During his junior year, Prince Kollie starred at safety for Jonesborough (Tenn.) David Crockett, but he finished the 2019 season with zero scholarship offers.
He couldn’t have predicted what would come next — receiving more than 30 scholarship offers, a commitment to Notre Dame, winning the high school Butkus Award (which goes to the nation’s best linebacker) and being named Tennessee Class 5A Mr. Football.
“It’s pretty crazy. Praise be to the Most High,” Kollie said. “It’s huge, especially being from Jonesborough, Tenn. It’s just crazy to think about it.
“I was telling my friends that I probably wasn’t going to win the Butkus Award. There were some pretty good linebackers on the list that I was up against. I definitely wasn’t thinking about all of this last year; I didn’t even know linebacker would be this big for me. Everything has come as a surprise.”
One week before Kollie won the Butkus honors, news broke that Notre Dame linebackers coach and defensive coordinator Clark Lea was taking the vacant Vanderbilt head coach position. With just two days until National Signing Day, Kollie was left dazed and confused.
“I was devasted at first; I was really hurt,” Kollie said. “He’s doing what’s best for his family, so I can’t be mad at that. I do wish I could play under him, but they’ll bring someone else I’ll be able to play for and flourish under as well.”
The Lea news broke on Monday Dec. 16, and Kollie took that day to comprehend the meaning and all of the variables that went into his position coach and coordinator leaving for another school.
He also was in contact with the likes of Georgia, Louisville and LSU on Monday and Tuesday, but after mulling over his options the day before the early signing period began, Kollie locked back in with the Fighting Irish and signed his letter of intent.
“I was pretty shook on Monday, but on Tuesday, I had some calls with Coach [Nick] Lezynski and Coach [Brian] Polian, and that night I was on a phone call with Coach Kelly,” Kollie added. “He reassured me that the position would still be there for a while. That’s what sold me.”
Kollie will start out playing Notre Dame’s rover position, the spot that Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has manned so well the past couple of years. It probably didn’t hurt Kollie’s decision to stick that Owusu-Koramoah also won the Butkus award for his stellar play at the position in 2020.
“That was huge,” explained Kollie. “Coach Kelly’s pitch was that while he’s the head coach, then whoever the defensive coordinator will be — I’ll still have a spot in that defense.”
When Kollie took some time to ponder his options, he was reminded of why he picked Notre Dame in the first place back in August.
“What also sold me was life after football,” Kollie noted. “I had to step back and reevaluate what I was really looking for in a school, and Notre Dame still has all of those things with or without Coach Lea.”
Another reason Kollie picked Notre Dame was his strong connection with the other Fighting Irish student-athletes in the 2021 class. Those young men rallied around Kollie.
“They all knew how close I was with Coach Lea and all of them reached out in hopes to keep me at Notre Dame – and it worked,” Kollie said.
Here are the career stats for the Under Armour All-American: 250 rushes for 1,951 yards and 31 scores ... 105 receptions for 1,683 yards and 16 touchdowns ... 252 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, two sacks, five interceptions, 17 pass deflections, two fumble recoveries and three forced fumbles.
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