Not many programs start a recruiting class with a commitment from a long snapper.
Notre Dame football did so Tuesday when Sean Kraft, a rising junior at Swannanoa (N.C.) Asheville Christian Academy, announced his verbal commitment to the Irish. Kraft became the first pledge in Notre Dame’s 2027 class.
The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Kraft received a Notre Dame scholarship offer last Wednesday. The Irish deemed him worthy of an offer after Kraft attended last Monday’s Evaluation Camp and worked out for special teams coordinator Marty Biagi, senior special teams analyst Jesse Schmitt and special teams fellow Michael Vinson.
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Kraft received offers from North Carolina, Wake Forest, Liberty and Arkansas State prior to Notre Dame. He also made visits to Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, NC State and Tennessee.
Rubio Long Snapping ranks Kraft as the No. 1 long snapper in the 2027 class. Rivals has not yet rated/ranked specialists in that class. Kraft also plays defensive line at Asheville Christian Academy.
“Kraft is a massive human being who could pass for a college athlete right now on looks alone,” snapping instructor Chris Rubio wrote on Kraft’s Rubio Long Snapping profile. “His form is gorgeous, and Kraft absolutely rips the ball back to the punter. He has zero wasted movement and easily snaps a college-level ball.
“The tighter Kraft’s spiral gets, the easier the ball will be to catch for the punter. He’s the type of long snapper who can snap for a long time. Tremendous long snapper with simply massive upside. Dominant on and off the field.”
Joseph Vinci, who is expected to be Notre Dame’s starting long snapper on field goals and punts this season, was ranked by Rubio Long Snapping as the No. 3 long snapper in the 2024 class. Vinci came to Notre Dame as a preferred walk-on last year and earned a role as the starting long snapper on punts midway through the season.
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Notre Dame hasn’t signed a scholarship long snapper out of high school since former head coach Brian Kelly’s tenure. Alex Peitsch signed to Notre Dame’s 2020 class on a scholarship after being ranked the No. 1 long snapper in the class by Kohl’s Kicking.
Peitsch played in just one game for Notre Dame during three seasons with the Irish before entering the transfer portal. Peitsch ended up remaining a Notre Dame student to graduate from the university and never resumed his football career elsewhere.
As the landscape of college football is changing with an eventual roster limit of 105 players, Notre Dame is expected to field 95 scholarship players, per head coach Marcus Freeman. Notre Dame will have to decide how to balance recruiting specialists and scholarship allotments. Many of its starting kickers and punters in recent years have come through the transfer portal. Meanwhile, the long snappers have mostly been walk-on players recruited out of high school.
Notre Dame signed kicker/punter Erik Schmidt on scholarship in the 2025 recruiting class. The Irish have not publicly pursued any scholarship specialists in the 2026 class to date.
Most of Notre Dame’s recruiting focus this month has been on the 2026 class with official visits wrapping up some of its top remaining targets. The Irish have the second-ranked class, per Rivals, with 21 verbal commits for 2026. Perhaps Notre Dame’s 2027 class will start to form a foundation following Kraft’s commitment.
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