The Clemson Tigers have nine straight seasons of winning 10-plus games, highlighted by national championships in 2016 and 2018. The latter is when Dabo Swinney’s squad defeated Notre Dame 30-3 in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
Notre Dame has had plenty of success in recent years with a 39-6 record since the 2017 season. But as the Fighting Irish faithful will often remind you, they haven’t been able to win the “big game” in quite some time, whether it be in the regular season or a major bowl.
Clemson is at the top of the college football world along with Alabama as “tier one” programs, in large part due to excellent success on the recruiting front.
Notre Dame is a full member of the ACC for 2020, but is expected to return to partial member status after this season. With Clemson setting the standard in the ACC, Notre Dame fans often compare the state of the Fighting Irish program to the Tigers’ — particularly with recruiting.
With Clemson’s dominance on the field, most would probably assume they’re dominating the recruiting rankings as well. In reality, since the 2016 recruiting cycle, the Tigers average a finish of 9.4. Over that same span, the Irish average out at 14.6.
What have been the outcomes of Clemson and Notre Dame’s direct recruiting battles? Just a few days away from the top four matchup on Saturday at 7:30 pm E.T. inside Notre Dame Stadium, BlueandGold.com breaks it down.
On The Current Roster: Clemson Vs. Notre Dame Head To Head
Who did Notre Dame offer that signed with Clemson and is currently on the Tigers’ current roster and vice-versa? Clemson has 22 players on its team that the Irish offered, while there are 12 Irish student-athletes who held Clemson offers.
It should be noted that there are other recruits who had offers from the other school, but are no longer on the team, whether they have transferred from the program or declared early for the NFL Draft.
Clemson offers on Notre Dame’s roster
2020: DL Rylie Mills
2019: QB Brendon Clark, OL Andrew Kristofic, OL Zeke Correll, DL Jacob Lacey, DL Isaiah Foskey, DB Kyle Hamilton and DB Litchfield Ajavon
2018: WR Kevin Austin, DL Jayson Ademilola, DL Justin Ademilola and DB DJ Brown
2017: None
2016: None
Notre Dame offers on Clemson’s roster
2020: RB Kobe Pace, OL Walker Parks, OL Bryn Tucker, DL Bryan Bresee, LB Trenton Simpson, LB Kevin Swint, DB Fred Davis II, DB Malcolm Greene and DB RJ Mickens
2019: RB Chez Mellusi, WR Joe Ngata, DT Etinosa Reuben, LB Keith Maguire and DB Jalyn Phillips
2018: OL Jackson Carman, DL Darnell Jefferies, DL Xavier Thomas, DL KJ Henry and DL Justin Mascoll
2017: DL Jordan Williams, DL Justin Foster and DB LeAnthony Williams
• Notre Dame has seven players from the 2019 recruiting class who held offers from Clemson but picked the Irish, including a pair of offensive linemen. Andrew Kristofic loved a visit to Notre Dame but then saw Clemson and Ohio State, which gave him something to ponder. However, he visited Notre Dame once again and left that trip on the Irish commitment list.
Zeke Correll also had Clemson and the Fighting Irish on his short list along with Ohio State and Stanford. A summer official visit to Notre Dame helped sway him.
• Another 2019 Irish signee who Clemson wanted was safety Kyle Hamilton, who visited for their junior day a month before he picked the Irish. Clemson was a finalist for Hamilton, but he selected the Irish in April 2018.
• Notre Dame backup quarterback Brendon Clark was the Irish signal-caller in the 2019 cycle, which had twists and turns. The Irish had Cade McNamara committed, but he decommitted and ended at Michigan, so Tommy Rees and Co. turned to Clark after not being able to flip Graham Mertz from Wisconsin.
Clark picked Notre Dame over Clemson, and he was the lone Irish quarterback signee in 2019. The Tigers already had a quarterback pledge from Taisun Phommachanh.
• Another key win for Notre Dame over Clemson was for defensive tackle Jacob Lacey, who visited the Tigers and had them in his final group but chose the Irish.
• In the 2017 class, Matt Bockhorst visited Notre Dame on a number of occasions, but did not receive an offer. The Indianapolis native chose the Tigers and is starting on Clemson’s offensive line at left guard.
