Four-Star CB Jaeden Gould Goes In-Depth On Notre Dame
Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic class of 2022 cornerback Jaeden Gould cut his list down to six schools on Feb. 23. Clemson, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Rutgers and USC are the programs to beat for the four-star prospect.
Gould has been to five of the six programs, with the lone school he hasn’t visited being Clemson. He would like to head to South Carolina to see the Tigers and get out to other universities in his top group, as some of his visits came years ago.
Due to the NCAA’s recruiting dead period, any trips Gould would take prior to May 31 would have to be for self-guided tours. Gould is hoping that the dead period lifts heading into June so he can take trips and make a decision before his senior year.
“I don’t think I’ll cut it down again,” Gould said about his top schools list. “It’ll probably just be a commitment after that point.”
Gould visited Notre Dame about a year and a half ago and has been on the staff’s radar for quite some time. In fact, he was the Irish’s first class of 2022 recruit they offered in February 2019.
“I loved Notre Dame when I visited — the campus, dorms and the facilities are top notch,” Gould said. “They’re a top-notch program. The locker room was amazing. I definitely enjoyed my time being there.”
Contact between the two parties didn’t pick up to the point where it is now until Notre Dame hired Marcus Freeman as defensive coordinator in January.
“When Coach Freeman came in, they really started recruiting heavy,” Gould explained. “It’s about every day — calls, texts, FaceTimes and Zooms. They’re starting to put the pressure on now.”
Gould has a Zoom call with the Irish staff just about every Monday. This week’s call was for the excellence presentation with special teams coordinator Brian Polian. His connection with the staff becomes stronger with each and every call.
“They build the relationship with me and my family and express the importance of the education I’ll get at Notre Dame, plus being able to play in the College Football Playoff,” Gould added. “They tell me how much they want me and how I could have the ability to play early.
“Those coaches are like family. I just talked to Coach [Brian] Kelly recently. … They’re really great guys. You saw what Coach Freeman and Coach [Mike] Mickens previously did at Cincinnati; they brought that program to be successful on the defensive side of the ball.”
Gould attends one of the finest Catholic high schools in the Northeast. While not close in proximity, Notre Dame offers a familiar feel to Gould having gone to Bergen Catholic.
“It has a similar structure to Notre Dame,” he noted. “We’re strongly considering Notre Dame. It has the best of both worlds. Some schools are better academically than they are in football and vice versa, but Notre Dame gives you both at an elite level. That’s something to consider strongly.”
Rivals ranks Gould as a four-star prospect, the No. 4 player in New Jersey and the nation’s No. 28 cornerback.
Notre Dame is also recruiting defensive back Jayden Bellamy and quarterback Steve Angeli from Bergen Catholic in the 2022 class.
There are currently two Rivals FutureCast picks in for Gould to land at Michigan and one for Notre Dame.
During his six-game junior season, Gould posted 13 tackles, one tackle for loss, four passes defended and one fumble recovery. Gould was named to the 2020 MaxPreps High School Football Junior All-America first-team defense.
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