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By the numbers: Notre Dame football’s 2022 recruiting class

While there is a possibility for a potential addition for Notre Dame on National Signing Day with Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral defensive end Anthony Lucas announcing at 3:30 p.m. ET, below is a by-the-numbers look at the Fighting Irish’s 2022 class.

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish football defensive end signee Tyson Ford
All-American defensive end Tyson Ford signed with the Fighting Irish on Wednesday morning.

14 — Recruiting cycles since the last time Notre Dame landed consecutive top-10 recruiting classes in 2007 and 2008, a feat the program has a chance of matching this year. The Fighting Irish’s 2021 class checked in at No. 9 and Rivals rated this year’s group at No. 7 heading into the early signing period.

Under head coach Charlie Weis, the 2007 class ranked No. 8 and was highlighted by five-star quarterback Jimmy Clausen, All-American wide receiver Golden Tate (the 2009 Biletnikoff Award winner) and current Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith.

The 2008 class was ranked No. 2 and featured several five-star notables, including tight end Kyle Rudolph, wide receiver Michael Floyd and quarterback Dayne Crist.


3 — Defensive linemen signed in the 2022 class.

Continuing to flex his recruiting muscle at these critical positions, defensive line/associate head coach Mike Elston landed two four-star ends in Aiden Gobaira and Tyson Ford, along with three-star tackle Donovan Hinish, the younger brother of 2021 Irish team captain and multiple-year defensive tackle starter Kurt Hinish.

Defensive line is a position Notre Dame struggled recruit before Elston arrived with Brian Kelly in 2010, but that unit now has more depth and elite talent than other position group over the last decade.


1 — Notre Dame recruit ranked among the top 50 overall players in the country.

After having two top-50 recruits through most of this recruiting cycle, four-star wide receiver CJ Williams (No. 6 WR and No. 46 overall player) from powerhouse Mater Dei in Santa Ana, Calif., decommitted from Notre Dame on Monday, leaving 6-1, 208-pound linebacker Jaylen Sneed (No. 4 OLB and No. 41 overall player) out of Hilton Head, S.C., as the lone top-50 player in this class.

The late decommitment from Williams dropped the Irish from No. 5 to No. 7 in the latest available Rivals team rankings, and likely ended any hopes of Notre Dame securing its first top-five recruiting class since 2013.

45 — Minutes it took for Marcus Freeman to exit stage right after his introduction as Notre Dame’s 30th head coach Dec. 3 to board a private jet with Irish offensive coordinator Tommy Rees for a lengthy recruiting journey.

The first stop was a visit with uncommitted four-star offensive guard Billy Schrauth in Fond du Lac, Wis. The second stop was in Vancouver, Wash., to visit and provide poaching protection for committed four-star wide receiver Tobias Merriweather.

Freeman’s first recruiting trip as Irish head coach paid off.

Schrauth, a 6-6, 280-pound four-star recruit (No. 3 OG and No. 125 overall player) committed to Notre Dame a few days after Freeman’s visit, and Merriweather (No. 25 WR and No. 167 overall player) never wavered with his pledge.


1 — Recruit who attended the same high school as Freeman.

Coming from football powerhouse Wayne High School in Huber Heights, Ohio, near Dayton, offensive tackle Aamil Wagner — a lanky 6-foot-6, 265-pound, four-star player — earned an All-American Bowl invite out of the same school and program that Freeman collected Parade High School All-American honors at in 2004.

Mike Mickens, Notre Dame’s cornerbacks coach and former NFL player, as well as former Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller are other notable Wayne High School alumni.

5 — Offensive linemen in this recruiting class, the highest number of players among any position group.

Realizing that offensive line recruits typically take longer to develop physically compared to those at other position groups — and given Notre Dame will lose at least two starters after this season, a year after putting four 2020 linemen starters into the 2021 NFL Draft — the Irish recruiters refortified the trench force with four four-star players and one three-star recruit.

None of this group provides the freshman hype or star power that linemen Blake Fisher and Rocco Spindler did this time last year. But led by 6-6, 285-pound four-star tackle Ty Chan (No. 11 OT and No. 111 overall player), this quintet features four top-200 overall players, including three who are rated among the top 11 at their positions.


17 — The number of states represented in this year’s recruiting class.

A 21-man group from 17 states, that’s expected to rank in the top 10 nationally, nicely illustrates Notre Dame’s broad appeal and how important it will be for Freeman to not only sustain the program’s recruiting momentum but to also build upon it.

From Massachusetts in the Northeast; to Georgia in the South; to California and Arizona out West; to Washington state in the Northwest, Notre Dame’s class covers all U.S. corners.

California, New Jersey, Michigan and Indiana each provided two players to the class, while 13 other states added one.

Notably, even through Notre Dame’s coaching turnover and turmoil, the Irish recruiters still pulled and protected players from Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Iowa and Texas — five difficult states to attract and hold recruits from, even under ideal conditions.

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