Signing a full 11-man unit at each position on one side of the football seldom occurs. Yet Notre Dame achieved this on both offense and pretty much on defense in the 2021 recruiting cycle, and added a kicker to boot (no pun intended).
Yesterday we evaluated the offense from an on-paper perspective. Today, it's the defense and special teams..
A — College Football Playoff Contention
B — Top-10 Viability
C — Top-25 Viability
D — Trying To Be Bowl Eligible
Defensive Ends/Tackles
Signed/Rivals Ranking: Gabriel Rubio (No. 106 nationally, 5.9), Will Schweitzer (three stars, 5.7), Jason Onye (three stars, 5.6) and Devin Aupiu (three stars, 5.6)
Meeting Needs: There is not a position group on the team that has been more consistently excellent with its recruiting balance. This is the fourth consecutive year under line coach and associate head coach Mike Elston the Fighting Irish have signed a full complement of players up front, generally two on the edge and two in the interior.
Onye is the wild card with his position flexibility at a listed 6-5, 245. Fighting Irish recruiting coordinator Brian Polian noted Onye is, “the type of guy that might someday be able to rush at three technique and passing down situations, because he would be such a mismatch.”
A recent example includes current freshman Rylie Mills, who enrolled as a listed 250-pound end but who then started becoming a regular in the interior rotation as a 273-pound tackle.
