Marcus Freeman brought new energy for Christian Gray’s Notre Dame visit
St. Louis De Smet class of 2023 cornerback Christian Gray participated in Notre Dame’s Irish Invasion camp June 6, leading to his scholarship offer. He returned to campus at the end of July for the “Grill and Chill” recruiting event. He even made it to South Bend for Notre Dame’s 55-0 win over Georgia Tech Nov. 20.
Gray is no stranger to Notre Dame. Three visits to a school is plenty. But he made it a priority to get back to South Bend for the weekend of Dec. 10-12.
“It was important to me because Notre Dame is a great school,” he said. “Because of Coach [Marcus] Freeman, I wanted to see how he’ll improve Notre Dame.”
The four-star prospect made the visit because he wanted to see Freeman and what was different about Notre Dame with him recently being named head coach. And Gray saw a program with new energy.
“Yes. It felt totally different because of Coach Freeman,” Gray added. “It was a great vibe. There was a ton of energy. He’s going to love you and push you.
“I got to learn about what Coach Freeman is going to build at Notre Dame. They’re not even scratching the surface of it yet. He’s not doing it for himself; he’s doing it for the kids. After football is over, Notre Dame’s degree can help provide for you, and I learned about that a lot today. It was fascinating.”
Gray got into South Bend on Friday and left early Sunday afternoon. It was a jam-packed weekend, which included watching his first college practice.
“The highlights of the trip were mostly meeting with Coach Freeman and watching the team practice,” Gray said. “That’s what I enjoyed most. I liked checking out the campus too.
“I really enjoyed the practice, especially the one-on-ones, seven-on-seven and team scrimmage.”
Another highlight was spending some time with Irish cornerbacks coach Mike Mickens, who Gray thinks the world of.
“I think he’s a fun coach and a great person to be around,” Gray added. “He can help you get better and improve on your skills.”
Gray has visited Notre Dame four times and Ohio State three times; those are the two schools pundits see as the leaders for him. He’s far along in his recruitment with all the visits he’s taken already, so a commitment may not be that far off.
“I have to find the right school for me,” Gray noted.
Rivals ranks Gray as the nation’s No. 169 overall player and No. 23 cornerback, plus the No. 5 player from his home state of Missouri. In addition to Notre Dame and Ohio State, Gray holds offers from Arizona State, Boston College, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Kent State, Kentucky, Minnesota and Missouri.
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