Sarell hadn't told the Irish he wasn't coming, but the questions that have come from Sarell's side of late aren't the kind to inspire confidence.If the Irish had a better season, we'd feel better. If South Bend, Ind., was closer to Graham, Wash., we'd feel even better still. But they didn't and it's not, so we see Sarell staying out West.It's probably a toss-up between Washington and Stanford, but we're picking the Cardinal here.CALVIN COMMITMENT COMING: As we reported earlier this week, Jamire Calvin will also announce his decision during tomorrow's Army Bowl, but that may not be the end of the process for the 2017 California wide receiver as he's still considering using his final trip to either Texas or Oregon.We caught up with Calvin earlier this week to find out how he's dealing with the swings of the coaching carousel, which has hit many of the schools he's considering."That's the way it is," said Calvin. "You can't stop that."It's a part of the business and something you just have to get used to. It's nothing big, you just have to go with the process and make the right decision."Calvin's recruiter at Notre Dame, Mike Denbrock, has left as has Irish offensive coordinator Mike Sanford, but the West Coast wideout doesn't seem too concerned."It's Notre Dame," he said. "They're going to hire great coaches no matter what. It's a great program, great school with great academics, networking, everything about it. It's hard to say no to Notre Dame."The Longhorns and Ducks are making late plays with their new coaching staffs, which Calvin is trying to get know better."Just talking to them every day," he said of how he goes about building relationships with the coaches."Even with stuff outside of football, just having regular life conversations with them and getting to see the genuine side and who they really are as a person."So What Do We Think?: The momentum has been with Nebraska for Calvin and we think that's with good reason.The Irish definitely gave him something to think about during his official visit to South Bend last month, but we see him choosing the Cornhuskers tomorrow. If he were leaning toward the Irish, he probably would at least like to see who the receivers coach is going to be.Speaking of thatTALKING TARGET LIST: Notre Dame was confident Oliver Martin was going to choose Notre Dame during tomorrow's Army Bowl, but that was before Mike Denbrock's departure. Martin isn't going to announce at that game anymore and despite the 2017 Iowa wide receiver's official visit to Michigan State next weekend, there are some who believe it's a good sign that he's decided to push back that decision. Could it be he wants to see how things play out with the rest of Notre Dame's offensive coaching staff? We're told he's a kid who is smart enough to understand coaches come and go and there are more important reasons to choose a school, but he'd obviously like to know who he'll be coached by. So, despite losing Denbrock, who formed a strong relationship with Martin over the past few months, the Irish are still in play.Notre Dame is "still somewhat" in play for Jordan Pouncey after the Florida receiver's decommitment from the Irish last week, but decommitments and recommitments are rare for a reason.Beyond Martin and Pouncey, Notre Dame would still love to get Colorado wide receiver commit Chris Miller on campus for a visit along with fellow Texan Gavin Holmes. Whoever ends up being the new receivers coach will likely have some input as well, so it's impossible to know exactly how this will play out until he's in place. Scott Booker checked in on Georgia wideout Braylon Sanders before he was let go, but the Irish may not push hard for Sanders.At defensive tackle, Notre Dame is actively recruiting Brandon Pili from Alaska. The Irish really like this kid, but it's not clear if they'll be able to get him to campus or not just yet. Expect them to start pushing once they can. Virginia's Elijah Conliffe is another guy they really like, but they'll have to do get their hands on his transcripts to find out if he's a guy they can really go after. As we reported earlier this week, Hawaii defensive end Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa would be a good fit on and off the field and could be in line for an official visit in a few weeks. Florida defensive end Jarez Parks is on the board as well now. He's already taken visits to Alabama and Florida State and will take visits to Auburn and Florida this month, leaving one trip open. The Irish will be battling USC and others for that final visit. Lugg and Kmet have been working Parks hard in San Antonio, but he hasn't had much contact with the Irish staff of late.It'll be interesting to see how the Irish handle the linebacker situation down the stretch. They have a pair of MIKE backers already in David Adams and Drew White. They really like Virginia's Ellis Brooks, who told us he's planning to visit at the end of the month, but he's a MIKE as well. Then there's Michigan's Antjuan Simmons. He's a really good player, but at 5-11, we wonder how he'd fit in Elko's system.We continue to feel confident about that Elijah Hicks will stick in the class. A source this week told us the California defensive back really likes Notre Dame and the Irish don't seem overly concerned with him taking visits to Michigan and Cal. Look for Notre Dame to go after Washington athlete Connor Wedington very hard. Expect the Irish to go to see him as soon as they can to try to convince him a lot. They like him a lot.Notre Dame still loves Ohio safety TreSean Smith, who remains committed to Louisville, as well. We're told Elko has been working him hard, but Smith didn't have the greatest time on his unofficial visit for the Virginia Tech game given the environment after the loss. Notre Dame is hoping to get him back on campus the weekend of the 20th. Hard to overstate how much the Irish like Smith. He's the top DB left on their board. Latavious Brini recently told us he was still thinking about taking an official visit to Notre Dame, but that isn't going to happen. The Florida cornerback isn't being recruited by Notre Dame anymore, so cross him off. Expect new names to emerge down the stretch, but with so much staff turnover right now, it's hard to say who those will be just yet.2017 CT CB OPEN TO ND: One of the newest names on Notre Dame's board is 2017 Connecticut cornerback Jason Pinnock. As we reported last week, Pinnock was contacted by new Notre Dame