2022 Two-Sport Star Robby Snelling Excited by Notre Dame Offer

2022 McQueen (Nev.) linebacker Robby Snelling‍ had a good Monday. The four-star prospect was coming back from a weekend trip and got on the phone with Notre Dame senior analyst Nick Lezynski. 

"I was coming back from camping and I got on the phone with Coach Lezynski on the drive back,” Snelling told Irish Sports Daily. "He gave me all the background and talked about academics. He also talked about all the players that had played football and baseball or played football and ran track. He made sure I was alright with distance and if that was going to be a factor. It was really good talking to him."

At 5:30 pm, Snelling got on the phone with his area recruiter Brian Polian, who delivered some big news for the Reno native. 

"Coach Polian talked about the storied program they have there,” stated Snelling. “He asked me about the distance and what I'd be interested in studying. He asked me if I was ready to receive an offer from Notre Dame for football and baseball.

"It was a great feeling and very cool." 

Snelling has much to learn about Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish have been a topic of conversation in the house for quite some time. 

"I was just really excited,” Snelling said of the offer. “I grew up always hearing the trips my dad took to the camps and big colleges. He went to Notre Dame, Stanford, Cal and he's talked about all the facilities and all the campuses he was able to visit. 

"The big one for him was talking about Notre Dame and how beautiful it is over there. That's always been super exciting for me to hear. I was really excited when Coach Polian told me and I'm excited to keep building a relationship with them." 

Snelling might have received the offer from Polian to play football, but the Irish baseball program has kept tabs on him and would for him to suit up for Link Jarrett in the spring. 

The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder is one of the top left-handed pitches in the country as his fastball consistently hits 92 MPH. 

"I really don't feel like I have to decide on one,” explained Snelling. “I want to play both of them for as long as I can to see how far it takes me. Until somebody tells me I can't play one of them. Then I'll have to make that decision. As of right now, I'm really focused on working on both of them and playing both for as long as I can." 

Baseball is important as Snelling is currently a Stanford baseball commit and it’s safe to say academics will be a significant factor in his decision. 

"Both of my parents are teachers,” stated Snelling. “I don't get a lot of slack when it comes to academics." 

The Cardinal identified Snelling as a pitcher early, but also as a football prospect.

"They were one of the first schools I ended up talking to for baseball,” Snelling explained. “I built a really good relationship with Coach (Thomas) Eager and we hit it off. Stanford isn't so close, but they are within a good driving distance and we were able to go down there to walk around the campus ourselves. 

"One of my dad's football players who had played football at Stanford still works around Palo Alto. He gave us a tour of the campus. It just felt right. It was a beautiful campus. It was getting hectic with all the baseball offers in, so committing for me, it slowed everything down and it felt right at the time." 

The offseason has been a productive one for Snelling as he’s focused on his speed. Snelling has a strict training plan as he doesn’t want to get too big as he doesn’t want size to impact his baseball ability.

"I've focused on my speed in the offseason,” Snelling said. “I've been doing a lot of explosive stuff. It's different for me being a football and baseball player because I can't be getting too muscle-bound focusing on the physical aspect of football. I still need to be mobile to pitch, hit and run in baseball.

"I've been doing a lot of power cleans and front squats. Speed has been the big aspect of my offseason, which it has paid off as I ran my best 40 this summer." 

Strength and conditioning programs will be key moving forward in his recruiting as Snelling wants to make sure his body is developed to succeed in both sports. 

"A lot of the schools I've been talking to have talked about setting a workout plan for me,” Snelling stated. “A lot of the baseball coaches - that's one of their worries. Getting too muscle-bound and not being able to pitch or be fluid. I don't see a problem with Notre Dame as they should be able to do that too." 

On the football field, it’s easy to see a player who loves contact, but the ability to get to the ball also jumps out very quickly.

"I have really good eyes for the field on defense,” said Snelling. “I have good closing speed to make tackles and getting to the line to meet people."