Notre Dame defensive line coach Al Washington traveled to the East Coast this past weekend to check in on one of his future players.
Washington made the trip to North Carolina to see 2026 Irish defensive line commit Ebenezer Ewetade and his South Garner High School squad.
“It was nice to have that support from the staff to come down and come see me play the game,” Ewetade said.
South Garner lost to Corinth Holders 31-14, but the 6-foot-4, 230-pounder played well.
“I did decent on both offense and defense,” Ewetade said. “I think I had a sack. I don't know how many tackles or tackles for loss, but I got back there a pretty decent amount.”
Ewetade got to chat with Washington quickly during pregame.
“Before the game, we hugged,” said Ewetade. “He told me to get after it. He told me to dominate. I didn't really see him after the game.”
Ewetade did his best, but tried to make sure he wasn’t attempting to do too much.
“It's nice to play in front of him, but you've just got to go out there and you still have to be hungry for it,” he said. “It's like every other game. I can't really get outside my body and try to do other people's jobs.
“I've just got to focus on my job, not trying to chase stats just to impress somebody. I'm just going there to focus on my job and what I need to do to get my team in a good position.”
Washington is a big reason why Ewetade chose Notre Dame over schools like Georgia, Florida State, Miami, Auburn, Alabama, Ohio State, Penn State, Virginia Tech, Duke and Wake Forest among several others.
“Me and Coach Washington have a good relationship,” Ewetade said. “He's going to be my coach very soon, so it's just like family to me.
“Anytime he calls, I've got to pick up the phone. Anytime he texts, I've got to answer. That's just like family. I can already see it.”
Ewetade will make his way to South Bend for the Irish’s home opener this weekend.
“I think it's going to be amazing to go back up there. Get to talk to the new recruits and also watch Notre Dame dominate against Texas A&M.”
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