2023 Rivals100 LB Jaiden Ausberry sets Aug. 4 commitment date
Notre Dame’s top remaining 2023 class linebacker target is set to come off the board in 16 days.
Four-star prospect Jaiden Ausberry will announce his college commitment on Aug. 4, he confirmed to Inside ND Sports. Ranked by Rivals as the No. 80 overall player, No. 4 outside linebacker and No. 7 player in Louisiana, Ausberry will choose between Notre Dame, Alabama, Michigan, LSU, Texas A&M, Florida, and Auburn.
The announcement comes just two days after Ausberry told Rivals national recruiting analyst Nick Harris he was eyeing a December decision. Instead, Ausberry will wrap up his recruitment before his senior season.
The Baton Rouge (La.) University Laboratory School product officially visited Notre Dame the weekend of June 11 for his third overall trip to South Bend. Ausberry also made official visits to Auburn, Michigan and Texas A&M.
The rising senior linebacker's father, Verge Ausberry, is an LSU alum and executive director of external relations in the school's athletics department. His brother, Austin Ausberry, signed with Auburn as a cornerback in the 2022 class. Although Jaiden has intermediate family connections elsewhere, his decision will be independent.
"For Austin and Jaiden, their dad does a good job of allowing them to go through the process and make decisions," said Andy Martin, Jaiden's high school head coach. "They're not going to step in unless they see him make a big mistake. Their dad is going to let him see where they fit and where they feel comfortable."
Jaiden also has strong connections to Notre Dame. Since his offer last June, he started a relationship with Marcus Freeman before his promotion from defensive coordinator to head coach. Notre Dame defensive line coach Al Washington also has a long-standing relationship with Jaiden from his time as Ohio State's linebackers coach.
Those bonds and ND's other offerings made the program an attractive option for the four-star recruit.
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“They have some great things going with their football program,” Martin previously told Inside ND Sports. “He wants an institution that will get him a good education — it’s a big part of what he wants to do. Notre Dame is very attractive in that sense, along with the football that they play.”
Notre Dame currently has two four-star linebacker commits — Drayk Bowen and Preston Zinter — in the 2023 class, which ranks atop the Rivals team rankings. And there’s a good chance Jaiden becomes the third. On Friday, Inside ND Sports filed a Rivals FutureCast prediction for him to eventually commit to Notre Dame.
As a junior, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker registered 94 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, four sacks, three caused fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two interceptions and four pass breakups.
Jaiden has been ranked by Rivals as high the No. 24 player in the class. He holds 28 offers and, besides his official visits, made unofficial visits to Florida, LSU, Ohio State and Oregon.
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