2020 ATH Will Nixon Comfortable With Notre Dame's Plan

Three official visits in seven days is an aggressive schedule, but 2020 Midway (Texas) athlete Will Nixon‍ accomplished it. 

The four-star prospect was at Georgia Tech last weekend, Purdue mid-week and wrapped things up with an official visit to Notre Dame over the weekend. 

“I’m a little exhausted, but I had fun. It was a blast,” Nixon told Irish Sports Daily.  

Purdue wants the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder on offense and the pitch centered around one of the most explosive players in the country. 

“It was great,” Nixon said of his trip to West Lafayette. “We talked a lot about football and Rondale Moore. He’s a great example and we talked about him being the Purdue standard. We watched a lot of film and my own film. I was with Coach (JaMarcus) Shephard most of the time, but I was with Tyson Street and Brady Brohm too. We were able to talk about a lot.” 

There is a growing sense of momentum in all aspect of the Purdue program under head coach Jeff Brohm and Nixon felt it. 

“They beat some top 10 teams last year,” stated Nixon. “They are going to be a great team down the road this season.” 

Nixon and his mother made the trip to South Bend and it was immediately different than the last time he was on campus in March. 

“I was impressed,” said Nixon. “The campus was beautiful. I spoke with everyone and everyone was nice. It was good to connect with everyone.” 

Notre Dame is the outlier in Nixon’s recruitment as the Irish are recruiting the Waco native as a defensive back. 

“They were able to tell me a lot of good concepts at defensive back and what they expect out of me,” stated Nixon. “They know it’s a lot, but they know I can do it. I talked to Matt Balis and he’s a great guy. He knows what he’s doing on the strength side. I also talked to admission and academic counselor. They know what they are talking about too.” 

Another significant part of the visit was centered Notre Dame’s academics and life as a student. 

“Don’t get me wrong, everywhere is a great place,” explained Nixon. “I was really impressed with what Notre Dame had to tell me academically. They have a lot of connections and alumni. When you graduate, you can get a six-figure job right off the bat if you can get your education done.” 

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Clark Lea also made plenty of time for Nixon as did Todd Lyght and Terry Joseph.

“It was great,” Nixon stated. ‘We talked about life, where he was at and where I’m from. We connected well and he’s a great guy. He came down to check on me in Waco. I spoke to Terry Joseph and Todd Lyght, who are two great dudes. 

“They see me as an NFL corner. When you hear that from Todd Lyght, Terry Joseph and Coach Lea, you definitely have to think it out.” 

Not to say Nixon wasn’t comfortable with Notre Dame recruiting him as a defensive back, but it was different. Nixon felt a peace mind leaving South Bend that he could play defensive back but excel at it. 

“I’m a little more comfortable about it,” Nixon explained. “Of course I still prefer receiver, but what they told me was great. I’m definitely going to take that into thought. I’m going to take the rest of June and most of July off to think about it. Notre Dame’s plan is very promising.” 

As for a commitment, Nixon will now digest the crazy week and take the next month to see where he’s at and where he fits the best.

“I really want to wait it out and try to make my decision this summer,” said Nixon. “Most of the teams are telling me no pressure. If I’m struggling with it, then I’ll wait, but my plan is to make my decision in late July.” 

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