Elite 2028 DE Asher Ghioto Opens Up About Growing Bond With Notre Dame
It’s been a busy offseason for 2028 Bolles School (Fla.) defensive end Asher Ghioto.
The five-star prospect has logged plenty of recruiting miles over the past several months, but his primary focus has remained on preparing for the 2026 season.
Bolles has emerged as one of Florida’s premier programs with state championship expectations every year and this fall will be no different as the Bulldogs have a roster filled with Division I talent.
“Summer workouts have been going amazing,” Ghioto told ISD. “We just finished up right before our July break, so we can give our bodies time to recover because it's the only long break that we're going to have until December 22nd, when we get off for Christmas break. We're really taking advantage of that, getting ready to just recover our bodies and all that good stuff.”
The 6-foot-5, 240-pounder is especially excited about continuing to train under strength coach Cedric Scott, who joined Bolles last summer after spending time on the Jacksonville Jaguars' strength and conditioning staff.
A former NFL defensive lineman, Scott has brought a college-like approach to the program, something Ghioto believes gives Bolles a significant edge.
“He knows how to get us right,” explained Ghioto. He knows how to get us athletically better and more inclined. It's going amazingly all around. There's some stuff that would have never even been done before that we're doing now.
“All these colleges I'm going to and all the ones that I made it to, it's very, very similar to all those workouts, of course, without the college-level weight for a majority of people. We’re just growing as a team and getting ready for the season.”
Although Ghioto has been one of the nation's premier recruits for the last two years, this season marks the first time he'll enter the fall as one of Bolles' veteran leaders.
Ghioto is ready for a significant leadership role and he’s quick to credit those who came before him.
“We had four kids last year,” Ghioto stated. “One went to Miami, one went to Ohio State, one went to Clemson and one went to Florida State. It was all the top guys who were at school last year and I feel like that's what helped me grow as a person, as a player, as a leader as well.
“Every year I've been there, there's always been top guys. Being that top guy and having my teammates be that top guy too, like Xander (Edwards) or JC (Wessel), our tight end, or Camden (Tietze), our receiver, we have all those guys. It's awesome this year because I am stepping into those shoes, filling those shoes of being that guy who people can be like, “He's the guy who does all that stuff. He works his butt off. I want to do it like him.’”
Edwards and Ghioto have become close friends over the years and have taken several trips to Notre Dame together.
Earlier this week, Edwards received an offer from the Irish, and Ghioto couldn't have been happier.
“I was in the air coming back from LA,” Ghioto said. “I didn’t have service, but one text came through and it was from my dad saying Xander got offered. I didn’t know from what school until I landed and it was Notre Dame.
“I was smiling for him. I know how much it means to him. I know the legacy that is there, but I know he’s ready to build his own legacy, so it’s awesome for him. We’ve been going on trips to South Bend since seventh grade, so I’m super excited for him.”
As for his own recruitment, Ghioto was busy this spring, making several trips for visits and camps.
The Florida native is past offer hunting as he holds over 60 scholarship offers, but this spring was more about learning about each school and getting a better feel for each staff.
Ghioto will be the first to admit that in-state programs have hosted him more often, but that’s only because they can be day trips from Jacksonville.
Notre Dame didn’t host Ghioto this spring, but that was by design, not due to the Fighting Irish fading.
“It was very nice to get back and see the schools that I really haven't been able to see a lot, excluding the Florida schools because I get to get around to those pretty often,” Ghioto said. “But all those further schools, it was nice to see those schools again. Notre Dame is my third most visited school behind the Florida schools.
“I know what is up there now. I know that Notre Dame checks a lot of those boxes for me and most of my boxes, to be quite honest. Now I'm really connecting with the new coach, Coach (Charlie) Partridge. We're texting every day. He's keeping me updated. I'm keeping him updated. We're always talking. We’re starting to build a connection.”
That relationship has developed quickly, thanks in large part to Partridge's personality.
“There was a picture he sent me of him and guys paintballing,” laughed Ghioto. “He had a big smile on his face and he was being goofy in the picture. He looks a little intimidating, but if you call him, he’s a jolly guy.
“There's that fine line of field time and off the field time. I feel like he separates that perfectly from what I've heard as well. There are only good things to say about him. He's awesome and he always keeps me updated about the fun things.”
When it comes to a commitment, Ghioto isn’t close to making a decision, as he wants not only to find the right fit but also one he can be pleased with for the rest of his life.
“I feel like I'm still far away from making that decision,” explained Ghioto. “I want to string it out as long as possible. Again, I've said this before, once I commit, I'm not flipping. I'm not decommitting. I don't want to do that.
“This is the one thing in my life that I want to be the most sure of besides marriage. I'm marrying this school for the next 40 years. I don't want to make that decision purely based on feelings or emotions. I want to make sure it's the right place all around.”
While he hasn't named any favorites, it's clear Notre Dame aligns well with the priorities guiding his recruitment.
The first is development.
“Development,” stated Ghioto. “Who can send me to the NFL? That's been my dream since I was a kid. It's the whole reason for college. It's the minor leagues, in my opinion. It's finding that space where I can look at that track record or finding a coach like Coach Partridge, who's been around those guys. He knows what it takes to be in that position.
“When those draft scouts go looking, they're not looking for college dudes who can be NFL prospects. They're looking for NFL dudes who are just in college right now. They don't want to develop anybody in the NFL. You have to be developed by the time you get there. Just finding a coach who can get me to that NFL level by the end of my junior year because I want to be a three-and-out guy.”
Faith is another non-negotiable.
“That's one of the things Notre Dame definitely checks off for me, is the faith component,” Ghioto explained. “I feel like if a team has one common goal of just coming together as a team, being able to believe in something and just have faith. If you can have faith in Jesus and know that Jesus died on the cross for you and know that that counted for you, you can have faith in anything.
“One common goal is how most teams win championships. I feel like that's how Ohio State won its national championship. When they did, it was because their teams were so deeply rooted in faith and all the community service they were doing. That year, it was different. I definitely believe faith is one of the biggest components. If not the biggest, I feel like it's tied with development.”
Ghioto will also be diving into the academics of each school and he’s not just giving it lip service. It wasn’t an easy decision to attend the Bolles School, but Ghioto knew it would benefit him down the line.
“Academics,” Ghioto said of his third requirement. “Another thing that Notre Dame checks off. Going to Bolles, it's definitely very academically inclined compared to other schools. It's different here. It's an Ivy League prep school. The people who go here go to Ivy League schools.
“It's a different level of education. I want to have the same level of education when I get to college because the whole point of these four years at Bolles is to make college easier. I don't want to go to a school that's easy because it's kind of like, why did I do all that then? I want to make sure I put that to good use, and those four years of hard high school were definitely worth it.”
Along with academics, Ghioto is paying close attention to the network each school can offer him in football and life after football.
“Majoring or minoring in whatever you want is great, but if you don't know people who can put you in a good space, then at the end of the day, it's useless,” explained Ghioto. “You can say you know all the stuff, but if you don't know someone who’s going to put you in that space to utilize what you know, it's worthless. I feel like that's definitely another thing Notre Dame checks off the list, given its strong alumni base.”
There are a few more details Ghioto wants in a school, but it’s clear he knows what he wants in a program.
“There's obviously more that goes into it,” said Ghioto. “Just little things like nutrition, weights, the transformations from when you go to high school to college. But those are my big four in terms of what will determine my decision.”
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