Notre Dame Football: 5 reasons to be excited about 2018 recruiting class

After putting together another strong draft class, Notre Dame football has its fans excited for what’s to come over the next few years.

While we may not see much of the 2018 draft class over the course of this upcoming season, it’s never too early to look forward to what they can bring to the table in coming years. For reference, take a look at the Irish’s 2017 class. This group of athletes are in the same position that their freshman teammates will be in by the time the 2019 season rolls around.

We’ll go into the similarities between the two classes later, but it’s important to note that no one class can be taken as a direct impression of another. With that said, head coach Brian Kelly will certainly be looking to get some of his 2018 recruits involved in a similar fashion to how he utilized his 2017 class. Regardless of how that turns out, here are five reasons to be excited for the Irish’s latest haul.

5. The Irish have significant diversity at the top

Recently, Notre Dame has been highly regarded for its play in a few areas. The Irish have produced a plethora of stars along the offensive line, and have passed along a few standouts from the tight end and linebacker position as well. Apart from Notre Dame’s recent Alize Mack project, they’ve maintained that pace with solid seasons from upcoming draftees such as Quenton Nelson, Mike McGlinchey, Nyles Morgan, and Greer Martini.

The Irish stuck to the script in 2017, with seven of their top eight rated commits playing either on the offensive line or at the tight end or linebacker position. This wasn’t the case in 2018, however, as Note Dame’s top eight recruits featured players at six different positions. In fact, the Irish’s top three recruits included cornerback Houston Griffith, wide receiver Kevin Austin, and quarterback Phil Jurkovec.

The Irish still boast plenty of talent at their premier positions as well, with four-star linebackers Shayne Simon, Jack Lamb, and Matthew Bauer rounding out one of the nation’s top classes. Notre Dame also received commitments from tight end George Takacs and offensive tackle Jarrett Patterson, both four-star products.

Needless to say, it will be interesting to see how the Irish handle top-tier products from positions outside of Notre Dame’s big three. It might be unfamiliar territory for Kelly, but don’t be surprised to see a change in the landscape of Notre Dame’s strengths over the coming years regardless of success.