The state of North Carolina has been a part of the country that has been very good to Notre Dame in recent years and it continued in this most recent recruiting class. The Irish just signed Rodney Dunham, Ebenezer Ewetade, Thomas Davis Jr., and Nicholas Reddish from the 2026 cycle. They just added another blue-chip defender in CB Xavier Hasan.
Mike Mickens continues to assemble an elite secondary. Hasan impressed at Irish Invasion in the summer and has been highly productive on the field over the last two seasons with 10 interceptions and four kick return touchdowns.
I’m a huge fan of his game.
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 185
Projected Position: Cornerback
ISD Grade: 94 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 92.5 (4-star)
What he does best:
A fluid athlete who is comfortable playing multiple techniques, he has very good instincts and great ball skills.
He plays even bigger than his weight would suggest. He can be physical in coverage and can deliver a blow as a tackler.
Hasan has easy speed. He does a great job staying in-phase on deep passes and has the skills to develop into an outstanding man coverage corner. His short area quickness and ability to mirror receivers is extremely impressive.
What he needs to improve:
He will play more man coverage at Notre Dame than he does at Cardinal Gibbons and it will be an adjustment for him. As mentioned above, he has the traits to be successful at it.
He does a good job of using his hands to control receivers, but can get better at establishing that earlier to disrupt routes.
What’s his ceiling?
He’s not Leonard Moore in terms of size, but he checks the right boxes when it comes to matching up outside. Some defensive backs just pop on film with how easy it looks for them as athletes and that absolutely fits with Hasan.
I think he can be an absolute beast when his game is refined further under Mickens. His ability to stay in-phase, his ball skills, and how he can almost run the route for the receiver reminds me so much of Ben Morrison. He was an elite corner for the Irish and eventually became a second round pick despite an injury that knocked him out for the end of the 2024 season.
Who he could be:
Former Notre Dame CB Ben Morrison
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