12/11/2019 football Edit

Where Notre Dame Commits, Targets Rank In New 2021 Rivals250

Mike Singer • InsideNDSports

Recruiting Insider

Rivals updated its Rivals100 for the class of 2021 on Tuesday, and five Irish commits landed on the list: OL Blake Fisher (No. 18), WR Lorenzo Styles (No. 34), QB Tyler Buchner (No. 42), ATH Deion Colzie (No. 72) and DL Gabriel Rubio (No. 95).

Buchner and Colzie both rose 23 spots, and Fisher and Styles, according to Rivals, are on the cusp of five-star status.

Notre Dame has seven total commits in the class, and all of them rank as top 250 players in the nation. Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy offensive lineman Greg Crippen checks in at No. 125 nationally, dropping seven spots, while Hartwell (Ga.) Hart County tight end Cane Berrong is ranked as the No. 215 player nationally, falling a questionable 37 spots after a strong junior season.

Berrong was named to the Georgia Region 8-AAA first team offense after helping lead Hart County to a 10-3 record before falling in the quarterfinals of the Georgia 3A state playoffs.

Rivals updated its list of prospects ranked from 101-250 on Wednesday afternoon. Here's where the Irish targets rank on the list.

Notre Dame running back target Corey Kiner made a big splash into the Rivals250. (Nick Lucero/Rivals.com)

• Two big targets in the 2021 class for the Irish made big time moves in the rankings after stellar junior campaigns. Cincinnati (Ohio) Roger Bacon running back Corey Kiner was ranked as a three-star prospect and jumped all the way up to No. 114 nationally.

During a game in October, Kiner ran for 323 yards and scored eight total touchdowns. Kiner has already broken his school's career rushing yards record as just a junior. Kiner is one of five running back offers for Notre Dame in the 2021 class.

Napa (Calif.) High athlete Brock Bowers also jumped into the Rivals250 (missing the Rivals100 by one spot) as the No. 101 prospect nationally after being previously ranked as a three-star recruit. He caught 39 passes for 1,098 yards and 14 touchdowns, plus added 316 rushing yards and three scores on just 22 carries this fall.

On defense, the 6-foot-4, 220-pounder made 25 spots, eight tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble in 2019. Notre Dame likes Bowers' talents as both a tight and and defensive end.

• A couple of 2021 offensive line targets moved up in the rankings. Huntington (W. Va.) Spring Valley offensive tackle Wyatt Milum saw a moderate rise from No. 158 to No. 152 in the Rivals' rankings update. Milum visited Notre Dame this fall and is a priority for the Notre Dame staff.

Clarkston (Mich.) High offensive lineman Garrett Dellinger was bumped from a three-star prospect to a four-star prospect inside the Rivals250 at No. 248. Dellinger has been a Notre Dame target for nearly a year and a half and remains a top target for offensive line coach Jeff Quinn.

• A few of Notre Dame's defensive line targets made the list as well with the most notable being Blairstown (N.J.) Blair Academy defensive end Aaron Armitage, who position coach Mike Elston offered just this week. Armitage told Blue & Gold Illustrated that Notre Dame was the offer he had been waiting on. He checks in at No. 110 nationally, a minuscule drop of four spots.

Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter's Prep defensive lineman George Rooks landed an offer from the Irish over a year ago and visited Notre Dame last over the summer. Rooks dropped from No. 134 to No. 116.

Notre Dame offered Jermiah Williams from Birmingham (Ala.) Ramsay this fall and remains in contact with the coaching staff. Rivals ranks him as the No. 212 prospect in the land, falling from No. 189 in the August rankings update.

• A couple of big Notre Dame defensive back targets rank in the Rivals250, including Los Angeles (Calif.) Loyola's Ceyair Wright, who BGI first reported would be visiting South Bend this weekend. Wright moved up four spots to the No. 145 prospect in the land.

Notre Dame quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees was in Wisconsin on Tuesday to see Muskego safety Hunter Wohler, who the Irish offered earlier this fall. He now ranks as the No. 203 prospect in the country, a small drop of four spots.

• A pair of Notre Dame pass catcher targets in the 2021 class checked in the updated Rivals250. Atlanta (Ga.) Pace Academy wide receiver Jayden Thomas' ranking stayed just about the same, dropping five spots to No. 113 nationally. Notre Dame offered the 6-foot-2, 188-pounder during his campus visit Nov. 2.

Aurora (Colo.) Cherokee Trail's Sam Hart is one of Notre Dame's three offers (Brock Bowers, Cane Berrong) in the 2021 class. He ranks just inside the Rivals250 as the No. 242 prospect in America.

Here's where the rest of the uncommitted targets in the 2021 Rivals250 who hold an offer from Notre Dame rank:

(August rankings update to December rankings update)

DB JD Coffey: 105 to 109

DE Cade Denhoff: Unranked to No. 147

OL JC Latham: No. 125 to No. 149

WR Cristian Dixon: No. 74 to No. 161

S Andre Turrentine: No. 162 (no change)

WR Jaquez Smith: No. 113 to No. 165

DE Najee Story: No. 75 to No. 182

OL Trey Zuhn: No. 159 to No. 188

DE Zaver Carter: No. 103 to No. 192

OL Reuben Fatheree: No. 176 to No. 200

Notre Dame has seven commitments in 2021 and is ranked as the top class in the country.

Click here to view the full Rivals250 rankings.

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