Osiris St. Brown might appear to be a lock to play at Notre Dame given his ties to the school, but if you ask the Rivals.com four-star prospect about his recruitment, he'll tell you that's far from the truth. Sure, St. Brown's older brother, Equanimeous, is a freshman wideout at Notre Dame, but the high school junior claims that ultimately his brother's choice to play for the Irish will only play a small factor in his decision.
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That's why Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Sanford was at Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei last month to check up on St. Brown and his younger brother, 2018 wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown.
"I didn't get a chance to talk to him, but it's a big thing just seeing him out on the practice field because I think that was one of the first visits he made on the bye week," Osiris St. Brown said.
"The fact that he came out to Mater Dei to watch me, my brother and our quarterback [JT Daniels] means a lot. It means we're a priority. It's something that will definitely have an impact on my recruitment."
And that's a good thing for Notre Dame, because Osiris St. Brown has quickly turned into commodity on the West Coast following an offseason transfer from Anaheim (Calif.) Servite to Mater Dei.
The 6-0, 170-pound wideout, who is ranked as the No. 16 talent in California, and the No. 18 wide receiver and No. 119 overall prospect in the country in the class of 2017, has picked up scholarship offers form UCLA, Colorado and Vanderbilt in recent months, and has heard more and more from schools like Washington, USC and Texas A&M.
"I have been talking to Cal a lot recently," St. Brown said when asked about his recruitment. "They started talking to me a little bit more after I got offered by UCLA. I think that's what really sparked the conversations with them. I have been also talking to Washington a little bit, and there's a bunch of others."
Notre Dame offered St. Brown in January 2015 when Irish head coach Brian Kelly was at the family's residence for an in-home visit with Equanimeous. At the time, Osiris said it was an honor to earn a bid from a prestigious school like Notre Dame, and he claims that's still the case.
"I wanted to go to the Boston College game, but I'm not sure if I'm going to have time," he said when asked about a potential trip to see the Irish.
"I have been to a couple of games. I was at USC and UCLA just because it's right around the corner, but I haven't planned any trips or anything like that. I hope to see a Stanford game, and probably a Washington game and a Notre Dame game if I can."
While St. Brown hasn't been able to see Notre Dame play in person that doesn't mean that he hasn't been keeping a close eye on the team this season. The speedy wideout said he has watched almost every game with his family to see Equanimeous in action.
"I like how they are playing him right now, but I think they should get him in a little bit more, especially if they are blowing out teams," St. Brown said with a laugh. "I think he's liking it there, and I know he's satisfied. I like that, and I think they are going to get him involved a lot next season."
St. Brown added that one thing he has noticed this season when watching Notre Dame is the Irish's commitment to the passing game with sophomore quarterback DeShone Kizer in the huddle.
"It's awesome," he said. "They throw the ball a lot, and they have a good balance with the running. I like Kizer. I like him as a quarterback, and he has a strong arm."
St. Brown has caught 22 passes for 464 yards and nine touchdowns this season. He last visited Notre Dame in April.