Recently, Notre Dame saw another player who left early selected in the NFL Draft. Although the Irish program is creeping towards 20 players all-time who left early for the Draft they have seen a major uptick in the Brian Kelly era following an extremely long dry spell. Full disclosure, we’re using the traditional and strictest definition of leaving early meaning exiting for the pro ranks after only 3 seasons on campus. So, you won’t see the many dozens of great players who left Notre Dame with a 5th-year still available, like Aaron Banks this past year for example.

Here’s a quick run through all of the 3 & Out Fighting Irish:

#1 WR Rocket Ismail
1991
4th round, 100th overall, Oakland Raiders

Ismail skipped the NFL Combine to run indoor track for the Irish and then hours before the NFL Draft he signed an $18 million deal over 4 years (with incentives pushing the deal up to $26 million) with the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts during an era when the best NFL players were making around $1.5 million per season. The New England Patriots held the No. 1 overall pick, were unsuccessful negotiating with Rocket, traded the pick to Dallas who were also unsuccessful and would ultimately select Miami DT Russell Maryland who would help the team to 3 Super Bowls.

It was a fairytale debut season for Ismail in Toronto while totaling 1,300 yards on 60 catches, 271 yards on 36 carries, and 13 total touchdowns while becoming the Grey Cup MVP. But, his production was cut in half in 1992, Toronto wasn’t a very good team during his second year, and Rocket ultimately ended up signing a 2-year deal worth $3 million with the Raiders who still owned his draft rights after relationships soured in Ontario.

Ismail would play 9 seasons in the NFL with solid production (363 receptions, 5,295 yards, 58 carries, 423 yards, 30 total touchdowns) but never became the superstar the world believed he could be as a pro.

#2 RB Jerome Bettis
1993
1st round, 10th overall, Los Angeles Rams

It doesn’t seem possible, but Bettis is 1 of only 2 players to leave after 3 years and get drafted in the 1st round. As we recently covered in our top rankings of all Notre Dame 1st round picks, things went pretty well for The Bus who is in the Hall of Fame.

#3 CB Bobby Taylor
1995
2nd round, 50th overall, Philadelphia Eagles

Taylor was a safety coming out of high school and was moved to corner by Lou Holtz as a sophomore. He was in the first class to receive feedback from the NFL which came back as a 1st round grade. But, Taylor fell in the draft largely due to his tweener status, ultimately being scooped up by Philadelphia who traded up to get him in the middle of the 2nd round.

Taylor would grab a starting role at corner mid-way through his rookie season, ultimately playing 9 of his 10 seasons in the NFL with the Eagles and making the Pro Bowl in 2002.

#4 RB Darius Walker
2007
Undrafted

Walker made the prescient decision to say nope, nope, nope to the 2007 Fighting Irish but was unable to get drafted after a quality career in South Bend. He’d sign with Houston as a free agent, played in a few games as a rookie with 58 carries, then bounced around the league for a couple years without any more games in his career.

#5 WR Golden Tate
2010
2nd round, 60th overall, Seattle Seahawks

Currently a free agent after being cut by the Giants back in March, Tate is winding down an impressive career. Through 11 seasons he’s made 1 Pro Bowl and caught 695 passes for 8,278 yards and 46 touchdowns. He’s been the highlight of this position for Notre Dame since Tim Brown retired.

#6 QB Jimmy Clausen
2010
2nd round, 48th overall, Carolina Panthers

Clausen picked up 10 starts as a rookie and it did not go well, losing 9 games. The Panthers drafted Cam Newton in 2011 and Clausen fell to 3rd string after they also signed Derek Anderson. A couple years later, Clausen was waived by Carolina. He’d bounce around the league for a few more years making 4 more starts while finishing with just 2,520 passing yards, 7 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions in his career.

#7 TE Kyle Rudolph
2011
2nd round, 43rd overall, Minnesota Vikings

It hasn’t quite been a Hall of Fame career for Rudolph but he’s flourished for a long time at the tight end position. After 10 seasons with the Vikings, he’s caught 453 passes for 4,488 yards and 48 touchdowns with a pair of Pro Bowl appearances. He signed a 2-year deal with the Giants this off-season for $12 million.

