Too much has changed on Notre Dame’s campus for Jim Flanigan to guide a complete tour for his son. But the older Flanigan, a former Irish defensive lineman from 1990-93, had plenty of knowledge to pass down to James Flanigan, one of Notre Dame’s newest tight ends targets in the 2025 class.
The younger Flanigan hadn’t been to campus in a couple of years. Saturday was his first visit as a coveted recruit.
"He knew a lot about everything, so it was great to have him there," James Flanigan said of his father, a 1993 All-America honorable mention selection. "He was pretty excited about a lot of the new stuff they had too, because obviously it’s changed so much since he was there.”
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James Flanigan shared that excitement.
“Everything we did was pretty cool,” he said. “Going to practice, seeing the campus and meeting with coaches was all great.”
Notre Dame showed James Flanigan he was on its radar when former special teams coordinator Brian Mason made a stop at Notre Dame de la Baie Academy in Green Bay, Wisc., in January. Mason has since left the program for the Indianapolis Colts, but offensive coordinator/tight ends coach Gerad Parker and quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli have followed through with Notre Dame’s interest.
Shortly after Mason visited, it was Guidugli — then Wisconsin’s passing game coordinator/tight ends coach — who presented James Flanigan with his first college football scholarship offer. The two spent some time together on Notre Dame’s campus Saturday. James Flanigan’s trip to Notre Dame was his first since a Jan. 28 visit to Wisconsin.
“He’s a cool guy. I really like him,” James Flanigan said of Guidugli. “It was exciting for me to see him again. We talked for a bit and caught up. It was great.”
The Flanigans spent more time with Parker.
“We sat down in the meeting room, and he walked me through what it means to be a tight end at Notre Dame,” James Flanigan said.
After a sophomore season in which he caught 22 passes for 520 yards and nine touchdowns, James Flanigan has received offers from Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Penn State and Missouri. But the 6-foot-5, 226-pound Flanigan also tallied 66 tackles, seven tackles for loss and three sacks as a linebacker.
That toughness James Flanigan plays with on defense — which he credits as his dad’s influence — extends on offense too. He’s not interested in being only a pass-catching tight end.
“I’m definitely more of a two-way player,” James Flanigan said. “I’m physical. I like blocking down the field. I can also catch the ball and run in open space too. Just an all-around player who’s physical.”
Naturally, James Flanigan was drawn to the intensity of Notre Dame’s spring practice Saturday.
“It was awesome,” he said. “It was definitely really competitive in there. You could tell everybody was just trying to make themselves and everybody around them better.
“They also have a lot of cool stuff like the screen where you can see the play after it happens. So you can make corrections live in real time.”
As James Flanigan works through the early portion of his recruitment, he’s identified to areas of focus which will play a significant role in his eventual college decision.
“How I’d be used in the offense based on what type of player I am and what I enjoy doing,” James Flanigan said. “Doing both blocking and catching. Academics is also a big part of that too. I’m thinking about what I want to do after football.”
And even though his father knows more about Notre Dame than the other schools recruiting him, James Flanigan doesn’t expect that to impact his path.
“He’s been supportive,” James Flanigan said. “He’s given me tips about how to talk to coaches and handle media. But he doesn’t put any pressure on me to side toward one kind of school or the other. He respects my decision either way.”
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