Notre Dame scored a huge win on the recruiting trail this weekend.
The Irish picked up a verbal pledge from key 2021 defensive line target Gabriel Rubio, who committed to Notre Dame while on an unofficial visit.
The St. Peters (Mo.) Lutheran of St. Charles standout spoke with Blue & Gold Illustrated before making his decision public and said South Bend simply felt like home.
“When I first visited during my sophomore year, I was just really impressed with the way they ran things and the way they taught their techniques,” Rubio said. “I thought to myself, ‘this is a great place. I wonder what other places can compare to this.’ After seeing some others, I believe that Notre Dame is the best out there.
“It feels the most like home. The coaches really care about their players. That’s why I’m committing. Notre Dame is just a great program on the field and academically.”
The Lutheran of St. Charles (Mo.) product picked Notre Dame over offers from Georgia, LSU, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma Texas A&M and several other major programs.
Irish defensive line coach Mike Elston played a big role in winning Rubio over as he built a strong relationship with the talented underclassman over the last year.
“Coach Elston is one of those great combo guys,” Rubio said. “He’s very strict on the football field. Off the football field, he likes to unwind and have fun all the time — maybe most of the time (laughs). Whenever he needs to get stuff done, he gets it done immediately and fast. I like that about him.
“I like the passion that he has for the game of football. Me and him just had an automatic connection after we worked together.”
At 6-foot-5, 280 pounds, Rubio is a big, athletic specimen in the trenches. His father, Angel, played in the NFL, and he certainly has a ton of potential. Notre Dame likes Rubio as a three technique with the versatility to move around along the defensive line.
While making an impact on the field is at the top of mind, Rubio is also excited about his academic career. Notre Dame offers an elite level education, which was extremely appealing to Rubio.
“That factored in quite a bit,” Rubio said. “I’m not going to just go to college to play football. I’m also going to get a degree and have a good job afterwards. It’s a great thing to go to one of the top academic schools. It helped me narrow things down quite a bit.”
Rubio can’t wait to get to Notre Dame down the line and has high expectations for the team. When asked where he thought Notre Dame would be by the time he’s an upperclassman for the Irish, Rubio had this to say.
“If not No. 1 then in the Top 5,” Rubio said. “That’s the plan. We want to win a national championship. That’s what I want for myself and for the team. That’s what we want to get within the next five years.”
Rubio is the third member of Notre Dame’s 2021 recruiting class, joining San Diego Bishop’s School quarterback Tyler Buchner and Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy offensive lineman Greg Crippen.
----
• Talk about it inside Rockne’s Roundtable
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.
• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @BGI_CoachD, @Rivals_Singer and @EJHollandBGI.
• Like us on Facebook.
