2021 WR Dont'e Thornton Jr. Fired Up For Notre Dame Offer

Notre Dame offered one of the nation’s top receivers on Tuesday in 2021 Mount Saint Joseph (Md.) star Donte Thornton Jr.‍
 
The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder already held offers from Florida, LSU, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Pitt, Tennessee and Vanderbilt to name a few, but the offer from Del Alexander has the attention of the four-star prospect.  
 
“It felt good,” said Thornton. “I was waiting to get an offer from Notre Dame. I talked to Coach Del. He was holding out to see what type of person I was and how my season was going. After he talked to my parents and my head coach, he believed there wasn’t any reason for him to hold back anymore.”
 
With an offer list like Thornton’s, it might be easy to hold a grudge against Notre Dame for not offering sooner, especially after he camped in South Bend, but Thornton was more than happy to get it as he knew Alexander was doing his research on him. 
 
“It made me feel good because it let me know he wasn’t trying to not offer me,” stated Thornton. “He was watching to see how I developed since I had been there. I have a good feeling about it.” 
 
Thornton camped at Notre Dame’s Elite Skills Camp in June of 2018 and turned heads at camp. He remembers Alexander being a hands-on coach and appreciated the time given to him, but he also was extremely impressed with Notre Dame’s campus.
 
“I did get to visit around the campus before I went to the camp,” explained Thornton. “It looked amazing. There was one part where they had water in the middle and they had a pond. It was a great campus. They had a wedding there when I was on campus too.”
 
The offer from Notre Dame is less than 48 hours old, but Thornton and his family are already trying to figure out when they can return to South Bend.
 
“We’re trying to figure out a date when it works with my football schedule,” Thornton said. “I want to get out to a game.”

 
Notre Dame will have some stiff competition for the former Penn State commit as the Nittany Lions haven’t given up and the Irish will need to catch up with a few other programs. However, Notre Dame will be a significant player in this recruitment before it’s all said and done.
 
“Penn State, Oregon, Tennessee, West Virginia and a few other schools are recruiting me hard right now,” stated Thornton.  “I was just at Penn State for a game, but I haven’t set up any other visits up right now.”
 
Thornton isn’t in a hurry to make a commitment as he doesn’t have a timeline set, but he does now what he’s looking for in a future school.
 
“One of the main things I’m looking for is the brotherhood and the family aspect of the team.”