Notre Dame had a big recruiting weekend when the Irish defeated North Carolina 44-34 Oct. 30, and a key prospect on campus was Denton (Texas) Guyer’s Jackson Arnold, a class of 2023 quarterback.
The 6-2, 195-pound four-star prospect saw Notre Dame for the first time back in June when he participated for a prospect camp, so he had an idea of what to expect when he returned. The game-day atmosphere in South Bend exceeded expectations.
“It was even better than the first time I went, which is kind of surprising because I loved it the first time I was there,” Arnold told BlueandGold.com. “Notre Dame has an awesome campus. Seeing the fall colors made the campus look even better and seeing a game enhanced my experience at Notre Dame.”
Arnold felt the love from the Fighting Irish staff during his time on campus. He spent a good bit of time talking with the entire offensive staff, which of course included offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees.
“It wasn’t necessarily even about football,” Arnold said of his conversation with Rees. “He was just asking about how we’ve been doing, but of course, we did talk about how my recruitment has been going. It was a good, laid-back conversation.”
Rees extended a scholarship offer to Arnold Aug. 4, and the talented signal-caller typically speaks on the phone with Rees about once per week.
“We have a good relationship, and I want it to stay that way because I really love Notre Dame, the coaches and what the program is doing,” explained Arnold. “Notre Dame is definitely one of my top schools right now.”
Also during his visit, Arnold was able to speak with Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly along with a couple Notre Dame commits in the 2022 class — running back Jadarian Price and tight end Eli Raridon.
Arnold met briefly with Kelly during his visit back in June. During the late October trip, Arnold saw a new side of Kelly.
“He showed his personality,” Arnold said. “He dabbed us up, started making jokes and was really laid back. It was cool seeing him behind the scenes.”
Arnold seems to be in no rush to make a decision on his school of choice.
“I want to keep my options open,” he stated. “You never know which opportunities will present themselves at the end of the year.”
At this time last fall, Arnold was Guyer’s backup quarterback, as Texas A&M-bound Eli Stowers led the Wildcats’ offense to a deep playoff run. It’s been quite a jump for Guyer to go from a backup quarterback to four-star, national recruit with offers from the likes of Baylor, Florida, Michigan State, Mississippi, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State and Tennessee.
“It’s really awesome,” he said. “It’s pretty exciting to see all of my hard work pay off and a childhood dream of mine has come true. I’m thankful to experience the things I have.”
The weekend following his trip to Notre Dame, Arnold checked out Ole Miss for its 27-14 win over Liberty. Next up for Arnold is leading Guyer to a hopeful playoff run in the Texas 6A DII State Tournament which begins this Friday.
Thus far during his junior season in leading Guyer to a 9-1 regular season record, Arnold has completed 200 of 308 passes for 2,363 yards with 19 touchdowns and three interceptions, plus 424 rushing yards and five scores.
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