2019 CA DL Bandes Hearing from Irish

2019 Pittsburg (Calif.) defensive tackle Jacob Bandes‍ is quietly blowing up on the West Coast, and the attention has recently caught the eye of Notre Dame. Recruiting coordinator Brian Polian reached out to the 6-foot-2, 275-pounder and Bandes was excited to hear from the Irish. 

“Coach Polian talked to me about my recruitment and how he is interested in me,” Bandes told Irish Sports Daily. “I guess Notre Dame likes me a lot. They haven’t offered me, but I am pretty sure I could get the offer soon. Coach Polian told me they liked me and Notre Dame was going to recruit me. 

“They sent me a poster, and it’s actually hanging in my room right now.”

Oregon, Oregon State, San Jose State, UCLA, Utah, and Washington have already offered the four-star prospect, but Alabama is also poking around. 

Bandes plans to take advantage of the new NCAA rule allowing prospects to take spring official visits. The California native isn’t quite ready to set those visits, but he is doing his research on the schools recruiting him. 

“I don’t really have any visits planned right now,” stated Bandes. “I was thinking about when I wanted to take my official visits. I am going to do all of my official visits at the end of my junior year in the spring.”  

The school Bandes grew up a fan of caught even caught me off guard, but once he explained why Ole Miss was a childhood favorite, it made perfect sense. 

“When I was little, I liked Ole Miss because of the great linebacker that played for the 49ers, Patrick Willis,” explained Bandes. “He was a beast. He’s scary, and that’s why I liked Ole Miss. Being a 49ers fan, Willis was one of the guys I looked up to.”

When it comes to his own game, Bandes takes pride in having the ability to play with power, but he also has some pass rush moves.

“I try to play physical and with finesse,” Bandes stated. “When it’s a run, I have to kick the butt out of the lineman, but when it’s a pass, I have to finesse the lineman with my pass rushing moves. 

“I need to work on my speed, but my strength is good. I am working on improving my speed and getting off the ball.”

With some of the top coaches in the country recruiting him, Bandes is focused on building relationships so he can know who he can trust. 

“All the coaches are trying to build a relationship, so I can feel more at home with them,” Bandes explained. “They are trying to educate me on their school and stuff. I know how the process works.” 

On his visits, Bandes will be paying close attention to the educational opportunities at each school, and then he will look into the football side of things.  

“Academics come first and foremost,” said Bandes. “I am thinking about majoring in Sports Broadcasting or Kinesiology and go into Sports Medicine. After academics, I will look at the football stuff. 

“I want to see how big the campus is and where everything is on campus. It’s got to fit me.”