USC Commit Glad He Visited ND
We got in yesterday around in the afternoon,” the four-star prospect told Irish Sports Daily. “I got to meet with Coach Lyght and Coach Kelly. I met with the academic advisors on Friday too.
“They will get an official visit out of me. I liked it more than I thought I would. I didn’t think it would as fun and as good as it was. I am glad I took the visit out here.”
One highlight for the Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.) native was getting meet defensive backs coach Todd Lyght.
“Coach Lyght told me Notre Dame wasn’t just good at football, but he gave me and showed me how their students graduate,” explained Graham. “93-percent of their players graduate and 95-percent of African Americans graduate with a degree. It’s basically like going to an Ivy League school.
“Athletically, he told me the name speaks for itself in terms of Notre Dame football.”
In addition to seeing Lyght coach during Saturday’s practice, Graham got to meet with him and get to know the Notre Dame coach on a personal level.
“I liked him a lot. He is really outgoing and a get to know you type of person. I know he will coach hard, because that is how every coach is. He seems like he is very outgoing and very good at his job.
“He was straight forward with me about everything at Notre Dame. He said it’s not easy, but it would set you up the next three to four years because they take so much summer school that they graduate their players in three years. You are able to leave in three years, so you don’t have go to college an extra year or comeback to college after your career is over. You can have that on the table for NFL scouts and coaches when they try to sign you a contract.
“An academic degree from Notre Dame carries so much weight. You can have the same degree as someone else, but since your degree is from Notre Dame, they aren’t beating you out for that job.”
During practice, Graham got to see the Notre Dame defensive backs up close and personal.
“I liked how the defensive backs were physical at the line and I like to do that,” Graham said. “I love to be physical at the line. They run man defense a lot, so it was very good to see some physical defensive backs.”
All in all, the Notre Dame visit was a great trip for Graham and his father. Notre Dame showed Graham the differences between themselves and other schools.
“I love schools with a lot of tradition and schools that can back themselves up,” stated Graham. “Notre Dame can backup up stuff with statistics or in the books. They can open up the books and show you ‘This is what we have’. Say if I don’t end up doing good in football, I will have a degree to back me up. They have stuff I can be successful with in life without football.”