Julian Bruno spent months building his relationship with Notre Dame from the other side of the country. One weekend in the Midwest was enough to end his recruitment.
Bruno committed to the Irish while in South Bend for the Miami game, telling head coach Marcus Freeman, linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary and Director of Recruiting Carter Auman before going public with his decision.
"Really just all the conversations and stuff I've had with the coaches over the past couple months," Bruno told Irish Sports Daily of what led to his commitment.
"They really made it feel like home, especially talking to Coach BJ, Coach Freeman and Carter Auman. They just really made it feel like home, and being able to get up here, see the facilities, see the campus and stuff, and especially get to see that game day environment. I loved it, man."
The staff's reaction matched the moment.
"Oh, they were pumped," Bruno said. "They said I made their day, and after that big win, saying that means a lot."
Bruno had more than 20 offers from schools like USC, UCLA, Michigan, Oregon, Texas, Stanford and Washington among many others.
The 6-foot-1, 225-pounder has been Notre Dame's focus at linebacker for a while. The Grant Union standout was told early on that the Irish wanted him to lead the class.
"That I'm their guy and that every class they've had has been led by the linebacker and they want me to be that guy for this class," Bruno told us of Notre Dame’s message earlier this fall.
The plan Jean-Mary laid out for him helped seal it.
"Just the vision Coach BJ has for me at linebacker," Bruno said. "He sees me being a green dot guy, a guy who can get into The League, and I really like that Coach Freeman played linebacker. So it's almost like having two high-level linebacker coaches that coach me. I really think that would be good for my development."
Bruno watched the Irish defense hold up against top-ranked Miami on Saturday night, injuries and all, and liked what he saw.
Now, he is part of a class with designs on the top spot in the country.
"We were talking about it, we're going to build the #1 class in the country," Bruno said.
He is already recruiting for it, with his eyes on a couple of his West Coast guys. Mostly, though, he is happy his own process is finished.
"A weight off my shoulders. It feels great to just know that I found my spot and I can get back to work, get ready for this playoff push in this next senior year."
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