The Latest | Notre Dame & Khalil Barnes

Prior to taking an official visit to Notre Dame earlier this month, many assumed it was only a matter of time before Khalil Barnes‍ committed to Clemson.

Immediately after Barnes saw Notre Dame dominate the Tigers during that trip, that thinking had flipped and many were rushing to put in predictions for the 2023 Georgia athlete to sign with the Irish.

Following an official visit to Clemson this past weekend, the pendulum is once again swinging back toward the Tigers.

But in talking with sources we trust – sources in position to know – the predictions have been more about theater than substance from the start.

At every stage, those sources have assured us Barnes had not made up his mind and just this week, we were again told he remains undecided.

Barnes may have been leaning toward Clemson after decommitting from Wake Forest in October, but he was never a done deal.

And while he was extremely impressed with Notre Dame on that official visit, the idea that the Irish had jumped out to any sort of insurmountable lead was never true.

We’re in the same spot now with one source saying they’d be willing to put their hand on a Bible and swear no decision has been made.

“If I had to put a percentage on it, it would be slap down the middle 50/50,” the same source said.

Obviously, the two schools have gone back and forth a bit, but the jostling has mostly aligned with visits to the two schools.

Now, Barnes will step back for a bit – just a bit though – before making a final decision. That decision is likely to come sometime next week, but won’t be announced until Dec. 16th.

We do feel very confident in reiterating that this is a Notre Dame-Clemson battle all of the way.

Oklahoma tried to get involved down the stretch, but was never able to get Barnes down to Norman for a visit

“He’s not going to go anywhere sight unseen. That’s just not going to happen.”

Under Armour Green Fighting Irish HOVR Sonic 5 Running Shoes ($119.99)