Welcome back to the 18 Stripes Big Board for Fighting Irish Football. Today we are taking a look at Notre Dame targets at defensive end. Notre Dame is likely looking for one more guy to close out this position — preferably someone who can rush the passer.
| Score | Name | State | Ht./Wt. | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .973 | Jarez Parks | FL | 6-5/260 | Cold |
| .967 | LaBryan Ray | AL | 6-4/255 | Cold |
| .951 | Malik Herring | GA | 6-4/265 | Cold |
| .922 | Ryan Johnson | AL | 6-3/255 | Cold |
| .899 | Josh Paschal | MD | 6-4/255 | Warm |
| .879 | Brad Johnson | SC | 6-3/225 | Cold |
| .848 | Cortez Alston | GA | 6-3/250 | Cool |
| .846 | K’Jakyre Daley | FL | 6-3/230 | Cool |
In the Fold
The Irish have two big ends in the fold in Jonathon MacCollister (.846) and Donovan Jeter (.898). MacCollister is a Florida guy who committed to Notre Dame during Irish Invasion. Jeter hails from Pennsylvania and is Notre Dame’s most recent commit, picking the Irish after visiting for the Michigan State game. Jeter also had some words for people who were… displeased with how Coach Kelly handled his post-game presser after the Duke loss.
I’m tired of saying ppl saying coach Kelly threw the team under bus. From what I saw he’s challenging them to be tougher and more passionate
— 5⃣God (@JeteNificent34) September 27, 2016
In Play
Jarez Parks has been showing interest in Florida, Alabama, Florida State, and Clemson lately. But the Army All-American seems to be focusing a bit more on Florida and Bama at this point.
LaBryan Ray is letting his recruiting process run its course, but he appears to be all Tide right now. It would be a major shock if he ended up anywhere else at this point.
Malik Herring has been a Georgia lean for a while, but he visited Tennessee for their game against Florida and loved it. Did the Vols take the lead for him? Heck if I know, but the the Dawgs have some competition. Malik will make his decision at whatever All-American Bowl he commits to.
Ryan Johnson will likely be deciding between Auburn and Alabama, with Auburn probably most likely to earn his pledge. He’s already visited both unofficially this season. No word yet on when the UA All-American will decide.
Josh Paschal really, really likes Notre Dame. So much so that he will probably end up Irish if he qualifies — but that isn’t a given. He’s listed as a strong-side end, but he does have potential as a guy who can get after the quarterback as well. He may be able to play either big end or rush end if he doesn’t pack on too much weight.
South Carolina is has been trending well for Brad Johnson. Georgia appears to be in the mix as well. Virginia Tech also refuses to go down without a fight.
Nothing going on between Cortez Alston and ND right now. He doesn’t appear to be a priority for the staff and will likely end up someplace like Cal or Georgia Tech.
K’Jakyre Daley is another guy that seems to have dropped off of ND’s radar a bit. He was a likely commit if he had been able to make it to Irish Invasion, but now it doesn’t even seem like an official will happen. Oklahoma will likely end up taking his commitment.
Committed Elsewhere
Jaelan Phillips — UCLA
Chase Young — Ohio State
Robert Beal — Georgia
Hunter Echols — USC
DJ Johnson — Miami
Jordan Williams — Clemson
Logan Rudolph — Clemson
Corey Malone-Hatcher — Michigan
Michael Allen — Wake Forest
Lashawn Paulino-Bell — Michigan State
Chris Whittaker — UCF
AJ Epenesa — Iowa
Josh Kaindoh — Maryland
Zachary Carter — Florida
MJ Webb — South Carolina
Aside from Paschal, things have definitely slowed down for the Irish as far as defensive end recruiting goes. The Irish either aren’t in it, or they aren’t pushing for any of the other prospects of this Big Board at this time. That could be because the staff has zeroed in on OLB Jacob Phillips, who they like as linebacker who can fly off the edge to rush the passer.
It could also be that the staff isn’t huge on most the realistic options on their offer list and they are evaluating new film to determine who their next target will be if Josh Paschal doesn’t qualify. A guy like Kwity Paye would be someone to keep an eye on if this is the case. He’s a current Boston College commit who visited for Irish Invasion, and he was recently offered by Michigan.
Based on our inability to recruit good pass rushers – which certainly appears to be continuing this year – doesn’t it make sense for ND to move to the 3-4? We don’t seem to have too many problems getting guys who are perfectly sized for 3-4 DE (Rochell, Hayes, Bonner, Jeter, etc.), and it seems like the 3-4 would allow you to more comfortably accommodate having 4-5 of those guys who can play on your roster.
Realize ND may have problems recruiting a 3-4 nose, but I think much easier to make due with somebody like a Cage in the 3-4 than playing Jay Hayes as a weak side defensive end.
Many people think the same thing — it’s a fair question, and a suggestion that does make sense for the sake of being able to find the right type of D-linemen for your scheme.
One thing to consider, though, is that most of ND’s current crop of linebackers aren’t really a great fit for the 3-4 right now — although I’m sure they could make do just fine. And I do think guys like Daelin Hayes and Jamir Jones would be good 3-4 LB fits.