On National Signing Day, we posted an overview of the 2019 Notre Dame recruiting class with recruit grades and some thoughts on the class. Yesterday we went into more detail on the offensive skill position guys, because you know they’d be primadonnas if we didn’t do them first. Today we’re looking at the guys who clear the road for them.

As a reminder, here’s our standard grading scale for this exercise:

95-100: Truly elite prospect with All-American potential
90-94: Multi-year starter with All-conference level potential
85-89: Eventual starter with chance to play as underclassman
80-84: Raw prospect with decent potential but a couple years away from impact
75-79: Likely a backup
70-74: Reach by the coaching staff

Signees

247C Score 18S Grade Player City/State Ht/Wt Pos Stars
.9578 95 Zeke Correll Cincinnati, OH 6-4/285 OG * * * * *
.9472 87 Quinn Carroll Minneapolis, MN 6-6/295 OT * * * * *
.9254 89 Andrew Kristofic Gibsonia, PA 6-5/282 OT * * * * *
.9242 83 John Olmstead Metuchen, NJ 6-6/300 OT * * * * *

OG Zeke Correll

18S Average: 95.0

Brendan: 95

Last seen eating souls at the Under Armour All-America game. My favorite lineman in this class, and I really like the group. He doesn’t have the versatility of Big Q, who could’ve played tackle if asked, but it’s hard not to watch Correll’s tape and see echoes of Nelson in the way he plays. Starting immediately is a lot to ask for any lineman – even Q himself redshirted – but enrolling early might give Correll a chance.

Eric: 95

Easily a 4-year starter at center. He really blossomed physically over his high school career and now looks like a future NFL player. An absolute ass kicker. I feel as sure about his career as any lineman in recent memory, save Quenton Nelson.

Jaden: 95

A mauler at guard as a high school lineman. Correll has a terrific combination of strength and quickness and still has the frame to add some good weight. With Mustipher graduating, it’s unlikely, yet not out of the question, that Correll could push for the starting center job as a true freshman.

Tyler: 95

Correll is an absolute monster. Kicked some serious ass against some of the best high school defensive linemen in the country at the Under Armour All American game. Probably the best interior prospect Notre Dame has landed since Big Q.

OT Quinn Carroll

18S Average: 87.3

Brendan: 88

I like Carroll a lot, but I think he’s probably a little overrated by the services. I definitely think he profiles better on the interior; he’s not quite as agile as you’d like to see on the edge, but he’s a bull and a finisher. He needs to get a little more flexible in the lower body, or at least play lower more consistently; I don’t think that’s a physical limitation for him, though, so I’m not concerned. I think he can be a multi-year starter at guard.

Eric: 85

Really good burst off the line. Carroll is physical but not overly dominating given his size. He doesn’t pass block much in high school so it’s hard to judge how he’ll translate to college. I’m not really sold he’ll stay on the edge and could have a career similar to Tommy Kraemer and eventually move inside. Not reall his fault but I think he’s a touch overrated on a national level.

Jaden: 90

Carroll seems like your typical “RKG” and comes from an uber-athletic family. It’s not a certainty where he will play as he could realistically end up at RT or move inside to guard. He has a great frame and will likely need to add some muscle before contributing right away. Carroll moves really well and should be an effective pulling guard in space if he ends up inside. If he doesn’t pan out on the O-Line, he could be an All-American at leprechaun mascot.

Tyler: 87

Physical prospect with good, but not elite, athleticism. Has the length the play tackle but his style might be better suited for guard. Pulls really well, keeps his feet moving after contact, and he does a good job with hand placement and leverage in run blocking.

OT Andrew Kristofic

18S Average: 88.8

Brendan: 91

When he committed, Kristofic was #526 in the 247 Composite. An impressive senior season and a solid showing at the Army All-America game moved him all the way up to #184. Phil Jurkovec’s once and future teammate has exceptionally nimble feet for a big man, the prototypical dancing bear, and once he’s done with basketball he should fill out pretty quickly. I think he’ll take at least a year or two to develop, but he definitely looks like a multi-year starter and some analysts think he’s a future pro.

Eric: 87

Reminds me of a mini-Mike McGlinchey. He’s skinny and will need a year in the weight program to get up to speed. However, Kristofic is really strong and powerful before adding 30 pounds of muscle. He’s a really good athlete but will need some polish at tackle. The perfect type of tackle prospect in today’s game. Super high ceiling.

Jaden: 87

Kristofic comes in as the OL most destined to play tackle at the college level. He comes from a strong football school (same as Phil Jurkovec) and moves really well for his size. He is still lean and has room to add weight, but he could be a serious contender for a starting job come 2020.

Tyler: 90

I’m a big proponent of recruiting basketball players to play offensive tackle. He’s not currently big enough to see the field in 2019, but I’m confident Balis can get him in playing shape for 2020. He’s got the athleticism you’d want to see in your left tackle, and his ceiling may be the highest out of Notre Dame’s signees along the OL this year.

OT John Olmstead

18S Average: 82.5

Brendan: 82

Olmstead is a tough guy to peg; there’s not a lot of film on him and what there is includes a lot of defensive work. He has a great attitude but he’s somewhat limited athletically. So I definitely think he’s an interior guy, but beyond that it’s really hard to project. My guess is he’ll make his way into the two deep, with a ceiling of maybe starting as a senior. Enrolling early should give us some quick insight.

Eric: 83

A big kid who will be next in the long line of high school tackles to play inside at guard. Not quite as physical as I thought for his size. Long-term could be a quality starter but betting he takes a while to get ready to fight it out in the trenches.

Jaden: 84

Olmstead is a mountain of a man. With that being said, he doesn’t play with quite the power of Zeke Correll. He played LT in high school, but probably lacks the quickness and agility to stay out there in college. Almost certain to redshirt, yet is another very solid prospect to compete for a starting job in 2020 and beyond.

Tyler: 81

Probably the least athletic out of the current crop of OL, but the bar was set fairly high so I don’t mean that as a knock on him. Seems to be destined for the inside. Definite improvements from his junior to senior year of high school. Actually looks fairly lean for a guy who’s supposed to be 290 pounds, so he could be a force if he’s able to pack on good weight.