North Carolina Recruiting Ground Continues To Grow At Notre Dame
This weekend’s commitment from three-star Sanford, N.C., running back Jahmir Smith for the 2018 class added to Notre Dame’s recruiting growth over the past decade in the Tar Heel state.
This state’s trajectory has trended up for the Fighting Irish and should continue to do so, especially since becoming a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013. The football schedule is now regularly featuring teams from Tobacco Road, including three in a four-game stretch this year with a visit to North Carolina (Oct. 7) before hosting North Carolina State (Oct. 28) and Wake Forest (Nov. 4) on back-to-back weekends.
It marks the first time since 2010 that Notre Dame has three teams from the same state on the schedule. That season it had Michigan, Michigan State and Western Michigan.
Even with only partial membership in ACC football, Notre Dame was expected to make greater recruiting inroads in North Carolina and Virginia, states where the football talent has swelled in recent decades with population shifts.
Until the 1970s, North Carolina was barely on Notre Dame’s football recruiting radar, but now it’s becoming more and more prominent, and has become a productive area for head coach Brian Kelly and his staff.
By our count, 26 players in history have seen football action at Notre Dame, and eight of them (or 30.7 percent) have come in the last seven seasons under Kelly. Chronologically, they are: linebackers Prince Shembo (Charlotte) and Kendall Moore (Raleigh) in 2010, linebacker Ben Councell (Asheville) and defensive back Matthias Farley (Charlotte) in 2011, defensive end Romeo Okwara (Charlotte) and offensive lineman Mark Harrell (Charlotte) in 2012, current senior captain and linebacker Greer Martini (Cary), and sophomore drop end Julian Okwara (Charlotte), younger brother of Romeo.
It’s become rare for Notre Dame now not to sign at least one player each season from the Tar Heel state, with kicker Jonathan Doerer (Charlotte) the most recent this February.
Here is our list of top 5 (plus one with a tie) Notre Dame players from North Carolina:
1. Al Hunter (Greenville, 1973, 1975-76)
When he enrolled in 1973, Hunter’s 9.3 speed in the 100-yard dash was believed to be the fastest ever by a Notre Dame football player. It was showcased in the national title contest that season when he returned a kickoff for a 93-yard score in the 24-23 victory versus No. 1 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Suspended in 1974, Hunter returned and rushed for 558 yards and eight scores in 1975.
In 1976 he became the first Notre Dame player to break the 1,000-yard rushing barrier in a season with 1,058 and 12 TDs — not including 102 more and two scores in the 20-9 Gator Bowl win over Penn State. He also caught 15 passes that season for 189 yards and another TD.
Alas, he was dismissed again from school prior to Notre Dame’s 1977 march to the national title and was taken in the first NFL Supplemental Draft.
2. Dave Waymer (Charlotte, 1976-79)
Extraordinary athlete saved the Navy game as a freshman with a clutch pass breakup in the end zone in the 27-21 win. The next season for the national champs he started at flanker before shifting back to corner his last two seasons, and was named a team captain as a senior.
He developed into a second-round pick and intercepted 48 passes during a 13-year NFL career before passing away at age 34.
3. Lee Becton (Ernul, 1991-94)
Although not as fast as Hunter, Becton enjoyed a sensational junior campaign in 1993 for the 11-1 Irish, rushing for 1,044 yards and 6.4 yards per carry during the regular season, and then adding 138 yards on 26 attempts in the 24-21 Cotton Bowl win over Texas A&M. He set a school record with seven straight 100-yard rushing outputs — and did not lose a fumble during that span.
He finished his career with 2,029 yards rushing but was not drafted by the NFL.
4. Prince Shembo (Charlotte, 2010-13)
Voted Notre Dame’s Defensive Player of The Year as a senior in 2013, highlighted by 17 quarterback hurries, the three-year starter at outside linebacker also excelled for the stellar 2012 defense with 51 tackles, including 7.5 sacks.
The fourth-round pick had 145 stops during his career with 19.5 sacks.
5. Kinnon Tatum (Fayetteville, 1993-96) and Robert Blanton (Matthews, 2008-11)
Inside linebacker Tatum finished second in tackles in 1995 (82) and first in 1996 (77) to become a third-round NFL pick.
Blanton was a playmaker at corner, nickel and special teams all four seasons with 194 stops, 19.5 for loss. He intercepted two passes each year, returning one for a score in a 2008 win versus Purdue, and also tallied on a punt he blocked versus Utah in 2010 to propel a 28-3 victory.
Tatum played two seasons in the NFL for his home state Charlotte Panthers, while Blanton enters his sixth season in the league. He is currently with the Dallas Cowboys after four seasons at Minnesota and one at Buffalo in 2016.
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