2029 QB Khayel Sam Fong-Talia Details Strong First Impression at Notre Dame Irish Invasion

Notre Dame is no stranger to having elite underclassmen quarterbacks on campus for camp and Friday was no different. 

One of the top signal-callers in attendance was 2029 South Forsyth (Ga.) quarterback Khayel Sam Fong-Talia‍, who made his first trip to South Bend and left campus with a strong impression of both the program and the people leading it.

“First off, it was special,” stated Sam Fong-Talia. “It was a very special feeling going around campus. The first thing we did for the day was go meet with Coach (Marcus) Freeman.

“We had a meeting with him and it was very welcoming. He wasn't intimidating as some head coaches might come off. He was very welcoming, very, very down-to-earth.” 

While the 6-foot-2, 234-pounder enjoyed his interaction with Freeman, building a relationship with quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli was one of the biggest reasons for making the trip.

Mission accomplished. 

“Coach Gino was amazing,” Sam Fong-Talia said. “Definitely the type of coach I would want to work with day in and day out.” 

During the camp, Sam Fong-Talia was able to experience what life could be like if he were to come to Notre Dame from an on-field perspective. Guidugli and assistant Kurt Rawlings coached him hard, but also gave him plenty of attention, as it was a small group of signal callers. 

“It was defintitely good,” said Sam Fong-Talia. “It was great work and I feel the feedback was communicated very effectively. I feel like a lot of coaches either just yell and even with the other 7-8 quarterbacks, the one-on-one coaching was good. It was very easy to take in and be able to fix it on the next rep.” 

Sam Fong-Talia believes he had a solid camp, as the competition only pushed him to be better throughout the day, which included 2029 quarterback Logan Lucero, who also also holds an offer from Notre Dame. 

“I felt amazing out there,” explained Sam Fong-Talia. I felt good ripping it. I feel like an aspect of it was having such a good group of guys out there to compete with. That competition raised my level of competition and made me perform better. 

“Logan throws a great rep, I gotta go in there and throw a better rep. I think that competition between us was really good.” 

Now, the competition wasn’t cutthroat. There wasn’t any tension between Lucero and Sam Fong-Talia, as both quarterbacks had plenty of smiles throughout the day. 

“We’re having fun out there,” Sam Fong-Talia stated. “When you’re having fun doing what you love, it’s easy to do what you want to do.” 

Like many first-time visitors, Sam Fong-Talia was equally impressed by Notre Dame’s campus.

“The campus was very beautiful,” he explained. “I got to see the Grotto and the different cultural aspects of it. It was very peaceful. They were talking about how this is a small college with like 9,000, which I didn’t know. I feel that’s a positive for me because of that aspect. There aren’t a lot of distractions and you can really come in and do what you want to achieve.” 

Sam Fong-Talia will have a somewhat light schedule this month, as he has only two camps left. 

“Next, I have Ohio State on June 18th,” he stated. “Then we have Kentucky on the weekend of the 21st. That’ll be all.” 

As for his recruitment, Sam Fong-Talia is taking a patient approach and plans to focus on his sophomore season before diving into the next step in his process. 

“Definitely focusing on this next season and performing,” explained Sam Fong-Talia. “After that would be when I start to narrow down to a Top 10, Top 5. I’ll most likely make that decision somewhere around my sophomore summer.” 

When that time comes, Sam Fong-Talia will already understand the unique role quarterbacks play in building recruiting classes.

“The commitment with quarterbacks is a lot different,” said Sam Fong-Talia. “You commit first, and you’re the biggest recruiter in the class.” 

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