Elite 2023 S Caleb Downs Talks Notre Dame Visit

There’s a simple reason Caleb Downs‍ keeps coming back to Notre Dame.

“The stuff that they have after football and preparing you for life,” the elite 2023 Georgia safety told Irish Sports Daily.

Downs got an even closer look at that “stuff” when he returned to South Bend for the Irish’s Blue-Gold Game this weekend.

“It was good,” Downs said. “I got to talk to some alumni, I got to talk to some NFL players who they have right now. I got to eat with some of the recruits, watch the game and that's pretty much it.”

The message from Chris O’Leary, Chad Bowden and Marcus Freeman remains the same.

“Come here and get developed off the field and on the field,” Downs said of the pitch from the Irish staff.

And that was on display this weekend with so many former players in town.

“It was good because you got to see firsthand that the networking they speak of is real,” said Downs, who added he could see the Irish’s process also works to develop pro players.

His impressions of the Notre Dame coaches are also positive.

“Great men, people to learn from,” he said.

The Mill Creek High School star, who was making his third trip to Notre Dame, also felt he’d fit with the other recruits he met on campus.

“The two safety commits (Adon Shuler‍ and Peyton Bowen‍) they have right now are both good people, good players,” Downs said. “The big d-end ( Keon Keeley‍) they have, he's rated the #1 d-end, so I know he can go.”

Downs’ offer sheet includes Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Texas A&M and Stanford among several others.

He has a few more unofficials to others in mind, but hasn’t locked any in just yet.

He’s also starting to look at official visits, but wasn’t ready to say exactly where he may go at this time.

Downs still plans to have a decision before the fall, but didn’t rule out adjusting that.

“My previous timeline was the end of the summer and that's still it, but it could change if it happens to.”

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