• Running back Chez Mellusi may get a couple of carries against Notre Dame on Saturday. The sophomore from Naples, Fla., had Notre Dame on his short list before choosing Clemson but some felt that the Irish cooled on Mellusi before he picked the Tigers. Notre Dame’s running back in that class was Kyren Williams.
• In the 2020 recruiting cycle, offensive lineman Walker Parks visited Notre Dame a couple of weeks before picking Clemson.
• Clemson looked at flipping Jayson and Justin Ademilola from their Notre Dame commitments in the 2017 cycle, but the duo remained solid in their pledges.
2021 Recruiting Battles
• Sorry to bring up a recent wound, Notre Dame fans, but there’s nowhere else to start. Clemson and Notre Dame’s biggest battle in the 2021 cycle was for four-star running back Will Shipley, who hails from a Tiger-friendly Charlotte, N.C. Notre Dame identified him prior to his junior year, and running backs coach Lance Taylor went hard after Shipley, flying to Charlotte to stop by his school every chance he got.
In the end, Notre Dame made it a closer race than it probably should’ve been. Shipley always felt Clemson was the place for him, and even though some pundits felt Notre Dame was the team to beat, it just wasn’t the case.
• Notre Dame offered a few of Clemson’s 2021 commits, but weren’t deeply involved in many of the recruitments: wide receiver Troy Stellato, defensive end Zaire Patterson linebacker Barrett Carter. Notre Dame was interested in running back Phil Mafah, but did not offer.
The Irish would have loved to add California wide receiver Beaux Collins to its 2021 class, but he picked the Tigers over Ohio State and Notre Dame — in that order.
The reason may vary based on who you talk to, but Notre Dame was heavily in the mix for defensive end Cade Denhoff, but cooled on him. He committed to Clemson in January one day after Collins chose the Tigers.
• On Notre Dame’s 2021 commitment list, only one prospect held an offer from the Tigers. Defensive back Ryan Barnes saw his recruitment blow up in the spring, including offers from Clemson and Notre Dame. He committed to Notre Dame in June, and we’re told that Clemson expressed more interest in him after his pledge to see how solid he was, but Barnes is locked in with the Fighting Irish.
• Notre Dame has three pass catcher commitments in the 2021 cycle from Georgia in wide receivers Deion Colzie and Jayden Thomas and tight end Cane Berrong. All three camped at Clemson in the summer of 2019, but didn’t receive offers from the Tigers.
• According to Rivals.com offer lists, which are a good barometer but should be considered unofficial, Clemson has offered 72 recruits in the 2021 class, a very low number. To compare, Notre Dame offered 147 recruits, while Michigan offered a whopping 291 players.
What’s Next? Looking Ahead To 2022
• On Monday, Clemson achieved a big win on the recruiting front when in-state offensive tackle Collin Sadler picked the Tigers. He planned to announce a top 12 on Nov. 1, but felt overwhelmed by the recruiting process and wanted to end it early.
It came down to Clemson and Notre Dame, and he picked the school just 45 minutes away. Notre Dame offensive line coach Jeff Quinn worked hard in the recruitment, and it will be interesting to track if he tries to flip Sadler from the Tigers.
• Another South Carolina recruit Notre Dame has offered is cornerback Jeadyn Lukus, a borderline five-star player. Clemson is considered the favorite to land him, which comes as no surprise.
In the 2021 cycle, Notre Dame was able to go into Ohio State’s backyard for Lorenzo Styles Jr., Georgia’s city for Deion Colzie, and beat out UCLA and USC for Tyler Buchner, but going into Clemson’s territory to win players is a whole different task.
• Three recruits who could potentially decide between the Irish and Tigers are all defensive backs: Toriano Pride, Nikai Martinez and Zion Branch. All are ranked as four-star recruits.
• Notre Dame has also offered linebacker Langston Patterson — brother of Clemson second-year linebacker Kane Patterson — as well as athlete Jake Pope, whose father Brad Pope played safety at Clemson in the mid-1990s. The Tigers have not offered either prospect yet.
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