Notre Dame’s Top NFL Draft Classes By Decade
What constitutes a successful recruiting class at Notre Dame?
Myriad factors have to be weighed: team records during their time, production, number of players who have prominent roles and, finally, how many in the class ended up getting selected in the NFL Draft?
At Notre Dame, any class with less than four players taken by the NFL will be considered poor.
For example, the 2004 haul that signed 17 players and helped lead to head coach Tyrone Willingham’s ouster had zero drafted, even though running back Darius Walker departed after his junior year.
By Notre Dame recruiting standards, four to six drafted from one recruiting class might be considered “average,” while eight gets you into the sterling category.
The special groups are the ones that reach 10, or even eclipse it.
During the 2010-19 decade, the one that surprisingly might rank as the best is the one signed in 2016. The highest ranking that group received was No. 12 by Rivals, while it as low as No. 16 by ESPN.
Which classes at Notre Dame ranked in the “special” category each decade? Here is a summary since the June 1966 merger agreement between the NFL and AFL.
The 1960s: 1963
This class was the one drafted in 1967, the first year of the merger agreement.
Interim coach Hugh Devore was not head coach material, but he left incoming coaching maestro Ara Parseghian a sensational class of sophomores in 1964 that would lead the Irish to the 1966 consensus national title and a share of one in 1964.
It reached the coveted “10” draftees — four of them in the first round: defensive linemen Alan Page and Kevin Hardy, and offensive linemen Tom Regner and Paul Seiler.
Second-round picks included linebacker Jim Lynch and fullback Larry Conjar, while center George Goeddeke was chosen in the third round. Seven out of 10 were selected in the first three rounds.
The 1970s: 1971
This was Parseghian’s premier group, even though star quarterback Tom Clements, who led the march to the 1973 national title as a junior, wasn’t even drafted, nor was All-American guard Gerry DiNardo, a future head coach at Vanderbilt, LSU and Indiana.
Eleven other members of this recruiting class were, led by first-round defensive tackle Mike Fanning. Linebackers Greg Collins and Drew Mahalic were taken in the second and third rounds, respectively, and Mahalic earned the distinction of being the lone player in the NFL who also earned a Harvard law degree.
Tenth-round pick Steve Sylvester, an offensive lineman, would be on three Super Bowl champions while with the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders.
The 1980s: 1987
This 30-man class recruited by second-year head coach Lou Holtz and his staff provided enormous impact as sophomores for the 1988 national champs.
Ten players were drafted from this haul, with cornerback Todd Lyght the highest as the No. 5 overall pick. The second round included running back Ricky Watters and Lombardi Award winner Chris Zorich at nose guard.
Three other players who transferred from this class also played in the NFL (in addition to the 10 who stayed).
The 1990s: 1990
This was one of the best in college football the past 50 years.
Among the 23 signed, 14 played in the NFL — and record-setting quarterback Kevin McDougal and two-year starting corner Greg Lane weren’t among them.
A record five Notre Dame players in this single class were taken in the first round: fullback Jerome Bettis and cornerback Tom Carter as juniors, and then defensive lineman Bryant Young, offensive lineman and Lombardi Award winner Aaron Taylor, and defensive back Jeff Burris as seniors.
Others from this class who helped lead a 17-game winning streak and were picked in the top three rounds were center Tim Ruddy, wide receiver Lake Dawson and defensive lineman Jim Flanigan.
2000s: 2003
Willingham’s staff used the momentum of a 10-3 debut season in 2002 to sign in 2003 what would be the heart and soul of the back-to-back BCS bowl teams in 2005-06 that totaled 19 wins.
It didn’t quite reach the coveted number “10” in the draft, but six were chosen in the top three rounds, led by quarterback Brady Quinn with the No. 22 pick in the first round.
The second-round players from this class included defensive linemen Victor Abiamari and Trevor Laws, plus tight end John Carlson, while the third round featured tackle Ryan Harris and safety Tom Zbikowski.
Also going on to enjoy good pro careers were late-round selections John Sullivan (center) and Chinedum Ndukwe (safety).
The ninth player who would have been taken, probably in the first three rounds, but opted to be a pitcher in Major League Baseball instead was two-time All-American wide receiver Jeff Samardzija.
2010s: Still To Be Determined
But we believe the group signed in 2016 will have the most — and it played a significant role helping Notre Dame to a 33-6 record the past three seasons, and perhaps aiding another campaign with at least 10 wins in 2020.
No other single class from the decade had more than six drafted by the NFL, but this group should eclipse that mark:
• Consensus All-American cornerback Julian Love turned pro as a junior last year and was selected in the fourth round.
• This weekend, wide receiver Chase Claypool, defensive ends Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem, and cornerback Troy Pride Jr. should raise the total from the 2016 harvest to five.
• If we include Navy transfer and safety Alohi Gilman, a 2016 freshman for the Midshipmen and he gets drafted, that would reach six, plus safety Jalen Elliott could sneak in there as well.
• Next year with a bevy of 2020 fifth-year seniors is what could put the 2016 recruiting haul over the top and potentially reach 10 players drafted from that class. Offensive linemen Liam Eichenberg and Tommy Kraemer both have legitimate shots to be picked, as do defensive ends Ade Ogundeji and Daelin Hayes. As always, health will be a major factor.
If quarterback Ian Book also is chosen in 2021, that would be a promising signal that 2020 was a prosperous year for the Fighting Irish.
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