2020 Ohio OL Jakob James Visiting Notre Dame For Spring Game

Notre Dame has had some success landing some of the top talent from Cincinnati powerhouse Elder High School in recent memory and that past could pay off in the future.

Jakob James‍ is just finishing up his sophomore year at Elder, but the 2020 offensive lineman has started picking up offers in recent weeks and will be in South Bend for this weekend’s Blue-Gold Game.

“We were planning on going to see Tommy already,” James said, referring to former Elder star and current Irish offensive lineman Tommy Kraemer.

James has also been in contact with former Irish and current Minnesota Vikings star Kyle Rudolph.

“They’re just trying to get me down there as much as they can,” James said of Kraemer and Rudolph. “They tell me about how much of an awesome experience they’ve had and about the coaches and the great relationships they took away from it.”

The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder got a peek at Notre Dame last fall.

“We were down last year for the Wake (Forest) game,” James explained. “It was an awesome experience. I can’t wait to get back down.

“We got to tour, we got to see the locker room. I got to go on the field after the game and see the great tradition there and how much of a family they are down there. It’s just awesome.”

He’s looking forward to the chance to get a better look inside the program this weekend.

“I definitely want to meet (offensive line coach Jeff) Quinn, I haven’t gotten to meet him yet,” said James. “I also want to see a little bit more of their life and what the players do off the field.”

In the last few weeks, James added his first two offers, from Cincinnati and Louisville.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “Somebody finally noticing my film and giving me a chance to play at the next level, it’s just awesome.”

James says he could play any spot on the line and college coaches are impressed with the package he brings up front.

“The potential I have, just getting after it in the run game and finishing people and being able to stay in front of defenders in the passing game,” he said.

During the recent Contact Period, he said he’d heard from the Irish along with schools like Clemson, Penn State, Rutgers, Iowa, Virginia and Ohio State.

He’s taken recent visits to Cincinnati and Ohio State and expects to return to Columbus this summer for a camp.

He has an idea of what he’s looking for in a college.

“Definitely a place that will feel like home, definitely somewhere I can build relationships with people that will make it feel like home with coaches,” he said.

He enters this weekend with a very positive impression of the Irish.

“They’re a very elite program. They’re always going to have dudes, they’re always going to be competing for a national championship. It would just be awesome to get a chance to go there.”