2024 S Paul Mencke Jr. Breaks Down Notre Dame Official

Less than two months after his first trip to Notre Dame, Paul Mencke Jr‍ was back in South Bend for an official visit and once again, the 2024 Texas safety target enjoyed the visit.

“It went really well,” Mencke told Irish Sports Daily. “I really liked it a lot actually. It explained a lot of things. I really think I could get better there. They did a lot of things correct and they really explained everything they do and what the process would be for me.

“They literally gave me things I needed to work on and they showed how I can work on it and how over the years they developed Kyle Hamilton and all these other people.”

Irish safeties coach Chris O’Leary certainly made a tremendous impression.

“Great coach,” the 6-foot-2, 175-pound Mencke said. “I'd already seen him one time for the unofficial abd seen how coaches and everything. Great coach. He knows what he's talking about all day, every day. Great person, great personality. He is a really cool dude. I really like him.”

Mencke also enjoyed his meeting with head coach Marcus Freeman.

“It went really good with Coach Freeman,” said Mencke. “He explained a lot. He's kind of like my dad. He's a really good head coach and he knows what he's talking about. He's defensive-minded, which is a really an advantage for me being a defensive player. We spend a lot and we feel confident with them.”

Mencke also felt like he connected with the other visiting recruits and current players.

“It was like an instant click with them,” he said. “It was really cool. I met with the players and all that stuff. It was just really cool how they were as people and who they are and everything.”

Mencke is planning to head to Duke for an official next weekend, but it’s clear Notre Dame put itself in a very strong position.

“It kind of confirmed what I thought it would be. It kind of added on a little bit. I got to meet some more people and so I kind of tried to change my perspective a little bit in a good way.”

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