Mokwuah makes the flip
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Pete Mokwuah wasted little time debating his sudden choice.
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Rutgers held a commitment from the three-star defensive tackle dating back to the spring before Notre Dame made a serious move in the last week, visiting Mokwuah with new defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder then head coach Brian Kelly.
Kelly trekked to Staten Island, N.Y., on Friday with a scholarship offer in tow and secured a commitment before the meeting ended, a source confirmed to ScarletNation.com.
“They offered him,” St. Joseph by the Sea head coach Richard Clark told the Staten Island Advance. “He was going back and forth on it all week on what to do. I think once he met with coach Kelly, and obviously the school speaks for itself.”
Mokwuah has yet to visit the Notre Dame campus but is scheduled to do so next weekend.
Notre Dame now has 23 commitments overall. Mokwuah is the first projected on the interior of the defensive line and second from New York, joining four-star defensive end Jay Hayes.
Several programs have inquired about Mokwuah over the last few weeks with only the Irish catching his attention. VanGorder visited the 6-foo-4, 305-pound prospect not long after being formally announced as defensive coordinator.
Once the interest started to take shape so did the potential for Mokwuah to go back on his verbal commitment to Rutgers.
“A lot of schools have called, but when Notre Dame called it was a whole different animal,” Clark told Irish Illustrated earlier this week. “He understands that academically, Notre Dame is at an elite level. There are not too many places that can compare academically and athletically and with the history. He’s very in tune to that.
“But the biggest thing is the religious aspect. We’re a very close environment here, a smaller school, Catholic based. It’s a big part of everything we do. We start every class with a prayer and attend mass as a school.”
