2020 NJ TE Kevin Bauman On Notre Dame Radar

Kevin Bauman‍ hasn’t had too much direct conversation with the Notre Dame coaching staff just yet.

“Since I’m still a sophomore, they’re not really allowed to communicate with me directly,” the 2020 New Jersey tight end explained.

“But they’ve talked to my coach and communicate with me through my coach, Coach (Frank) Edgerly…and a little bit through Twitter.”

Bauman attends the same Red Bank Catholic High School that produced former Notre Dame All-American Quenton Nelson.

“When he gets a chance to come home, we train at the same gym sometimes, so I’ve got to see him there,” Bauman said of Nelson. “I’ve talked to him a little bit and I’d talked to him through our strength coach, who has told him a little bit about me and stuff.”

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Bauman hasn’t had too many in-depth conversations with Nelson about Notre Dame, but said, “I have his number, so I could reach out to him.”

The Red Bank native already knows a bit about Notre Dame.

“Obviously, I know it’s one of the top programs in the country,” he said. “It’s a Catholic university, which is big for me personally. I’ve always grown up watching Notre Dame and being a fan of Notre Dame. I know what they do with their tight ends, they’re a big tight end school. All of that together really stands out.”

Bauman plans on making a trip out to South Bend this summer to get a better look at the school and the program.

“With the coaches contacting my coach, I want to get up there,” he explained. “Maybe sometime in June I was looking to see if I could go then.

“Obviously (I’d like to see) the whole campus, the football facilities, everything the football program uses, locker room, weight room, stadium and just the campus in general.”

Bauman has early offers from North Carolina, Rutgers, Boston College, Syracuse, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Central Florida and Virginia.

“I’ve always seen it as a blessing,” he said. “It means a lot to me. I love playing football, it’s my favorite thing. It means a lot since those schools aren’t just football schools, but academic schools. I’m just blessed to have those opportunities right now.”

College scouts like the package he brings to the tight end position.

“They said they like the versatility,” he explained. “I can play in the pass game as well as the run game. I can block in the run game. I can pass-protect if needed. We run a pretty complex offense for a high school team.”

Edgerly recently returned to Red Bank after stints in the NFL with the Patriots and the Browns.

“We run a pretty complex offense with our route tree and everything, so they like to see that,” Bauman added.

He enjoyed himself at Boston College’s spring game on April 14th and has made a few trips to other schools as well.

“So far, I’ve been to Rutgers, Penn State and Ohio State,” said Bauman. “The two recent ones were Rutgers, I’ve been there a few times, and Penn State.

“I really liked both of them. They both use their tight ends in a big way, so that’s good to say. Rutgers is rebuilding right now. It’s good to see they’re on the right path. Penn State is obviously a great program and it’s cool to see that. They were both pretty good.”