2008 Notre Dame Recruiting

Now that signing day is upon us and the Irish have faired well on the offensive side, it's time to look ahead to the recruiting class of 2008.

Notre Dame didn’t issue many scholarship offers during the junior day held on Saturday, but one player that did receive an offer was Dave Posluszny of Hopewell High School (Aliquippa, Pa.) Posluszny didn’t have many expectations heading into the weekend, but he certainly was happy with how everything played out.

Notre Dame needs to sign top defensive talent in order to help new defensive coordinator, Corwin Brown, solidify the defense. One player the Irish have targeted for the 2008 recruiting class is linebacker David Posluszny (6-2, 200 pounds)

"It went really... and they offered me,” Posluszny responded when asked about his junior day visit. “We got there, and coach Latina net with us. He introduced us to the new linebackers coach (coach Polian). My family and I met with him and he asked us a few questions. Then all the recruits gathered together for a presentation.

“I learned a lot more about the academics side of the school and I also got to see more of the facilities. I really liked everything. I was really impressed with everything that they have to offer

And One More:

Paterson Catholic (N.J.) head coach Benji Wimberly still gets questions from college recruiters about whether or not Jarel Lowery could still play tight end. The answer is yes, but at 6-foot-4, 275 pounds and growing, Lowery will be one of the most sought after defensive tackles in the recruiting class of 2008.

Lowery’s junior season didn’t go as originally anticipated. He was the returning starter at tight end for the defending state champions. He was expecting a bigger role at defensive end, after playing spot duty as a sophomore. Colleges across the country were interested in him as a tight end. He was ready to really bust out.

Then in August, Wimberly approached Lowery and told him that after analyzing what personnel the team had, it would be better if he moved to defensive and offensive tackle. Back in June, Lowery shocked everybody by weighing in at 275 pounds, even though he appeared to be much smaller. Muscle outweighs fat, and that was certainly the case here, and that’s what originally sent this solution in motion

Paterson Catholic lined up mostly in a 4-3 defense, and sometimes a 5-2, but Lowery wouldn’t be against playing in the 3-4 on the next level.

“I’d be interested in that because I would love to learn something new. I would look into that a lot.”

That has already been proven.

“I think he is a Notre Dame type kid,” Wimberly said. “I think he has the character they’re looking for. I think he is a Penn State, Boston College, Notre Dame type kid. Excellent student (3.2 GPA), and that doesn’t hurt at all.”

Senior Bowl Practice Notes (Defense)

The one bright spot for the Defense this past season was the improved play of Victor Abiamiri. He became a strong pass rusher and improved considerably with his Run Defending. He will make a very good NFL player and showed what he had this week at the Senior Bowl. Notes by Scout.com

Victor Abiamiri/Notre Dame

Ht: 6.044 Wt: 271
Arm: 33 1/2 Hand: 10 1/4

Monday Practice Notes: Gets upfield very well for a player of his size with great reaction to the ball. Does not move very well laterally against the run.

Tuesday Practice Notes: Athletic prospect who shows the ability to change directions well. Dips his shoulder off the edge in his pass rush. Does struggle to get off of blocks when engaged and needs to be quicker on his counter moves in his pass rush. Some teams have inquired about him possibly being a 34 outside linebacker.

Wednesday Practice Notes: Athletically looks the part but had a quiet day. Part of the reason is because he struggled to get off of blocks. Change of direction during pass rush drills was not as stellar as was perceived during yesterday’s practice.

Thursday Practice Notes: In pass rushing situation, Abiamiri does not posses the greatest initial moves but did an especially nice job on his countermoves today. One mental breakdown did allow a back to break contain to make a big run to the outside during inside drill.

Analysis: Physically there are not many who are on Abiamiri’s level. One of the more impressive looking prospects down in Mobile, his overall play was not as stellar. Inconsistent in many areas of his game as the week progresses, especially struggling with getting off blocks at times. Some teams are looking at him as a possible 34 outside linebacker. A talented prospect who will likely go higher than his play would indicate.

Good Honest testimonial from Blue Gray Sky

BLUE GRAY SKY

Thank you IRT for the laugh

The IRISHROUNDTABLE.COM has a great post about the Gators latest commit and the class of 2007.

Defensive Line Help?

With the defection of Justin Trattou, the DL is in dire straits. And not the Mark Knopfler kind.

Coach Weis has gotten a couple of commits to think about the switch from offense to defensive line.

IAN WILLIAMS--Recruited as a defensive lineman. Will do very well, but without help, may be in trouble.

ANDREW NUSS--Was asked and delivered. Charlie spoke with the young man and he decided that for the betterment of the team, he would move to the DL. He is big, fast and athletic, but he is a freshman coming in.

Notre Dame has needs on both side of the ball, but their need along the defensive front may be greater than their need at offensive guard. Emeka Nwankwo (6-foot-5, 270 pounds) will be happy no matter what position he plays, but he would like a chance to play defense.

The team will be fine in two years, but what about 2007? The athletes that Weis has coming in are different than in the past. Different in a couple of respects:

1: They all have the confidence needed to come in and play

2: They are all cocky enough to think they can come in and make an immediate impact.

