12/16/2019 football Edit

Notre Dame Recruiting News: Mayer, Irish Recruits Lock In With ND

Mike Singer • InsideNDSports

Recruiting Insider

@MikeTSinger

News and notes on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish recruiting trail.

Michael Mayer affirmed that he will be signing with Notre Dame (Rivals.com)

Notre Dame TE Commit Michael Mayer Breaks Silence

The news of offensive coordinator Chip Long's departure from the Notre Dame football came as a surprise to the Irish's commits, but the nine pledges in the 2020 class and group of 2021 verbals were unfazed.

The timing of the news wasn't all too bad either, as it came a week before National Signing Day when head coach Brian Kelly was out on the road to assure his recruits who would be signing that everything would be just fine. Last week, Kelly had home visits with tight end commits Kevin Bauman and Michael Mayer, wide receiver Jay Brunelle, quarterback Drew Pyne and running back Chris Tyree after the news came out.

Bauman actually received a visit from Kelly about two hours after FootballScoop's initial report that Long was not expected to return to the program.

"Coach Kelly told us that they parted ways and their search starts now," Bauman told BGI. "They're going to find a new offensive coordinators and tight ends coach. I can imagine they'll have a bunch of options. They'll take it through the bowl game and will find a coach and we'll find out soon enough."

Mayer may have taken the news the hardest, but his in-home visit with Kelly, running backs coach Lance Taylor, special teams coordinator Brian Polian and wide receivers coach Del Alexander helped ease his mind.

"I will be signing with the University of Notre Dame on December 18th at 11 in the Covington Catholic auditorium," Mayer tweeted.

MORE REACTION

Notre Dame’s Elite 2021 Offensive Class Looking To Stay Together

Xavier Watts Locked In With Notre Dame

WR Jay Brunelle Recaps Visit With Notre Dame Coaches

QB Drew Pyne Shares Thoughts On Visit With Brian Kelly; Chip Long News

PODCAST: Discussing Recruiting Impact Of Chip Long's Departure

Echoes Recruiting Weekend A Success

Notre Dame had a handful of recruits at its Echoes awards show on Friday night who also stayed for the Irish's bowl practice the following morning and took in the Notre Dame men's basketball teams defeating UCLA.

A half dozen recruits who hold offers from Notre Dame, including 2021 commits Deion Colzie and Blake Fisher, were a part of a small but important recruiting weekend.

West Bloomfield (Mich.) High running back Donovan Edwards, the nation's No. 58 recruit, and Los Angeles (Calif.) Loyola cornerback Ceyair Wright, the No. 145 recruit in the land, were two of the headliners over the weekend.

Here are BGI's stories to recap the weekend:

The Gold Standard: Weekend Recruiting Scoop

Notre Dame "Is Up There" For Star RB Donovan Edwards Following Visit

Notre Dame Impresses 2021 Rivals250 ATH Ceyair Wright

Visitor Preview: Big Recruiting Weekend On Tap For Notre Dame

2021 ATH Who Visited Notre Dame Saturday..

Rivals Rankings Updates

Rivals updated its class of 2020 rankings during the first week of December and made chances to the 2021 rankings last week. Here is where Notre Dame commits moved in the national Rivals250 rankings for the respective classes:

Recruit: Current national ranking (change from previous ranking)

2020

WR Jordan Johnson: No. 25 (-4)

TE Michael Mayer: No. 37 (+21)

RB Chris Tyree: No. 43 (-3)

OL Tosh Baker: No. 48 (-4)

QB Drew Pyne: No. 118 (-18)

TE Kevin Bauman: No. 130 (-3)

DE Rylie Mills: No. 161 (-1)

DE Jordan Botelho: No. 198 (+13)

Thoughts On Notre Dame's 2020 Commits In Updated Rivals Rankings

Four Notre Dame 2020 Commits Rank In New Rivals100