#8 TE Troy Niklas
2014
2nd round, 52nd overall, Arizona Cardinals

This decision to leave early was controversial at the time and Niklas could never stay healthy enough to carve out a quality NFL career. In 4 seasons with Arizona, he played in just 41 games with 19 receptions before signing and being cut by the Patriots (2018) and Buccaneers (2019). He’s now retired.

#9 DE Stephon Tuitt
2014
2nd round, 46th overall, Pittsburgh Steelers

Tuitt is one of the better players in the league who has yet to make a Pro Bowl. He’s developed into a very good starter with Pittsburgh and is coming off a career-high 11 sacks in 2020. Through 7 seasons, he’s totaled 246 tackles and 34.5 sacks. Tuitt has 2 years remaining on a 5-year $60 million extension signed back in 2017 and should get one more big pay day.

#10 RB George Atkinson III
2014

Undrafted

GA3 left South Bend without ever grabbing the starting running back job but believed his mixture of size and speed would benefit him well in the NFL. He bounced around the league for 5 seasons, mostly as a backup kick returner. He’d tragically pass away at just 27 years old on December 2, 2019. For his pro career, Atkinson rushed for 34 yards and totaled 271 kick return yards.

#11 WR Will Fuller
2016
1st round, 21st overall, Houston Texans

Fuller joins Bettis as the only players to leave early after just 3 years on campus and be selected in the 1st round. It’s been a decision that has paid off for him. Although, he’s had a lot of trouble staying healthy as we mentioned in our ranking of the best 1st round picks in Notre Dame history. With 5 to 6 more seasons, Fuller could rival Golden Tate for the best Irish wideout in the NFL this century.

#12 LB Jaylon Smith
2016
2nd round, 34th overall, Dallas Cowboys

Of course, Smith was likely a 1st round pick prior to his nasty leg injury in the Fiesta Bowl. He did not play in 2016 and since has worked his way back to becoming a decent but inconsistent linebacker for the Cowboys. Through 4 years on the field he’s totaled 498 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, and 9 sacks. He signed a 6-year $68.4 million extension 2 summers ago (with 1 year left on his rookie deal, plus a RFA tag to use in 2020!) that runs through the 2025 season, although many expect Dallas to get out of the contract by 2023.

#13 QB DeShone Kizer
2017
2nd round, 50th overall, Cleveland Browns

It seems crazy to think about now, but for a while Kizer was in the discussion to be the top pick over the likes of Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes while the Notre Dame product was ultimately the 4th quarterback off the board in 2017. He’d be thrown to the wolves as a rookie, going 0-15 in starts while throwing a league-high 22 interceptions. Kizer was traded to Green Bay in 2018 where he played in parts of 3 games, but was cut ahead of the 2019 season. He has not played over the last 2 years and signed a futures contract with Tennessee for 2021.

#14 WR Equanimeous St. Brown
2018
6th round, 207th overall, Green Bay Packers

Some expected ESB to go a little higher than this in the NFL Draft. He played a decent amount as a rookie but an ankle injury kept him out all of 2019 and he missed a large portion of the beginning of 2020 with an injury, as well. In 24 career games, ESB has caught 28 passes for 445 yards and 1 touchdown. He’ll be entering the final year of his rookie deal in 2021 and if he doesn’t re-sign with the Packers is set to become an unrestricted free agent.

#15 CB Julian Love
2019
4th round, 108th overall, New York Giants

Love has bounced between safety and corner with the Giants among a very deep and talented secondary in New York. Through 2 seasons, he’s made 11 starts with 101 tackles, 6 TFL, and 2 INT. He still has 2 more years remaining on his rookie deal and looks on pace to sign a decent extension with the Giants at some point in the future.

#16 TE Cole Kmet
2020
2nd round, 43rd overall, Chicago Bears

Kmet’s rookie year was solid finishing tied for 31st among all tight ends in receptions with 28 while adding 243 yards and 2 touchdowns. His future seems quite bright, especially now that he gets to play with Justin Fields at quarterback. Kmet’s rookie deal will be up after the 2023 season.

#17 TE Tommy Tremble
2021
3rd round, 83rd overall, Carolina Panthers

Tremble is the latest player to leave early and his draft position ended up being quite good relative to his statistical impact at Notre Dame. All signs point to him having a nice career in the NFL. Tremble was the 4th tight end taken in the recent 2021 Draft out of 12 selected overall at his position.