We are working our way through Notre Dame’s 2025 recruiting class composed of 24 signees from all over the United States. Today we’re taking a look at another big body for the interior plus a couple of swing edge recruits who are likely to grow into something different in their career.

Defensive Tackle Gordy Sulfsted

Bio:

Sulfsted comes out of the familiar St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, Ohio and was picking up steam on the national scene in his junior season. Back in May 2024, the Irish offered and Sulfsted immediately committed. His father played offensive line at Miami (OH) and spent a few seasons in the NFL.

Ranking:

681st overall, 76th DL, 26th in Ohio with a 0.8786 Composite score.

Size:

The recruiting sites listed Sulfsted at 6’4″ and 240 pounds throughout this cycle. Only one of the defensive linemen in this class is enrolling early and it won’t be Sulfsted.

On his Notre Dame recruiting page (not the official roster if there’s a difference) he’s listed at 6’4″ and 245 pounds. A little shorter and a little heavier from this recruiting profile(s).

Hype Factor: 3.5/10

It’s certainly not a bad thing that we have yet another recruit coming to Notre Dame whose father played professionally in the NFL. However, this recruitment didn’t come with much fanfare. It was a real quick affair with a commit and no drama. Not that drama would drive up the hype factor!

Outlook: First Step

My amateur eye always, always, always looks at the first step explosiveness of a high school player when they are playing defensive line. Since Sulfsted’s dad was an offensive lineman I think we can generally agree he’s going to continue growing and adding some size. It’s possible he comes to August camp already heavier than the other veterans at jumbo end on Notre Dame’s roster.

I think Sulfsted is an okay athlete and if he’s going to stay in the 260-265 range he’ll develop into a solid jumbo end–maybe a little more physical version of Josh Burnham without as much playmaking. The more likely route is he’s going up to 280 pounds and above and switches to tackle.

Defensive Tackle Joe Reiff

Bio:

Reiff graduates from York High School in Elmhurst, Illinois in the western suburbs of Chicago. His offer from Notre Dame came in June of 2023 and was one of his first, as well. Reiff ended up committing to Notre Dame on September 24, 2023–nearly 2 full seasons ago. In a sign of the changing time, it’s wild to see him ranked as the 10th best player in Illinois and barely inside the top 500 of the Composite.

Ranking:

489th overall, 53rd DL, 10th in Illinois with a 0.8892 Composite score.

Size:

There will be a lot of similarities between Reiff and Sulfsted as they’re both swing players from the Midwest with a similar profile. By most accounts, we’d expect Reiff to come in with a little more size although things can change quickly.

Notre Dame’s recruiting page lists Reiff at 6’5″ and 255 pounds. Unlike Sulfsted, he looks a little less lean and more physically developed coming out of high school.

Hype Factor: 4/10

I like the aggression from Reiff and I think there’s a path forward where he’s able to play on the edge for Notre Dame. I’m not 100% certain why Notre Dame went in so early on a player like Reiff and it’ll be interesting to see his development in the coming years.

Outlook: In or Out

I seem to recall Rylie Mills being much bigger coming out of high school, although he was only listed at 259 on the 2020 roster during his freshman season. Reiff is a similar size where they might try defensive end for a little bit and then ultimately move him inside when it becomes apparent the added weight and lack of speed just won’t work at jumbo end. I do like Reiff’s pass rushing skills a little more than Sulfsted and think the former has a better chance of sticking to the edge.

Defensive Tackle Davion Dixon

Bio:

It feels like Dixon has been with Notre Dame for 5 years already. The Florida native committed to the Irish all the way back on April 21, 2023, nearly making it 2 years as a verbal before arriving on campus. He started his career at the smaller private school Belen Jesuit and spent the last 2 seasons at the highest 7A level at Miami Palmetto High School.

Ranking:

808th overall, 90th DL, 104th in Florida with a 0.8742 Composite score.

Size:

Here comes the beef. Dixon is the only early enrollee from these defensive line commits and Notre Dame lists him officially at 6’2″ with pictures around the Irish staff backing up really good height.

Dixon is a big, young tackle prospect. He is tipping the scales at 322 pounds making him just a bit more heavier than Sean Sevillano on the roster. Dixon looks to carry his weight much better and might not struggle in that department as much as Sevillano has in his young career to date.

Hype Factor: 6/10

Frankly, the national rankings for Dixon are stupid. He committed so early in the process and I’m sure that plays a part in the semi-crooked system of recruiting hype. Yes, it’s true in his early high school career he was beating up on woefully competitive opponents. But, he transferred to the best competition in Florida and still looked very good.

Outlook: Early Instinct

If you look at Dixon’s recruiting highlights above his production is absurd: 109 tackles for loss, 40 sacks, and 11 forced fumbles in his high school career. He had quite elite numbers as a senior too. His recruiting ranking makes no sense whatsoever.

Dixon has also been dialed into Notre Dame’s culture for a long time and looks to be one of the most mature recruits in this class. He’s big, he can move very fast, and I don’t think we’ll have any of the issues that sometimes pop up with recruits from places like Florida. Put another way, he’s looked explosive and athletic on tape and with Notre Dame offering so early in the process it’s quite possible Dixon is one of the best diamonds in the rough stories in the country.