Hudsen Close grew up a Notre Dame fan, so this past weekend’s trip to South Bend for the Irish’s game against Boise State was extra special for the 2028 Kentucky offensive lineman.
“Me and my dad, we've been lifelong Notre Dame fans,” the 6-foot-4, 295-pounder told Irish Sports Daily. “For as long as I can remember, we've always been Notre Dame.
“It was good to see them get a big win against Boise. They looked pretty good.”
The Taylor County High School standout was impressed with what he saw on campus in South Bend.
“Their indoor is crazy,” he said. “Everything, the food, the experience, the talking, everything was wild. The Player Walk too, it was crazy. It was super nice.”
Close said the atmosphere inside Notre Dame Stadium was “wild.”
“Probably the loudest stadium I've been to out of any of my other visits,” he said. “It's definitely extremely crazy and the student section was crazy too.”
Close picked up offers from Louisville and Texas A&M late last month to go with offers he already had from schools like East Carolina, Liberty and Eastern Kentucky.
“It's surreal,” he said of the recent Power-4 offers. “Being a small town kid, it's crazy to me. It's really special.”
He’d love to add the Irish to that list.
“Them and Louisville are definitely my two biggest schools and definitely one of my dreams to get offered by them,” he said.
“I hope they continue to stay interested in me and see where it takes me.”
While in town, Close was able to speak with Irish offensive line coach Joe Rudolph.
“He just asked how everything was going, asked me about my injury from last year and how that's going and how our season's going this year with my high school team,” Close explained.
“He's a great guy. I've met him twice now and he's always been great to me, so I really appreciate him.”
Want the latest scoop on the Fighting Irish? Sign up for our newsletter and become an ISD Premium Subscriber: Sign Up for ISD
Under Armour Green Notre Dame Fighting Irish Unstoppable Full-Zip Bomber Jacket
