2024 NJ DL Owen Wafle High on Notre Dame

2024 Hun School (N.J.) defensive lineman Owen Wafle‍ picked up an offer from Notre Dame last week and it was a significant offer. 

Wafle had grown up watching Notre Dame and has developed strong relationships with a couple of members of the Irish staff. 

"I've been in contact with Chad Bowden and Coach Washington,” Wafle told ISD. “Coach Bowden is awesome. I love him. He's got a good energy about him. He's a super cool dude.

"Coach Washington has let me know he really wants me to come there and stuff like that. He also said he likes my playing style." 

The 6-foot-3, 250-pounder is an interesting prospect as he could end up as an interior lineman or stay on the outside because of his athleticism. Colleges have already made it known his game has the flexibility to play either position and it will come down to how Wafle fills out physically. 

"Most schools are looking at me as an athlete because they don't know how my body will shape up,” explained Wafle. “Right now, some schools are saying interior, but a lot of schools feel I can play edge.

"They feel I have a versatile body frame with longer arms, but I'm short enough to get under bigger linemen."

Wafle is learning both positions and feels it’s only expanding his game to have more opportunity to get on the field in college.

"It makes it a little easier, so I don't have to focus on one particular position,” Wafle stated. “I can train for multiple, which makes it easier for me because I want to learn as much as possible so I can be even better." 

The New Jersey native also made the trip out to South Bend in the fall. In fact, it was Wafle’s first college game, so naturally, he was blown away by the environment inside Notre Dame Stadium. 

"It was probably one of the coolest experiences,” said Wafle. “I hadn't really been to a college game before and that was my first one. It was really cool to watch and listen to the crowd. They have the recruits sit right in front of the student section. I didn't know this, but they lift each other up in the air when they score. That was kind of crazy because I had never seen that before.” 

Wafle is taking his time with the recruiting process, but he's also embracing it. The early attention caught him off guard and focused on building relationships, but more importantly, Wafle is putting in the work to become a better player. 

"Honestly, the first couple were a little weird because I didn't know how to handle it. I'm just trying to keep my head on straight. There is a lot of stuff I want to accomplish before I go to college." 

As for the next step in his recruitment, Wafle plans to be at Notre Dame this weekend and could make the quick trip over to Rutgers this spring. 

"Rutgers has always been in contact through my coach asking me to come to basketball games or take a tour," said Wafle. "I think I might go to a practice soon." 

Ranking
ISD: N/R
247: N/R
Rivals: 5.8 (four-star)
ESPN: N/R

Offers: Boston College, Kent State, UMass, Michigan, Notre Dame, Rutgers, Syracuse, VMI and West Virginia 

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