Inside A Unique Notre Dame Visit For 2024 S Marquis Gallegos & His Father
The Gallegos family got a taste of life at Notre Dame last spring as 2024 Chaminade (Calif.) safety Marquis Gallegos made the trip to South Bend for the Blue-Gold Game.
It was a quick trip as the four-star safety also made stops at Michigan and Ohio State.
Notre Dame left a positive impression on Gallegos as he spoke highly of his experience on campus, but wasn’t able to make it back in the fall. Marcus Freeman and his staff did make it perfectly clear how much the Irish were interested in Gallegos as they stopped by Chaminade High School during the winter evaluation period, which we’ll get to later.
Last weekend, Gallegos and his father, Sam, traveled back to the Midwest to visit Notre Dame, Michigan and Michigan State.
“It was a little unique,” Mr. Gallegos told ISD. “We planned this out around his spring break, but we weren’t aware that it was Easter Sunday that weekend, so we felt a little weird. We felt we put the coaches in a position where they had to entertain us and take them away from their families. We went with the plan to just go there on Saturday, but of course, they made us feel great and very comfortable.”
Notre Dame’s staff was more than accommodating as Gallegos was the only recruit on campus, which led to a unique experience. In fact, the Gallegos made their way to campus on Sunday morning to spend time in The Basilica with Chad Bowden and his family.
“We went to Easter mass on Sunday,” stated Mr. Gallegos. “We are Catholic, but we’re not overly religious. It was an awesome experience. It just felt great on both days. It felt intimate. It was more of us hanging out than recruiting trip.”
The Easter weekend trip also allowed for some father-son time as the Gallegos’ were able to get out and experience South Bend.
“The last time we were here, we only spent one night in South Bend,” Mr. Gallegos explained. “We got there Friday night and stayed until Monday. It gave us a whole feel for South Bend. Everything was kind of closed for Easter Sunday, so we were able to hop on a couple of scooters and went around the city to look at everything. We were able to see how the city was laid out and everything else, so that was fun.”
Saturday had the feel of a regular recruiting visit as there were meetings and time spent with the coaching staff for most of the day.
It was also a big day for Gallegos as a father because he hadn’t had a sit down conversation with Marcus Freeman. The Chaminade coaching staff went out of their way to highlight their time with Freeman when he stopped by over the winter, which made Gallegos look forward to the time with Notre Dame’s head man even more.
“Marquis’ coaches have talked with a lot of coaches who have been recruiting him, but they had never called me,” recalled Mr. Gallegos. “When Coach Freeman went there, the head coach called me right away and told me how impressed he was with Freeman and how he really was looking at Marquis as a guy who could really fit the program. He said a lot of good things about Coach Freeman.”
And if anyone doubted the sincerity of the thoughts of Chaminade’s head coach, they were backed up with actions as a large group of coaches from the high school flew out to Notre Dame for practice a few weeks ago.
Regardless, the elder Gallegos was intrigued by the chance to sit down with Freeman and learn more about the Irish head coach.
“With me sitting with him, it was more of the same in terms of how impressed with the family man he is and the type of program he is building there,” Mr. Gallegos explained. “For me, Notre Dame kind of has that old school feel, but it has that young coaching staff with a young attitude and they’re very motivated to progress into this new age of football. It’s not like the old Notre Dame that everyone thinks about. The staff is younger and they’re doing great things.”
Notre Dame’s Director of Recruiting, Chad Bowden, also made plenty of time for the Gallegos’ and the impression won’t soon be forgotten.
Bowden has a knack for creating buzz, but behind the scenes, he has captured a lot of respect from recruits and parents for his genuine personality.
“He’s a unique guy, but honestly, from our point of view, Chad is more of a guy I would meet out here in LA,” said Mr. Gallegos. “That’s how we relate to him. He’s a fun guy and really honest about his answers. He doesn’t hold back on stuff. You could tell he’s just being himself and being out here in LA, I like people like that. You meet a lot of people out here and there are people who say what they want to say.
“Chad gives me a feeling of a friend I would have out here in LA. I could see he’s very charismatic and how all the parents and kids relate to him. He’s a lot of fun to be around.
Fun might be an understatement as Bowden and O’Leary made it a day the Gallegos’ won’t soon forget.
“We teased him a bit,” laughed Mr. Gallegos. “He even suited up with Marquis in some of the photos. We had a great time out there.
“With us, Chad and Coach O’Leary, it almost felt like we were a couple friends with all the access to Notre Dame football. We just had fun in the stadium, took pictures and we were able to look at everything in a different way and how we fit into that place.”
Recruiting trips might be fun, but Gallegos is approaching when his recruitment will take a serious turn.
Gallegos has been to Notre Dame, Michigan, Oregon, USC and many other places, so the next step will be figuring out his plans for official visits and then a decision.
The Chaminade star will make the final call, but his parents will also guide him to make a decision to set himself up for success on and off the field.
“It will be his decision, but there are ultimately some schools that I’m going to pretty much say you’re not going there,” Mr. Gallegos said. “At this point, I don’t know if I’ll get some pushback from him because we haven’t got down to talking about every school. It’s going to end up being a school the whole family is comfortable with and there are just a handful that fit that criteria.
“Between his mom and me, we feel we got a good look at the differences between these schools and we know which ones will give him the best opportunities with life after football. That’s a big factor for us. The weight of the degree and, of course, the NFL is the dream, but staying a fourth year and getting a master’s degree isn’t bad either.”
Gallegos has taken his parents words to heart as the 6-foot-1, 175-pounder is one of the most mature prospects in the class and he’s made it clear in previous interviews that academics are a significant piece to his process.
“The academics part of it is huge,” stated Mr. Gallegos. “I think we have schools that are great at academics and football. It’s a good mix.
“We’re starting to see the difference between these schools and what they have to offer. I think ultimately, whatever decision he makes, I don’t think there is any wrong choice within the schools he’ll choose from.”
Mr. Gallegos also highlighted the importance of taking multiple visits to schools. Of course, not every prospect is able to fly from LA to the Midwest numerous times, but it’s also why Michigan, Notre Dame and Ohio State push for visits early in high school.
“When you do a lot of these visits, what sticks to your mind is that last visit and those last trips,” Mr. Gallegos explained. “You start forgetting a little bit of what those earlier visits felt like. When you start making two or three visits, you start gathering new information and are able to ask questions. You start knowing more about the school and what you didn’t cover on the last visit. You’re able to get more comfortable with asking questions and gathering more information.”
There isn’t a Recruiting for Dummies book out there and one wouldn’t suffice as each recruitment is entirely different - even within a single family.
But getting to as many schools as possible seems to be the common denominator between parents as it’s the only way to determine which school is a good fit.
“Going to other schools, you start seeing what the other schools lack and it’s a good thing to see,” said Gallegos. “You start noticing the difference in schools. A lot of times when you visit and you ask questions, the answers will say, ‘We have the same as this school. We have the equipment. We have the same nutrition.’ The more trips you start making you figure out they don’t. It’s not equal or the same. There are a lot of differences that I don’t know if they know, but they aren’t the same.
“You can be impressed by any school. They’re all impressive. Ultimately, I think it does come down to the best fit for the kid.”
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