Notre Dame’s Florida Recruiting Under Brian Kelly

The verbal commit this week to Notre Dame from 2021 Valrico, Fla., four-star cornerback Philip Riley is the first for the program from the Sunshine State over the past three recruiting cycles.

When head coach Brian Kelly completed his 11th recruiting year at Notre Dame this winter, it marked the second straight cycle the Fighting Irish did not add anyone to the roster from Florida.

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That was somewhat surprising because in the first nine years from 2010-18, Florida was one of the most prominent states in the school’s recruiting efforts, signing 30 players (about 3.4 per season).

Unfortunately, the rate of attrition among Florida players was also relatively high with 10 of the 30 eventually transferring for various reasons. Perhaps as a consequence of that, Notre Dame concentrated more on neighboring Georgia with its recruiting efforts.

Here is the year-by-year breakdown of Notre Dame’s Florida recruits during the Kelly regime.

Bruce Heggie (Mount Dora), Louis Nix (Jacksonville), Spencer Boyd (Cape Coral) and Lo Wood (Apopka)

The wide-bodied Nix started three years at nose guard (2011-13) and was a valued force during the 12-0 regular season in 2012. An injury dropped him to third-round draft status after his senior year.

Boyd transferred to South Florida following the spring semester in which he enrolled in January.

Cornerback Wood was sidelined all of 2012 with an Achilles injury and used his fifth season at Miami (Ohio) under his former Irish position coach Chuck Martin.

Aaron Lynch (Cape Coral), Jordan Prestwood (Plant City) and Anthony Rabasa (Miami)

Lynch earned Freshman All-America honors, but that spring — like Boyd a year earlier — transferred to USF to be closer to home.

Offensive tackle Prestwood, who originally committed to Florida State, also departed after his freshman season and had a peripatetic career that included junior college.

Justin Ferguson (Pembroke Pines)

Recruited as a wide receiver, he transferred to Western Michigan after his freshman season and moved to safety, where he starred as a fifth-year senior in 2016.

Greg Bryant (Cocoa), Michael Deeb (Plantation), Tarean Folston (Delray Beach) and Mike Heuerman (Naples)

Five-star running back Bryant saw limited action his first two seasons before getting ruled academically ineligible in 2015, transferring to UAB and then tragically dying from gun fire in his native state on May 8, 2016.

Folston saw extensive action his first two seasons at running back, but a knee injury in the 2015 opener sidelined him that season and he never quite regained his form.

Linebacker Deeb and tight end Heuerman also had their football careers ended by injury, and Heuerman overcame even more.

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Corey Holmes (Fort Lauderdale)

From powerful St. Thomas Aquinas, Holmes caught 11 passes as a junior before becoming a graduate transfer at Purdue, where he nabbed one pass in 2017.

Te’von Coney (Palm Beach Gardens) and Dexter Williams (Orlando)

Although not drafted, linebacker Coney overcame an early arrest for possession in 2016 to become a stalwart on the 2017-18 Irish defenses that helped produce a 22-4 record and a College Football Playoff bid as a senior.

Williams also had myriad off-the-field setbacks, including the one with Coney in 2016 and a four-game suspension to open his senior year. He then exploded with 995 rushing yards and was integral in Notre Dame’s run to the CFP.

Parker Boudreaux (Orlando), Jonathan Jones (Orlando), Tony Jones Jr. (Bradenton), Deon McIntosh (Jacksonville), Spencer Perry (Bradenton), Kevin Stepherson (Jacksonville) and Devin Studstill (Palm Beach Gardens)

Stepherson and Studstill both shined as freshmen on a 4-8 team, with Stepherson snaring 25 passes that averaged 18.5 yards and included five touchdowns, while Studstill started nine games at safety.

Like Williams, Stepherson was suspended the first four games in 2017 before he too came back strong with 19 catches for 359 yards and five scores — and then was dismissed from school that December for repeated problems with the law that even led to a jail sentence. He is now enrolled at Jacksonville State, in his hometown, where he caught 36 passes and six scores last season.

Studstill fell on the depth chart later in his career, but thrived as a graduate transfer at USF last season with 74 tackles.

Like Stepherson, running back McIntosh was dismissed from the program in the winter of 2018 after rushing for 368 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore. He is now at Washington State, where he rushed for 111 yards and caught 17 passes in 2019.

Offensive lineman Boudreaux transferred to Central Florida after his freshman year, while Perry transferred to South Alabama.

Both Jones (not related) graduated from Notre Dame. Linebacker Jonathan will be a graduate transfer at Toledo, while running back Tony signed as a free agent with the New Orleans Saints after a strong senior campaign in which his 857 rushing yards, with six scores, paced the team.

Robert Hainsey (Bradenton), Jonathan MacCollister (Orlando), Dillan Gibbons (Clearwater) and Drew White (Fort Lauderdale)

Offensive tackle Hainsey, by way of Pittsburgh to IMG Academy (like Tony Jones and Perry), already was named a captain as a junior last season, while White in his first season of starting at linebacker tied for the team lead in tackles (80).

Like high school teammate Boudreaux a year earlier, defensive end MacCollister transferred to UCF, where he is now a tight end.

Reserve offensive guard Gibbons was going to be sidelined this spring while recovering from an injury.

Kevin Austin (Coconut Creek), Houston Griffith (Bradenton), George Takacs (Naples) and Joe Wilkins Jr. (North Fort Myers)

Wide receiver Austin was suspended all of last season, but did practice with the team and is expected to play a major role this season, much like running back Williams did in 2018 following a suspension.

Griffith, another IMG Academy product, by way of Chicago, was a top recruit who, like Austin, is projected to blossom as a junior, at safety after an adjustment phase his first two seasons.

Reserve tight end Takacs caught a touchdown pass versus Duke last season, while former defensive back recruit Wilkins is working to snare his first career pass at receiver.

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