"I Love Notre Dame" - 2019 Four-Star OL Saleem Wormley

2019 Smyrna (Del.) offensive lineman Saleem Wormley‍ had high expectations heading into his official visit to Notre Dame and left extremely impressed with what he saw from an academic and athletic standpoint. 

“The visit was great,” the 6-foot-4, 300-pounder told Irish Sports Daily. “I love Notre Dame.” 

The bond between the offensive line is no secret to those who follow the Notre Dame program, but it caught the four-star prospect off guard as experiencing the brotherhood was the highlight of the trip for Wormley.  

“The real big surprise for me was seeing how close the offensive line was with each other,” stated Wormley. “It means a lot. I know I’ll have brothers for the rest of my life. 

“If I go there, I’ll have people around me and support me. I know they’ll have my back through whatever.” 

Sophomore offensive lineman Aaron Banks hosted the Delaware native and was able to show Wormley what everyday life is like as part of the offensive line brotherhood. 

“They have an offensive line house they all go to, and I was there with the offensive line, a defensive lineman, tight ends and a quarterback,” recalled Wormley. “We were chilling there watching movies, playing games and vibing. It was really fun.” 

Saturday night provided a chance for all eight official visitors and their families to head to Brian Kelly’s lake house. 

“Coach Kelly’s lake house is beautiful,” said Wormley. “We were out in the boat riding through the lake. It was a really fun time.” 

Offensive line coach Jeff Quinn and Wormley have built a strong relationship over the last few months and the chance to spend 48 hours with each other was big in Wormley’s eyes.

“He knows football,” explained Wormley. “He’s an expert on the offensive line and gets guys to the league. He’s big on getting a degree too. 

“I have a lot of confidence in him as a person. I know he’s a good coach and a good guy. He has a good heart, and he knows what he’s doing.” 

Quinn’s message to Wormley was about Notre Dame’s academic opportunities and how it would benefit him over the course of his life. 

“He was telling me what Notre Dame has to offer beyond football,” said Wormley. “He explained the degree, the connections and the alumni network and how it will move me forward in life.” 

The chance to meet with people on the academics side of Notre Dame was another highlight for Wormley. He was able to see where he fit in but also where he needed to raise his academic profile. 

“Everything was great from an academic standpoint,” Wormley said. “I met with admissions, and they told me some things I need to work on and things I was good at. It felt good.” 

Wormley wasn’t the only one impressed with what he saw at Notre Dame as his mother was equally impressed. 

“She was blown away,” laughed Wormley. “She loved everything about the visit. She was ecstatic and couldn’t stop talking about it on the way home.” 

As for his commitment, Notre Dame, Penn State and Rutgers make up his final three and Wormley is holding firm with his commitment date of July 23rd. 

“I’m sticking firm with that date,” said Wormley.