Closing Out the Class
The transition from Brian Kelly to Marcus Freeman wasn’t what caused the three decommitments from CJ Williams, Amorion Walker, and Devin Moore, but regardless of why they happened, it’s now Freeman’s job to help fill the holes that were created.
The loss of Moore was taken care of by the addition of Brandon Joseph via the transfer portal so there isn’t a need to try and land a safety on February’s signing day. That’s one less thing that Freeman and his staff have to worry about.
Wide receiver is a different story and there aren’t exactly any prospects left on the board who can match the talent of Williams. They have offered two very intriguing receivers who I believe offer similar potential to Walker, so all is not lost if they can land one or both of them to close out the class.
Wide receiver Justius Lowe
The Utah commit is from Oregon and has trained with Notre Dame signee Tobias Merriweather. He reminds me a bit of another player from that state who currently plays for the Irish.
Lowe definitely has some of Braden Lenzy’s athletic traits. He has good twitch and demonstrates some shake to evade tacklers. I like what I see from his footwork and he’s a solid route runner.
He does a nice job tracking the deep ball and exhibits good body control going up for the football as well.
It will be interesting to see what Notre Dame thinks of him when they get to see him in person because to me he looks a little bit smaller than what he is listed at (6’1” 180). I think he projects to “X” (the field) with some potential to play in the slot.
ISD grade: 89 (3-star)
Wide receiver Caleb Douglas
I was surprised by how much I liked Caleb Douglas’ senior film. I think the former USC commit is underrated nationally.
He snatches the football naturally away from his body and is a long strider who can stretch the field. He may not be the most sudden, but he’s pretty smooth for someone 6’3”. He needs quite a bit of refinement as a route runner, but the tools are there for him to develop into a good one.
He shows tremendous potential as a jump ball receiver. Some of the adjustments he makes and the body control he displays is impressive. He reminds me a bit of a slimmer Kevin Austin.
ISD grade: 90 (4-star)
Notre Dame also threw out an offer to another running back in the 2022 cycle, which was surprising to me…until I watched Andrew Pauls film.
This kid shocked me with his lateral agility for someone who is 220. It’s not a shock to see him run through tackles or truck a defensive back at that size, but his ability to make a defender miss in the hole combined with the vision to anticipate those cuts really jumped out.
He’s been blowing up as of late with offers from the Irish, Clemson and Michigan. It’s not difficult to see why. He flashes the juice to run away from defenders and the power he brings to the table is undeniable.
My biggest knock on him would be that he can get high with his pad level at times, but that doesn’t prevent him from showing good balance after contact. Paul has some small back quicks and big back power.
I don’t think the Irish need another back in this class, but Paul is a prospect that is worth the time to try and land.
ISD grade: 91 (4-star)