2025 DL Brad Fitzgibbon Talks Notre Dame Visit, Interest From Irish

Brad Fitzgibbon‍ has always had one eye on Notre Dame, even when the 2025 Chicago defensive lineman wasn’t sure the Irish had an eye on him. 

And now, they seem to have eyes on each other.

“I've kind of been keeping up with Notre Dame a little bit here and there,” the Marist School standout told Irish Sports Daily. “They've kind of been watching me as I progress through high school. 

“I figured they kind of passed over me, which happens and is totally OK in the process. But I guess they reopened some spots for the 25s, especially at d-line and they needed another d-lineman. I was able to reach out with Coach (Al) Washington and be able to get in better contact with him. Now, we're just going from there.”

Going from there included Fitzgibbon traveling down to South Bend for the Irish’s spring game this past weekend.

“It was awesome,” the 6-foot-3, 280-pounder said. “I was able to sit in the indoor practice field. That was the nicest one I've seen as far as the windows and the amount of outside light they let in. It is awesome. I was able to witness the groundbreaking of their new facility that they unveiled. That was really cool to be a part of that.”

Fitzgibbon was able to connect with 2025 Notre Dame defensive line commit Joseph Reiff, who he trains with back home.

“He's been really good at answering some questions that I may have forgotten or didn't have time to ask Coach Washington,” Fitzgibbon said of Reiff. “He was really good at introducing me to coaches and showing me around and telling me what's going down and what's happening. It was a blessing to have him there and have that connection.”

Fitzgibbon has almost 20 offers from schools like Michigan State, Kansas, Wisconsin, Arizona State, Vanderbilt and Cornell among several others.

He isn’t exactly sure where he falls on the Irish’s current defensive line board.

“But I do know that he said I'm on a very short list of who he's still going after, who he's still recruiting, so I'm just hoping to be that one that he picks,” he said. 

It’s clear he holds Notre Dame in high regard.

“Notre Dame's history just in itself and the program and the guys who come out Notre Dame, the guys who go into Notre Dame, just everything about it,” he said of what stands out. “The people they have and the alumni and the connection with Marist, with Nick Weishar and Pat Coogan, those are guys who speak very highly of Notre Dame and people who haven't gone to Notre Dame speak very highly of Notre Dame. 

“From the outside, people praise it very highly. That's something that initially caught my eye. Everyone knows Notre Dame and so it was always a really cool school I wanted to visit, but having that connection to Marist has been awesome and knowing what they accomplish and how they handle it is something that definitely caught my eye and something I'm super interested in as a program.”

Fitzgibbon is expecting to see the Irish at Marist some point soon as the Notre Dame staff hits the road for the Contact Period.

“I'm excited,” he said. “I take pride in my workouts and school, so all that hard work that kids put into school to get into Notre Dame, I've already done that. I have that established in my grades and I have that established in my work ethic that I'm able to be a part of Notre Dame. 

“Knowing that they're interested in me and that he's coming to school, I could be nervous, but I'm more excited because I don't have to turn it up or turn it down at football. It's always the same level. When colleges come through, it's nothing different. It's always the same. Whatever happens in front of them always happens behind closed doors as well. The way I practice and the way I lift is 100 percent all the time, so when colleges come through, I'm not worried because I just do what I do every single time.”

He has officials set to Michigan State (May 31st) and Kansas (June 6th). He doesn’t have a set date to announce a commitment, but this isn’t a process he plans on dragging out.

“If I truly believe a school is where I want to be, then I can make the decision tomorrow,” he said. “I can make the decision tonight. It doesn't matter. I don't really have a set time that I will be committing, but I know that I will be committing before the end of June most definitely no matter what.”

An offer from the Irish would be one he’d consider very seriously.

“It's unmatched between colleges and I believe that yeah, it would shoot to the top of my recruiting if I were to get that offer.”

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