BREAKING | LB Jaiden Ausberry Commits To Notre Dame
It was always going to take a lot to pluck Jaiden Ausberry from SEC Country, but the combination of Marcus Freeman and Al Washington qualified as more than a lot for Notre Dame.
The 2023 Louisiana linebacker just announced his commitment to the Irish.
“I really like the coaching staff,” Ausberry told Irish Sports Daily earlier in the week. “I really think they fulfill everything that I need from the head coach down to everybody. I really interact with the players well. I really think it's going to be the best place for me in the long run.”
Ausberry gives the Irish 21 verbal commitments in the Class of 2023 and joins Drayk Bowen and Preston Zinter to give them a trio of linebackers.
The Baton Rouge native chose the Irish over LSU, Michigan, Texas A&M and Auburn among several others.
He enjoyed his first visit to South Bend last summer. At the time, Marcus Freeman was entering his first season as Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator and Al Washington was an assistant at Ohio State. They were Ausberry’s two favorite recruiters.
By the time he returned for an unofficial during the spring, Freeman was the head coach for the Irish and Washington was on the staff in South Bend.
“For them to come together, that really meant a lot to me,” said Ausberry. “I had really good relationships with both them. My family really gets along well with both of them. I know that I'm going to have people who want to develop me on and off the field and care about me more than just as a football player. That really means a lot to me.”
Ausberry was the only true linebacker Notre Dame had been pursuing seriously after Bowen and Zinter committed.
“It really showed me that they didn't just want me like that, but they really needed me,” Ausberry said of the attention. “They kept talking to me, calling me everything like that. They were coming after me hard, so that was really showing me that they really needed me to come in at linebacker.”
Notre Dame plans to maximize Ausberry’s talents.
“They say I'll probably be a three-down linebacker, hopefully all three linebackers; Mike, Will and Rover,” he explained. “They want me to come in there and get playing time as a freshman. I'm trying to start. We haven't really got in-depth like that, but you never know what could happen. That's my plan, but they really want to get me on the field.”
Ausberry is excited about joining the current group of Notre Dame commitments.
“On my official, I was getting along really well with most of them; Drayk, Keon (Keeley), all of them. When we go there together, I really think we're going to have one of the best classes ever.”
Film Don’t Lie |LB Jaiden Ausberry
Ranking
ISD: 93 (four-star)
247: 91 (four-star)
Rivals: 5.9 (four-star)
ESPN: 86 (four-star)
Composite: 95.10 (four-star)
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