2020 DE Mitchell Melton Impressed By Notre Dame and Mike Elston

2020 Good Counsel (Md.) defensive end Mitchell Melton‍ is in a rare position of being the lone target at his position for Notre Dame. 

The 6-foot-4, 225-pounder made his way to South Bend over the weekend for an official visit and things went well for the Mitchell family. 

“It went really well,” Melton told Irish Sports Daily. “I had a great time at Notre Dame. I got to see the campus and meet with the coaches and players.” 

Mitchell had seen the program earlier this year, but he quickly felt a difference on this visit. 

“It was more personable,” explained Melton. “It was centered around me and my development as a player. I was shown how I would play the drop end and how it’s best suited for me as a football player.” 

Notre Dame defensive line coach Mike Elston spent a ton of time with Melton and his family over the weekend. 

The four-star prospect was able to get a better feel for Elston as a coach, but also as a human being as he spoke to members of the team to get some honest feedback.

“He’s a great guy,” said Melton. “Everyone in the program spoke so highly of him. He’s a personable person and just a good person. He’s someone you just want to be around and succeed with -  I didn’t meet one person who said one bad thing about him and I even spoke to the players about him. 

“They all spoke so highly of him.” 

Is it rare to hear a lack of negative things when it comes to a coach? 

“I wouldn’t say it’s rare because they are always good people,” Melton stated. “It was reassuring if anything to hear my potential position coach is one of the better people in the program. He looks out for the guys and he’s really a players coach in a way.” 

Academics were also stressed to Melton on this trip. The Maryland native was able to see Notre Dame’s academics prestige and how student-athletes are given the opportunity for success in the classroom. 

“We knew going in how awesome and rigorous the academics were,” Melton explained. “We had some idea, but the level of excellence they hold themselves to was impressive. You’re not just going to be a football player if you go there. You will be a student first.  

“We had some predisposed ideas and notions of what academics looked like over there and what the standard was in a way. They really showed how excellence they are in academics and one of the top private universities in the world.” 

Melton will now head to Ohio State for an official visit next week and Michigan the week after before announcing his decision on July 3rd. 

What could be the difference for Melton? Well, it starts with the people. 

“It’s really the people and the vibe I get,” said Melton. “It only takes one thing for me to discern each college from each other and what makes them special or unique in their own way. It comes down to me just finding that one thing.” 

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