Notre Dame Offer Shocks 2022 DB Xavier Nwankpa
Notre Dame dished out just its second defensive back offer in the 2022 class on Saturday.
Pleasant Hill (Iowa) Southeast Polk's Xavier Nwankpa joined Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic's Jaden Gould on the Irish's offered class of 2022 DB board.
Nwankpa was at Notre Dame to see the Irish crush a ranked Navy team and received the good news from head coach Brian Kelly.
"He was saying how I’ve been playing good football for my age, and my academics are good, so he wanted to show that they saw potential in me," Nwankpa said.
The Irish became the fourth school to offer the 6-foot-2, 175-pounder, joining Iowa, Iowa State and Nebraska.
"I was excited and in shock," Nwankpa said. "I didn't think it would happen."
Saturday was Nwankpa's first time visiting Notre Dame and left South Bend with a high view of the campus and facilities.
"The atmosphere there was great," he said. "There's something different about it there."
Nwankpa got to meet Irish defensive backs coaches Todd Lyght and Terry Joseph.
"They're goood people that’d I like to get to know better," Nwankpa said.
Nwankpa had a sensational sophomore year. In helping lead Southeast Polk to a 7-3 season, he had highlight plays as a cornerback, safety, running back and wildcat quarterback.
While he's listed as a corner by Rivals, his highest upside at the next level may be as a ball hawking safety, as shown in his sophomore tape.
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