Film Don't Lie | Jayden Bellamy
Notre Dame has been waiting for that second defensive back commitment to come through in the 2022 class and it finally did when Jayden Bellamy made his commitment public.
His addition is likely to create a domino effect with the board, but what’s more important is that Notre Dame picked up another quality cornerback prospect who knows how to get his hands on the football.
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 175
Projected Position: Cornerback
ISD Grade: 90 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 89.3 (3-star)
What he does best:
It’s obvious he has been well-coached with his technique at the catch point. He plays safety for Bergen Catholic, but he has man coverage skills. Ball production matters and he produces.
He has very strong recognition skills. He reads the break of the receiver on this play and is able to explode to the ball and bring it back the other way.
In general, he is a finisher. There’s a great compete level there that I love to see in any defensive back prospect where he doesn’t give up on the play. That turns into a forced fumble in this particular instance.
He’s not the biggest guy, but you wouldn’t know it by the way he screams downhill against the run. He aims through ball carriers as a tackler.
What he needs to improve:
Obviously he’s someone I’d like to see more of him play corner as opposed to safety. It’s not that he doesn’t have the skills to play safety. It’s that I’m not sure about his size translating to there at the college level.
He looks smaller than his listed height and weight and we’ve heard that he’ll have to put in some good work in Notre Dame’s strength and conditioning program.
I know writing that a player needs to get bigger and stronger seems like it could be used for every prospect, but it’s the number one piece for Bellamy at the next level.
What’s his ceiling?
There is no doubt he is a good football player, but his ceiling is going to be determined by his physical development. He has the speed, recognition and ball skills to eventually become a multi-year starter, but Bellamy has to put in a lot of off the field work to get to that point.
Marcus Freeman and Mike Mickens had a player at Cincinnati in Ahmad Gardner that they can point to how he did what was necessary and then became a top cornerback in college football. If Bellamy follows a similar path, then he has the talent to be a quality starter for the Irish.
Who he could be:
Former Oklahoma defensive back Tre Norwood