I like both of these qualities. Very important will be the role of the New Defensive coordinator. What defense will the Irish run? The 3-4 D will be my guess. We shall see.

NFL showing interest in Victor Abiamiri

Seattle coaches and scouts are in Mobile, along with every other staff in the league, and they were seen observing Notre Dame DE Victor Abiamiri who has been one of the standouts in practices so far this week. Here’s a quick breakdown of Abiamiri and where he projects in the draft.

Rest of the story from Scout.com insider

As a defender, Abiamiri is excellent when rushing the passer. That’s his forte and it showed up in the stat column as he posted 30.5 sacks in his four years in South Bend.

Abiamiri also posted 126 tackles and 40 tackles for loss.

NFL Comparison: Adewale Ogunleye, Chicago Bears

Strengths: Abiamiri runs very well for a man his size and he’s got the frame to add 10 to 15 pounds to become a solid weakside defensive end. He pursues well, has a great motor and he already has developed some solid pass-rush moves to get to the quarterback. He is still improving and he’s an excellent tackler as well.

Weaknesses: He doesn’t hold up well when teams run directly at him. He also has a tendency to play too high, allowing blockers to get into his chest, nullifying his outstanding athleticism. He’s still developing as a football player and doesn’t possess the instincts right now to diagnose plays quickly. If he doesn’t gain some weight and strength, he will get pushed around by physical tackles. Struggles to disengage when a blocker gets their hands on him.

Roster Impact for Seattle: With the possibility that DE Grant Wistrom may be cut this June to save some money, Seattle may be in the market for a solid young defensive end to come in and take over the reigns at the right defensive end position. Fisher and second-year player Darryl Tapp are sure-things to return, but they fit better on the left (strong) side. Even if Wistrom does come back, Abiamiri would be a solid addition to the roster and add excellent depth as he develops his skills.

Draft Projection: On most draft boards, Abiamiri is slotted as a top five defensive end in what is a weak class this year. At this point he’s considered a lock for the second round, but he could sneak into the first round with good workouts leading up to the draft.

**Note: Keep an eye out for more of these updates as we find out who the Seahawks are looking at over the next few weeks.

Williams Stock Increases

Notre Dame and Charlie Weis have made some inroads to a better Defense. In Our opinion A DL is where it will all start. Two commits that were projected at OL will now play DL. We discussed this in prior postings. Now Ian Williams speaks about the chance to play, what he is expecting and the ND team of 2007.

As national signing day approaches Ian Williams’ value to the Notre Dame football program increases. The standout from Lyman High School is the lone commitment the Irish have from an interior defensive lineman in the 2007 recruiting class.

Scout Insider members, CLICK HERE

Everyone else, Read On!

Is there any prospect in the Notre Dame recruiting class that is more important than Ian Williams? The big defensive lineman committed to Notre Dame in December, sending a wave of relief to Irish recruiting fans. Since that time Notre Dame has seen it’s other options along the defensive front disappear.

“I saw that [Will] Blackwell committed to LSU today. We could still get Jason Peters, but I’m doubting that,” Williams responded when asked about Notre Dame’s defensive line recruiting. “It isn’t a big concern. I know that I’ll have to step up a lot more, but it is kind of a concern.

“I look at it like an opportunity, but I also I want to have guys to compete with. I do want to come in and start, but I want to have a team atmosphere. I don’t want to be the only guy. I want to go two and three deep so that we’ll be able to rotate guys in. I know in the college game that nobody is able to play the whole game. If anything happens to me, we’ll have to have someone to step in.”

Notre Dame still has time to add players to this recruiting class, and Williams still has six months until he reports to Notre Dame. His life hasn’t change much since he committed to the Irish, but he doesn’t miss the recruiting calls.

“Right now I’m just enjoying life, and relaxing,” Williams said. “I finally have my nights back. It’s become a lot less hectic. I don’t get all the calls from all the recruiters any more and I don’t get all the calls from Scout and Rivals. I got use to it but I don’t miss it.

“I’m basically lifting and get ready to go to Notre Dame in June. I work out with my teammate; he’s always in the weight room so I just work on with him. I need to work on getting faster and stronger. It’s going to be a different speed in college so I want to improve that. I have a lot that I need to work on, my strength and my agility, but I’m not worried about it. When I get up there they’ll put me in their strength and conditioning program and I’ll get much better.”

The Notre Dame coaches expect Williams to help improve their defense. He has stayed in touch with his recruiting coach and Ian has discussed the changes with the Irish coaching staff.

“Yesterday I spoke with coach Parmalee,” Williams explained. “We talked about getting Corwin Brown as the defensive coordinator. He seems like a hard-nosed guy so I think we’ll be all right. II think he’ll turn the defense around.

“Coach Parmalee is just introducing me to what is going on at Notre Dame and what I should expect. I’m getting to know him a lot better. He doesn’t really preach to me about recruiting since I’ve already committed. He’s just become a real good friend and I think the next couple years that we’ll become really close.”