McHale Blade

Notre Dame might be prepping for Thursday's Orange Bowl, but that doesn't slow down the recruiting machine as Monday is the start of the winter evaluation period. The Irish won't have coaches on the road for obvious reasons, but Notre Dame did get a waiver to send recruiting staffers and some of its personnel staff on the road. General Manager Chad Bowden will be in Las Vegas on Monday and he'll make a stop at Bishop Gorman to check in with 2026 safety Jett Washington. Notre Dame is pushing hard here after a visit in he fall fell through, but Washington has always spoken very highly of the Irish, so we'll see if the staff can get him locked in for a visit. Director of Recruiting Caleb Davis is expected to do some area recruiting and one stop we expect is to Yorktown High School (Ind.) to check on 2027 defensive end Chris Wilson. The 6-foot-4, 230-pounder holds an 81-inch wingspan and is someone who could quickly turn into a national prospect once the camp circuit begins. Wilson holds offers from Eastern Kentucky, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland and Samford. Assistant to the GM Carter Auman will be in Wisconsin, Senior Offensive Analyst Harris Bivin will be Chicago, High School Relations/Analyst Deland McCullough II will be in Detroit, Assistant Athletics Director/Elite SA & Prospect Issues Scott Connors will be in Toledo while Director of Player Personnel Zaire Turner and On-Campus Recruiting Coordinator Becca Sites will be in Indiana and Illinois. I'm told Sites and Turner were at Andrean High School (Ind.) earlier today and I believe they will also hit up Mount Carmel (Ill.), which is the home of 2026 USC defensive end commit Braeden Jones, who Notre Dame is still recruiting. It's likely some of the Chicago area recruiting will be to Simeon High School, the home of 2025 signee Chris Burgess and 2026 defensive end target McHale Blade. 2027 Harper Wood (Mich.) WR/DB Dakota Guerrant was offered by Notre Dame following camp in the summer and it's likely McCullough drops by on Monday. I'm told Auman made stops to check oin 2027 quarterbacks Jameson Purcell and Trae Taylor in Chicago before heading to Wisconsin to see 2025 kicker signee Erik Schmidt. Under Armour White Notre Dame Fighting Irish College Football Playoff 2025 Orange Bowl T-Shirt