2022 TE Jack Nickel Has Notre Dame, Midwest Visits On Tap
Two weeks ago in The Gold Standard, a weekly recruiting feature at BlueandGold.com, we noted that Milton (Ga.) High class of 2022 tight end Jack Nickel was planning to take a visit up to the Midwest to see family and stop by Notre Dame.
Of course, because of the special dead period enacted by the NCAA this summer due to the coronavirus pandemic, Nickel won’t be able to see any coaches while on a college visit, but getting out to see a school and get a feel of the town and environment is still valuable.
Nickel has set three visits for early next week. He’ll be at Ohio State June 29, Notre Dame June 30 and Wisconsin July 2. The latter two schools have already offered Nickel, while he hopes to receive a scholarship from the Buckeyes.
“I would’ve already taken visits to these three schools if it wasn’t for the dead periods,” Nickel told BlueandGold.com. “I just want to visit the campuses and see if they’re for me or not.”
Nickel holds more than 20 scholarship offers, including Florida State, Miami, Nebraska, Oregon, South Carolina and Virginia Tech. The Fighting Irish may be the early favorite for Nickel, who was able to visit South Bend for Notre Dame’s triumph versus USC last year.
The 6-4, 230-pounder is fired up to get back to campus next week.
“The thing I’m looking forward to the most is just being able to have more time to see the entire campus,” Nickel said. “On my game day visit, I didn’t have much time to see everything, so this visit will be about getting a feel for the entire campus.”
Nickel is the son of former Stanford tight end Paul Nickel, who was a part of a Cardinal team that upset Notre Dame in 1990. The elder Nickel was also recruited by Notre Dame.
After receiving the Fighting Irish offer in May, Nickel and his parents were very excited about Notre Dame.
“I really like Coach McNulty and really like their history with tight ends,” Nickel said. “Every tight end who has started in the past 15 years has been drafted in the NFL. That is one thing to look at, but also the academics, which is the first thing I’m looking at. Notre Dame is a great school; the campus is also really nice. I really like everything about it.
“I definitely think Notre Dame will be a contender [in my recruitment], for sure.”
Rivals lists Nickel with a 5.7 recruit rating, the highest designation for a three-star prospect.
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