defensive coordinator Mike Elko and is in line to take an official visit to South Bend later this month if things progress.On Thursday night, Pinnock announced his decommitment from Boston College while saying he would still consider BC. We know the Eagles staff wasn't thrilled with his decision to continue taking visits this late in the process, but Pinnock is mature enough to realize that he needs to examine all of his options to find the place that will benefit him best long term. He also had the chance to speak with friends who are in similar situations, which helped reinforce that belief.He will take an official visit to Pittsburgh next weekend and then one to Boston College the following weekend. If the Irish do offer, that'd be his last trip before National Signing Day, which could be his decision date.Elko told Pinnock he needs to get settled in at Notre Dame and get a look at the depth chart and recruiting board before officially extending an offer, but based on talent alone, Pinnock said Elko has deemed him worthy of an offer. Pinnock tentatively has an official visit to Notre Dame penciled in for the final weekend of the month, but he could try to move that up to Thursday instead of Friday in order to get back in time for his Windsor High School team's banquet that weekend.Academics is going to be a major factor in his decision and after being around him, we believe he's the kind of guy who would feel comfortable at Notre Dame.2017 Irish running back commit CJ Holmes, who is also from Connecticut, has already been on Pinnock. His coach at Windsor High School, Rob Fleeting, coached the late Asaph Schwapp at Weaver High School before Schwapp went on to play for the Irish and Pinnock's father played college ball at Indiana, so there are ties to the program and the Midwest.EVEN MORE ON ELKO: For the past couple weeks in this space, we've been bringing our readers all of the information we can on Mike Elko.We caught up with a yet another source this week who has had some interaction with the Irish's new defensive coordinator. This source echoes what we've heard about Elko being a good recruiter and said he was not totally different than Brian VanGorder when it comes to personality and that Elko can be a little intimidating and a kooky. Take that as you will, but the source believes Elko will have the attention of the Notre Dame defense and the Irish were paying close attention to the Wake Forest bowl game. "After watching the Wake Forest game, I am excited," stated the source. "I have to see what personnel he brings in, but I feel like Notre Dame is headed in the right direction." PRIMETIME PROJECTS WRIGHT AS PRIMETIME PLAYER: Deion Sanders' role as a coach during the Under Armour All-America Football Game isn't a ceremonial one.The Hall of Fame cornerback takes it very seriously and is vocally involved with virtually every rep. He's not shy about calling a player out when he messes up or lavishing praise when he succeeds. But Sanders' comments good or bad are almost exclusively directed toward defensive players. At times, it seems he enjoys essentially ignoring the offense, which is just one reason why this tweet about Irish tight end commit Brock Wright was so eye-catching.https://twitter.com/DeionSanders/status/814928435269156865 Irish Sports Daily caught up with Sanders afterward to find out what led him to making the statement."87 is a grown man," Sanders said. "87 is a grown man. 87 is going to play on Sundays some night."He's got fight, determination. He can block and run routes. This kid is a freak. I call him Young Gronk, man."Asked whether he thinks Wright could be that good, Sanders quickly snapped back."I'm not thinking. I know he could be that good. If Notre Dame gets this boy the darn ball and lets him do what he does, this boy is going to play on Sundays."GOLIC SEES HOPE FOR FUTURE AT UNDER ARMOUR: Earlier in the week, we heard former Notre Dame defensive lineman and ESPN Radio host Mike Golic's thoughts on the Irish's 2016 season and why he believes they can turn things around in 2017.As a coach for the Under Armour All-America Game, Golic saw reasons for hope beyond 2017 in the five Notre Dame commits who were in the game. "All of them just because they're here," Golic said of which commits stuck out to him."We've got a good-sized tight end (Wright) coming. The lineman (Robert Hainsey), he's got nice hands and feet, real nice hands and feet. David Adams, the linebacker from Pennsylvania, I mean come on. He's as tough as they come. You look at these guys and look at what good-looking athletes they are."Avery Davis also caught Golic's eye."The quarterback too, the dual-threat that he is," he added. "He's got a nice arm. I saw him throwing well and obviously, he moves well. "It was really, really nice to see them and to see them performing here with some of the top players. All of these players are going to Power Five schools, so it's good to see how the Future Domers compete against these guys and I have a feeling they're going to compete very well."BEHIND THE SCENES AT UNDER ARMOUR: We had the chance to check in with a player who was at Under Armour last week (not a Notre Dame commit) to get a real look at what it's like and what the players truly think.This is just a sneak peek, we'll have a full look at it up on the site soon.What's the vibe like at an All-Star game with so many egos and guys used to being "the man"?On the first day of practice, you can see everyone is out there trying to prove himself, and I get that. But, I think at times it went a little too far. The very first period of practice was supposed to be a "walk through," but it was not a walk through. Do I understand why guys were going that hard? Yes. Do I agree with it? No. We hadn't even gone through a warmup yet. It was interesting to see in the walk through periods the following days how nobody was going that hard because most guys were so out of shape they were too tired to do so.Most overrated player at UA and why?Marvin Wilson. For some reason, every single recruiting reporter loves Marvin Wilson. Now I am not trying to take anything away from him as I think he is a great player and has the potential to be successful. However, he regularly got whooped in 1 v 1s and didn't even register a tackle in the game. He has to understand that his high rankings paired with his outspoken attitude that guys are going to be gunning for him, and rarely does he respond in dominant fashion.
