Notre Dame has dipped back into the state of Maryland for the first time since the 2021 class and cornerback Ryan Barnes as Hagerstown defensive tackle product Devan Houstan committed to the Irish on Saturday. Houstan originally hails from the Toronto suburb of Mississauga and has been going to school at the prep academy St. James School.

He was offered in mid-October 2021 and the recruitment picked up steam at the start of 2022 after visiting South Bend. His older brother Caleb was a 2021 5-star basketball recruit for Michigan and left after 1 season to declare for the NBA Draft.

Recruiting Service Rankings

247Sports Composite — 4 star (.9224), #192 overall, #26 DL, #6 in MD

247Sports — 4 star (91 rating), #181 overall, #30 DL, #6 in MD

Rivals — 4 star (5.8 rating), NR overall, #14 DT, #3 in MD

ESPN — 4 star (82 rating), #182 overall, #12 DT, #6 in MD

On3 — 4 star (90 rating), #272 overall, #35 DL, #7 in MD

Irish Sports Daily — 4 star (91 rating)

Cohort

Houstan’s recruitment was a bit quieter and he ended up picking Notre Dame from a final 7 that also included Michigan, Wake Forest, Pitt, Rutgers, Penn State, and Northwestern. He took a bunch of visits this spring and decided to wrap things up before the summer. Houstan also carried offers from Duke, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan State, Maryland, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Virginia Tech.

Highlights

Houstan plays a lot of defensive end in high school but should be a defensive tackle at Notre Dame. He has a tall frame but with really thick legs perfect for the interior. He has nice burst for his size, but probably not quite elite enough to make a living on the edge, although it’s possible he is a hybrid player if he keeps his weight down.

You can see a lot of similarities to current player Howard Cross in Houstan’s game as they are similar-type players coming out of high school. Houstan has a bit more size, especially height if he’s anywhere close to his listed 6-4, but isn’t quite as agile as Cross back in the 2019 class. I like Houstan’s combination of athleticism and strength.

Impact

Just based on his body-type and skill-set used in high school it will probably be a difficult first year of transitioning to defensive tackle at Notre Dame. Interestingly, his brother has about 4 inches on him but Devan weighs 65 more pounds with a much different body-type. As the 12th commit of the class, Houstan is 8th best in terms of the 247 Composite which feels about right. He’s a promising prospect but maybe a step down from someone who will be coming to South Bend as an impact fre

Welcome to the Irish family, Devan!