Making Moves | Notre Dame on the Recruiting Trail 1.24
Notre Dame football will continue its recruiting travels on Wednesday with several key stops, including a stop by national powerhouse IMG Academy.
All stops should be considered tentative as winter weather hits different areas of the country.
Head Coach Marcus Freeman, Offensive Coordinator Mike Denbrock, Running Backs Coach Deland McCullough, Receivers Coach Mike Brown and Cornerbacks Coach Mike Mickens
The traveling party of five will hit Florida to stop and see some of Notre Dame’s top targets in the 2025 recruiting class.
Notre Dame is expected to stop to see 2025 commits Justin Thurman and Ivan Taylor on Wednesday. Both players were in South Bend over the weekend to help do some recruiting.
Berkeley Prep will also host Notre Dame as it's the home of 2025 cornerback target Dallas Golden. Golden was on campus over the weekend and Notre Dame seems to be the leader at this point, but the four-star will also continue to take visits. It’s worth noting Golden is close with the Reader brothers, who are both at Notre Dame, so there are many pro-Notre Dame influences in this one.
Another stop will be to IMG Academy, where there isn’t a lack of talent, but this visit will focus on two top-of-the-board 2025 targets in linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng and 2025 receiver Raiden Vines-Bright, who just arrived at IMG this week.
Owusu-Boateng got his first look at Notre Dame over the weekend and left impressed. It’s still early here, but the Irish have moved into the race. Now, it will be about getting him back for a spring practice or, at a minimum, an official visit in June.
Vines-Bright is a receiver the Irish have been keeping tabs on for quite a while, but Brown has quickly made an aggressive push since taking the job in December. The two had a strong relationship when Brown was recruiting for Wisconsin and that hasn’t changed with his new gig. There seems to be mutual interest from Vines-Bright and he has family in Indianapolis, so look for the staff to make a strong push to get the speedster on campus.
Offers: Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Colorado, Kansas, Louisville, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Purdue, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin
Junior Highlights
Quarterbacks Coach Gino Guidugli
Guidulgi will head to Philly to watch 2026 Germantown Academy (Pa.) quarterback Xavier Stearn throw. The 6-foot-5, 200-pounder is looking for his first offer, but one will be coming soon. As a sophomore, Stearn threw for 2,226 yards and 21 touchdowns.
Sophomore Highlights
Offensive Line Coach Joe Rudolph
Rudolph will head to Virginia and West Virginia on Wednesday. He’ll make an important stop at Hurricane High School (W.V.) to check on 2026 offensive lineman Da’Ron Parks. The 6-foot-5, 270-pounder has turned into a national prospect and that includes the new Alabama staff making sure Parks knew his offer was still there in the last few days. Notre Dame hasn’t offered yet, but he’s definitely a name to keep tabs on.
Offers: Alabama, Cincinnati, Eastern Kentucky, Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Marshall, Miami, Miami (OH), NC State, Ohio State, Penn State, Pitt, SMU, Tennessee, Toledo, Virginia Tech and West Virginia
Sophomore Highlights
Defensive Line Coach Al Washington
Ensworth High School (Tenn.) will host Washington as he checks on 2025 defensive tackle Ethan Utley. The four-star prospect released a top five of Michigan, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Tenneessee and Texas on Christmas.
Junior Highlights
Safeties Coach Chris O’Leary
O’Leary will be in Dallas to do area recruiting.
Special Teams Coordinator Marty Biagi
Biagi will also be in Texas on Wednesday as he’ll make several stops around the Houston area. We expect him to swing by Spring Dekaney to visit with 2025 receiver Tanook Hines and 2025 athlete Nicholas Townsend, who both added an offer from Notre Dame in December.
Hines Offers: Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, Hawaii, Houston, Indiana, Kansas, LSU, Marshall, Maryland, Memphis, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Penn State, San Diego State, SMU, South Carolina, Syracuse, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas State, Texas Tech, UAB, UNLV, USC, UTEP, UTSA, Washington State and Wisconsin
Townsend Offers:
Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Cal, Florida, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, Fresno State, Marshall, Memphis, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Purdue, South Carolina, Syracuse, TCU, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas State, Texas Tech, Tulsa, UAB, UNLV, USC, UTEP, UTSA and Washington State
Hines Junior Highlights
Townsend Junior Highlights