The Notre Dame coaching staff made it clear it was happy Greg Crippen made the trip to South Bend for the Irish’s game against Florida State on Saturday and the 2021 lineman from IMG Academy is certainly glad he did.
“The visit was fantastic,” Crippen told Irish Sports Daily afterward. “The atmosphere was crazy!
“I was able to see the history of ND. The weight room, locker rooms, the lounge, game field, training rooms, film rooms. We had a great panel of four speakers during the meal. The coaches spoke about the high graduation rates.”
While on campus, Crippen had the chance to speak with Director of Player Personnel Dave Peloquin, offensive line coach Jeff Quinn and offensive GA Brandon Lemon, who handles recruiting the state of Massachusetts, where Crippen is originally from, for the Irish.
“Coach Lemon and I speak weekly, so it was more about the success of the game and him glad that I went to the game,” said Crippen. “Coach Peloquin told me he was excited that I came to the game as well, my season at IMG Academy and being a ‘young buck’ to their process.
“Coach Quinn and my family had an unbelievable conversation. He asked us to wait in the lounge to talk to us after he was done in the locker room after the game. He told me he was very excited that I made the trip. We talked about the game, ND football, academics, the o-line and IMG players producing for ND. We exchanged phone numbers to talk more often. It was so late talking that we were the last to leave the lounge around 12 a.m. He is a great man to give us his valuable time like that.”
Crippen already has offers from Michigan, Purdue and Boston College.
Prior to transferring to IMG, Crippen attended Milton Academy and saw similarities between Notre Dame and Milton, the school that produced current Irish kicker Justin Yoon and 2020 linebacker prospect Kalel Mullings.
“I absolutely loved the campus,” he said. “I attended Milton Academy and I loved it there. Smaller school with great academics and lots of history.”
The 6-foot-4, 270-pound enjoyed the atmosphere in and around Notre Dame’s 42-13 win over Florida State.
“This was my first game at ND and the fans and students were awesome,” he said. “I love the history and how much they care for their school and football.
“I thought the team looked great. They came out fast. Embraced the weather and took it to them. This was another good win for them. The o-line crushed it. I don’t know the exact number, but the running backs had to have had over 300 yards rushing. As an interior lineman, I thought they moved the ball inside very well.”
Crippen expects to stay in touch with Quinn moving forward while Irish assistant Autry Denson will be down to check him out at IMG at some point as well.
For his part, Crippen would like to get back to South Bend for another visit to have more time to appreciate Notre Dame.
“Maybe have a little more time to soak this amazing place all in.”
